Archos 5 120 GB Internet Media Tablet Review

Average Reviews:

(More customer reviews)I purchased this as an upgrade to my beloved Archos 605 160GB. I actually purchased this directly from archos because I had trouble getting it through Amazon.
First impressions: beautiful sleek design, love the rubbery backside and the enlarged screen! I find that the touch screen user interface is quite improved over the 605, the buttons all flash when you press them so that is a nice confirmation that you hit it. Also, play buttons and such seem to be bigger than before, easier to hit. Although the glossy, shiny look is pretty to look at, it also shows fingerprints (much like the Touch). Not a big deal to me, I'm used to wiping off my glossy surfaces regularly.
So lets get into the nitty gritty, starting with the things I love about the new Archos 5. Just one caveat, I am using this primarily as a replacement media player for the Archos 605 so I won't speak much to internet browsing issues. I will use as a basis of comparison my collection of MP3 players (ok I'm an addict so sue me!) which includes iPod Touch 2nd Gen 32GB, Creative Zen WiFi 16GB, iPod Classic 160GB, Archos 605 160GB, Archos 604 30GB, iRiver Clix2 8GB.
*) 250GB: gotta love all that storage space, especially since the new Apple Classic tops out at 120GB now it seems Archos is in a class all to itself.
*) Big beautiful glossy color screen, definitely an improvement over 605.
*) Easily connected to my Wifi, browser is now free instead of costing extra like before. Upgrade to firmware was accomplished easily.
*) Easy synchronization of my entire music library and playlists using Media Monkey in Windows Media Mode (605 had problems here, so glad Archos fixed this!)
*) Beautiful full featured DVR dock available (apple doesn't even make one as far as I can tell!)
*) Esthetically the most appealing player I've seen yet from Archos.
*) Nice context menus on most pages (tap upper right corner) that make it easy to get around.
*) Love the ability to switch between hard drive mode and Windows Media Mode (something I do quite frequently). Also nice to be able to put a password on folders with sensitive or Adult content.
*) Ability to play all kinds of audio/video files, although you do have to pay up to $40 for additional plugin firmware in order to play apple and cinema formats.
*) On screen touch qwerty keyboard is really nice, easy to use -- I found it much easier to type accurately than the Touch/iPhone onscreen keyboard.
*) Browser supports flash controls, woohoo, welcome to the 21st century fercrissakes!
*) That 250GB of data is readily available to the PC as a hard drive so I can use it for backups or whatever else I want to do with it. (unlike the Creative Zen for example).
*) Convenient built-in speaker can be used in a pinch: everybody seems to have one of these now but as far as I can tell Archos did it first on the 605!
*) Now Playing music screen is easier to use, volume, and play buttons are easier to use now and it displays the name of the next and previous songs: a feature that I don't see on any of my other MP3 players.
*) Nice dedicated volume and power buttons, the volume buttons are definitely easier to find and use than the 605.
And now, my suggestions to Archos for how they could improve on what I think is a cutting edge beautiful product. Please understand, I'm a nitpicking software engineer so I give 5 stars even though I can find room for improvement!

*) I miss the dedicated hold/tv-out button which has been removed. Not a big deal since can still be done through the context menu.
*) Some of the text menus just look a little strange and seem to take a too much space on the screen. For example, I have to scroll down to get to the "Playlists"... at the very least "Playlists" should be on the first page as its the one I use the most. Really it seems like too many button presses are required to dig down and play a playlist, I wish "playlists" was available from a top level menu because I use it more than anything else...When all is said and done, I honestly believe that there is no comparable product with a big beautiful high resolution screen like this and a huge hard drive. This is it!
Now if you are happy with a smaller screen and less storage, the iPod Touch is arguably a better product: my solution? Buy one of each!
Update 12-31-2008: As of New Years Eve I am still quite happily using my Archos 5 as an entertainment center. It seems Archos heard me and they have made the album art a little bigger in firmware release 1.2.05!
Update 1-24-2009: Firmware update 1.3.05 works great! Had to use my Touch for a few days and very happy to have my Archos back on the speakers, I do believe the sound is better through the same speakers.
Update 3-14-2009: Updated to firmware 1.5.08. Due to previous upgrade, the upgrade process is MUCH easier now because it doesn't try to rebuild its library from scratch (this takes hours when you have a lot of files like I do). I'm also enjoying the "parental control" password which allows me to protect my data from unauthorized access. Still a happy customer :)
Update 5-22-2009: Still very happy with my 5. Firmware version 1.6.53 now offers support for their GPS package and High Def. I tried the GPS package before and it was ok, my favorite thing about it was the windshield mount which really comes in handy on a long drive. The GPS itself is decent considering it doesn't cost much, but can't compare to Garmin. Still, how many MP3 players even offer a GPS option?

