Using the same carbon fibre and composite materials as in the construction of modern Formula 1 racing cars, the new TX2 series from Sony is remarkably thin and light. It weighs just 1.24kg and is less than 3cm thick, but still manages to be relatively durable. And it's truly breathtaking to pick up the little thing, especially when you realise there's a DVD writer squeezed into the chassis. It's a reworking of the TX1 range and the few changes can only improve an already impressive machine.
The 11.1in X-black display incorporates white LED technology, which reduces the power requirements and allows the screen itself to be just 4.5mm thick. This leaves something to be desired in the strength of the lid, but there's enough bend in it to take a reasonable amount of brief pressure. With a resolution of 1,366 x 768, it displays 16:9 widescreen, and the glossy coating results in the usual clear and crisp picture we now expect from Sony notebooks.
The styling is fabulous, with a silver body combined with a choice of three lid colours, and the base gradually grows thicker and stronger as it approaches the important hinge area at the back. The keys are surprisingly comfortable to use considering the limited space, although the touchpad is perhaps a little too close to them - it's very easy to brush it as you're typing, and the mouse buttons are positioned awkwardly on the rim where your wrists might rest. But with a bit of time we became used to these idiosyncrasies.
Media card slots and audio ports sit on the front edge where they can be easily accessed, with mini-FireWire and Ethernet ports on the back. A VGA port sits on the right, with two USB 2 ports and a modem port on the left. The modem and one of these USB ports are enclosed, which keeps things tidy but gets slightly annoying if you use them at all frequently. Bluetooth and 802.11b/g round off the TX2XP's connections, and a Type II PC Card slot allows for extra functionality to be added as and when it's required.
It's impressive enough that a notebook of this size includes an internal optical drive, but even more so when you discover that it burns to dual-layer DVD discs at 2.4x and DVD-RAM discs as well. And you can make use of it in Sony's AV Mode: boot directly into it without loading Windows and you can watch video or listen to music without unnecessary strain on the battery. It boots in around 12 seconds and adds an extra dimension to the TX2XP as a portable jukebox. The speakers are understandably a little tinny, but the volume is just about loud enough for personal use.
Handy external volume controls and a mute button sit on the front, next to the wireless switch, which is always useful in extending the battery. But battery life is again one of the TX2XP's strengths: use the notebook intensively and it will last just under four hours, but this will stretch to almost eight if you're just tinkering around. It's hard to imagine a more portable machine than this.
The long battery life comes at a price, though, and it's evident in the inclusion of a 1.2GHz ULV (Ultra Low Voltage) Pentium M 753 processor. The impact is lessened by a decent 1GB of memory, but performance is still not the TX2XP's main strength. A benchmark result of 0.51 demonstrates its abilities, with a reasonably good showing in our office and graphics tests, but during multitasking it was understandably a little slow to respond. However, it does result in whisper-quiet operation and even under the heaviest strain it remains comfortably cool underneath.
A decent 80GB of storage cushions the blow a little and Windows XP Professional is just the start of a very good software collection. As well as Sony's huge range of pre-installed utilities, Adobe's Photoshop Elements 4 and Premiere Elements 2 are included, as is Microsoft Works 8.
It's useful to compare the TX2XP to the Panasonic Toughbook CF-W4, as they share the same ULV processor and portable design. Although nowhere near as rugged and durable, the TX2 offers longer battery life and more features such as the DVD-RAM writer and AV mode, and at a lower price too.
The previous A-List resident, Dell's Latitude D410, still offers remarkably good value at over £300 less. As its optical drive isn't integrated, it can't claim to be anywhere near as portable as this Sony, so it really comes down to your use habits. If you use a lot of CDs and DVDs on your travels, this is undoubtedly the best choice. The single-year RTB warranty is a little disappointing, but otherwise the Sony TX2XP is an impressive little piece of kit: wonderfully portable and beautifully styled.
1.2GHz Intel Pentium M 753; 1GB DDR2-PC3200 RAM; 80GB hard disk; Matshita UJ-832D DVD writer; Intel GMA900 integrated graphics; 11.1in 1,366 x 768 TFT; 802.11b/g WLAN; 56K modem; 10/100 Ethernet; 2 x USB 2; mini-FireWire; Bluetooth; VGA; Type II PC Card slot; MS/SD media card reader; Windows XP Professional; 1yr RTB warranty. Dimensions: 272 x 195 x 29mm (WDH). Weight: 1.24kgFantastically light but without compromise on features, the TX2XP is the perfect multipurpose companion for all but the most hazardous of journeysAuthor: David Bayon
Sony VAIO VGN-TX2XP