PCG-FR (AMD)

PCG-FR JP

Overview

The Sony VAIO PCG-FR (AMD) was a series of mid-to-high-end, desktop replacement laptop computers introduced by Sony in 2003, aimed at power and business users, that needed a powerful, yet not extremely expensive device.

They were highly praised for their excellent keyboard, and their superb Sony Ultrabright displays, they were bright, and the colors were vibrant, however the resolution was lacking. Another criticality of this series of laptops was battery life, which, clocking at around 2h, was below average at the time and even worse on the Intel-powered machines.

They featured a mobile AMD Athlon XP CPU, a downgrade over the Desktop Intel Pentium 4 found on the Intel variants. However, in exchange, you recieved a better GPU, an NVIDIA GeForce 4 420 Go, which is still pretty basic and not intended for gaming.

They had a super nice blue finish, that looks better in person than in pictures. Build quality was excellent, as is VAIO's tradition.

They can be easily differentiated from the Intel variant by the little opening marked "Memory Stick" on the bottom left of the keyboard. AMD variants do not have that, but Intel variants do.

Detailed Specs

Note: these specifications are relative to the PCG-FR105, so CPUs are subject to slight changes

Processor: 1.67GHz Mobile AMD Athlon XP 2000+ (Socket A)

Graphics: 190MHz NVIDIA GeForce 4 420 Go

VRAM: 64MB DDR

Memory: DDR PC-2100 SDRAM

Storage: 2.5" IDE HDD

Ports: 3x USB; 2x Type II PCcard slots; 1x Sony i.Link S400 (Apple FireWire 400 4-pin/ IEEE1394); 1x VGA-Out; 1x A/V-Out (3.5mm to RCA cable needed), 1x parallel "Centronics" printer port; 2x 3.5mm audio jack (audio-in and audio-out)

Additional Devices: 1x 3.5", 1.44MB Mitsumi floppy drive; 1x DVD-ROM/CD-RW Quanta Storage optical drive

Connectivity: 10/100 Mbps Ethernet; 56k Fax/Modem Combo; IEEE1394 net adapter

Display: 14.1" 1024x768 (XGA), 4:3 TFT panel

Weight: over 3kg (over 6.6lb)

Battery life: about 2h

Daily Usage Today

These machines can be used for light modern office tasks, like text editing. Web browsing is doable on a browser like MyPal on XP, or on light Linux. Any sort of gaming cannot be done. Typing on these machines is a pleasure, with their excellent keyboard.

Resources

Sony JP VAIO PCG-FR (AMD) Presentation Web Pages (it's awesome)

Sony VAIO PCG-FR Series User Manual

Sony VAIO PCG-FR130 Marketing Specifications

Disassembly Guide

Sony VAIO PCG-FR (AMD) Disassembly Guide

If the link is broken, please input the URL in the Wayback Machine.

Downloads

Follow our guides to download and install drivers. PCG-FR recovery discs are available for Intel variants.

Sources

Pictures: Picture Nr1