Sony Vaio Duo 11 user reviews

Pros All full sized ports. I7, 256 SSD, 8 GB. Monitor is more stable than a traditional laptop, the keyboard is comfortable, display is amazing, camera front and back, battery life great, keyboard protected in tablet mode, good balance open or closed.

Cons No trackpad a disappointment although I've learned that Windows 8 is quite efficient using the touch screen, plus the mouse nub thing is optical so it actually works really well.

Summary After looking at all the convertible options available today, this is the best. It has 8GB of RAM. It has a 256GB SSD drive. In tablet mode, the keyboard isn't exposed. Those benefits leave you down to the Sony Duo and the Dell Duo. The final decision point is the Sony is 2.7 lbs while the Dell is around 4 lbs. Sony is the winner for a while in my book.

Pros Very good hybrid that suits my needs for on the go computing. Way better than Intel Atom powered tablets. Good production and media consumption tool.

Cons Pricey for some just testing the waters with Windows 8. Keyboard is somewhat cramped and trackball navigation can be challenging, Thankfully the touch responsiveness of the screen, virtual keyboard and digitizer pen help overcome this drawback.

Summary A great, cool device I'd highly recommend for those who don't mind the price. While it has drawbacks, it's an excellent iteration of the hybrid concept by Sony and with just some refinements, could be the perfect device for those who want the best of both worlds.

Pros Form factor - portable and easy to use
Screen
RAM - 8G on i7 model
Always attached keyboard
Build quality

Cons Battery life
Slightly heavy to hold up with one hand
No slot for the pen

Summary Sony has been able to successfully merge two, possibly three devices into one. The i7 with 8GB of ram and 256GB SSD replaces my laptop and android tablet. It has specifications that when connected to a monitor or HDTV via HDMI port can replace my desktop as well. I have tried other Windows 8 tablets from Samsung and the Surface that do a good job at being a PC tablet. The Duo 11 surpasses those devices by having a slightly larger and more brilliant screen as well as always having a connected keyboard. I have been using this device or over three months and it has not failed me in any way. All games, productivity software and entertainment have run flawlessly. To the other people that have had bad experience with the Duo 11, it was just bad luck on the device(s) that you ended up with.

Pros Fast to boot up
High resolution screen

Cons Poor build quality
Cramped keyboard

Summary I was delighted with my purchase at first. Near instantaneous boot up time. I had fun using it as a tablet. No problems there. But what I wanted was a machine that could be used as a laptop replacement. This is where the Sony Viao Duo 11 failed ... miserably!!

None of the legacy software that I wanted to install worked even though this was a Windows 8 machine. If the download succeeded at all, the setup would not run. Brought it back to the store. Same problem. They identified the wifi card as being faulty and gave me a replacement unit. But the second unit had the same issue! Brought it back to the store again and left it in for repair. When I went to collect it the next day I requested that they try to install yet another legacy software application while I looked on. Again, the same problem as before.

The in-store tech support guys gave up in the end and offered me a full refund.

For this to happen with one machine is bad enough but there is simply no excuse for two machines to be faulty like this. This reflects poorly on Sony's quality assurance and I would have expected more from them. You may be luckier than I was but ... this could happen to you too so be warned and steer clear ... unless you don't mind gambling with your money of course. Last time I'll buy a Sony anyway.