Sony VAIO VGN-T2XP

Looking at the outside of Sony's new VAIO VGN-T2XP, it's hard to know whether to take it seriously or not - is it a toy or a real computer? It weighs just 1.4kg and, at only 272 x 206 x 39mm, takes up less space than a desktop keyboard. Look at what's inside, however, and you become a believer.

It's impressive enough that a 1.2GHz ULV (Ultra Low VoltagePentium M 753 processor, 512MB of memory and a 60GB hard disk are squeezed into the tiny casing, but how did Sony shoehorn a dual-format DVD burner in there as well? In this respect, it tops Samsung's Q30, since that relies on an external drive. The T2 does have a huge battery sticking out the back, accounting for about 20mm of the depth and one quarter of the 1.4kg total weight, but we aren't complaining because this gives it simply enormous staying power. On a heavy workload at full brightness, the T2 ran for an amazing three hours, 25 minutes, and a simply stunning seven hours, 19 minutes on a light workload.

There are two main compromises for compactness, though: screen and keyboard size. Samsung's Q30 has a keyboard almost 7 per cent bigger horizontally across the main keys and a massive 18 per cent vertically, but Sony has still done an admirable job with the T2. The fuller-fingered among the PC Pro eam found it restrictive, and it isn't one you'd choose to type on at the office every day, but with an intelligent layout and smooth key response, it's manageable on the road. Subtle dishing of the keys keeps your fingers in place, and ancillary keys are in the right locations, such as Ctrl bottom-left and Delete top-right. The touchpad and mouse buttons are pleasant to use, and a nice inclusion on a chassis of this size.

More of a surprise is the inclusion of Sony's glossy X-black screen. The theory is that by not scattering light as standard screens do, more of the backlight's output reaches your eyes. The result is brighter images and richer colours, but it also means more reflections - potentially a problem when working for long periods. The T2's 10.6in 1,280 x 768 screen isn't actually that bright, but it's certainly crisp, and reflections aren't troublesome except in movies with dark scenes. The only real disappointment was some shadowing created by uneven backlighting.

In such a portable device, it's nice to see great protection behind the display. Build quality elsewhere is less convincing, with a degree of flexing and creaking from the casing in various places, but the underlying structure is solid enough.

In such a tiny frame, port selection can often be limited, but all the essentials are here. A 56K modem and 10/100 Ethernet connectors sit behind the DVD drive on the right, while the left is blessed with two USB 2 ports, one mini-FireWire, D-SUB, a Type I/II PC Card slot and a Memory Stick PRO reader (which also supports the Duo format). Round the front, you'll find a reassuring on/off switch for the 802.11b/g wireless LAN, volume controls for the surprisingly loud speakers and a button to launch a graphic equaliser. There's also a Bluetooth wireless adaptor inside.

Above the keyboard are some media-control buttons, although there's no instant-on function. They work well with the supplied WinDVD software, and when that's not running they launch Sony's VAIO Zone interface. This is similar to Microsoft's Windows Media Center, but it's far from impressive: VAIO Zone didn't play MP3s from a CD and was fussy about which DVDs it accepted; and content played from your hard disk must be stored in D:Contents; plus, there's no remote control.