Sony refreshes Vaio range with Haswell chips
Sony unveils the fourth-gen Intel powered Vaio Pro Ultrabook and the next look Duo 13.
Sony has refreshed its Vaio range, bringing out a new 13-inch version of its hybrid Duo, as well as launching a Vaio Pro ultrabook range, all powered by Intel's Haswell chipset.
The Vaio Duo 13 is the next iteration of the hybrid Duo product, upping the screen size to 13.3-inches, but tweaking the hinge system and screen bezel to keep roughly the same weight and footprint as the Duo 11.
Speaking to CNET Australia, Jun Yoon, Marketing Manager of network entertainment at Sony Australia said that the Duo 13 would maintain a constant net connection even in sleep mode, allowing it to "come out of sleep mode in less than one second, with email, social media and the like already updated".
"It's about delivering the speed expectations of a tablet in an ultrabook-style form," Yoon added.
The Duo 13 also now sports a full size keyboard with touchpad and a bigger battery, allowing for an 11 hour battery life.
The Vaio Pro is a new Ultrabook range for Sony, with the Pro 11 and Pro 13 being launched in Australia.
Both are the lightest Ultrabooks for their respective classes, with the Pro 11 weighing just 870g, while the Pro 13 comes in a 1.06kg.
Sony has cut the weight in the Pro range by using carbon fibre in the chassis construction.
All of these devices will have Haswell chipsets and all will feature touch screens. In fact, touch screens will be standard across all new Vaio products from Sony.
In addition, all screens will use the Triluminos display technology from Sony's Bravia TV range, along with the X-Reality image processing engine. The screens will be IPS panels and full HD.
The Vaio Pro series will be available in "early June", with the Pro 11 starting at AU$1,299 and the Pro 13 at AU$1,399.
The Duo 13 will arrive in July and start at AU$1,699