Sony VAIO Y Series

  • 13.3"
  • 1.2 GHz Dual core
  • 4 GB
  • 500 GB HDD
Released April, 2004
We prefer this touchpad to the dimpled one on the ASUS UL30A, and it beats the pants off of the friction-heavy HP Pavilion dm3.
by LaptopMag (Jan, 2010)

Conclusion Check out the Sony VAIO Y Series

72%
83%
85%
View Details
34%
100%
62%
87%
95%
70%
View Details
83%
78%
89%
View Details
69
First reviewed December, 2011

Features Key features of the Sony VAIO Y Series

Front view of Sony VAIO Y Series

1.2 GHz

The slightly heavier weight and size are well worth the extra power and speed over a true netbook.
Rated 100% by by Northward-Equinox (Jun, 2011)

screen size

13.3"
15.6"
11.6"
The font size and everything seemed to be a bit smaller too since it all has to fit on the smaller screen which I found to be very annoying, but I went into setting and change it to 150% and it made a whole world of difference.
VAIO Y Series by gina (May, 2011)
I actually had to superglue the top part of the display, as it came shipped with a small gap.
VAIO Y Series by Guy-Harel (Dec, 2011)

screen resolution

Sony VAIO Y Series
Lenovo IdeaPad Yoga
Apple MacBook Pro MD322LL/A
Other elegant details on the VAIO Y include a textured grid pattern on the deck, which has a nice feel.
VAIO Y Series by LaptopMag (Jan, 2010)
Like most laptops the 13.3in screen on the Y11 is LED-backlit and has a 1,366 x 768 resolution.
VAIO Y Series by TrustedReviews (May, 2011)

cpu speed

0 GHz
2.4 GHz

1.2 GHz
2.3 GHz
3 GHz
This dual-core CPU, along with 4GB of RAM combined to offer snappy performance.
VAIO Y Series by LaptopMag (Jan, 2010)
Would it have killed Sony to throw an i3 processor in there at the very least?
VAIO Y Series by M.-Fulkerson (Nov, 2011)

processor

Sony VAIO Y Series
Apple MacBook Pro MD322LL/A
Dell Inspiron 1525
It is faster than my Atom 1.6 single core but not what I had expected from all the reviews of the AMD processor.
VAIO Y Series by S.-Derickson--Stan (May, 2011)
Unfortunately, the E-Series dual core AMD processor will allow you to keep a few windows open at once and that's about it.
VAIO Y Series by M.-Fulkerson (Nov, 2011)

memory

0 GB
4 GB

1 GB
8 GB
8 GB
Major drawback is video capability... Video RAM is shared within the system RAM.
VAIO Y Series by ENDER (Jun, 2011)
Many YB editions are in the market make sure its the latetst 4GB RAM and 500GB memory.
VAIO Y Series by Abdullah-S.-AL-Zaidan--A.S.Z (Feb, 2012)
 

Performance Real world tests of Sony VAIO Y Series

battery life

7 hour
5 hour
9 hour
Y11M1E/S. It's attractive, good to use, excellent value and offers incredible battery life, which just goes to prove Sony can make portable laptops for any budget.
VAIO Y Series by TrustedReviews (May, 2011)
That's a decent base-line, especially for a system claiming nine hours of battery life, but the need to keep the weight and price down means there's no integrated optical drive.
VAIO Y Series by TrustedReviews (May, 2011)
 

Our analysis How does it stack up against its top 10 competitors

pros

  • MMC
  • 1,778 g

cons

  • Apr, 2004
  • 1.2 GHz
  • 13.3"
  • 1 Mbit/s (Bluetooth v2.0)
  • 57 MB/s (USB 2.0)

Reviews Word on the street

Read the review (Jan, 2010)
The VAIO Y boasts a gorgeous 13.3-inch LED-backlit display that offers vivid colors and excellent contrast levels.
Rated 90%
Read the review (May, 2011)
There's very little that can touch this VAIO's longevity at its price point, though it's worth keeping in mind that the screen's brightness (at 40 per cent) is just slightly lower than some laptops.
Rated 76% by 61 users at amazon.com
The size and finish of this netbook is a blessing frequent travellers and kids, light and yet functional Windows 7 32-Bit Home Premium SP-1 Edition.
Rated 100% by by Quo-Vadis (Dec, 2011)
SD and MS card reader, HDMI socket for HD connection, Bluetooth and WiFi connections are desired features.
Rated 80% by by ENDER (Jun, 2011)
The keys have a good spacing between them, much better than cheaper flat style keys found on most laptops in this category.
Rated 100% by by loki--loki (Feb, 2011)

