Education Technology, Apps, Product Reviews, and Social Media – Edudemic

Topics: Apple, featured, laptop comparison, LED, Macs, PCs, Sony, TFT, vaio s, windows 7

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This post is part of program called “Charged and Ready” by Sony Electronics and Microsoft, where a group of college bloggers have been given a Sony VAIO-S series laptop to test and review.

There’s a lot of talk about how technology and digital media are the wave of the future for education. While the integration of technology into education is certainly an important topic of discussion…there just isn’t much talk about how much it actually costs. Let’s start with one of the most popular means of electronic communication after the smartphone: the laptop.

Students use laptops in class. The iPad and other tablets aren’t quite there yet and it’s just so much easier to type on a laptop’s keyboard when frantically taking notes in class. (I’ll be reviewing tablets and smartphones as they pertain to education in the near future but for now this is focusing on laptops.)

Win A Laptop

Want to win a FREE Sony Vaio S for yourself? Sony and Microsoft are giving one away! Details at the end of this post.

The 30-Day Experiment

There are two different types of laptops in my mind: Macs and PCs. While one can argue about the difference between netbooks and their larger counterparts, it really boils down to what functionality is most important and what each student desires. That’s why I’ve been spending the past 30 days testing a 13″ Macbook Pro and a 13″ Sony Vaio S. I’ve been putting both through their paces by taking them with me on road trips, to classes, to watch movies, to Starbucks for some cramming, and just been generally using both laptops as much like a typical student would as possible.

What did I find? The results might surprise you.

10 Deciding Features

There are some features on laptops that are generally more important than others. For example, a laptop that only lasts one hour per charge is useless if you need to deliver a long presentation that requires the laptop to be away from a power source. If a laptop has the most advanced graphics chip on the planet, it doesn’t really help if the display is a piece of garbage. That being said, here are some of the criteria (in no particular order) I based my reviews on:

Battery Life

The Macbook Pro has a great no-hassle battery that is hard-wired into the unibody construction. It’s so no-hassle that you can’t remove it even if you wanted to. While this is usually not a huge issue, I have certainly had my share of laptops where I probably could’ve saved it / used it a few extra months if I had been able to put in a new battery. Regardless of this issue, there’s something you should know: the Sony Vaio S has a battery and a battery pack that gave me nearly 16 hours of juice. That’s incredible. I’m not talking standby time. I used the Sony to watch a movie, write a paper, take notes, browse the web, watch another movie, and work on some design stuff in Photoshop. All in one day. The Macbook crapped out after about 6.5 hours. While you do have to potentially carry around the very-thin battery pack for those longer-charge days, having the option is huge. If you’re a student that needs to fly home for vacation, wouldn’t you rather have a laptop that lets you watch movies the entire way home? WINNER: Sony Vaio S (by about 9 hours!)

Tech Specs

Both computers use the same processor. They’re both powered by the Intel Core i5 processor at 2.30GHz. They’re almost exactly the same thickness and have the same amount of memory:

They’re not so similar in terms of weight and storage. The Sony Vaio S weights about .6 pounds less which was definitely noticeable as I lugged it and the Macbook around all day (one on each shoulder). Surprisingly, you don’ t actually lose much of anything in that smaller weight other than a bit of structural rigidity. That’s because the Macbook has a solid unibody (metal) construction while the Sony Vaio S uses lighter plastic and magnesium components. I found both to be very durable though and this is not really a deciding factor in my mind. As you can also see, the Sony can store a whole lot more than the Macbook Pro. The Sony boasts a half-terabyte of storage (500GB) and the Macbook Pro has about 320 GB of storage. Don’t get me wrong, this is a TON of storage space and almost unneccessary unless you’re doing video editing and saving multiple gigabytes worth of footage at a time:

What about screens? Both are 13″ widescreen laptops which is about the size I’d want if I had to carry either of these laptops around with me every day. A 15″ or (ack!) a 17″ model is simply way too bulky to constantly carry. So what’s the screen resolution like? The Macbook seems to have a slightly better resolution because it has slightly more vertical lines. However, the Sony Vaio S has far more horizontal lines which translated (for me at least) into the ability to simply show more of each window on the screen at a time. This was great for having references open while writing papers, etc.

