Sony Unveils Ultraportable Blu-ray Notebook

Color Sony's world Blu - as in Blu-ray. The new TT line of VAIO notebooks it unveiled today are ultraportable units with 11-in. screens and Blu-ray disc drives standard. Available in black, gold or red (but no, not blue) the models start at around $2,100 and are priced up to $4,345 at Sony's Web site .

The top-of-the-line model, The VGN-TT 190UBX differentiates itself with 4-GB RAM and a 256-GB solid state drive. Other models, such as the 190NIB, have comparatively modest storage: 160-GB hard drives with 2-GB RAM. The casing on the more expensive model is upgraded, as well. Although the screen is a bit small for viewers to truly take advantage of the Blu-Ray picture quality, an HDMI connector is included, so users can plug into a larger display (TV or computer monitor). The TT Series' 1,280-by-768 resolution is comparable to its predecessor's (the TZ298N), and the screen uses LEDs to backlight the display.

The systems come loaded with Windows Vista Home Premium, are less than one-inch slim and weigh 2.87 lbs. They are Intel based, using the semiconductor manufacturer's new Centrino 2 chips (formerly code-named "Montevina.") All the TTs feature a Web cam, Bluetooth capability, a CD/DVD burner, a fingerprint sensor, noise-canceling headphones and Intel WiFi Link 5100AGN. A Sprint Mobile Broadband card is available as an option.