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Review by Christian Pursell:

Watch Video Here: http://www.amazon.com/review/R1IU55FNXXHKD6

Review by Peter Gaskill:

I got this product for my 15″ Mac Book pro and was initially thrilled as it is a nice looking product that keeps the computer elevated at an excellent angle. But after about 4 months, I noticed the computer would start to slip down the stand, that the grip pads were not holding the computer anymore. Maybe the heat from the laptop melted the grip on the pads or something. After the computer slid all the off and hit my desk one night I just threw the stand away.

Review by John F. Cassidy:

So I was concerned that the ULV (Ultra Low Voltage) processor would not have enough “umph” but I was wrong. This is a nicely assembled machine and I even like Windows 7 (mostly). Background – I’ve worked in tech for 24+ years in a lot of different ways, but everyone who knows me says I’m a gadget freak. I’ve got all the toys – PNAV devices, iPods, iPhones, PCs, Macs, wireless networks – you name it. I’ve got the TV hooked to a cable box, iMac, and AppleTV and love them all. I’m typing this on my favorite computer of all time – a Macbook Air. So when my wife’s 3+ year old 17″ Dell notebook announced that it’s battery was no longer doing well and we had three blue screens in a week’s time – I knew we had to get her onto a new machine. We thought it would be either a 13″ or 15″ Macbook Pro, but she decided that spending twice as much for a Mac was too much. So I went in search of the best PC alternative. This Dell 1470 is pretty close in size and features to the 13″ Macbook Pro including claimed 6 hour battery life. And it largely lives up to its promise. It’s the fastest PC in the house and for the 4 we paid Amazon right before Christmas is turning out to be the bargain of the year. I did have to reformat the hard drive to get rid of multiple partitions so the Windows Easy Transfer program would work correctly, but that only served to conveniently getting rid of all of the unwanted junk that Dell feels compelled to load onto the hard disk. Positives: light weight – fast enough speed – abundant memory and hard disk space – and a cool red color. Also – the power supply is both smaller and lighter than past Dell models included, and it’s compatible with all of the old Dell power supplies we have around here. I would have given this machine 5 stars if it had a backlit keyboard which you can get on the Studio 15, but not on this model. Don’t forget the crappy hard drive partitioning which brings it down, AND I don’t know what Microsoft is thinking – you can’t back up to a network drive (I use a DROBO with Droboshare) without paying to upgrade Windows 7 to the Professional version. Also – if you configure a Dell Inspiron 14Z (same model, different name) comparably on the Dell website, you’ll be north of 0 so Amazon has the bargain here. Also – Best Buy stocks this machine so you can do like I did, and go test drive it for yourself before buying. Recommended! Good luck!

Review by Robert T. Desautel:

The I1470 is a top performing Win7 optimized thin and lite business package. Packed with DDR3 4gigs of ram and an ultra low voltage CPU for outstanding battery life. The laptop is not an ultra lite but it is a great lite weight package that does it all with few frills and all the hard working ports and output requirements. Great battery life and enough processing power to do most anything required (but not gaming) this is a hard hitting low cost package with Dell quality and reliability. The omission of wireless N is the biggest mistake here (what were you thinking Dell?).

Review by JMesa:

Well, it has been almost a month since I bought my T135 and I can say I love this little Titan.

Pros:

-LIGHTWEIGHT

-Powerful. With Windows 7 64 edition, I can get as much performance as a my other Core 2 Duo Toshiba Sattellite A135 laptop.

- I can get 9 hours plus of battery life (Eco Mode). As per the other person stating that he can get only 4 hours of battery life, that is in full power mode. Try to get 4 hours of battery life at full power from any other machine and you will fail miserably

- Great Graphics

- Great sound if you do the following:

Go to Control Panel

Select SMART AUDIO

On the lower part, select SMART EQ/3D SETTINGS

Select CUSTOM

Pull the buttons up (i have them still at number 7 (from out of 15), quite enough as you will see)

Enjoy AWESOME volume!!!

- Wifi 802.11N!!! I mean, I an get my 802.11N signal from some 200 meters in my garden!!!

- Gorgeous looks

-FAST, FAST, FAST

I have edited video and music (iTunes and a couple of DVD rippers) and it does them in a copule of minutes

- IT’S a TOSHIBA!!!!

