Product Reviews

Sony's stylish Vaio VGX-TP2S/B makes a change from the boxy media centre PCs we're used to seeing. It uses a circular case that's similar in size to a hat box. It looks attractive, too, thanks to its glossy black finish. The Vaio is also very quiet, so it should be unobtrusive when placed in your living room.

We had no trouble playing Blu-ray movies using the bundled WinDVD playback software, but it's worth mentioning that the drive cannot be used to write to Blu-ray discs. This isn't a crippling limitation since blank Blu-ray discs are currently expensive, and you can always add an external Blu-ray burner such as LG's BE06LU10 later.

The Vaio can be connected to a high-definition TV or monitor using the HDMI and VGA ports. There aren't any analogue 5.1 outputs, so if you want surround sound you'll have to connect an AV receiver to the S/PDIF output. S-video and composite video adaptors are provided so you can import video from sources such as analogue video cameras.

The

ADVERTISEMENT

integrated hybrid TV tuner can record either analogue or digital TV broadcasts, but you'll have to add a second tuner if you want to record one programme while watching another, or if you want to record two shows simultaneously. The Vaio isn't designed to be opened, and it is too compact to have any PCI slots anyway, so you would have to plug a USB tuner into one of the four USB2 ports. The 500GB hard disk should provide ample room for all but the largest collections of recorded TV shows.

Unlike other media centre PCs we've seen, the wireless receivers for the remote control and cordless keyboard are integrated into the case so they don't occupy any USB2 ports. The keyboard is almost identical to those found on Vaio FZ and NR series laptops, and has large keys that are comfortable to use. The built-in touch pad feels a bit jittery, though.

The GeForce 8400M GT graphics card isn't powerful enough to play the latest 3D games smoothly, but less demanding titles should run at lower resolutions. The Core 2 Duo T8100 processor and the 2GB of RAM had no trouble running our application benchmarks, so the VGX-TP2S/B could also be used as your main PC for serious tasks.

This is a stylish, compact and quiet Blu-ray media centre PC, but serious telly addicts will need a second tuner. Shuttle's XPC G5 6801M, reviewed in last month's What's New, is great if you want an upgradeable media centre that can play HD DVD discs. It's even faster in Windows, but it's also £150 more expensive, so the Vaio will be the better buy for most people.