Sony Vaio VGN-FW140E/H Laptop
Price range:
$1,073.99
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$1,073.99
Specs:
Intel Core 2 Duo (2.26 GHz), 2.26 GHz, 3 GB DDR2 SDRAM, 6.4 lbs, 16.4 in TFT active matrix, EPA Energy Star, RoHS, Microsoft Windows Vista Home Premium
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Review Source: CNET.com
Editor's rating:
7.4
Good:
If this 16-inch laptop is any indication, the Centrino 2 platform offers excellent battery life; 16:9 screen perfect for HD movies; excellent keyboard; attractive, simple design.
Bad:
No immediate performance gains seen here from Centrino 2; screen not really true 1080p, despite the sticker on the system that says so; clicky media buttons seem old-fashioned; still some advertising clutter, but less than previous Vaio models.
Bottom line:
Sony's smart design, long battery life, and a big 16-inch screen, make the Vaio FW140--the first Centrino 2 laptop we've seen--an excellent, but still portable, media hub.
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Average rating: 7.0 out of 10 Add your own opinion at CNET Reviews |
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Summary: A typical Vista Crashbox by billslotkin - January 6, 2009 Pros: Price, Sony Name Cons: Vista makes this pc a crashbox, I installed XP on it and it suns smooth as silk |
User Rating 3 out of 10 |
The bottom line is, why is Microsoft continuing to deploy VISTA when it has soooo many issues ??
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Summary: Great Laptop,Always wanted a Sony by mm32x - December 24, 2008 Pros: Its fast,slim,great looking built in webcam and I got a great price on it. Cons: Not really a big deal but would rather have had usb ports closer to rear of side, not front corner. |
User Rating 8 out of 10 |
The best thing is I got it for $620.00 @ BestBuy
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Summary: Good laptop for a great price!! by meech80 - December 23, 2008 Pros: speed, battery life, great 16:9 screen Cons: sound can be better |
User Rating 9 out of 10 |
I bought this laptop in the middle of november for $700 and even though i don't know too much about computers, I know that I got a pretty good deal for my money. The only thing I can say that can be better, especially for being a sony, is the sound is a little softer than I expected. Beside the sound I am very happy with my purchase
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Summary: Highly Unstable Vista/Sony combination by twistedtory - December 10, 2008 Pros: Design, screen Cons: Constant crashes, instability, inability to resolve conflicts between Vista and VAOI OS |
User Rating 1 out of 10 |
Sony doesn't offer this product with Windows XP, however, it's not clear to me or the tech pros who have tried to fix this thing that Vista is the sole issue. Until Sony and Vista are compatible, Sony should not sell products loaded with Vista. As a non-tech layperson, I need my technology to be solid, stable and reliable. Thanks to this Sony, I'm looking at MACs!
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Summary: Superb Machine and Great design by temanzi - December 8, 2008 Pros: 1. The design is great. The sleek corners and the metallic look give it a classic look. 2. the keyboard is conformable, the keys don't make noise, and the palm rest is to die for 3. the touch pad looks really nice 4. connectivity features are great Cons: Nothing so far. I have had it for a couple of days and still exploring but i don't think there is anything not to like. |
User Rating 10 out of 10 |
very grand connectivity features. Not very many laptops with Draft N, Bluetooth and an HDMI. Trust me I looked. The Centrino 2 is just the icing on the cake with the WiMax coming to a city near you.
the laptop itself is very light weight. Weighs less than most 15" inches out there. the 16:9 widescreen is excellent for watching videos.
Overall a great all rounder of laptops.
the laptop itself is very light weight. Weighs less than most 15" inches out there. the 16:9 widescreen is excellent for watching videos.
Overall a great all rounder of laptops.