- Video conferencing (Skype and Messenger) it’s really good, although the camera it’s only 1.3 megapixels

- After 10 hours of use, at full power, it barely gets warm. You can put it on your bag right away

- Ultra Low Voltage means Ultra Low Energy Consumption. I mean guys, we have to be environmentally conscious. This babe just uses 19V of energy at full power, down to 8-10 Volts at Eco Mode.

NEUTRAL

- I hate on every laptop (no matter what brand) the touch pads. I always use an external mouse.

CONS

- You can do a fingerprint exam on the laptop. I do not know why it gets so finger dirty (and believe me, I wash my hands very often). I bought a GelySkin for the exterior and it’s a great add-on

Hope this review is usefull

Review by Micheal Cranford:

Firstly, definitely fix your sound setup as per JMesa’s descrition.

[Also, JMesa, the units of power are Watts (W) not Volts (V), but

your numbers are otherwise correct.]

The quite miserable Touchpad response can be fixed in the following

manner. But please note that doing this will also lose the zoom and

rotate capability built into the as delivered Touchpad driver. I do

computer graphics and the tradoff of a far more usable Touchpad with

no rotate and zoom was well worth the switch. Perform the following

selections:

Start

Control Panel

Hardware and Sound

Device Manager (under Devices and Printers)

Mice and Other Pointing Devices

OK, from here on I cannot provide the exact names because having

already done this change the names are no longer available in the

menues for viewing.

Select the Touchpad and then the Touchpad Driver and then Delete it.

You will receive a warning but continue with the deletion. Then you

will have to reboot one or more times as Windows 7 detects the lack

of a Touchpad driver and simply installs its own driver. The Windows

7 Touchpad driver is more user friendly than what Toshiba provided,

but it does lack the rotate and zoom that very few would use anyway.

I bought this laptop for my spouse and she likes it after I fixed the

sound and Touchpad. It does have a really long operating time on the

battery when you set it up for minimal power usage.

Review by Paul Mizera:

Yes, I bought two of them. Great quality and performance a bargain price, no sacrifice made on quality for low pricing

Review by JMesa:

I have bought this laptp and it is really great. Super fast, really lightweight and with an impressive look.

About the sound: you can increase sound DRAMATICALLY if you follow this steps:

Go to Control Panel

Select SMART AUDIO

On the lower part, select SMART EQ/3D SETTINGS

Select CUSTOM

Pull the buttons up (i have them still at number 7, quite enough as you will see)

Enjoy AWESOME volume!!!

—————————-

November 21 Review Actualization

Well, it has been almost a month since I bought my T135 and I can say I love this little Titan.

Pros:

-LIGHTWEIGHT

-Powerful. With Windows 7 64 edition, I can get as much performance as a my other Core 2 Duo Toshiba Sattellite A135 laptop.

- I can get 9 hours plus of battery life (Eco Mode). As per the other person stating that he can get only 4 hours of battery life, that is in full power mode. Try to get 4 hours of battery life at full power from any other machine and you will fail miserably

- Great Graphics

- Great sound if you do as I stated above:

- Wifi 802.11N!!! I mean, I an get my 802.11N signal from some 200 meters in my garden!!!

- Gorgeous looks

-FAST, FAST, FAST

I have edited video and music (iTunes and a couple of DVD rippers) and it does them in a couple of minutes

- IT’S a TOSHIBA!!!!

- Video conferencing (Skype and Messenger) it’s really good, although the camera it’s only 1.3 megapixels

- After 10 hours of use, at full power, it barely gets warm. You can put it on your bag right away

- Ultra Low Voltage means Ultra Low Energy Consumption. I mean guys, we have to be environmentally conscious. This babe just uses 19V of energy at full power, down to 8-10 Volts at Eco Mode.

NEUTRAL

- I hate on every laptop (no matter what brand) the touch pads. I always use an external mouse.

CONS

- You can do a fingerprint exam on the laptop. I do not know why it gets so finger dirty (and believe me, I wash my hands very often). I bought a GelySkin for the exterior and it’s a great add-on

Hope this review is usefull

Review by V. V. Burns:

The T135-S1310 has been great and really fits what I needed. I wanted more than a crappy netbook but also did not want a super bleeding edge K notebook. Full size keyboard was really a plus and I am sure glad a spent a little more for something completely useful.

The S1310 uses the new ultra low power dual-core Pentium processor and scores 932 on Passmark. The laptop runs faster than my two year old Core Duo.

