Sony AR790U/B the best there is?

Is the AR790 the best laptop you can buy from Sony at this moment?
Was just checking the specs and the only thing i dont like is the videocard - Nvidia 8600M GT

I do like the quality and the screen of the Sony laptops alot and am currently still using my SZ (1st generation) but at times it seems like its a bit too small.

Alternatives i'm looking at is the Dell and the Alienware, altough they are not as sleekly build and the screen isnt' as colourful as the Sony's.

Anyone here who bought the AR790 (or any AR) and can convince me to replace my SZ with it?

Whats the timeline actually - will Sony come out with a new laptop that will replace the AR series soon?

 

I just received my AR790u/b two days ago and have not been able to take my hands off of it since. The initial setup took a few hours due to a tremendous amount of crapware needing to be uninstalled. After that this thing has been a dream. I also was looking at Dell and Alienware but the closest I could come to the AR790 configuration was around 4000.00 from both dell and alienware. My other deciding factor was the fact that it is slimmer and lighter than it's competition and doesn't come with a giant power brick like Dell. My only dislike with the Vaio is the slower Harddrive speed but it so far is not noticable at all. The screen is gorgeous and both gaming and bluray playback are perfect. Hope this helps

 

Yes, you guys are right about Sony screens. They are magic! I have recently bought a TZ with such a tiny beautiful screen and looking forward to get my hands on AR770 I have ordered more than a month ago.
Now tell me, why in the world no one else make such screens for their laptops?

 

Thanks for your reply!
Your opinion does help for sure as the decisions were comparable with mine.

Your right about the harddrive part but how come you didnt change it to a 7200rpm one instead?

 

I didn't up the hardrives because I didn't buy it from sony. They were on backorder but Newegg had them in stock and for 150.00 cheaper than Sony or anyone else actually and I needed a laptop pronto because my Qosmio crapped out. I used that discount to upgrade the free shipping to UPS overnight for like 38.00. Ordered on the 11th of this month at noon had it in my hands on the 12th at 10:00 am I'd say that was worth it.

 

Very nice how it worked out for you Sikclown.
And also pretty interesting u had the Qosmio before and eventually did choose Sony

I'm pretty sure the 7200 HD will give a bit of a performance boost!
If i do buy, i wont be buying from Sony directly but through shops.

Any other things you notice about the AR?

 

Only other thing I notice about my AR790 is that I love this dang machine. First time I have ever installed all my business apps on a laptop and had no slow down whatsoever. My Qosmio was a great machine but once I got everything I needed installed it slowed down significantly. I have owned Dells, Toshibas, and Acers from here on out I am sticking with Sony

 

I am so impressed with what Sony is offering with the AR790 wow its an amazing machine , Its to the point were Im willing to deal with Vista. Before I start to Rant, I know I know im asking alot but Im a MB PRO fan. I was going to wait for a new updated MP Pro but if apple doesn't add a blu-ray player Hi-Def screen with a TV-Tuner option for under 4k within the next 2 months I will have to get this Sony laptop. Apple has 2 months to get it together or I will be converting back to windows and the ar790 will be mine, I cannot denie that sony is offering an amazing machine and for a good price.

 

The only thing lacking in AR series is the Fingerprint Scanner!!! WHY??? I am so used to it... I would already have it!

 

Finger scanner is something I could live without, its really just a luxury item

 

Toshiba makes the Sony TZ screen.

HTH

TT

 

Now that I'm faced with recovering the data from my torched TZ, I'm delighted I never went near the fingerprint scanner. You might consider this scenario before committing your data to it.

TT

 

Well put!!

 

Hello JohnNL and all,

I'm up in Canada and was able to get a ar790 shipped up to me...this model is not available in Canada and the closest model isn't even available till Feb 22!

Anyway...I have been waiting for a laptop like this for a long time! The only thing I was vexed about is that the coax input was removed from the ar790, and the free blu-ray disc and hdmi to dvi cable were not included.

I am used to running 2 to 3 monitors...the 1920x1200 makes it that I can be fully productive just on the laptop alone with my adobe suites.

I totally love Vista Ultimate...I love the new interface...I don't care what the naysayers are ranting about, I haven't experienced any problems and really am quite excited with the new gui. I have worked on macs and I simply just prefer windows. It may be that all the bad experiences on Vista has been due to incapable machines...the ar790 makes vista SNAP...there is NO delay and I have all "effects" like transparencies etc turned on. I've done the opposite of all the magazine articles talking about speeding up vista and it still runs fast on the ar790.

I'm a photographer and web designer...I needed a computer that will make an impression while I'm with clients. The ar790 just makes my work JUMP! Its like showing up to a date in some exotic car! Yes macs seem to be the "thing" right now, but you'd be surprised the impact showing up with this vaio makes!

Anti-glare on the screen blows me away...I actually like the gloss screen for the first time ever! I had the laptop next to an hp and the glare on the vaio was hardly noticible in comparison. I had to do a double take and look for the reflection of the window behind me.

I also wanted this AR for the dual hard drives! I have no metric on how much faster it is but I also upgraded to 7200 drives and programs are snappy, photoshop CS3 starts in 6 seconds from cold start...shutting it down and opening it later only takes 2 seconds. Don't know if this is good or bad...but I find it fast.

For me, there is nothing on the market right now that has the power and style of the ar790.

On another note, I just got the NotePal W1 by Cooler Master, it looks AMAZING with the ar790 and works even better. I have not numbers for cooling effect but it makes typing on the massive keyboard area much nicer.

Well, that's all for now

 

Thanks jcphoto for your reply

Have been looking around and i am in the same boat now that i cannot find the AR790 or similar in my country yet (Netherlands)
The best you can buy now is still the AR61ZU

 

I just cant believe their isn't more noise about this laptop, Its a true Gem.

 

hehe, i would've liked more feedback and response as well on the AR series.
Its too quiet on the forum about it!

 

I have the AR790 and can affirm that it is BY FAR the best.

Beyonds its style and oraganization, it is the only system you don't have to build yourself with a penryn and RAID0.

I can play Crysis and switch back and forth from surfing the internet without a hiccup.

 

I've been looking at the VGN-AR770 and the only 7200 rpm hardrive is a 400 GB's (2x200) for $400.

Too bad, the lack of hard drive options and the load of crapware is slowly taking the Sony out of my cart.

 

I haven't gotten around to removing the crapware and I can tell you the system doesn't run slow at all! If the ar790 is going to run even faster when I remove the crapware then WOW!

vaio AR laptops won't be right for everyone

 

Is there anyone can give me the TV-Turner in this machine...there are some romours that it is only working with cable...and out of USA u can't use this well...I would like to buy this machine but also cos of I am kinda nomad I need TV with computer which can work alone like other TV turners...