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Summary: Great Laptop by Mangeni - December 1, 2008 Pros: Good screen size, excellent keyboard just like the Mac Pro. Quick start up and shutdown. Obviously the sleek style and general layout. 3 hr battery life. Very sturdy casing i.e real quality just like the Mac if not better Cons: Screen resolution not as good as the Mac but okay. |
User Rating 8 out of 10 |
Its a good budget laptop if your are not willing to spend $1300.00 on a Mac and you don't want to compromise quality. Poor software for the web cam. Other than that its a great laptop as far as performance is concerned. I happy with what I got.
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Summary: Simply the best laptop! by craig_maze - November 30, 2008 Pros: Cool specs (3GB RAM and 2.26 GHz processor fit my everyday computer usage) Great appearance (16.4" Screen is very attractive and the keypad is well spaced) Great Battery Life (i have no problem bringing my laptop anywhere) Cons: The Weight, well since it's packed with great features i can understand that it weighs 6.2 lbs. |
User Rating 9 out of 10 |
I bought my Sony Vaio VGN-FW140E laptop (my first) at Best Buy last October 27, 2008 and it captured my attention easily because of two things:
1. Currently that time it is tagged as a store special at only $620
2. I can never ask more for its great appearance and cool specs
My wife used to have HP Pavillion Laptop with 1GB RAM and 1.67GHz processor and whenever i work at home running Autocad and Mathcad I always have that "hangtime" since that two softwares use a lot of memory. But now with my Sony laptop everything runs with ease. I can work continuously without slow screen movement. I am so happy and blessed to have this laptop, and i recommend it 100% to anyone who wants a pure performing laptop.
1. Currently that time it is tagged as a store special at only $620
2. I can never ask more for its great appearance and cool specs
My wife used to have HP Pavillion Laptop with 1GB RAM and 1.67GHz processor and whenever i work at home running Autocad and Mathcad I always have that "hangtime" since that two softwares use a lot of memory. But now with my Sony laptop everything runs with ease. I can work continuously without slow screen movement. I am so happy and blessed to have this laptop, and i recommend it 100% to anyone who wants a pure performing laptop.
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Summary: AWESOME LAPTOP by ARIS1396 - November 26, 2008 Pros: Incredible laptop, Intel works great on it. Unlike my recent Vista computer, the FW turns on and shuts down fast. Blu ray is great. Cons: Medium size touchpad. |
User Rating 9 out of 10 |
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Summary: Simply Excellent by 123preston - November 20, 2008 Pros: Speed, display, battery life, design, construction, amazing value. Cons: Minor: Headphone and mic jack location, you gotta' remove the bloat-ware. |
User Rating 9 out of 10 |
If you can find one, buy it.
I tracked down and bought the last one from a BestBuy in Chicago. The sales person didn't know they still had one - he seemed disappointed. Sorry, dude!
The design is right out of the Macbook Pro playbook. I'm ok with that since Macs are nothing if not gorgeous. I love the keyboard layout.
The AV buttons seem a bit "extra", but they're nice to look at.
I was reluctant to move to an xtra-bright, glossy screen as I am a designer and a fan of matte finish displays.
To compensate, I made adjustments to the "brightness" and "contrast" settings. Looks great.
Functionally, I often have PhotoShop, Illustrator, Expression Web and Flash running at the same time. No performance issues at all.
The scroll feature of the touch pad takes a little getting use to, but I like the minimalist "hidden" approach.
Battery life for me runs between 2.5 to 3 hours on full power.
Flaws?
Well, I wish the headphone and mic jacks weren't located on front of the machine. I must be mindful of them when typing. It seems like the design team went to lunch and allowed the intern to make that decision. Spending time removing bloat-ware can be annoying. Still, these are a small price to pay for a top performing laptop.
There is a more expensive version (about $1200) of this machine, which includes a BluRay burner and 4g of memory. I paid $850... you do the math.
More memory is always good, but I have NO pressing need to burn BluRay discs. Do you?
As I said before, if you can find one... BUY IT!
I tracked down and bought the last one from a BestBuy in Chicago. The sales person didn't know they still had one - he seemed disappointed. Sorry, dude!