The size of the new screens is great and 13″ is a true happy medium. These also make the overall machine size shallow so you have room on an airplane.

The finish is really cool looking but fingerprints abound on the lid, inside and even the keyboard – whatever!

Keyboard works pretty well if you are a soft touch typist and the keyboard layout is just fine with lots of reused keys to get all the functions. In one review there was no ‘hardware’ volume control (there is FN+3 / FN+4)

Screen is very glossy like many are today. I have not owned a glossy screen laptop before and I find it somewhat irritating when sitting with a window at my back – its tolerable but I choose where I sit.

Preloaded software was minimal and getting the laptop stripped of all the extra junk was a small task. Once complete a set of back-up disks were made per the instructions.

I rarely if ever use a CD/DVD so this suite me well – not having to suffer the weight penalty. I purchased a ‘LG GP08 Lite’ which self-installed with Win 7 – I never used the software included and it was up and operating in minutes to burn back-up / restore media. [I did not purchase the Toshiba external device due to bad reviews]

Making of back-up media was flawless using the Toshiba utilities.

Bluetooth seems to work great – you will want a portable mouse and my Logitech was connected easily to the T135-S1310.

Wireless N is much appreciated for both range and speed.

The touchpad like expressed in other reviews is not the best effort and way worse than my 5 year old laptop this replaced. My first T135-S1310 I returned for several reasons and the touchpad had serious latency [but not one of the reasons it was returned.] The replacement on which I am drafting this does not appear to suffer the same problem. The two were probably made on the same day in the factory and have the same drivers but even in eco mode it is responsive. The buttons are very hard to press and a tap on the touchpad is better than trying to use the mechanical switch.

Audio sucked at first – I did raise the graphic equalizer in “Smart Audio” / Smart EQ but this is just a work around for a bad driver that hopefully will be updated. [UPDATE 12/13/2009 - New Conexent Audio Driver Released, upgrade to rev. 4.98.16.61 and the sound seems fine to me. I have been watching a lot of video lately with the speakers and find it fine]

My first T135-S1310 had a couple of operational issues. The key one was flakey Wi-Fi. It would not stay connected to my D-Link 615 [Wireless N] while every other device in my house would….strange. Anyway this replacement is working fine.

Toshiba Customer Service – For addressing the above issues, troubleshooting and resolution of obtaining a new machine locally at the vendor was just fine: they did not call me back as promised, but when I called they had all the 2nd or 3rd tier support notes and approval to return the unit for replacement: hassle free.

Sleep Mode – The machine comes to life very fast and gets re-connected to the network before you can log yourself into Windows. Contrary to other reports posted here mine recovers and connects to the WLAN in seconds.

Form-factor is really great. The sloped or wedge design and lip from the battery give you something to safely rip and hand on to this glossy carbon fiber looking masterpiece: if you had wet or oily hands it is likely to slip out if you are not careful. Also it makes it very simple to pull out from your briefcase / laptop bag as you have something to really hang on to. I got a great little Sumdex bag for which fits it great and has just enough room for a file folder or two, some paper and the charger + travel mouse.

Also on form factor, these laptops are just slightly larger than a sheet of (US) paper. What does this mean? It is essentially the same size as file folder which means you can fit a couple file folders, tablet of paper etc. in your tiny laptop bag and maybe only carry one thing with you.

Other Ports – Not yet tested / used except the USB port has worked great as does the MiniSD memory card reader.

So far I score this machine quite high. I love the form-factor, performance is just fine, Wireless N is great to have, screen is great, battery life is excellent. My only complaints which are minor are that its hard to keep clean (looking) due to fingerprints, the audio is marginal at best [better after new driver release from Toshiba], touchpad and related buttons should be better in 2009.

I do recommend this type of machine to those looking to not waste -475 for a pure netbook with a Atom processor (Passmark +- 300) and step up to a Netbook+ for a small amount more and get real performance AND great battery life. Spend the extra to get a dual core processor too and avoid the similar computers with the other processors like the SU2700 etc.

Review by J. Palin:

I purchased this piece based on positive reviews and the perceived value for the price. Within 2 weeks, one of the buckles for the shoulder strap split; they are much smaller and of weaker quality than those of other backpacks I have at home. I emailed the company to try and get repair completed and was told I would need to pay for the freight to and back….that’s in freight for a backpack that worked for all of 2 weeks…that is not the quality or customer service I was hoping for and thought others should be aware if they choose to purchase.