One of the most important factors when considering a laptop is of course the price. The Sony Vaio S is about $200 less and actually has the same or better technical specifications of the Macbook Pro. This was a huge selling point for me and will likely be crucial for students and their parents trying to decide between these two types of computers. WINNER: Sony Vaio S

Design

The Macbook Pro is known for its looks. The sleek unibody construction offers rigidity and easily slips in and out of your laptop bag every day. One of the bigger problems I’ve had with it over the past 30 days has been the overheating issue. Since the battery can’t be removed to let it cool down a bit and cooling pads don’t really work…the Macbook has singed more than a few leg hairs. The Sony Vaio S is not exactly an ice cube though. It also heats up but the multiple parts and vents let the heat vent out a bit easier. This means the bottom does not heat up as much as the Macbook Pro, saving your precious leg hairs.

The Sony Vaio S that I got is purple and quite elegant. It has a large trackpad as well as a right and left-click button. This is very helpful as I do a lot of right-clicking while using Photoshop and some web design programs. The Macbook Pro’s trackpad is outstanding as well but there are times when it didn’t always right-click when I wanted to. In my mind, it would appear the Macbook almost put more emphasis on form over function in this regard. While the Macbook is simple and easy to use, there are times when having a few extra buttons would save me a lot of time. Sure, it would’ve made the design a bit uglier but it also would’ve saved me a ton of time. WINNER: Macbook Pro

Keyboard

Both the Sony keyboard and the Macbook Pro keyboard are top-notch. In fact, the Sony laptop feels and responds exactly the same as the Macbook Pro. The two are almost indistinguishable. This is a good thing as Apple’s latest iteration of laptop keyboards (black keys, not those silver keys from years past) is the best in the business. WINNER: Tie

Display / Resolution

The Macbook Pro and Sony Vaio S have very similar specs when it comes to the display here. The resolutions, as mentioned above, are very similar. However, the glossy screen on the Macbook makes my eyes enjoy looking at that screen a bit more. Things feel a bit more crisp and I’d probably enjoy viewing movies and most websites on the Macbook. However, for writing a paper or other more monotonous tasks…the Macbook Pro’s screen is simply too bright and harsh on my eyes. I like the brighter but less-glossy screen on the Vaio for that. So, if given the choice, I’d watch movies on the Macbook Pro and then write my paper and heavy-duty reading on the Vaio. WINNER: Tie

Durability

The Macbook Pro and the Sony Vaio S are both the same size and, although the Vaio is a bit lighter, feel about the same amount of structural rigidity. However, when put to my 30-day test…there was a clear winner. Here’s what happened:

I took both laptops on a walk with my dog along the beach. Dog played in the water while both laptops sat on a blanket soaking up the rays. When I came back, I did some very minor web surfing just to put both laptops through their paces. After about 10 minutes, there was a problem: both laptops had sand in them and had gotten some water spilled on them. The Macbook Pro was essentially locked down and I wasn’t able to clean out the sand and water droplets as well as I should have. It still works fun but it was a terrifying few minutes. The Sony Vaio S, thanks to its interchangeable battery and other removeable components…was able to be completely cleaned and de-sand-ified. This was an easy process and something important to keep in mind if you’re a student who may eat, drink, and basically take your laptop anywhere you go. There’s no use in crying over spilled beer…unless it’s spilled onto your laptop. WINNER: Sony Vaio S

Ease of Use

The Macbook Pro has cornered the market on ease of use. From initial startup to browsing the web , it walks you through everything. The new Windows 7 on the Sony Vaio S does this as well but of course relies on Internet Explorer. As a tried-and-true Firefox user, I wanted to immediately make Firefox my default web browser but unfortunately some of the early set up required use of Internet Explorer. This is merely a personal preference though.