Body

One such example was the Sony VAIO VGN-Z11WN/B, whose portable 13.1in chassis and outstanding performance won it many admirers when it was first released in 2008.
Sony VAIO Y Series 13.3", 1.2 GHz, 4 GB, 500 GB HDD | Rated 90% by by TrustedReviews (May, 2011)
Body: While I love the design of the PC a lot, I noticed that the lid already has some light scratches.
Sony VAIO Y Series 13.3", 1.2 GHz, 4 GB, 500 GB HDD | Rated 80% by by Miguel-A.-Albarracin--Angel.Portela (Nov, 2011)
Build quality is OK but not magnificient, it looks great but up-close and personal you feel the plastic.
Sony VAIO Y Series 13.3", 1.2 GHz, 4 GB, 500 GB HDD | Rated 40% by by Guy-Harel (Dec, 2011)

Screen

The screen, while featuring a lovely resolution, is desperately (and I mean desperately) lacking in contrast.
Sony VAIO Y Series 13.3", 1.2 GHz, 4 GB, 500 GB HDD | Rated 60% by by I.-R.-Smart.--Tzu-Crazy
When watching video we found it didn't resolve some of the dark, fine detail, but this is fairly typical of mainstream laptops and HD material still looks as crisp as it's meant to.
Sony VAIO Y Series 13.3", 1.2 GHz, 4 GB, 500 GB HDD | Rated 90% by by TrustedReviews (May, 2011)
When we streamed an episode of 24 on Hulu at full screen, horizontal viewing angles were generous, and we noticed a high level of detail even in standard definition mode.
Sony VAIO Y Series 13.3", 1.2 GHz, 4 GB, 500 GB HDD | by LaptopMag (Jan, 2010)

Design

Over the years, Sony has established a reputation for creating laptops with style, but they haven’t exactly been known for great value.
Sony VAIO Y Series 13.3", 1.2 GHz, 4 GB, 500 GB HDD | by LaptopMag (Jan, 2010)
This Sony Vaio isn't going to light the world on fire with its design and makeup, but it's an acceptable option if you're looking for a very compact computer.
Sony VAIO Y Series 13.3", 1.2 GHz, 4 GB, 500 GB HDD | Rated 60% by by M.-Fulkerson (Nov, 2011)

Battery

It's a great little laptop for school - it's simple, light, the battery lasts longer than regular laptops.
Sony VAIO Y Series 13.3", 1.2 GHz, 4 GB, 500 GB HDD | Rated 100% by by Emil (Nov, 2010)
But while the VAIO Y’s nearly 6.5 hours of battery life is good, both the ASUS and HP machines last over 9 hours on a charge.
Sony VAIO Y Series 13.3", 1.2 GHz, 4 GB, 500 GB HDD | by LaptopMag (Jan, 2010)

Touchpad

On the plus side its large size makes the touchpad great to use.
Sony VAIO Y Series 13.3", 1.2 GHz, 4 GB, 500 GB HDD | Rated 90% by by TrustedReviews (May, 2011)
We’re big fans of the large touchpad on the VAIO Y, which has a dotted pattern but a smooth surface.
Sony VAIO Y Series 13.3", 1.2 GHz, 4 GB, 500 GB HDD | by LaptopMag (Jan, 2010)

Editions Editions of the Sony VAIO Y Series

Price Edition Internal storage Thickness RAM capacity Manufacturer code Compare
250 GB 32 mm 1.95 GB VPCYB33KX/B
 
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320 GB 32 mm 2 GB VPC-YB13KX/S
 
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320 GB 32 mm 1.95 GB VPCYB33KX/S
 
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320 GB 32 mm 1.95 GB VPCYB33KX/P
 
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500 GB 102 mm 4 GB VPCY216FX/S
 
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500 GB 102 mm 4 GB VPCY216FX/P
 
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500 GB 32 mm 4 GB VPCY216FX/B
 
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$592
500 GB 32 mm 4 GB VPCYB35KX/B
 
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500 GB 32 mm 4 GB VPCYB35KX/P
 
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500 GB 32 mm 4 GB VPCYB35KX/S
 
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500 GB 32 mm 4 GB VPC-YB15KX/S
 
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