Good Luck.

Review by Lazer_Fin:

This product is great for the money. However it is big and bulky, there is a lot of room in this bag for several large cameras and lenses. The compartments are adjustable for a custom fit. In the front compartment shown with the magazine sticking out, I can fit a large textbook and notebook with some room left over. Also, my 15.4″ laptop fits perfect.

Review by Andrea L. Polk:

I’ve owned several laptops and would be considered an intermediate to advanced computer user. I’ve built my own desktops, tweaked a few laptops and owned various brands of laptops including HP, Fujitsu, Sony and Dell (Inspiron, Latitude and XPS series).

I purchased this laptop directly from Dell based upon Consumer Report’s November 2009 article recommendations where the Dell Inspiron 1545 was rated a ‘Best Buy’ for every day computing. I purchased it for my husband who will use it primarily for watching an occasional movie from Netflix streaming wirelessly on our home network, emailing to share jokes and videos with his friends, and browsing the Internet.

After setting it up, which other than running into a snag with my home network was a breeze, and playing with it for about an hour, these are my impressions.

The PROS:

+ Comes with Windows 7 – no need to upgrade, and the 64-bit combined with the more than adequate memory makes things move nicely. Slightly different than Vista’s look, but should be easy to use.

+ Adequate hard drive (mine came with a 320) for storing photos, videos and music.

+ Great 1.3mp webcam which delivers pretty nice snapshots (not too grainy) as well as excellent video (very little drag of movement).

+ Good speakers! Better than those on my Dell XPS, for which I paid 30% more less than a year ago.

+ 3 usb ports

+ Bright 15.6″ display; nice size. I sometimes find the 13″ on the XPS too small and the Fujitsu had a 17″ which is fine for a desktop replacement but really adds weight to the overall unit.

+ Virtually silent running. No fan noise to speak of and yet…

+ Stays cool to the touch! Not worried about overheating on this one.

The CONS:

- Keyboard is OK, but not as responsive as some others I’ve used.

- The touchpad seems a tad small and the buttons (left/right click) seem too low by comparison to the keyboard. It could be the size of my hands (small…) but I tend to think it’s just the layout.

- The high gloss finish inside and the glossy display (versus matte finish) look cool, but do show fingerprints and reflect light to the point of sometimes being a nuisance.

- There is no ‘media only’ button like on the XPS where you don’t have to turn on the computer to watch a movie, but this is something that higher end laptops would have and may simply be a perk to paying more.

- Heavier than some others, but at under six pounds, it’s still not too bad.

- Matte finish on the outside shows greasy smudges where you’ve touched it. I have the same issue with my XPS, but frankly I’ve never found a finish that doesn’t show something.

- Not a multi-media or gaming powerhouse. It will play dvd’s and games, but if you’re buying a laptop and really into those things, spend a bit more and make sure you upgrade your video and audio to support your interests. The 4GB of memory really helps as much as anything and I didn’t notice any issues with the media I tested.

SET-UP:

The only issue I had with setting up this laptop was with my home network not being accepted because Windows 7 didn’t like the security settings I had in place. I could get the 1545 to recognize my network, but it wouldn’t connect until I changed the settings. I had my wireless settings on WEP and Windows 7 wanted WPA. Once I changed the settings, the laptop connected. I then had to go to 8 different devices on my network and make sure they were happy. Only one item: Myine Electronics IR001 WiFi Internet Radio Adaptor wasn’t happy, but eventually accepted the settings with some concentrated tweaking.

BATTERY LIFE:

Battery life seems to be about 3.5 hours. I think the 4+ hour estimate is high, but that undoubtedly is also based upon what things you are doing on the laptop and mobile power settings.

CONCLUSION:

If you purchase this Dell you are getting a solid workhorse for every day computing for a fair price. I think it’s quality is certainly higher than an Acer with the same specs, and backed by a 1 year warranty from Dell. (Having had a Dell laptop that needed the keyboard replaced recently, I truly think the warranty service provided by Dell – they came to my house the next day – is exceptional and worth the small price hike over some other brands.)

The Dell Inspiron 1545 is perfect for a student, a grandma who likes to email or wants to keep up with the grandkids on Skype, or anyone who has no need for the latest and greatest gaming, multi-media computer. For a laptop with a webcam, 4GB memory, and Windows 7 (64-bit) that’s ready to fly right out of the box… it’s a good choice.