When it comes to day-to-day usage of both laptops, it’s a draw. Mac OS X and Windows 7 are mature operating systems and allow you to do just about anything you need to do. For the geekier type of student, I’d recommend the Sony Vaio S as Windows 7 lets you dig a little deeper into the core operating system. For those looking for the decisions to be made for them, you can’t go wrong with the Mac OS X. WINNER: Tie

Controls

The mousepad and other controls on these laptops are well thought out and properly placed. However, the Macbook simply doesn’t have enough time-saving buttons for my liking. It has a big mousepad and features multi-touch like the iPhone (the Sony also has some multi-touch capabilities as well thanks to Windows 7) but that’s about the only button on the Macbook Pro aside from the power button.

The Sony Vaio S however has different modes (Stamina and Speed) which allow for better battery life or performance. There’s an eject button, a wi-fi on/off button, a ‘web’ button that launches your default browser, and an HDMI port, USB 2.0 and USB 3.0(!) ports, and a few other buttons that area not as useful (a ‘Vaio’ button and an ‘Assist’ button that I didn’t really use). Overall, it saved me a lot of time and actually increased productivity to be able to turn on and off the wi-fi. This, combined with the easy-to-find eject button made movie watching very enjoyable. WINNER: Sony Vaio S

Portability

Both 13″ laptops have very similar specs. Both are quite soundly put together. However, the Sony Vaio S (without the battery pack) is by far the lighter and easier-to-tote option. I found myself feeling like I was hauling around a hot metal brick when carrying the Macbook Pro after extended usage. The only major issue I found with the Sony Vaio S was that the mousepad buttons would get caught on things because they were only slightly exposed when the top was put down. Little bits of dust and string could get caught in there (didn’t happen with me but it could) which might be a pain to clean. WINNER: Tie

Wi-Fi Range

The Macbook Pro had no problem connecting to wi-fi networks that were about 100 feet away. Anything further than that (without any obstructions) posed a problem. The Sony Vaio S made it about 110 feet before it lost the wi-fi signal so both laptops performed admirably. WINNER: Tie

Overall Result

The Macbook Pro is certainly pretty to look at and easy to use. The Sony Vaio S is no slouch in the looks department either and actually has more capability when it comes to interacting in the classroom. While I prefer the Macbook’s styling, you simply can’t match the battery life of the Sony Vaio S and the hardware. While the Mac OS X operating system is smooth and refined, it still takes 4-5 clicks to do some things that are accomplished with the touch of a single button on the Sony Vaio S. For example, turning off the wi-fi is as simple as flipping a switch with the Sony. Turning it off on the Macbook requires the opening of about 3 different windows and multiple clicks.

The ability to put the Sony Vaio S into essentially ‘note-taking mode’ with a touch of a button is also crucial to me. I don’t need distractions while taking notes in class or writing a paper. Being able to quickly turn off wi-fi and put the laptop into ultra-long battery life mode is amazing. I simply found it easier to plop down and write a paper on the Sony whereas I felt a bit distracted and found myself procrastinating while writing on the Macbook.

Since this is a comparison done for the benefit of students and educators, this gives the Sony the ultimate edge. Combining the lower price point along with ability to work for a long time and not get distracted means the Sony Vaio S is the winner in my mind.

Winner: Sony Vaio Series S

Want to learn a bit more about the Sony versus the Macbook? Here’s a quick video courtesy of Sony that shows how the Sony stacks up with the Macbook Pro. The video is quite obviously slanted towards the Sony but offers cold hard facts that aren’t in dispute. Whether you think the Sony or the Macbook is better, I wish you the best of luck in your next purchase!
Want to get the sheet battery for half price? Check out this PDF to get in on this deal.

Win A Free Sony Vaio S Laptop

From now until midnight on July 17th, you can enter to win a Sony S Series laptop AND an external sheet battery just by leaving a comment on the contest announcement blog post. In your comment, you should say what you would do if you could go a whole day without needing to charge your laptop. Get all the details at the posts itself. Good luck!

By the way, you can still get the extended battery for free if you get a laptop from Sony’s website.

 

Sony and Microsoft are Putting a Laptop Up For Grabs.

Yep. From now until midnight on July 17th, you can enter to win a Sony S Series laptop AND an external sheet battery just by leaving a comment on the contest announcement blog post. In your comment, you should say what you would do if you could go a whole day without needing to charge your laptop. Get all the details at the posts itself. Good luck!

By the way, you can still get the extended battery for free if you get a laptop from Sony’s website.