The design is right out of the Macbook Pro playbook. I'm ok with that since Macs are nothing if not gorgeous. I love the keyboard layout.
The AV buttons seem a bit "extra", but they're nice to look at.
I was reluctant to move to an xtra-bright, glossy screen as I am a designer and a fan of matte finish displays.
To compensate, I made adjustments to the "brightness" and "contrast" settings. Looks great.
Functionally, I often have PhotoShop, Illustrator, Expression Web and Flash running at the same time. No performance issues at all.
The scroll feature of the touch pad takes a little getting use to, but I like the minimalist "hidden" approach.
Battery life for me runs between 2.5 to 3 hours on full power.
Flaws?
Well, I wish the headphone and mic jacks weren't located on front of the machine. I must be mindful of them when typing. It seems like the design team went to lunch and allowed the intern to make that decision. Spending time removing bloat-ware can be annoying. Still, these are a small price to pay for a top performing laptop.
There is a more expensive version (about $1200) of this machine, which includes a BluRay burner and 4g of memory. I paid $850... you do the math.
More memory is always good, but I have NO pressing need to burn BluRay discs. Do you?
As I said before, if you can find one... BUY IT!
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Summary: I think it is one of the Great value for your money!!!! by TimmyHo11111 - November 5, 2008 Pros: 16.4" screen, 2.26ghz centrino2 processor, HDMI connection Cons: i just got it last night so the HDMI is still a little hard to use, just because i cant get the sound to work. |
User Rating 8 out of 10 |
i got the laptop for roughly 620.69 for that much money and for this much EXTRA stuff that it comes with, why pay for something else. i can get use to the HDMI setting and somehow make the sound to work..i will try what people had posted and see if that will work. THANKS for reading
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Summary: Great Laptop for Multimedia by StarionX - October 24, 2008 Pros: Clear screen visibility, very fast loading (when plugged), spacing of the keys, HDMI output, tons of built-in features, price. Cons: Battery life not what was expected, some movies flicker (with basic entry level graphics), still pretty heavy, usual bloatware VAIOs come with. |
User Rating 7 out of 10 |
I was looking for a basic laptop, with the latest possible goodies, so I can do some internet work and minor gaming on the go. This is a pretty good choice for the price, especially with the Sony name on it. Also, with the new Centrino 2 technology, and a faster ram than the usual models, this was definately a great choice so I could get faster load times.
I love the clarity of the screen so I can watch movies with great detail, the programs that come with it to watch movies on are very user friendly, despite all the bloatware surrounding it. I also have found on occaision, while watching a movie, my screen flickers a bit. Not too much a big deal, I hardly notice it.
The notebook itself is very comfortable to hold and with the spacing of the keys, it makes it easier to type. It's still a bit heavy so carrying it for long periods of time could put a strain on you (I carry mine using a backpack).
One other great positive is that since Centrino 2 runs with less power needed, it runs cooler than most laptops of this class. one complaint I hear about notebooks is that they tend to overheat.
The only major negative I had was that the battery life was a lot less than everyone said it was. It was supposed to be rated to go about5.5 hours without recharge. Mine only goes 2.5 at most. I'm hoping it's just a faulty battery I have, but I can't afford another one to test that theory out. One other negitive is the sound quality of the speakers. It's no big deal to me. I use headphones anyway and that sounds MUCH better on this laptop.
Overall, I think this is a great computer for those who would like something to last you a good couple of years longer than the average lifespan on a computer/notebook, and not have to spend an arm and a leg to get the best. This is also good for those who don't need to buy a new computer/notebook every other year. The sleek design will also help you get noticed. My friends at first thought the 16:9 ratio was wierd, but loved how unique it is. This is not a gaming computer at all (I actually have the same model/specs that was tested here). If you want something more, but enjoy the new technology, have yours custom built from Sony. I think this is a pretty good choice for the average movie watcher and internet enthusiast. I say give this one a shot.