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MULTIMEDIA PLAYER, ARCHOS 5, 120GB,

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Sony VAIO VGN-P530H/G Lifestyle PC (1.33 GHz Intel Processor, 2 GB RAM, 60 GB Hard Drive with G-Sensor, Vista Basic) Green Review

Average Reviews:

(More customer reviews)I've always been a fan of ultraportable computers, and I've owned a few, which include a Motion LS800 tablet, Raon Everun, Vaio TX, Vaio TZ, and an Asus 1000H. So, my review is based upon my experience with those machines. The Vaio P, in my opinion, is the ideal combination of portability and functionality, if typing is an integral part of your computing needs. I bought 2 of them (one for me, one for the wife) as soon as they were announced on the Sony website, and have been using it for about 2 weeks.
PRO'S:
(1) SCREEN RESOLUTION: One issue that I have always had with any ultraportable (outside of the Vaio TX and TZ) has been low screen resolution (e.g. 1028 x 680), which has always lead to lots of scrolling and/or zooming-out. The resolution on the Vaio P is, in one word, incredible. EVERY webpage is viewable in its entirety on the screen, as is EVERY document I need to read or edit. The downside is that text ends up being VERY small on the screen, but still legible to me (I type documents in 10-pt Times New Roman font). However, there is a personalization option available that allows you to make text/icons 125% larger than normal, which makes things much easier to see. My wife wears glasses and has trouble reading the text at normal settings, so she uses that mode and it works well for her.
(2) PORTABILITY: Okay, let's not kid ourselves here. This thing will NOT fit in your shirt/pants pocket (unless you're wearing very baggy cargo pants), but it will fit in a purse or any small satchel. Weight is negligible, even with the extended-life battery attached. Portability is a big thing for me in my profession (medical student, MD in a few months), and this machine can easily fit in the pocket of my white coat when I'm on the move.
(3) THE KEYBOARD: I type extensively as part of my profession, and having a usable keyboard is a component that has always been missing from any computer that I could carry on my person. My Motion tablet and Everun were useful for reading on-the-go, but essentially useless for typing anything beyond a short phrase. My Vaio TX/TZ have great keyboards (I've typed thousands of pages on them), but the machines themselves are too large to carry on me at all times.
Let me also take this opportunity to point out that, in comparison to the Asus 1000H, the Vaio P is not just another crappy netbook. The keyboard on the 1000H, for many reasons, is a low-quality component that definitely shows with heavy use. Any typing mistakes made with the Vaio P are genuinely my own keystroke mistakes, which was not the case with the Asus (90% of the time, it was just the junky keyboard causing mistakes). The right-shift key on the Vaio P is truncated, but its placement to the left of the arrow keys makes it a much more natural motion to hit, and something that you can become accustomed to without causing you to alter your typing accuracy on a normal-sized keyboard, which was really just impossible with the 1000H (that had the right shift key placed to the right of the arrow keys).
(4) FUNCTIONALITY: It is a fully-functional PC, capable of running any program you might need to run, given that you're not trying to use this as a gaming PC. I have installed Windows 7 on my Vaio P, which has made it much more efficient at running multiple programs simultaneously, as well as improving stability. I would highly recommend this upgrade for anyone purchasing this machine.
CONS:
(1) VISTA: This machine should have come standard with XP. Vista boot time is horrendously slow, even from hibernation, and installing Windows 7 does not fix this problem. My other ultraportables running XP were able to return from hibernation in about 20-60 seconds. The Vaio P takes probably 2-3 minutes. Maybe I'm a little impatient, but I want my computer to be ON when I turn it on. The integrated instant-on technology is not terribly useful to me because I generally need to use programs other than Media player or Firefox when I fire my machine up.
(2) NOT USER-UPGRADEABLE: As I understand it, the RAM is soldered to the motherboard and thus not upgradeable. 3 GB of RAM would have made the VAIO P much faster, and would have alleviated problem (1) I described above, and with 3 GB of RAM, Windows 7 would not even be a necessity because it would then be able to run Vista acceptably.
(3) STANDARD BATTERY LIFE: Sony touts 4 hours of life with the standard battery, which is of course a lie. It's more like 2.5 to 3 hours with screen brightness turned down to 1 or 2 (at which it is still very much readable/viewable), with WiFi on. I also have the large capacity battery, which takes it to 6.5 to 7 hours at the same settings. The large capacity battery adds maybe 1 to 1.5 cm of height to the machine, which is something of an eyesore, but I will make the sacrifice because the added battery life is worth more to me than the 0.2 lbs (not noticeable) and increased size.
(4) LACK OF TOUCHPAD: This omission is well-documented in other reviews; the pointing stick does what it is intended to do and it does it well -- however, it does NOT replace the touchpad or a mouse. Most people are already well-aware of this issue before purchasing the Vaio P. One thing I would liked to have seen instead is the optical mouse like on the Raon Everun, which is an intuitive and exceptional pointing device that is easier to use than the pointing stick.
*CONCLUSION: the Vaio P is an exceptional device of modern engineering that allows its owners to maintain productivity at a level comparable to that of a laptop while away from home, or when lugging a laptop case is impractical -- thus, I must stress that it is intrinsically a COMPANION PC. One should not expect this to REPLACE a primary PC, nor should one anticipate using this as their laptop 100% of the time, 24/7, because it simply would be foolish and needlessly uncomfortable to do so. I would make the analogy of comparing WiFi to a T1 connection -- given the choice and availability, no one would choose WiFi over a T1 connection, but the convenience and mobility of a WiFi connection are advantages that the T1 cannot match. In the same way, the Vaio P offers unmatched portability and convenience, but its purpose is of a different nature than the primary laptop/desktop -- so, as long as you keep that difference in mind, the Vaio P should enhance your productivity and live up to its tag of being a "lifestyle" PC.

