Sony VAIO VGC-RT150Y

Outstanding performance, exorbitant price



MOST OF THE TV-FOCUSED all-in-ones we've seen so far have been more about potential than performance. All have offered basic Media Center functionality, and some have aimed slightly higher, but to accomplish any serious tasks, you've generally had to look elsewhere. Sony is trying to capture the enthusiast sector of the all-in-one market with its very appealing, high-end VAIO VGC-RT150Y, which has many of the benefits of other do-it-all systems at a price we can charitably describe as prohibitive.

First, the good news. The VGC RT150Y, which is equally well-designed inside and out, seems poised to fit into any user's lifestyle or décor. The 17.3x26.1x9.3-inch (11WD) unit is solid black and has sharp-angled corners, the embodiment of I-mean-business elegance. The only colors come from the white Sony logo—which glows when the PC is turned on—and the screen itself, an attractive, glossy 25.5-inch expanse.

You can place the system on either the desk, using the included stand, or on the wall with the help of the included VESA mounting bracket. The components, too, are unusually serious for an all-in-one: a 2.66GHz Intel Core 2 Quad Q9400 processor, 8GB of DDR2 RAM, two 500GB hard drives in a RAID Level 0 configuration, a Blu-ray burner and DVD±RW combo drive, and 512MB of Nvidia GeForce 9600M GT graphics. The system was designed with video editing in mind, so its components are not exactly surprising—nor are the media features that complete the package. Of course, there's a dual-band (ATSC/NTSC) TV tuner for capturing video.

The OS is the 64-bit version of Windows Vista Ultimate, providing backup features beyond those included in Home Premium. You get four separate card readers for importing content: ExpressCard, CompactFlash, Memory Stick Pro, and SD, all aligned on the display's left edge. Other connectivity options are just as plentiful: four-pin FireWire, USB, external SATA, headphone, microphone, and audio-input jacks, also on the left side; two more USB ports on keys (which double as touch volume controls), and OK button let you interact with the display's settings as if it were a full- fledged TV.

A toggle switch near the bottom of the screen lets you switch off the built-in 802.11a/b/g/n Wi Fi, and a button below lets you connect to the wireless mouse and keyboard. Sony takes things still further with software, offering not just the expected (trial versions of Windows Live OneCare, Microsoft Works, and Microsoft Office Home and Student 2007) and its own proprietary media software (for burning discs, creating movies, and streaming music and other media), but also full versions of Adobe's major consumer editing apps, Photoshop Elements and Premiere Elements.

These packages give you a lot more functionality than just about any free software we've seen and are exactly what someone serious about using the VGC-RT150Y would need. Running them shouldn't be a problem: While the Sony displayed very good image quality while watching high-definition Blu-ray movies, it also placed consistently near the top in our all-in one and media-PC rankings.

Usually, only better-equipped—and pricier—PCs can turn in results as good as the VGC-RT150Y's 11,164 in the 64-bit version of Cinebench 10, 3 minutes and 58 seconds with Windows Media Encoder, the right side; and an A/V input, S-Video, infrared transmitter out, optical out, Ethernet, two more USB ports, HDMI out, and HDMI in.

The system allows for easy control over all its functions, most of which you can manage from the right edge of the display. At the top is a power button, and immediately below it is a button that will turn off just the display, leaving the PC on. Below that are the optical drive and then the HDMI-select button, for choosing to accept input from the HDMI port instead of from the PC. The display menu, arrow all on the rear of the unit.



3 minutes in our Mines conversion test, and 5,242 in Futuremark PCMark Vantage. This system excels within its class. Still, the $3,999 price is excessive even by all-in-one standards and not quite in line with what the system delivers. (HP's TouchSmart IQ816, by way of comparison, has the same-size screen and a Blu-ray reader—and costs $2,099.) Unless you desperately need or want the Sony brand, you're better off buying an even more powerful desktop and connecting it to an HD-ready monitor of this size or larger—you'll spend less money, even counting the Adobe software, a Blu-ray burner, and more. We love the VGC-RT150Y's power and extensibility, but we can't blindly recommend it unless you have money to burn. —Matthew Murray

Computer Shopper March 2009