VGN-AW
Overview
The Sony VAIO VGN-AW Series is a range of mid to very high-end desktop replacemement laptops released by Sony in 2008. They were mostly intended for media consumption, and for home use, as well as creative work for higher-end models.
Lower-end AW models featured a titanium gray plastic case, and higher-end models features a magnificent metal mat black case, while the top-end models featured a glossy black case (called Premium Piano Black), with a premium-feeling rubbery palmrest.
Lower-end models had no subwoofer, and a reasonably good CCFL 1680x945 display, while higher-end models had a 1920x1080 panel with CCFL (high-end), or LED (top-spec) backlight technlogy. The LED models were highly praised for their excellent picture quality, color reproduction, and overall sharpness.
The AW Series was offered with a choice of Penryn Intel Core 2 Duos, as well as a NVIDIA GeForce 9300M GS for the lower-end models, and a 9600M GT for the higher-end ones.
Detailed Specs
Processor: Penryn Intel Core 2 Duo (not soldered)
Graphics: NVIDIA GeForce 9300M GS (256MB) or NVIDIA GeForce 9600M GT (512MB)
Chipset: Intel PM45 Express
Memory: DDR2, not soldered, 2 slots, max 8GB (spec sheets list the VGN-AW21M, possibly more, as only supporting 4GB, while having the same chipset, it is unknown if it is misinformation or not)
Display: 18.4" 1680x945 CCFL, 1920x1080 dual CCFL, or 1920x1080 LED Sony X-black LCD
Storage: 2x SATA
Weight: 3.7 to 4kg
MSRP: around 1100€ to 3600€
Daily Usage Today
The AW is still very usable today for modern tasks like text editing, media consumption (which is still better than on most non-OLED laptops from today, only on 1080p models, especially LED ones), and very light modern gaming (9600M GT). Lower-end models are still usable, but you won't have an experience quite as good as you would on higher-end ones.
Top-end AWs can be very pricey, popping up on eBay extremely rarely, and costing upwards of 1000€. Lower-end models can be found for significantly cheaper pretty much everywhere.
WIP