Sony VAIO P-Series (VGN-P19VN/Q) in Laptops

At the budget end of the scale, Samsung's NC10 is a mighty tempting alternative which, thanks to its combination of a better keyboard, traditional trackpad and a lower resolution screen, proves far more usable. Even if you are one of the lucky few for whom money is no object, there are plenty of far more practical alternatives which don't sacrifice too much in the way of portability. Sony's own VGN-Z21MN/B, for example, might be significantly larger and twice as heavy, but it combines light weight and stamina with much more sensible levels of processing power.

As an ultra-compact, 618g laptop for internet access and email on the move, the P-Series is a hugely impressive achievement, but at this price we'd expect the user experience to be as slick and refined as the hardware itself. Alas it simply isn't up to scratch.

Author: Sasha Muller