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Item : 12887N. So slight and slim, you might not even know it's there. About as thin as most cell phones, the VAIO P Series Lifestyle PC is a cinch to tote. Designed specifically for the ultra-mobile professional, this 8" miniature PC is small enough to fit in a jacket pocket.

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Sony VAIO VGN-P530H/Q Lifestyle PC - Black Review

Average Reviews:

(More customer reviews)I've always been a fan of ultraportable computers, and I've owned a few, which include a Motion LS800 tablet, Raon Everun, Vaio TX, Vaio TZ, and an Asus 1000H. So, my review is based upon my experience with those machines. The Vaio P, in my opinion, is the ideal combination of portability and functionality, if typing is an integral part of your computing needs. I bought 2 of them (one for me, one for the wife) as soon as they were announced on the Sony website, and have been using it for about 2 weeks.
PRO'S:
(1) SCREEN RESOLUTION: One issue that I have always had with any ultraportable (outside of the Vaio TX and TZ) has been low screen resolution (e.g. 1028 x 680), which has always lead to lots of scrolling and/or zooming-out. The resolution on the Vaio P is, in one word, incredible. EVERY webpage is viewable in its entirety on the screen, as is EVERY document I need to read or edit. The downside is that text ends up being VERY small on the screen, but still legible to me (I type documents in 10-pt Times New Roman font). However, there is a personalization option available that allows you to make text/icons 125% larger than normal, which makes things much easier to see. My wife wears glasses and has trouble reading the text at normal settings, so she uses that mode and it works well for her.
(2) PORTABILITY: Okay, let's not kid ourselves here. This thing will NOT fit in your shirt/pants pocket (unless you're wearing very baggy cargo pants), but it will fit in a purse or any small satchel. Weight is negligible, even with the extended-life battery attached. Portability is a big thing for me in my profession (medical student, MD in a few months), and this machine can easily fit in the pocket of my white coat when I'm on the move.
(3) THE KEYBOARD: I type extensively as part of my profession, and having a usable keyboard is a component that has always been missing from any computer that I could carry on my person. My Motion tablet and Everun were useful for reading on-the-go, but essentially useless for typing anything beyond a short phrase. My Vaio TX/TZ have great keyboards (I've typed thousands of pages on them), but the machines themselves are too large to carry on me at all times.
Let me also take this opportunity to point out that, in comparison to the Asus 1000H, the Vaio P is not just another crappy netbook. The keyboard on the 1000H, for many reasons, is a low-quality component that definitely shows with heavy use. Any typing mistakes made with the Vaio P are genuinely my own keystroke mistakes, which was not the case with the Asus (90% of the time, it was just the junky keyboard causing mistakes). The right-shift key on the Vaio P is truncated, but its placement to the left of the arrow keys makes it a much more natural motion to hit, and something that you can become accustomed to without causing you to alter your typing accuracy on a normal-sized keyboard, which was really just impossible with the 1000H (that had the right shift key placed to the right of the arrow keys).
