Sony VAIO P: Pocket Style PC

I have been working for Sony Customer Service for almost six months now but I did not know that Sony already released its newest super light and slim ultraportable laptop in my country Philippines.

Maybe because I used to browse Sony US website more than Sony Philippines and its normal since its a part of my job for we cater Sony customers from the North America (Canada, United States and Puerto Rico). January 8 this year when Sony VAIO P series debuted at the 2009 Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in Las Vegas. It was launched to the local press last January 28 at the Sony Philippines head office in Taguig. Tech savvy Pinoys and loyal Sony customers can get hold of the highly covetable Sony VAIO P since its market release last February 25.

Zhorida Lipayon, marketing officer for VAIO at Sony Philippines said :

“With the VAIO P, we at Sony propose a new lifestyle of taking the PC outdoors; with that, fun and enjoyable PC experience can be brought to the consumers.”

VAIO P - PORTABLE PC

A portable PC is not the one you carry on your bag or suitcase; it’s the one that you can put in your pants’ back pocket or inside your jacket.

Sony is breaking new grounds and creating a new product category with the release of the VAIO P. Not to be confused with the Pocket PC of the 1990s, the Sony Pocket Style PC is very modern, forward looking and shatters our view and concept of a portable laptop.

Komei Nosaka, Sony Philippines' Senior Sales Manager said they view the Sony VAIO P as a secondary notebook that provides excellent mobility.

"It is our mission to bring exciting new models to the market. The totally new form-factor of the Vaio P defines what a portable notebook really is; we are creating a new product category which is the Pocket Style PC."

Despite the economic crisis that is affecting the consumer electronics sector, Sony executives are confident that the VAIO P will impact positively to Sony’s loyal customers.

“The demand of the market is always there. We just give the product that fits their lifestyle.”

NOT A NETBOOK?

Though some could easily put a ‘netbook or subnotebook’ tag on the VAIO P, Sony is persistent that the VAIO P is not a netbook but definitely something more, something bigger than its actual size of 10.2 by 4.5 inches.

Sony’s Marketing Officer for VAIO Zhorida Lipayon said during the product demonstration:

“An ordinary netbook can’t do what the VAIO P can do. It’s not the same as the low cost PCs or netbooks available in the market, the VAIO P is a fully functional PC.”

True enough, the specs of the VAIO P clearly separates it from netbooks. It’s just about the size of a business envelope and just as thin as a mobile phone but is unbelievably packed with a 2GB RAM, an Intel Atom Z, a processor that is smaller in size but with lesser power consumption.

Sony proprietary technologies are also present in the notebook, including the Windows Arrangement Utility that provides one touch control to several internet browser windows, the Internet Mode button that assures quick Internet access, this feature allows users to connect to the internet within 20 seconds from the VAIO P’s boot up.

Since it’s from Sony, full AV functionalities were packed into the VAIO P. The AVC HD function allows it to be connected to camcorders. “The VAIO P is highly adapted to Sony audio and video features.”

Another great feature is the VAIO Media Plus function that allows media sharing with other DLNA enabled devices and the Instant Mode that launches Sony’s Xross Media Bar interface for quick access to music, video, photos and the Web.

Lipayon said Sony started to develop the VAIO P more than two years ago but the release and surge of netbooks overwhelmed their release.


SPARKLING SPECS

Sony has again put premium on the design and appearance of the VAIO P. The product is stamped with ‘truly Sony’ design and features.

It is chic, elegant and very portable. It is available in four glossy colors like Obsidian Black, Garnet Red, Olivine Green and Crystal White. Based on the official specs release, the colors are painted on the magnesium body with multiple layers and hand polished on top to achieve glossy exterior that replicates the look of a mineral ore.

It incorporates a high resolution screen display and for a miniature notebook, the 8-inch screen on the VAIO P doesn’t look too small because of its ultra-wide design. It has LCD technology with anti-reflection coating that reduces light reflection and provides brilliant viewing while computing on the go.

The isolation keyboard was engineered for comfortable typing experience. The keyboard looks very similar to that of other VAIO notebook models like the VAIO CS. Sony integrated its noise canceling technology on the VAIO P with the headset that doubles as a mic for PC-to-PC calling.

The polymer lithium ion battery provides 3 full hours of computing power and an optional battery is available for longer use or up to 6 hours. The battery is also quick charging so it is effective to bring during travels and even for daily on the go computing.

Windows Vista is the built-in operating system of the VAIO P.

Color coordinated accessories like a Bluetooth mouse and cases are also available to complement the VAIO P.

But there are features that you canmot be found in VAIO P. Here’s a quick rundown of what the VAIO P is missing:

- VGA out (display/LAN IO adaptor can be purchased separately)
- LAN port
- Trackpad (replaced by trackpoint)
- User replaceable RAM/HDD
- Microphone jack

Nevertheless, Sony VAIO P lives up to the VAIO brand name and is definitely a thing of beauty. There are basically two models to choose from: the VGN-P15G and the VGN-P13H.

The VGN-P15 model will retail for P69,999 and the VGN-P13 variant will sell for P49,999.

On Being a Computer Technician

Although I love computers, it never occurred in my mind that I will be troubleshooting computer as a job. Computer troubleshooting needs a lot of patience and I easily get bored. I don't even know the basic troubleshooting steps and I usually go to a computer shop if my laptop is not working properly. I don't have much background in the computer aside from using it to social networking ans doing my research papers. I only learned how to operate computer when I was in fourth year high school, just the basic operations of turning it on/off and creating a word document. Hahaha!

