A Few Sony TX Questions

Hi All,
Can you guys help me out and answer some of my questions?

Ok, I'm thinking about buying one of the laptops from Sony's TX series but I have a few worries.

How well do they handle video files?

Is there any slowdown with Divx or Xvid files? Does it depend on the size and/or quailty of the video file?

Is there ever any slowdown with DVDs?

How durable is it? Does it bend? Is it flimsy? Does it scratch easily?

How is the screen? Is it too small? Is it too weak?

I've read lots of user reviews over at Cnet and lots of people seem like they have had problems. What do you guys think about it?

I am a college student and a commuter so I need my laptop to be portable yet durable. My laptop will probably need to take some "punishment". With this in mind, I'm a bit worried that the Sony TX might be too fragile. I've read lots of user reviews saying that they have cracks in their screens (The Xbrite glossy part). I've even heard people saying they their screens have completely stopped working. These problems might come from the screen being so thin and flexible. I'm also wondering if this is actually a problem or if it is just a few bad apples in the bunch.

Thanks a lot,
NastyNate

 

You'll really have to look at one yourself to see if the screen is to your liking, it all depends on personal preference, I personally have no problem whatsoever viewing 10" screens whereas my brother would go blind from it.

It should have no problems in viewing dvds, dvd movie watching should be quite enjoyable on this machine.

 

well the screen size isn't a problem, I'm just a bit worried that it might break because it is so flexible and thin. I'm also worried about the general durability of the system.

 

I personally would be concerned about the build quality of it, it is a small, fragile machine I'd say. I would be very, very gentle with it.

 

i just picked one up about 4 days ago.. its a nice system.. i dont know what you mean by how durable it will be, because I havnt had it long.. all i can suggest you get a nice sleeve and case to carry it around in. its not the fastest thing on the market, but it sure it small and easy to bring where ever.. I dont have a case/sleeve yet, becuase ive been trying to decide on which kind...

i ordered a 1gb stick from newegg on monday, its suppose 2 be here friday.

i would recommend this laptop very highly if you want an ultra portable for just surfering, msoffice, email, photoshop, dreamweaver...

i dont do any video editing but im sure it wil be fine, just get a 1gb stick of memory

other than that the keyboard bad for me, but i dont have huge fat hands, so its not a big deal to me.. in fact i like the keys very much..

 

there is a TX review on laptoplogic.com
http://www.laptoplogic.com/reviews/detail.php?id=98
i hope this would help.

 

I've read the laptop logic review but it didn't say anything about the durability of the system. Tom's Hardware Guide had a review and said that the system flexed a bit
"Despite the many theoretical advantages of these carbon materials, you can't help but notice a quiet flexing sound from the case when you pick this lightweight laptop up with one hand. This left us with the purely subjective impression that this case wasn't especially stable or rigid."
This worries me but it might not actually be a problem.

 

as a student i'm looking for a light weight notebook to take to my classes and write on papers. for my engineering classes i will also need dreamweaver and c++. can you comfortably work with these programs on the small tx screen?

 

i have no issues running dreamweaver. I dont code c++ couldnt help you there.

go check it out at Circuit city... they should have a demo for you to play with..

the only real draw backs to this thing is is the cpu speed is 1.2centrino.. its like a 2Ghz system pertty much... You would def want to get a 1GB mem upgrade from newegg if you want to complie c++ apps

 

Well, the screen is pretty tough for its thickness, but it is a really really thin screen. From what I have read and personal testing in stores, I will say it's not something you want to be careless with, but it will stand up to normal usage with no problem.

 

OK this is what I read:
I almost bought this computer, but decided to go to Best Buy to actually see it. I am very glad I did: the Best Buy's floor sample had many glass cracks on the LCD panel. I wondered why, and the answer is actually simple: the screen is made very thin and while the "polycarbonate" cover touted by Sony is strong in terms that the cover itself does not break, at the same time it is very flexible and unfortunately the glass inside the screen is not flexible, so the LCD glass cracks when the screen is bent a little.

So, I imagine the glass would often break if you put your computer inside a bag with something else that could bend-in the cover or if you drop it or you are not handling this thing like a baby. None of the other computers I saw in Best Buy had the cracks on LCD panels. So, if you ever decide to buy it, I would highly recommend buying an accidental damage protection, which adds $300-$500 to the price depending on where you buy it.

From shaposhn at http://www.pricegrabber.com/rating_getprodrev.php/masterid=12764065/id_type=masterid

 

the screen is thin, its a laptop not a football. just treat it good and it will treat you good.. if your all so worried about breaking **** get the accidental protection

The point is dont buy a 2000 football. I dont care what laptop you buy if you treat it bad it wont last.

 

also, with such a nice laptop, imagine how many people would look and play with the floor model. I'm sure the floor model has taken abuses. Even with my S560, I always hold the screen on the stiffest section when adjusting the screen.

 

OK thanks a lot guys. I'll prolly buy it and get a really nice padded backpack case for it. Thanks a lot for all the help.

One more thing, does anyone know how well it handles divx or xvid files? Is there any slowdown?

Thanks a lot

 

Where do you consider it to be the stiffest part of the screen btw? Just out of curiosity.

 

Oh yeah, you wouldn't beleive some of the people that just downright abuse these floor models, poor notebooks...
But I am still concerned about the screen, the thinness of it amazes me but could it really be very fragile?

 

It is not fragile for its thickness. The floor model here in US is easily abused because people look at it from the front first then play with the lid without realizing how thin the lid is. The stores that I went to see TX in Taiwan all have circular stand and they quite conveniently angled TX toward the store so the first thing you see going in the store is TX and how thin its lid is.

 

its strong enough for day to day use u wont break it unless your stupid and drop it or hit it with a hammer

 

Sorry, I said it wrong, basically what I meant is, I hold the side edges closest to the hinge when I want to move/make adjustments to the screen. This way I don't risk bending the screen. Although I think the screen is stiff enough that they won't bend.

 

I think you would have to be pretty abusive with it. I messed with one in the store and I think you would have to use a LOT of force to break the glass.