(4) FUNCTIONALITY: It is a fully-functional PC, capable of running any program you might need to run, given that you're not trying to use this as a gaming PC. I have installed Windows 7 on my Vaio P, which has made it much more efficient at running multiple programs simultaneously, as well as improving stability. I would highly recommend this upgrade for anyone purchasing this machine.
CONS:
(1) VISTA: This machine should have come standard with XP. Vista boot time is horrendously slow, even from hibernation, and installing Windows 7 does not fix this problem. My other ultraportables running XP were able to return from hibernation in about 20-60 seconds. The Vaio P takes probably 2-3 minutes. Maybe I'm a little impatient, but I want my computer to be ON when I turn it on. The integrated instant-on technology is not terribly useful to me because I generally need to use programs other than Media player or Firefox when I fire my machine up.
(2) NOT USER-UPGRADEABLE: As I understand it, the RAM is soldered to the motherboard and thus not upgradeable. 3 GB of RAM would have made the VAIO P much faster, and would have alleviated problem (1) I described above, and with 3 GB of RAM, Windows 7 would not even be a necessity because it would then be able to run Vista acceptably.
(3) STANDARD BATTERY LIFE: Sony touts 4 hours of life with the standard battery, which is of course a lie. It's more like 2.5 to 3 hours with screen brightness turned down to 1 or 2 (at which it is still very much readable/viewable), with WiFi on. I also have the large capacity battery, which takes it to 6.5 to 7 hours at the same settings. The large capacity battery adds maybe 1 to 1.5 cm of height to the machine, which is something of an eyesore, but I will make the sacrifice because the added battery life is worth more to me than the 0.2 lbs (not noticeable) and increased size.
(4) LACK OF TOUCHPAD: This omission is well-documented in other reviews; the pointing stick does what it is intended to do and it does it well -- however, it does NOT replace the touchpad or a mouse. Most people are already well-aware of this issue before purchasing the Vaio P. One thing I would liked to have seen instead is the optical mouse like on the Raon Everun, which is an intuitive and exceptional pointing device that is easier to use than the pointing stick.
*CONCLUSION: the Vaio P is an exceptional device of modern engineering that allows its owners to maintain productivity at a level comparable to that of a laptop while away from home, or when lugging a laptop case is impractical -- thus, I must stress that it is intrinsically a COMPANION PC. One should not expect this to REPLACE a primary PC, nor should one anticipate using this as their laptop 100% of the time, 24/7, because it simply would be foolish and needlessly uncomfortable to do so. I would make the analogy of comparing WiFi to a T1 connection -- given the choice and availability, no one would choose WiFi over a T1 connection, but the convenience and mobility of a WiFi connection are advantages that the T1 cannot match. In the same way, the Vaio P offers unmatched portability and convenience, but its purpose is of a different nature than the primary laptop/desktop -- so, as long as you keep that difference in mind, the Vaio P should enhance your productivity and live up to its tag of being a "lifestyle" PC.

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Sony VAIO VGN-P530H/W Lifestyle PC (1.33 GHz Intel Processor, 2 GB RAM, 60 GB Hard Drive with G-Sensor, Vista Basic) White Review

Average Reviews:

