The Sony Vaio YB is a portable notebook which fits somewhere between the Sony Vaio W 10 inch netbook and the company’s more ambitious (and expensive) products such as the Vaio P 8.9 inch ultraportable and the Sony Vaio X ultrathin notebook.

But while the Vaio W, P, and X all have low power Intel Atom processors, the Sony Vaio YB has an AMD E-350 dual core processor and Radeon HD 6310 graphics. With a price tag of $599, it’s reasonably inexpensive for a Sony laptop, but it’s still pricier than laptops with similar specifications from HP and Lenovo.

So how does the Sony Vaio YB stack up in real-world performance? The folks at Laptop Magazine got to spend some time with a demo uni and they’ve posted a detailed review.

They found the machine to be stylish, light weight, and reasonably powerful — especially when compared with an Intel Atom-based notebook. The notebook ran for about 5 hours on a charge, which isn’t bad, but it’s about an hour less time than Laptop Magazine got from HP and Lenovo’s AMD E-350-equipped notebooks.

The keyboard is also reportedly a bit on the small side, and they were underwhelmed by the speakers and webcam.

You can find more details and plenty of photos at Laptop Magazine.

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11 replies on “Sony Vaio YB 11.6 inch notebook with AMD Zacate reviewed”

  1. I own one and am underwelmed by the battery life too. I do not even get 5 hrs! The keyboard is a joke as the chicklet keys are spaced appart but they are small themselves. The speakers are very weak but that’s no surprise on such a small notebook. My most anoying issue is that the fan is almost always running! Not sure if the chipset has to be kept really cool? But the fan seems to run when its really not needed. I am happy I did not pay $599 because that’s overpriced for this quality.

  2. Some folks seem to like the AMD Fusion. I ordered an HP DM1Z in the first week of Feb. Just checked today…it is expected to ship March 11! Over a one-month wait for a PC? When was the last time that happened?

    1. I ordered my HP DM1 fusion system a couple weeks ago and it’s expected to be delivered to me today! Not sure why you have such a delay. So far, it’s been smooth for me. Now I’m looking for a decent external optical drive

      1. The HP DM1 is the older version which is now EOL. You must have ordered a refurbished unit.

    2. I ordered my HP DM1 fusion system a couple weeks ago and it’s expected to be delivered to me today! Not sure why you have such a delay. So far, it’s been smooth for me. Now I’m looking for a decent external optical drive

  3. This is silly. 5 hours? 11.6 inchers should at least give 10 hours and this should be the aim of manufacturers.

    The Asus 1101, which came out 3 years ago could give 11 hours albeit a slower processor.

    5 hours is shit. Sad that Sony is producing shit products now.

    1. AMD Fusion is much more energy efficient than AMD’s previous offerings but there is only so much energy efficiency can help run times without also having to reduce performance to get more run time from the same battery capacity.

      Comparison to the Eee PC 1101 ignores that a much slower processor also uses less power. You basically can only get longer run times by either lowering performance, so the system uses less power, or increase the capacity of the battery but that also increases size and weight.

      While none of the other AMD Zacate E-350 systems released to date have given more than 6 hours. Though I know one person who upgraded their DM1z with a SSD and seems to be getting close to 8 hours. But otherwise it’s unrealistic to expect 10+ hours from such systems unless someone puts in a battery with a significantly larger capacity than the typical 6 cell.

      So while this Sony system is pricier than the competition and has slightly less run time, it is not as bad as you’re trying to portray it either.

      1. I agree that 10 Hrs is unrealistic with better performance. But I think 6 Hrs could be reachable if Sony had put a bit better battery in the YB. After all a notebook this small is marketed towards the person traveling.

        1. Sony does offer a higher capacity battery but of course they will charge extra for it…

  4. It is truly surprising the Sony is selling AMD products. Intel is known to bribe and threaten Sony not to sell AMD products:

    From court evidence presented in antitrust proceedings:

    “The first executive inquired: “Can [another Intel
    representative] discreetly hint to Sony that the Corp Marketing dollars are at risk if Intel’s MSS with Sony in the value segment does not improve?” The second responded: “We should not be shy about our unhappiness with our current MSS. Intimating that the program is in jeopardy if
    they don’t get their act together and work with us on this is clearly ok.”

    https://online.wsj.com/public/resources/documents/Intelcomplaint1104.pdf

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