I waited to get this notebook loaded with Vista. I have mixed feelings. The notebook hardware design is quite sleek and handsome. I am not so impressed with Vista running on this machine though. It just feels that Vista is a resource hog and is constantly running the CPU at 100% which causes the fan to run endlessly. I think the issue is that Sony used the same hardware specs as the previous TX series just to get a Vista version out quickly, but it really is not equipped to handle the new Vista OS as well. So I was disappointed when I upgraded to this notebook thinking that it would run faster, but actually it runs slower than my previous Vaio running Win XP. Though there are some improvements with Vista over XP, Vista probably runs better on a Duo Intel chipset than the Solo that is used in this notebook. The poor notebook is contantly working overtime just to do very simple normal every day applications and it takes forever to start up or reboot. If you just base it on looks alone, then it gets a 4 start rating. (Posted on 08/26/07)

If you're buying this laptop, it's undoubtedly partially for the design, style and lightweight features of the TX series. You can get cheaper, better performing options at about the same weight, but it won't have the "wow" factor of this TXN27N. That being said let's get right into the pros and cons.

As a side note, if you're wondering about differences between the 25,27, 29 TX models, it's pretty straightforward. The 25 has 1GB RAM and 80GB hard drive, the 27 has 2GB RAM, 100 GB hard drive, the 29 is the same as the 27 except it comes with a carrying case and the exterior has a sleek special shiny coating. IMO, the 27N is the best value among the 3 when you look at the price points.

(Posted on 08/26/07)