Sony VAIO SVE15116FXS Pro Reviews

With the Sony VAIO E15 (SVE15116FXS), Sony brings Intel Ivy Bridge processing to entry-level desktop replacement laptops to great effect, and throws in enough extras to keep people buying when other manufacturers catch up.

Sony pays some needed attention to the lower end of the midsize laptop market, with the sharp-looking new Vaio E series.

We appreciated the software bundle on last year's model, and Sony added to it with this year's edition. You get standard Sony apps such as the VAIO Gate application-launch utility, a customizable ribbon that drops down from the top of the screen to let you open applications or files with a single click. You also get Sony's VAIO Care (a handy set of service and support tools); the VAIO Easy Connect utility (for help connecting to the Internet and sharing your wireless settings with another PC); Sony Media Gallery (a slick utility for music playback and viewing videos and photos); and the VAIO Data Restore Tool. The big news with the software bundle is the addition of three Sony applications—Vegas Movie Studio HD Platinum, Acid Music Studio, and Sound Forge Audio Studio—that help the Sony rival MacBooks that feature Apple's iLife suite. Rounding out the pre-installed software is the ad-supported Microsoft Office Starter 2010 and a 30-day trial of Kaspersky Internet Security. Last, the VAIO E Series features Rapid Awake, which resumes Windows in less than two seconds when you open the lid when the laptop is in sleep mode.