If you are/were a fan of Sony VAIO Windows laptops and tablets you might be happy to hear that the firm formed from the spun-off Sony PC division plans to re-enter the US market. The VAIO Z Canvas 2-in-1 computer is to be made available in Japan a week from today and VAIO says it will re-enter the US market, spearheaded by this device, in autumn/fall.
The key features of the VAIO Z Canvas 2-in-1 make it a direct Microsoft Surface Pro 3 competitor. The VAIO sports a 12.3-inch screen with 2560 x 1704 pixels and 95 per cent Adobe RGB coverage. Like the Surface Pro this tablet has a stepless kickstand. It comes with both a detachable keyboard and active stylus. The stylus offers 1024 levels of pressure sensitivity and there is minimal parallax thanks to the optical resin bonded screen display.
Performance should be good as the VAIO employs an Intel Core i7-4770HQ running at 2.2GHz (3.4GHz boost) with 4 cores/8 threads and including Iris Pro Graphics 5200. Compared to the Surface Pro 3 users can experience 3.3x faster Adobe Photoshop CC Smart Sharpen filtering, reports PC Watch. The same magazine says the Iris Pro Graphics offer a 3D experience on a par, or slightly faster, than the GeForce GT 740M and GeForce 840M. A series of three 'feather shaped' fans and heat-pipes keep the system cool under stress.
Standard features of the VAIO Z Canvas are: Gigabit Ethernet, USB 3.0 × 2, HDMI 1.4 output, Mini DisplayPort, audio output, IEEE 802.11ac /a/b/g/n wireless LAN , Bluetooth 4.0, SD card slot, TPM 1.2, 2MP front camera and 8MP rear camera. The tablet includes acceleration, gyro, geo sensors. Battery life is about 8.5 hours. Physically the VAIO Z Canvas measures 301 × 213 × 13.6mm and weighs 1.21Kg without the keyboard accessory which is 4.4mm thick and weighs 340g.
Memory installed in the $3,300 top model consists of 16GB (dual-channel) RAM and SSD 1TB (PCIe 512GB × 2). A cheaper model with a 512GB SSD costs $2,650, and the base model with just 8GB RAM and a 256GB SSD costs $2,050. It seems that the prices include a keyboard and stylus bundle. Liliputing expects prices to be more competitive when the VAIO Z Canvas 2-in-1s arrive in the US later this year.
VAIO Z Canvas next to a Microsoft Surface Pro 3
