The computing arsenal of road warriors should include three items: ultralight weight, long battery life, and easy connectivity. The new Sony VAIO TR2A laptop fulfills each requirement, and then some. It offers the same extralight, 3.1-pound case as its predecessor, the TR1A, with souped-up specs such as a 1GHz Pentium M processor and a 40GB hard drive. The Sony VAIO TR2A earned a phenomenal 258-minute score in CNET Labs' battery-drain test. In addition, it sports three ways to get on the Web: 56Kbps dial-up, Ethernet, and 802.11b wireless networking. Other pluses include an integrated digital camera, and a dedicated flash media slot. All told, the Sony VAIO TR2A remains one of the smartest laptop choices available for highly mobile professionals.
See also: Sony VAIO TR3AP2; Sony VAIO TR3AP3; Sony VAIO TR3AP1; Sony VAIO TR3A
The Sony VAIO TR2A's cool, ultralight case offers just about everything a journalist, a surveyor, or another mobile professional needs to get the job done. It's small and light enough to tote almost anywhere, measuring 10.6 by 1.4 by 7.4 inches and weighing 3.1 pounds, standard for an ultraportable.
The Good
The Bad
The Bottom Line
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| The touchpad and two mouse buttons are munchkin-size. |
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| A small camera sits atop the display. |
Despite the laptop's small size, it includes a hearty selection of features for those who do both written and visual work. The keyboard isn't the widest in the world, but it's broad enough to dash off quick articles or reports without causing finger cramps. The integrated, rotating video camera on top of the 10.6-inch screen allows you to take stills and full-motion video to accompany your reports.
You can zap your work back to the office via the Sony VAIO TR2A's 56Kbps modem, Ethernet, or 802.11b wireless connections. A handy wireless on/off switch on the system's front edge helps to conserve battery life when you're not using wireless. You can also use the laptop's dedicated slot to download your music files or pictures from a Memory Stick flash media card or burn your work to disc using the integrated DVD/CD-RW drive. A healthy selection of ports--including FireWire, VGA, and USB 2.0--let you plug peripherals such as monitors, keyboards, and printers into the Sony VAIO TR2A.
Amid all these perks, some drawbacks exist. The Sony VAIO TR2A's touchpad and two mouse buttons are munchkin-size. The screen's high 1,280x768 native resolution makes for very detailed graphics--but minuscule text. (You can, of course, adjust the resolution.) And we wish you could swap out the fixed disk drive for other modules, such as a second battery, or at least choose a cutting-edge DVD+RW drive when you buy.
See also: Sony VAIO TR3AP2; Sony VAIO TR3AP3; Sony VAIO TR3AP1; Sony VAIO TR3A
Most ultralight manufacturers run a tight ship when it comes to the specs you can choose at purchase time, but Sony takes the idea to the extreme with the Sony VAIO TR2A. The laptop's only variable is its 266MHz DDR memory, which starts at 512MB and maxes out at 1GB. The remaining components don't budge, but fortunately, they're right on the mark for an ultralight laptop. The list includes a 1GHz Pentium M processor, a 40GB hard drive, an Intel 855GM graphics chip with up to 64MB of video RAM borrowed from main memory, an integrated DVD/CD-RW drive, an exceptionally bright 10.6-inch screen, and built-in 802.11b wireless. To achieve true component excellence, Sony would have to include bleeding-edge parts such as a DVD+RW drive and 802.11g wireless.
The Sony VAIO TR2A offers a decent software selection. Windows XP Home is the laptop's sole operating system choice. Microsoft's Works 7.0 minisuite, Money 2004, and Encarta Online are the only office productivity options.
When it comes to multimedia apps, the playing field widens considerably. Sony's own DVgate lets you capture video or images from your built-in or external camera, edit those clips, then export them to a VCR or a DVD player to record on tape or disc. You can also use the included InterVideo WinDVD 4.0 player to view them on the Sony VAIO TR2A. Sony PictureGear Studio and Adobe Photoshop Elements allow you to import and edit photos, then organize them in online collections or albums. Plus, Sony's SonicStage software assists with music playback and organization.
See also: Sony VAIO TR3AP2; Sony VAIO TR3AP3; Sony VAIO TR3AP1; Sony VAIO TR3A
The Sony VAIO TR2A came in last place in mobile performance in this small test group, bested by both the Toshiba Portégé R1000 and the Panasonic ToughBook CFW2. The Toshiba Portégé R1000 scored only eight points higher than the Sony VAIO TR2A, which is not a huge difference and wouldn't be noticeable when performing most real-world tasks. The 900MHz Pentium M-based Panasonic ToughBook CFW2, however, scored 17 points higher than the 1GHz Pentium M-based Sony VAIO TR2A, which translates into a noticeable difference in mobile performance. Compared to its peers, the Sony VAIO TR2A comes up short, but not by a huge amount.
