Sony VAIO PCG GRX580 Notebook (1.7 GHz Pentium 4-M, 512 MB RAM, 40 GB hard drive)

Amazon.com Product Description

The Sony Vaio PCG-GRX580P notebook PC combines serious power, true mobility, ultimate style with high-end graphics programs and an amazing gigantic screen for stellar presentations. It offers a 1.7 GHz Mobile Intel Pentium 4 processor and an amazing 16.1-inch UXGA screen for outstanding viewing of your digital images has ultra high-resolution and dual display support. Other features include a 40 GB hard drive, 512 MB of installed RAM, and a DVD-ROM/CD-RW combo drive.

The Basics
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Hard Drive: The 40 GB IDE hard drive is on the small side compared to other notebooks. However, it does offer a decent enough capacity for storing documents and productivity software for road warriors--but not enough for much multimedia storage.
Processor: The 1.7 GHz Mobile Intel Pentium 4 processor offers decent speed, but it is on the low end compared with contemporary models. Thanks to its Mobile features, the processor can save power when its not needed, thus conserving battery life. It has a front-side bus (FSB) of 400 MHz and a 512 KB L2 cache.
Memory: The 512 MB of built-in memory (DDR SDRAM) is a good start for power users. However, that is the maximum amount of RAM that can be installed into this notebook.
CD/DVD Drive: It comes equipped with a combo DVD/CD-RW drive, which enables you to play DVD-ROM discs and DVD movies as well as burn data and record music to CD discs. The CD-RW drive has 16x write, 10x rewrite, and 24x read speeds. The DVD-ROM has an 8x playback speed.
Keyboard & Mouse: This notebook has a standard 85-key keyboard and electro-static two-button touchpad. </ul> Sound and Graphics
The installed ATI Mobility Radeon 7500 video/graphics card is a relatively strong 3D graphics renderer, and it has 32 MB of shared video memory. The extra-large 16.1-inch TFT active matrix LCD has a native 1600 x 1200 pixel display. It also has an sound card that's integrated into the main board, and offers built-in stereo speakers.
Connectivity and Expansion Slots
This PCG-GRX580 offers the following external connections: <ul>
3 USB ports for connecting a wide range of peripherals--from digital cameras to MP3 players
1 FireWire (also known as IEEE 1394 or i.Link) ports for connecting digital video camcorders and other peripherals
1 VGA monitor port
1 parallel printer port
2 PCMCIA (or PC Card) slots (Type I/II)
1 headphone jack and 1 microphone jack </ul> It also has an integrated 56K modem (V.92) and an RJ-45 LAN network port (for a 10/100 Ethernet connection to networks and DSL/cable modems).
Preloaded System and Software
This PCG-GRX580 comes with the Windows XP Home Edition operating system, and it features Microsoft Works (for working with word processing and spreadsheet documents). It also is loaded with Quicken 2002 New User Edition, Microsoft Word 2002, Sony DVgate, Sony MovieShaker, and Sony SonicStage.

Dimensions and Weight
Measuring 1.8 x 14.3 x 11.5 inches (H x W x D) and weighing 8.4 pounds, the PCG-GRX580 is larger than other notebooks in its range. It's best used as a desktop replacement while offering portability when you need it.

Power
The included rechargeable battery has an average run time of up to 4 hours.

What's in the Box
This package contains the Sony Vaio PCG-GRX580 notebook PC, rechargeable lithium-ion battery, AC adapter, and operating instructions.

Product Description
Boost your productivity and creativity with this new level in "mobile digital workstation" computing, featuring state-of-the-art mobile Intel Pentium 4-M power, turbocharged graphics, and large LCD screens! Stay connected with integrated 10BaseT/100BaseTX Ethernet and V.90 modem. Hot-swappable multi-bay design allows internal removable CD-RW/DVD combo drive or optional second on-board battery for extended mobile power on the road. The Sony VAIO GRX Series' center Jog Dial control with back button provides fast navigation, plus MagicGate Memory Stick media slot allows fast, easy transfer of digital images and other important data.
Customer Reviews:

Sony GRX.......2007-06-11
I have a VAIO GRX and have had nothing but trouble with it. It has a problem with the memory slots, the hard drive died and now the LCD screen is malfunctioning which will require another trip to the shop. Sony tech support was a joke, so I was searching the net to try to find possible solutions in an attempt to try to avoid another trip to the shop when I found this site. I will never purchase another Sony computer again.
Terrible cooling systems.......2006-05-30
My Sony laptop suddently stopped working. One of its fans was died. It will cost me from 69 bucks to 300 bucks to remove it. Don't buy Sony laptops.
Sony VIAO GRX laptops have bad mother boards.......2006-04-21
My Sony GRX died one month after the warranty ended. It boots up, then dies as soon as it warms up (about 30s after bootup).

It turns out that the vias on the motherboard have a known problem that Sony nothing about. I will never by another Sony product!!!
I AM FED-UP.......2005-10-18
I HAD A SONY VAIO GRX580, ONEDAY SUDDENLY IT STOPPED WORKING,
TECHNICHANS TOLD ME THERE WAS A PROBLEM WITH THE MOTHERBOARD.
I AM SEARCHING 4 THE MOTHERBOARD, BUT CANT FIND IT.
I will never buy a sony computer again in my life.......2005-09-02
I bough two sony laptops (Sony VAIO PCG-NV190, PCG-NV170). One had the memory slot problem (mentioned in another review below) within two years. For the second one, the CDROM/DVD ROM stopped working within one year. Recently, one hard disk died. I would not recommend any sony laptop.
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