**WIRELESS NOTE: If you are having trouble connecting to a wireless network, be sure you check the included ‘set-up guide’, page 10, to find the wireless key on your keyboard. You can inadvertently press this key and turn off your wireless capabilities. Handy on airplanes… not so handy at home.

Review by K. J. Jensen:

The performance of this laptop is outstanding compared to most laptops in the price range. It’s unfortunate that Dell decided to preload Mcafee’s security suite on the machine. Uninstalling Mcafee disables your network connection preventing you to get online. Reading up on this machine, it seems many people have this issue with the Mcafee suite. After reinstalling all of the software, this machine is pretty speedy. If you aren’t sure how to reinstall Windows and all of the applications, be prepared to pay for subscriptions to Mcafee. You will be permanently offline if you choose to remove it.

The webcam will keep kids entertained for hours with its facial recognition software. You can put goofy hair, hats, and other decorations on your face real-time. Not really a practical feature, but it is pretty cool.

Aside from software bugs on the machine, this is an awesome computer, and it feels quite sturdy. It seems to be a pretty solid machine, and I think I will enjoy having it.

Pros

Windows 7 runs well.

Wonderful widescreen display

Plenty of ram (4gb)

Speedy processor for a laptop

Built in webcam software with facial recognition is awesome!

Battery life is decent for a machine this size.

Machine runs very quiet.

Keyboard is very quiet, and buttons are easy to press.

Very attractive computer.

Cons

Built-in Mcafee software disables your network connection if you uninstall it.

Dell includes reinstallation discs, not recovery discs.

Most of the pre-loaded apps cannot be reinstalled from their DVDs if you choose to reinstall windows.

Glossy finish on the inside of the laptop is prone to fingerprints/smudges.

Lack of dedicated media buttons (shared with F1-F12 keys)

No HDMI

No Bluetooth

No Blu-ray

Only 3 USB ports

Lack of 10 keypad

Review by SJ:

I purchased this laptop battery through amazon, via Northparts USA, LLC (partner merchant). Initially, the battery worked well. About 1-2 months later the battery would not fully charge to full capacity (100%). Instead it would only charge to about 20 %. I placed another battery to make sure that it was not my computer or software issue. It wasn’t. I am not sure about the quality of the products from this particular merchant. I question if this is a refurbished battery. I would not buy form this merchant (Northparts) again. Amazon’s transaction was flawless as usual.

Review by Handyguy:

Delivery was prompt and battery fit perfectly. There wasn’t much in the way of documentation and I suspect it is a recycled and reconditioned battery. It will take a full charge but doesn’t hold it very well. Yes, the laptop is full turned off and not in sleep mode. I have and currently use lithium-ion batteries in my cordless power tools. Hitachi to be specific. They will will hold a full charge for 6-8 months with a discharge of less than 10% after one year. The beauty of Li-ion batteries are they provide the full voltage almost to the point just before they are fully discharged. The batteries I received, while better than the 3 year old cells in my HP laptop, will only hold a full charge for a few days and then begin to lose capacity without the laptop even being turned on. I suspect some internal voltage decay within the cells which are connected in series. In short they work but I doubt that they are factory fresh OEM from Hp. The price was reasonable but short on quality.

Review by Jamie R. Wilson:

When it comes to notebook physical security you need a device that will deter crimes of opportunity — such as those presented by leaving your notebook at your desk at work or at a table in a library while you browse the shelves. If you want to protect your notebook from a determined thief, buy a safe.Most cable security devices are going to provide about the same amount of security so you need to focus on ease of use. If a device is easy to use, then you’re more likely to use it and use it properly. The Kensington system doesn’t get much simpler. It consists of a cable, which is wrapped around a reasonably unmoveable object, and an attached key lock that attaches directly to your notebook’s security slot.Compare the Kensington system with the Curtis 06414 system and you’ll probably agree that the Kensington system is far easier to use. Compare it’s 1 piece system to the Curtis system which uses a cable, a seperate metal piece that hooks to the notebook’s security slot and a seperate lock that connects that piece to the cable. That’s 3 seperate pieces, a little more effort to hook everything up and the possibility of losing that tiny metal piece the whole system depends on.I’ve used both the Kensington and the Curtis systems at work and have found the Kensington system to be far easier to use. I put one key on my keyring, put the other key someplace safe and can toss the cable into my bag and be good to go. With the Curtis system, I had to make use of its storage bag just so I wouldn’t lose the individual pieces. I’m also sure the extra effort required to setup the Curtis system will prevent some people from using the device as much as they should.The Kensington system costs a little more money, but it is definitely worth it. It’s my choice for my personal notebook.