Performance analysis written by CNET Labs assistant lab manager Eric Franklin.
Mobile application performance (Longer bars indicate better performance)
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Panasonic ToughBook CFW2
Windows XP Pro; 900MHz Intel Pentium M; 512MB DDR SDRAM 266MHz; Intel 82852/82855GM/GME Extreme Graphics (up to 64MB); Hitachi DK23EA-60 60GB 4,200rpm
Sony VAIO TR2A
Windows XP Home; 1,000MHz Intel Pentium M; 512MB DDR SDRAM 266MHz; Intel 82852/82855 GM/GME Extreme Graphics (up to 64MB); Toshiba MK4004GAH 40GB 4,200rpm
Toshiba Portégé R1000
Windows XP Professional; 1,000MHz Intel Pentium M; 256MB DDR SDRAM 266MHz; Trident Video Accelerator Cyber-XP4 32MB; Toshiba MK4004GAH 40GB 4,200rpm
See also: Sony VAIO TR3AP2; Sony VAIO TR3AP3; Sony VAIO TR3AP1; Sony VAIO TR3A
The Sony VAIO TR2A had a much better showing in battery life than in mobile performance, lasting more than four hours, thanks to its 11.1V, 3600mAh (48WHr) battery--good enough for second place in this small test group. This was more than enough to beat the Toshiba Portégé R1000 with its default 10.8V, 1600mAh (17WHr) battery, which lasted only a bit more than two hours. The Panasonic ToughBook CFW2, however, was just too much for the Sony VAIO TR2A to handle, cranking for nearly six hours with its 7.4V, 6,600mAh (49WHr) battery. Still, the Sony VAIO TR2A lasts long enough to get about half a day's work done.
Battery life analysis written by CNET Labs assistant lab manager Eric Franklin.
Battery life (Longer bars indicate better performance)
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To measure mobile application performance and battery life, CNET Labs uses BAPCo's MobileMark 2002. MobileMark measures both application performance and battery life concurrently using a number of popular applications (Microsoft Word 2002, Microsoft Excel 2002, Microsoft PowerPoint 2002, Microsoft Outlook 2002, Netscape Communicator 6.0, WinZip Computing WinZip 8.0, McAfee VirusScan 5.13, Adobe Photoshop 6.0.1, and Macromedia Flash 5.0).
System configurations:Panasonic ToughBook CFW2
Windows XP Pro; 900MHz Intel Pentium M; 512MB DDR SDRAM 266MHz; Intel 82852/82855GM/GME Extreme Graphics (up to 64MB); Hitachi DK23EA-60 60GB 4,200rpm
Sony VAIO TR2A
Windows XP Home; 1,000MHz Intel Pentium M; 512MB DDR SDRAM 266MHz; Intel 82852/82855 GM/GME Extreme Graphics (up to 64MB); Toshiba MK4004GAH 40GB 4,200rpm
Toshiba Portégé R1000
Windows XP Professional; 1,000MHz Intel Pentium M; 256MB DDR SDRAM 266MHz; Trident Video Accelerator Cyber-XP4 32MB; Toshiba MK4004GAH 40GB 4,200rpm
See also: Sony VAIO TR3AP2; Sony VAIO TR3AP3; Sony VAIO TR3AP1; Sony VAIO TR3A
While Sony comes on strong with the Sony VAIO TR2A's design, its warranty is merely average (although it's typical for the industry). Free parts and labor with return-to-depot service and toll-free, 24/7 phone support last for one year. You can't buy an extended policy online, but some retailers offer various warranty extensions.
The laptop ships with some of the better documentation we've seen among Sony laptops. Both the hard-copy quick-start guide and electronic user manual include step-by-step graphics on how to set up and use the Sony VAIO TR2A. Unfortunately, Sony's limited support Web site still pales in comparison to those of other laptop manufacturers, lacking handy features such as user forums and the ability to chat in real time with a tech-support rep.
To find out more about how this product's warranty really stacks up and what you should look for in terms of service and support, take a look at CNET's hardware warranty explainer.
See also: Sony VAIO TR3AP2; Sony VAIO TR3AP3; Sony VAIO TR3AP1; Sony VAIO TR3A