I love the clarity of the screen so I can watch movies with great detail, the programs that come with it to watch movies on are very user friendly, despite all the bloatware surrounding it. I also have found on occaision, while watching a movie, my screen flickers a bit. Not too much a big deal, I hardly notice it.
The notebook itself is very comfortable to hold and with the spacing of the keys, it makes it easier to type. It's still a bit heavy so carrying it for long periods of time could put a strain on you (I carry mine using a backpack).
One other great positive is that since Centrino 2 runs with less power needed, it runs cooler than most laptops of this class. one complaint I hear about notebooks is that they tend to overheat.
The only major negative I had was that the battery life was a lot less than everyone said it was. It was supposed to be rated to go about5.5 hours without recharge. Mine only goes 2.5 at most. I'm hoping it's just a faulty battery I have, but I can't afford another one to test that theory out. One other negitive is the sound quality of the speakers. It's no big deal to me. I use headphones anyway and that sounds MUCH better on this laptop.
Overall, I think this is a great computer for those who would like something to last you a good couple of years longer than the average lifespan on a computer/notebook, and not have to spend an arm and a leg to get the best. This is also good for those who don't need to buy a new computer/notebook every other year. The sleek design will also help you get noticed. My friends at first thought the 16:9 ratio was wierd, but loved how unique it is. This is not a gaming computer at all (I actually have the same model/specs that was tested here). If you want something more, but enjoy the new technology, have yours custom built from Sony. I think this is a pretty good choice for the average movie watcher and internet enthusiast. I say give this one a shot.
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Summary: It sure would be nice to see something. by supaflyak314 - October 6, 2008 Pros: The screen dimentions are awsome, the keyboard is really neat. And if youve seen the commercials they're pretty cool. Cons: No more than a week of owning it, I'm having monitor problems. Now just over a month I realize that its a real problem. It wont turn on, and even with an external monitor... nothing. Thats convinient, real nice. So the whole thing is garbage. |
User Rating 2 out of 10 |
I'm a US marine with toys for tots, and as a driver I use a laptop for GPS. Mainly because its perfect for navigation. But, since I cant see ANYTHING, this is one useless $1200 sitting in my lap. And being in my job field I dont have time to babysit this piece of crap to get it up and running. I just went through all of that with a Dell XPS gen2. And now this stupid Vaio. Especially a month into it, I just want to buy a laptop, and it do... i dont know, maybe laptop things? Is that too hard to ask?
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Summary: Ordering tomorrow by Composer_1777 - September 15, 2008 Pros: Sony, lasts forever, casing, build quality, the most advanced intel chips, highest quality laptop display on the market. Cons: none except that i prefer my laptops to be super portable and l wish the FW were a little lighter but its a media laptop not ultra portable. I already got one of those just need this baby for my 42 inch sony hd |
User Rating 10 out of 10 |
I'm cusotm building mine and ordering it tomorrow. I got 2 sony laptops at the moment, an old FS and a newer SZ , both run beautifully. My SZ runs vista like nothing and its already a year old. The 3 year old FS runs perfectly; it is still very functional as well. These bad reviews don;t even belong on this product and should be deleted.
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Summary: the worst customer service and technical support by fwreview - September 12, 2008 Pros: stylish note book, nice size and light Cons: the touch pad is not working properly and it will give you alot of trouble...the customer service is really bad...the technical support were very rude and unprofessional |
User Rating 2 out of 10 |
the worst company customer service and technical support I have ever dealth with...I dont recommend the company at all.
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Summary: laptop that can do more but be gentle ! by waynepham - September 10, 2008 Pros: fast,beautiful,functionallity...I agreed with all up-to-date reviews.I have had this FW 140 for 3 weeks and absolutely loved it. Cons: Be Extra gentle with it as you can !My screen showed cracking images after 2 weeks of use and stopped fumctionning couple days after.Fry's electromics ruled as"physiccal damage and wouldn't take it back or exchange,even w/extended warranty. |
User Rating 8 out of 10 |
I see it as fragile to have it carried around.But I like the the price($1045 ) and the performance.If I can be more gentle and protect it better(heavy duty pouch/case).I would buy another one of the same or higher model.Oh !I forgot to mention that I did have some "impacts" during 2 weeks it's in&out of my car's trunk.But my fujitsu&HP laptops didnot break after 3 yrs sharing the same "in&out" of my car's.Sony said the repair could top near $700 if they see it's my fault!Ouch!