(More customer reviews)I've always been a fan of ultraportable computers, and I've owned a few, which include a Motion LS800 tablet, Raon Everun, Vaio TX, Vaio TZ, and an Asus 1000H. So, my review is based upon my experience with those machines. The Vaio P, in my opinion, is the ideal combination of portability and functionality, if typing is an integral part of your computing needs. I bought 2 of them (one for me, one for the wife) as soon as they were announced on the Sony website, and have been using it for about 2 weeks.
PRO'S:
(1) SCREEN RESOLUTION: One issue that I have always had with any ultraportable (outside of the Vaio TX and TZ) has been low screen resolution (e.g. 1028 x 680), which has always lead to lots of scrolling and/or zooming-out. The resolution on the Vaio P is, in one word, incredible. EVERY webpage is viewable in its entirety on the screen, as is EVERY document I need to read or edit. The downside is that text ends up being VERY small on the screen, but still legible to me (I type documents in 10-pt Times New Roman font). However, there is a personalization option available that allows you to make text/icons 125% larger than normal, which makes things much easier to see. My wife wears glasses and has trouble reading the text at normal settings, so she uses that mode and it works well for her.
(2) PORTABILITY: Okay, let's not kid ourselves here. This thing will NOT fit in your shirt/pants pocket (unless you're wearing very baggy cargo pants), but it will fit in a purse or any small satchel. Weight is negligible, even with the extended-life battery attached. Portability is a big thing for me in my profession (medical student, MD in a few months), and this machine can easily fit in the pocket of my white coat when I'm on the move.
(3) THE KEYBOARD: I type extensively as part of my profession, and having a usable keyboard is a component that has always been missing from any computer that I could carry on my person. My Motion tablet and Everun were useful for reading on-the-go, but essentially useless for typing anything beyond a short phrase. My Vaio TX/TZ have great keyboards (I've typed thousands of pages on them), but the machines themselves are too large to carry on me at all times.
Let me also take this opportunity to point out that, in comparison to the Asus 1000H, the Vaio P is not just another crappy netbook. The keyboard on the 1000H, for many reasons, is a low-quality component that definitely shows with heavy use. Any typing mistakes made with the Vaio P are genuinely my own keystroke mistakes, which was not the case with the Asus (90% of the time, it was just the junky keyboard causing mistakes). The right-shift key on the Vaio P is truncated, but its placement to the left of the arrow keys makes it a much more natural motion to hit, and something that you can become accustomed to without causing you to alter your typing accuracy on a normal-sized keyboard, which was really just impossible with the 1000H (that had the right shift key placed to the right of the arrow keys).
(4) FUNCTIONALITY: It is a fully-functional PC, capable of running any program you might need to run, given that you're not trying to use this as a gaming PC. I have installed Windows 7 on my Vaio P, which has made it much more efficient at running multiple programs simultaneously, as well as improving stability. I would highly recommend this upgrade for anyone purchasing this machine.
CONS:
(1) VISTA: This machine should have come standard with XP. Vista boot time is horrendously slow, even from hibernation, and installing Windows 7 does not fix this problem. My other ultraportables running XP were able to return from hibernation in about 20-60 seconds. The Vaio P takes probably 2-3 minutes. Maybe I'm a little impatient, but I want my computer to be ON when I turn it on. The integrated instant-on technology is not terribly useful to me because I generally need to use programs other than Media player or Firefox when I fire my machine up.
(2) NOT USER-UPGRADEABLE: As I understand it, the RAM is soldered to the motherboard and thus not upgradeable. 3 GB of RAM would have made the VAIO P much faster, and would have alleviated problem (1) I described above, and with 3 GB of RAM, Windows 7 would not even be a necessity because it would then be able to run Vista acceptably.
(3) STANDARD BATTERY LIFE: Sony touts 4 hours of life with the standard battery, which is of course a lie. It's more like 2.5 to 3 hours with screen brightness turned down to 1 or 2 (at which it is still very much readable/viewable), with WiFi on. I also have the large capacity battery, which takes it to 6.5 to 7 hours at the same settings. The large capacity battery adds maybe 1 to 1.5 cm of height to the machine, which is something of an eyesore, but I will make the sacrifice because the added battery life is worth more to me than the 0.2 lbs (not noticeable) and increased size.
(4) LACK OF TOUCHPAD: This omission is well-documented in other reviews; the pointing stick does what it is intended to do and it does it well -- however, it does NOT replace the touchpad or a mouse. Most people are already well-aware of this issue before purchasing the Vaio P. One thing I would liked to have seen instead is the optical mouse like on the Raon Everun, which is an intuitive and exceptional pointing device that is easier to use than the pointing stick.
*CONCLUSION: the Vaio P is an exceptional device of modern engineering that allows its owners to maintain productivity at a level comparable to that of a laptop while away from home, or when lugging a laptop case is impractical -- thus, I must stress that it is intrinsically a COMPANION PC. One should not expect this to REPLACE a primary PC, nor should one anticipate using this as their laptop 100% of the time, 24/7, because it simply would be foolish and needlessly uncomfortable to do so. I would make the analogy of comparing WiFi to a T1 connection -- given the choice and availability, no one would choose WiFi over a T1 connection, but the convenience and mobility of a WiFi connection are advantages that the T1 cannot match. In the same way, the Vaio P offers unmatched portability and convenience, but its purpose is of a different nature than the primary laptop/desktop -- so, as long as you keep that difference in mind, the Vaio P should enhance your productivity and live up to its tag of being a "lifestyle" PC.

Click Here to see more reviews about: Sony VAIO VGN-P530H/W Lifestyle PC (1.33 GHz Intel Processor, 2 GB RAM, 60 GB Hard Drive with G-Sensor, Vista Basic) White

Your portal to the world, the fashionable VAIO P Series Lifestyle PC delivers your entertainment and computing in a single go-anywhere design. Features like built-in mobile broadband and real-time GPS functionality tell only a partial story. The bottom line is that this chic little 1.5lb (with standard battery) computing sidekick will make a perfect fit with your life, whether it¿s for business, pleasure, or both.