Well, we don't have computer at home and I go to computer shops when I have to research about my assignments and check my email. I bought my notebook when I was in my last year in college. The primary reason is obvious, I intend to use my laptop while doing my thesis. It is more convenient to write your ideas in a computer than using a bulks of paper.

My cousins Kuya Benj and Robert, who are siblings, are the one who taught me many things about computers. Kuya Benj is into website business while Robert took up computer course in college. They are different in approach, though. I learned basic hardware troubleshooting from Robert because it was his forte. On the other hand, Kuya Benj taught me how to explore networking and computer programs (softwares). He even showed me how to make money online in numerous ways.

I was doing my thesis and was running out of budget. I decided to look for a part-time job to support my schooling. Working in a call center is my best option because of its schedule. Most of my classes are during afternoon especially the major subjects and I can use my vacant morning time to sleep while working at night. But it was never easy to get a job in the so called "sunrise industry". I applied as customer service representatives in many call centers but I was never offered the job. It took me more than six months until I decided to change focus, I applied as a technical support representatives.

My first application is with Teleperformance since my older brother is working there. I went to its hiring office at EDSA Central, along the corners of Shaw Boulevard and EDSA. It was not meant for me. Next day, that was Friday, I went to Sitel in Ortigas and on that day, I was hired! I was overwhelmed yet nervous because I am not a techie person. Sitel offered me first a networking account, a dial-up internet, and was scheduled for final interview the next day. I arrived home almost midnight and while taking dinner, Sitel called me and asked me to come to their office for final interview in a computer troubleshooting account. I really need a job and I want to start as soon as possible. Aside from that, it is a Sony account. I did not think twice and hurriedly went back to Sitel even I'm not yet finished taking my dinner. It was a panel interview and it came out to be fun and inspiring. On that day, I officially joined the product training which lasted for five weeks.

After training we spent two weeks on A-bay where we spend four hours further training while taking calls for the rest of our shifts. I learned many new things during the training but taking calls exposed me to the actual working environment which taught me things I never learned during the training. More so when we finally transferred to the floor which they called production. Experience is still the best teacher. I learned also by observing my fellow agents how they handle the calls.

At first, I was like lost in the middle of the forest. We, the newbies, have been distributed to different teams. New faces, and I have to make effort again in going along well with my teammates. All of us (newbies) has a hardware split that's why most of our calls ended up for service or repair. My first month is really a disaster and I received hundred percent bad returns or NO RESOLVED surveys. I have resolved calls but I only received bad surveys. How unlucky, right?

It's been almost four months since I'm taking calls and I noticed that most of the hardware problems customers encountered is about the operating system and the hard drive. These includes not able to log in to windows, having a blank or black screen, and freezing computer.
We also often received networking and internet problems and maybe customers also view them as hardware related. Because of this, I requested a basic networking training from the operations manager.

Right now, I am more confident than before in troubleshooting the computer over the phone. On my next posts, I will write about some basic troubleshooting of the most common hardware problem.

Nice Jokes

I was browsing our office files when I accidentally opened an agent's folder that includes the following jokes. Let us take a break and let our hearts laugh out!

A High School Boy...

A High School Boy once found a book in the school library whose cover read "HOW TO HUG" was delighted to take it home.
On opening it, he was disappointed to discover it was volume seven of an encyclopedia.

A Wise Old Man
A wise old man who was a judge, was asked to settle a dispute between two brothers about the fair division of a large estate left them by their father.
"Let one brother divide the estate," said the judge," and let the other brother have the first choice in choosing his share."

Coincidence
In a kindergarten school, a teacher asked her class to give examples of coincidence.
There was a long silence, then a small boy said: "My father & my mother were married the same day."

Novel
A BLONDE is in the library , she bangs down a book and says :" too boring, too many characters and no story. LIBRARIAN says : oh! U r the one who took the phone directory away??

Score
Little Susie came running into the house after school one day, shouting, "Daddy! Daddy! I got a 100 in school today!""That's great, Sweetheart," said her daddy."Come in to the living room and tell me about it.""Well," began the confession, "I got 50 in spelling, 30 in maths and 20 in science."

HOME
A BLONDE tells her boyfriend, "Come home tomorrow, no one will be at home." When he goes the next day to her home....... Her door was locked.

Blunder
"James", said Martha, "it is our silver anniversary next tuesday. We should mark the occasion. Shall we kill the pig?"
The husband replied, "Kill the pig! What's the good of murdering an innocent pig for a blunder that happened twenty-five years ago?"

Vacation with pay
When Arthur Brisbane was about to complete fifty years of journalism, Mr. Hearst, his employer, urged him to take a six month vacation with pay. This magnanimous offer Brisbane refused to accept, saying there were two reasons for his doing so.
"The first reason, "he said," is that I quit writing my daily column for six months, it might affect the circulation of your daily newspaper, the second is that it might not affect the circulation."

Sunday School
A big advertising man had a small daughter who came home from Sunday School one day carrying a bundle of pamphlets and cards.
"And what do you have there?" asked the man. "Oh, nothing much," answered the little girl. "Just some ads about heaven."