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Summary: Fast, Beautiful Simplistic Layout; All Around Great by AppGrad - September 6, 2008 Pros: The screen on this is amazing. The 16:9 format takes a little getting used to, but provides great extra work space. Keyboard is great, and built in webcam is very smooth. Very quick, have not experienced any lag running applications or gaming. Cons: Speakers could be louder, but are more than enough for anything other than watching a movie 15 feet away. |
User Rating 9 out of 10 |
This computer was an excellent investment. After researching for months with a budget that allowed almost every laptop, I found this one to be the best value. It is very quick, the display is gorgeous (if you opt for Hi-Color as I did), and is beautiful. Originally I was worried about portability, but it is very light especially considering the screen size that you get. It even fits into my top-loading laptop book bag that specifically says 15.4 inch is the maximum no problem. Very happy with the choice I made!
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Summary: Just one little issue that ruins the entire unit by jtan001 - September 3, 2008 Pros: Great screen, wonderful keyboard, large display great for viewing just about anything. Bluetooth a definite plus. Cons: HDMI Output, great video when you connect to your HDTV, however no audio whatsoever!!! |
User Rating 3 out of 10 |
Ok I bought this laptop on a whim and wanted to use it mainly to connect to my HDTV so that I may watch movies from laptop on my large tv. However when I connect the darn thing I only get video, no audio. I've connect HDMI to my tv before using a Dell XPS M 1330 and it works fine, all I had to do was go to the audio icon and click on playback devices and change the CODEC from my speakers to HDMI. However this Vaio FW 140 e/h has no preinstalled CODEC for this purpose. I've gone on Sony's support site and downloaded the required CODEC and tried installing it myself however the darned thing won't install. I finally decided to ask a friend of mine whose a computer whiz to come over and help me. He determined that the Vaio is using a different CODEC by a manufactorer different from the one that the speakers are built from. We tried uninstalling the old CODECS and reinstalling the correct ones from Sony's support site, however we still got issues. The sound would only work occasionally, we tried toggling the sound from HDMI to Speaker and ended up getting no sound whatsoever a couple of times. Sony's tech support does no good whatsoever, the guy on the line took over 45 minutes to do nothing, he took remote access on my computer and fiddled around with no results before he transferred me to his "next level of support" again no help whatsoever.
And this is not unique to my FW 140 e/h alone. I went back to best buy where I bought the unit after talking to Sony's useless tech support and traded my unit in for a brand new one. Same model, same design, same everything. Same problem when I got it home, NO HDMI AUDIO! I did this a total of three times at my local Best Buy the manager thought I was trying to scam them or something, however their geek squad team looked and the units I brought in and sided with me. Still same issue, the only suggestion was to wait for Sony to come out with a patch to fix this issue since the FW series is relatively new. So anyways for anyone who bought a FW 140 e/h check the HDMI options, and let me know if you can get video AND audio, cuz chances are you won't be able to. Which really sucks since Sony is toting this laptop as one where you can connect to an HDTV and get full 1080 viewing. Yea you can get VIDEO but NO AUDIO!!!
If anyones got a solution to this I'm listening.
Aside from that Everything else on this laptop works great.
And this is not unique to my FW 140 e/h alone. I went back to best buy where I bought the unit after talking to Sony's useless tech support and traded my unit in for a brand new one. Same model, same design, same everything. Same problem when I got it home, NO HDMI AUDIO! I did this a total of three times at my local Best Buy the manager thought I was trying to scam them or something, however their geek squad team looked and the units I brought in and sided with me. Still same issue, the only suggestion was to wait for Sony to come out with a patch to fix this issue since the FW series is relatively new. So anyways for anyone who bought a FW 140 e/h check the HDMI options, and let me know if you can get video AND audio, cuz chances are you won't be able to. Which really sucks since Sony is toting this laptop as one where you can connect to an HDTV and get full 1080 viewing. Yea you can get VIDEO but NO AUDIO!!!