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Sony VAIO VGN-P530H/R Lifestyle PC (1.33 GHz Intel Processor, 2 GB RAM, 60 GB Hard Drive with G-Sensor, Vista Basic) Red Review

Average Reviews:

(More customer reviews)I've always been a fan of ultraportable computers, and I've owned a few, which include a Motion LS800 tablet, Raon Everun, Vaio TX, Vaio TZ, and an Asus 1000H. So, my review is based upon my experience with those machines. The Vaio P, in my opinion, is the ideal combination of portability and functionality, if typing is an integral part of your computing needs. I bought 2 of them (one for me, one for the wife) as soon as they were announced on the Sony website, and have been using it for about 2 weeks.
PRO'S:
(1) SCREEN RESOLUTION: One issue that I have always had with any ultraportable (outside of the Vaio TX and TZ) has been low screen resolution (e.g. 1028 x 680), which has always lead to lots of scrolling and/or zooming-out. The resolution on the Vaio P is, in one word, incredible. EVERY webpage is viewable in its entirety on the screen, as is EVERY document I need to read or edit. The downside is that text ends up being VERY small on the screen, but still legible to me (I type documents in 10-pt Times New Roman font). However, there is a personalization option available that allows you to make text/icons 125% larger than normal, which makes things much easier to see. My wife wears glasses and has trouble reading the text at normal settings, so she uses that mode and it works well for her.
(2) PORTABILITY: Okay, let's not kid ourselves here. This thing will NOT fit in your shirt/pants pocket (unless you're wearing very baggy cargo pants), but it will fit in a purse or any small satchel. Weight is negligible, even with the extended-life battery attached. Portability is a big thing for me in my profession (medical student, MD in a few months), and this machine can easily fit in the pocket of my white coat when I'm on the move.
(3) THE KEYBOARD: I type extensively as part of my profession, and having a usable keyboard is a component that has always been missing from any computer that I could carry on my person. My Motion tablet and Everun were useful for reading on-the-go, but essentially useless for typing anything beyond a short phrase. My Vaio TX/TZ have great keyboards (I've typed thousands of pages on them), but the machines themselves are too large to carry on me at all times.
Let me also take this opportunity to point out that, in comparison to the Asus 1000H, the Vaio P is not just another crappy netbook. The keyboard on the 1000H, for many reasons, is a low-quality component that definitely shows with heavy use. Any typing mistakes made with the Vaio P are genuinely my own keystroke mistakes, which was not the case with the Asus (90% of the time, it was just the junky keyboard causing mistakes). The right-shift key on the Vaio P is truncated, but its placement to the left of the arrow keys makes it a much more natural motion to hit, and something that you can become accustomed to without causing you to alter your typing accuracy on a normal-sized keyboard, which was really just impossible with the 1000H (that had the right shift key placed to the right of the arrow keys).
(4) FUNCTIONALITY: It is a fully-functional PC, capable of running any program you might need to run, given that you're not trying to use this as a gaming PC. I have installed Windows 7 on my Vaio P, which has made it much more efficient at running multiple programs simultaneously, as well as improving stability. I would highly recommend this upgrade for anyone purchasing this machine.
CONS:
(1) VISTA: This machine should have come standard with XP. Vista boot time is horrendously slow, even from hibernation, and installing Windows 7 does not fix this problem. My other ultraportables running XP were able to return from hibernation in about 20-60 seconds. The Vaio P takes probably 2-3 minutes. Maybe I'm a little impatient, but I want my computer to be ON when I turn it on. The integrated instant-on technology is not terribly useful to me because I generally need to use programs other than Media player or Firefox when I fire my machine up.
(2) NOT USER-UPGRADEABLE: As I understand it, the RAM is soldered to the motherboard and thus not upgradeable. 3 GB of RAM would have made the VAIO P much faster, and would have alleviated problem (1) I described above, and with 3 GB of RAM, Windows 7 would not even be a necessity because it would then be able to run Vista acceptably.
(3) STANDARD BATTERY LIFE: Sony touts 4 hours of life with the standard battery, which is of course a lie. It's more like 2.5 to 3 hours with screen brightness turned down to 1 or 2 (at which it is still very much readable/viewable), with WiFi on. I also have the large capacity battery, which takes it to 6.5 to 7 hours at the same settings. The large capacity battery adds maybe 1 to 1.5 cm of height to the machine, which is something of an eyesore, but I will make the sacrifice because the added battery life is worth more to me than the 0.2 lbs (not noticeable) and increased size.
(4) LACK OF TOUCHPAD: This omission is well-documented in other reviews; the pointing stick does what it is intended to do and it does it well -- however, it does NOT replace the touchpad or a mouse. Most people are already well-aware of this issue before purchasing the Vaio P. One thing I would liked to have seen instead is the optical mouse like on the Raon Everun, which is an intuitive and exceptional pointing device that is easier to use than the pointing stick.
*CONCLUSION: the Vaio P is an exceptional device of modern engineering that allows its owners to maintain productivity at a level comparable to that of a laptop while away from home, or when lugging a laptop case is impractical -- thus, I must stress that it is intrinsically a COMPANION PC. One should not expect this to REPLACE a primary PC, nor should one anticipate using this as their laptop 100% of the time, 24/7, because it simply would be foolish and needlessly uncomfortable to do so. I would make the analogy of comparing WiFi to a T1 connection -- given the choice and availability, no one would choose WiFi over a T1 connection, but the convenience and mobility of a WiFi connection are advantages that the T1 cannot match. In the same way, the Vaio P offers unmatched portability and convenience, but its purpose is of a different nature than the primary laptop/desktop -- so, as long as you keep that difference in mind, the Vaio P should enhance your productivity and live up to its tag of being a "lifestyle" PC.