Review by David B. Spalding:

As one reviewer pointed out succinctly, this is a deterrent. Get up and leave your laptop for a few minutes, this lock makes a good deterrent from the casual, opportunity-driven thief. No, it won’t prevent someone vandalizing your laptop. No, it won’t stop a thief with a good cable cutter. So if you see anyone at the cafe or library with a cable cutter, think twice. Oh, you would anyway? I thought so. Some reviewers here must think you have no common sense. So let’s assume you do. You’re considering this one because it’s a very AFFORDABLE deterrent. Another Kensington with an alarm may appeal to you if you want wander a few feet out of sight of your laptop, and want an audible alarm if someone tries to yank it off — but then, who in their right mind will try to defeat a laptop with an alarm in a library? It’s all a matter of risk assessment. If you think you may be leaving your laptop in a place where passersby possess industrial-grade cable cutters or the knowledge to defeat alarms, then perhaps you don’t want to leave our laptop at all.

So this affordable little cable is a suitable deterrent where you feel it’s appropriate for the risk. A relatively benign public location … your place of work where your laptop isn’t accessible to anyone but employees and staff … a hotel, where only the staff have access to your room. These are places where the risk of theft is minimized, and this easy-to-use cable lock is probably quite appropriate.

Review by A. ALAWADI:

This is my second laptop and my first was Toshiba too. The first one stayed with me for Four years and did start to die.

So I decided to purchase this during the Black Friday Deal and the price was seducing! I got it a few days ago and wow!

This laptop is worth every dollar! The only thing you might consider before purchasing is that the battery doesn’t stay too long when unplugged. If you need it for home use then this is it and at an amazing price!

Review by D. White:

This is my first laptop. I was shopping on black Friday, have heard great things about Toshiba laptops, and they had this one for 499.00 so I said what the heck and got it! I also ordered a wireless router. A few days later the box came and I could not be happier. The best thing about is the the display. It is very sharp, bright, and clear. The keyboard is nice as well. I can’t stand the touchpad, but I think that’s a common problem with all laptops. I immediately went out and bought a wireless mouse to use with it. The sound is not great either, but again, I think that’s common with laptops. It seems pretty sturdy, and runs cool. It does not get hot, and the fan doesn’t even run when the ambient temp is around 65 degrees. Setting up the wireless network was a breeze, and when I started up the laptop, it found the signal immediately, and never loses it. The computer is very fast and I have not had one problem. Very satisfied..and wow what a great price I got–this is a well equipped laptop.

Review by M. Akbar:

“Let me start by saying that I use my computer for much more than average daily use. I record multi track audio (i.e. home studio), as well as average daily tasks. I also work in a place that is very much pro Mac/anti PC. That’s okay, I’m not biased either way, you just get more horsepower for your money with PC.

I downsized from my desktop system which was a Core 2 Duo with 2GB RAM on XP Pro. It was working, but I needed more horsepower (i.e. faster processor and more RAM), and I also figured a laptop that could suit my home studio needs would be perfect because I could then be mobile as well.

A lot of research went into purchasing a laptop. I left no stone unturned, and looked at ALL the models, up to a certain price range (under 00), even models with lesser specs in certain areas than this one.

After much research, I decided this has everything I need. I’ve had it about three weeks now, and it’s a great machine. Even some of my coworkers who prefer Macs said it’s a nice laptop, and we all know computers where I work. After seeing the specs and the pricetag on this, they agreed that I did well.

My only gripe about it is that because it’s a Vaio, it comes with TONS of extra Vaio software (as well as other trial software, and other programs that I have no use for). Three weeks later, I’m still experimenting with which Vaio software I should and should not uninstall. Some Vaio programs are necessary to operate things like the function keys, where others are not necessary. I will not post a list here, but search out the individual programs and make your own decision. Other than that, this thing ROCKS!!! Nice clear graphics, fast processor, good RAM (I plan to expand mine up to the allowable 8GB though), and totally KILLS my old Core 2 Duo machine. I was able to pull up sessions from my external hard drive after installing my recording software, and sessions that would nearly max out my Core 2 Duo machine barely had this computer running at 50% system resources. Beautiful, just what I needed. The hyper threading on the new Core i series is amazing.