If anyones got a solution to this I'm listening.
Aside from that Everything else on this laptop works great.
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Summary: Excellent Laptop for an Amazing Price by PLmike - September 2, 2008 Pros: High Resolution Screen, Clean Design, Nice Button and Keyboard Layout, Everything runs extremely well Cons: The only thing I would classify as a con would be the CD/DVD drive, its louder than most CD/DVD's drives. |
User Rating 9 out of 10 |
I payed $999.99 for this laptop...and I think I have gotten more than I've payed for. The screen size is just perfect, and the laptop is at a nice weight. It seems thin for its size as well. The FW140 also runs a variety of applications with ease, I was able to run Gears of War on a lower resolution. It's processor is also able to handle a huge amount of applications at once. I haven't found much negative to say about this laptop and I really enjoy using it. Highly recommended to anyone looking for a nice media laptop for a great price.
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Summary: Great sharp bright screen, very fast, very thin, lotsa functionailty. by jabberwolf - August 26, 2008 Pros: This is a media machine to play with, create, play games on, and work professionaly. Very long long life battery. Cons: Slightly more expensive than I'd like, still no backlit keyboard. |
User Rating 9 out of 10 |
Bomy2003-
This user was commenting on the FW when it hasnt even been sold yet. He is nothing but a mac user with frustration.
Sorry not even the Sony employees were not able to buy this yet.
So "returning it for a mac" is just a fricken lie.
The screen is great and sound just as awesome. The speed is phenomenal and the think JUST WORKS great! I know because a friend of mine at Sony and I played with this thing all day long!
Don't waste your money on a mac or listen to any more of Mac user lies. They simply need attention and justification for making the wrong choice.
This user was commenting on the FW when it hasnt even been sold yet. He is nothing but a mac user with frustration.
Sorry not even the Sony employees were not able to buy this yet.
So "returning it for a mac" is just a fricken lie.
The screen is great and sound just as awesome. The speed is phenomenal and the think JUST WORKS great! I know because a friend of mine at Sony and I played with this thing all day long!
Don't waste your money on a mac or listen to any more of Mac user lies. They simply need attention and justification for making the wrong choice.
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Summary: excellent media laptop especially for blu-ray viewing on hdtv by dckev - August 13, 2008 Pros: overall quality, gorgeous display, inexpensive blu-ray ROM option, good value for certain custom configurations Cons: mouse buttons too small & too flush with trackpad, laptop speakers could use more power |
User Rating 9 out of 10 |
overall excellent laptop, especially for media-centric use and hooking up to external hdtv for blu-ray viewing; my primary qualm is that the trackpad buttons are too flush with the trackpad itself making them difficult to use; also, the laptop speakers, while adequate and better than on my MacBook, could use more power
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Summary: faulty software, cheap speakers by bomy2003 - August 7, 2008 Pros: interesting design Cons: speakers and software |
User Rating 5 out of 10 |
I couldn't imagine to buy a Sony notebook and to have problems with sound.
The speackers cannot deliver a decent volume output.When whatching a BD, I couldn't understand the dialogue (The Golden Compass). The software from Dolby...just useless. I managed to change the sound software but I got just a small improvement.
On the other side it has nice keyboard, good conectivity and a cooler CPU.
Over all I decided to return it and wait for the new MacBook Pro.
The speackers cannot deliver a decent volume output.When whatching a BD, I couldn't understand the dialogue (The Golden Compass). The software from Dolby...just useless. I managed to change the sound software but I got just a small improvement.
On the other side it has nice keyboard, good conectivity and a cooler CPU.
Over all I decided to return it and wait for the new MacBook Pro.
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