Vaio SR - Right time to buy? Upgradability?

I am interested in purchasing a Vaio SR (they look beautiful and powerful - love it), but unfortunately it is just outside of my price range if I configure it the way I'd like to. On sonystyle.com, with the campus discount, a barebones machine comes in at about $1550 with the three year warranty and two "accessories" (required for the discount). This is just within my budget.

Here are a couple questions about different routes I am considering:

- Has anyone heard any rumors/predictions about coupons coming to this line in the near future? I am able to find recent coupons for almost every other line except this one (actually, I did find two coupons for this line, but they were fake). It seems like $200/$300 coupons are fairly common on SonyStyle, but would they release coupons for such a new line?

- Which components in the SR are consumer upgradable? RAM is, of course, but what about processor and hard drive? I realize that this is not the "recommended" route, but I am considering purchasing the laptop now at the lowest config, and then upgrading to a Montevina processor and 7200 rpm hard drive around Christmas time. Would this be possible?

Thanks for your help!

 

You can definitely upgrade the hard drive, there's someone on here that's already done it. Processor will be more difficult, but it should be possible. Either one will void the warranty though (I believe).

 

Wireless card is also upgradeable. Depending on the route you go (CTO or retail), you will have to buy the 5300 separately for $30 or so.

 

It already has a Montevina processor. As to the "right time" to buy, you could wait [indefinitely] and see if Newegg gets new shipments of them. I got their mid-range model for $1270--it's gone now, but hopefully they'll soon have more models a la their plethora of FW's.

 

The CPU is in a ZIF socket so it should be upgradeable. The HDD is pretty easy to get to so it is upgradeable as well. The same for the system RAM. The WiFi card takes a little work, but it's do able.

 

here is my guide to upgrade your SR's hdd:

http://forum.notebookreview.com/showthread.php?t=283218

it didnt get much lovin lol

 

Mostly out of curiousity, could the SR handle a SSD?

tehguardian - Thanks for the guide. I will definitely make use of it, but not for a few months. I hope it does not get lonely by then...

 

Yes, the SSDs are designed to be direct replacements for their HDD equivalents. However, you need to be careful that you get the right size (i.e. 1.8" or 2.5") and also the right type of connector, so you can do a swap without needing any extra parts.

 

That's interesting, Infy. I still won't be buying a SSD in the near future, though. Maybe when the price comes down.