I bought an e-SATA express card to use with the card slot to stream my external hard drive, I run an audio interface off the firewire port, and an iLok. I’m also going to purchase a firewire express card with a Texas Instrument chipset in it to see which transfer rate is better between the e-SATA card and the FW card (it ‘should’ be the e-SATA, but I’m still going to try it). I also plan on purchasing a wireless mouse, full size keyboard, and 22″ monitor, so basically this laptop will sit off to the side as I record, mix, and edit audio. This is everything I need at the moment, and is working out as an audio computer as good or better than I thought. I highly recommend it. Oh, and regarding the Vaio software – for the average user, most of it is actually pretty cool, I just like to run my machine as clean and lean as possible so that most of it’s resources are available when it comes time to lay down audio tracks.”

Review by Amanda M Hodge:

Something to remember when reading any review, most people who are happy with their product don’t write reviews. People who like to leave reviews write reviews and people who are VERY VERY unhappy write reviews, so just always be aware of the biased.

I love this computer with every bit of my heart. I’m not a gamer so I dont have issues with it not being us to gaming snuff. I mostly use the internet to surf and microsoft office and countless chatting programs. Someone at one point said the screen was so shinny that any light source makes it completely useless, I don’t seem to have this problem because I’ve been using it everyday and have never been blinded by light. The unit is lighter weight than my 15.5inch dell insipron (disaster computer) that is currently being replaced with this model. Someone else bitched about getting a blue screen of death, which I have yet to see after two weeks (they claimed it happened within the first hour). Another person said there was difficulty connecting a Bluetooth mouse, which I agreed with, as I just connected my mouse after about 30 minutes of struggling with it. However, it was finally connected after a 5 minute chat with Sony technical support, so it was more user error than computer. There not web button on mine, instead there is an assist button. When I clicked it I was prompted to start up in safe mode, so I am assuming that the assist button would be useful if you computer crashes. The i3 processor is crazy fast, as is windows 7. I really had no problem with vista and decided that everyone hated it because they were told to hate it, but windows 7 is quite amazing. It runs faster, extremely user/idiot friendly. The keyboard is really nice too, I was kind of nervous about this because the keys are all spaced out, unlike normal keyboards where all the buttons are tapered and adjacent to one another, but its actually really comfortable to type on. One draw back is that earlier models (before the i3 processor came out) were bluray players as well, which they took away probably because it was just too good of a computer for the 0 price tag. The speakers are a little lame, but its a laptop and I wouldn’t expect a whole lot of them to begin with as long as they make noise that I can hear when I need to hear it I’m happy. Something else I like is that it has an optical drive. I know this seems like a trival thing but some of the other computer is the same class as this one have removed CD/DVD drives all together which a major deal breaker for me! Someone else complained that there are no shortcut buttons for volume control…really? How lazy are you that you can’t hit “fn” F2 for mute? It one extra button, and the shortcut buttons on the dell never really worked well for me anyway.

For those of you looking at dells at well let me tell you that I built this EXACT same computer on Dells website and it was going to cost at least 0 bucks more which seems like highway robbery to me.

Something to be aware of, apparently new computers do not come with recovery disks anymore. So they highly encourage you to go out, buy a blank DVD, and create a recovery disk pretty much RIGHT out of the box.

Hope this review helps!!!

Review by Heather:

I got this item in a timely manner and it was as described. I like the concept, but the fit is off! I first tried the 17 inch AlwaysOn but it didn’t stay on.( It kept coming off the upper part of laptop Toshiba P305 Satellite 17in.)So I tried this size figureing it sould fit right? Wrong! This size went on easily and seemed to want to stay on; the problem is that you can not close laptop with this on which means AlwaysOff! They were very good at getting me a Return Autorization. I sent it back late August and am waiting for refund. I would recommend this if it was specifically made for each Laptop as all laptop sizes are not created equally. Maybe there should be a size that falls between the 15.4 and the 17 that would be made. If they do, I would definately buy one again. I would have to say that if you want to buy one of these, you should go try one on at your local Office Depot or? then come back to Amazon to purchase at a better price.

Review by asha:

looked like a good product but don’t buy it for any del 15.4 laptop, was way way to big. had to send it back, but it looked like a good item otherwise, jsut be cautious of the dimensions of your computer in relation to the sleeve