Click Here to see more reviews about: Sony VAIO VGN-P530H/R Lifestyle PC (1.33 GHz Intel Processor, 2 GB RAM, 60 GB Hard Drive with G-Sensor, Vista Basic) Red

Sony VAIO VGN-P530H/R Lifestyle PC (1.33 GHz Intel Processor, 2 GB RAM, 60 GB Hard Drive with G-Sensor, Vista Basic) Red

Click here for more information about Sony VAIO VGN-P530H/R Lifestyle PC (1.33 GHz Intel Processor, 2 GB RAM, 60 GB Hard Drive with G-Sensor, Vista Basic) Red

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Electronics Phone Cleaner Review

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(More customer reviews)The product got delivered on time and it was as said...No complaints whatsoever. I am happy...........

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Bring clean to a whole new level with the Q: Electronics Mobile Device Cleaning Kit . The perfect accomplice for cleaning the screen is featured in a compact aluminum frame, which contains an Anti-Static and Anti-Streak cleaning solution. Attached to the aluminum frame is a Microfiber sponge, perfect for soaking up all the excess solution, leaving your screen streak-free. The Q: Electronics Mobile Device Cleaning Kit features a modernistic stylus, which allows you access to those impossible areas that permit the build up of dust and bacteria. An added bonus to the Q: Electronics Mobile Device Cleaning Kit is a Microfiber cloth, ideal for whisking away dust or wiping down any residue. The Q: Electronics Mobile Device Cleaning Kit is the most promising cleaning asset that will assist in any task, and will ultimately allow you to get the most vivid, clear screen possible. Features Compact Stylus allows you access to reach impossible areas where dust can build up around the screen, or buttons of the phone. The Mobile Device Cleaning Kit includes a soft Microfiber sponge, perfect for wiping away fingerprints and smudges effortlessly. The Microfiber cloth helps eliminate excess residue and dust, from the screen and other small grooves in the phone. Top-of-the-line cleaning solution removes smudges and fingerprints, leaving not trace of residue on the screen. Try a new mobile devicecleaner that is reliable, and produces streak-free results that you will not believe.

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Holux M-1000 32 Channel Wireless Bluetooth GPS Receiver Review

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(More customer reviews)This was my first Amazon product review, thank you for taking the time to read it. Comments have been very welcome.
(see end of my review for an update as of end-2009)
The Holux M-1000 is a diminutive unit, about the same size as a box of matches, (65mm long, 43mm wide, and 17.6mm thick) and weighing in about as much (about 50g with the battery).
The unit comes packaged with a USB charger cable, car cigarette adaptor (which the USB plugs into), driver CD, warranty card, and a printed manual. The packaging uses recyclable materials, which I'm sure would please the environmentally-conscious crowd, yet still maintain a very classy appearance worthy of any gadget shop's glass cabinet.
My first impressions were along the lines of "hmm, that's really tiny". More than half the unit is taken up by the battery, to which I would attribute at least half it's weight.
There is no display on the unit, just 3 status LEDs, a power switch to the side, and a mini-USB socket.
Initial charge-up took about 4 hours, which is usual for Li-Ion batteries. During this time, the green status LED blinks accordingly. The battery is actually the same type used in some Nokia cell phones, so it shouldn't pose a problem finding a replacement or spare. (Doing a quick search, the part number listed HX-N3650A is Holux-specific, but it is similar to the Nokia BL-5C used in a myriad of Nokia cell phones, and available online for a few dollars).
Word of warning to first time users. The USB cable supplied, as the manufacturer states, is for charging purposes only. Windows XP will detect something, and go into a frenzy trying to recognize it. It got a bit tiresome after the 5th pop-up, prompting me to go into the Windows XP device manager to disable the "unknown device". The M-1000 still charged up as expected.
Usage:
The M-1000 is as easy to use as the manufacturers claim. How hard is it to slide a power switch?
After the power-on, the blue LED flashes on to signify Bluetooth broadcast. Pairing up with my cell phone, a Nokia E65, was simple, the M-1000 was detected within moments, and paired up without the need for a pairing key code to be entered.
The GPS status LED (orange color), upon initial start-up stays on, showing that the unit is acquiring signals.
Manufacturer claims first (cold start) satellite signal acquisition takes 36 seconds. My testing outdoors on a clear day, showed their claims to be pretty good, I averaged around 35 seconds.
The sensitivity of the MTK GPS chipset is very good, and there is no need for an external antenna. Holux state that the MTK will track up to 32 separate channels, which is overkill at this time as there are never more than 12 satellites overhead at each hemisphere of the earth. I would expect this is anticipating the next generation of GPS satellites.
This chipset is actually very impressive, it has acquired a signal indoors as I'm sitting at my desk typing this review. The Holux-supplied GPS viewer application for Windows shows it has locked on the signals of 6 satellites, all of which are showing moderate signals (signal bars are around 1/3 to 1/2 of the scale).
Battery life:
Holux claim 23 hours of battery life. I have not had the opportunity to test this, but from my experience, having forgotten to switch the receiver off overnight, after several hours in the center console of my car, the unit was still active in the morning.
Accuracy:
Using the Mobile GMaps on my cell phone, the M-1000 is pretty accurate. Comparing my old hand-held Magellan unit (which incidentally took about 4 minutes from cold start to acquire a signal), the averaged position is the same, as expected. I have used the SmartCom GPS unit on my cell phone, and the results are identical.
Recommended add-ons:
If you don't have Bluetooth capability you will need the Holux-compatible USB cable. Search online for the optional cable, Holux part# GR230-A2.
Spare battery - as stated above, this unit uses the identical battery to many Nokia cell phones. BL-5C batteries are cheap as chips online, and you can easily find a desktop charger for those batteries as well.
Overall, the M-1000 is a good buy, and for the money, can't be beaten. Combined with some good software on your cell or PDA, this would be a good combination.
On my Nokia E65 cell phone, the TomTom Navigator software detected the M-1000 and is very accurate. It shows its strength in the car, and can even receive signals while placed inside the center console of my car.
Signal re-acquisition is measured in seconds, handy when driving through tunnels or under bridges.
With all its strengths, there is one minor gripe I have with the M-1000, namely it is not waterproof, let alone water resistant. The whole unit is is not sealed, with visible gaps in the casing. There is no cover for the mini-USB socket and the battery compartment also allows moisture to enter.
Despite the above flaw, the unit is sensitive enough to be kept well away from moisture, say, in a jacket pocket, or even in a backpack or handbag, and with the convenience of Bluetooth connectivity, will provide the road warrior with the best value GPS solution at this time.
*** Update 2009-11-17 ***
Having changed a few months ago to an Android OS smart phone, my Nokia is now relegated to backup duties and resides in a pile of old phones and other outdated gadgets that I accumulated over the years. As a consequence of switching to a phone with an embedded GPS, which is where the industry is headed, I might think the market for GPS mice like these is diminishing. As it stands, the Holux, while giving me 2-odd years of good service, is now relegated to the "bits box" with the old phone.
I am sure it's got some relevance if I ever have the need to tether it by Bluetooth to my notebook computer, but even then, with embedded GPS into my current HTC Dream (aka G1) Android phone, it now boils down to what applications are available that rival TomTom at a reasonable price.

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Holux M1000 Bluetooth GPS with MTK 32 GPS engine. The advantages of the Holux M-1000 include best tracking and most importantly affordable.With the advanced technology, the HOlux M-1000 tracks up to 32 satellites at a time, re-acquires satellite signals in 100 ns and updates position data every second. Trickle-Power allows the unit operates a fraction of the time and Push-to-Fix permits user to have a quick position fix even though the receiver usually stays off.The Holux M-1000 comes with integrated rechargeable Li-Ion battery with 850mAh capacity that lasts up to 17 hours.

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