VGN-TT
The Sony VAIO VGN-TT Series is a range of high-end ultraportable laptop computers, released by Sony in 2008. The VGN-TT is the last Sony VAIO netbook style laptop that can be considered high-end.
Being the successor of the highly praised VGN-TZ, it is clear that some design elements were reused, like the small but comfortable keyboard, palmrest design, and 11.1" display form factor.
The VGN-TT was offered with various color choices: black, red (black case, red display assembly) (Crimson Red), and a collector's favourite, gold(ish) (Champagne Gold). The gold variant is very rarely seen today, and is considered one of the rarest VAIOs out there.
The TT is an excellent example of quality over price. They are built extremely well, with carbon fiber all around and metal accents. Original MSRP ranged from 2000€ for lower-end models, and all the way up to 4400€ for top-end models. The TT was the best, and most expensive "netbook" on the market at the time, and probably still is, the best and most expensive (to buy used) netbook to this day.
The VGN-TT offered some features that were generally only seen on bigger, bulkier laptops, like a Blu-Ray optical drive and a very solid battery life. Performance was pretty good, thanks to an ultra-low voltage Intel Core 2 Duo CPU that was considerably more powerful than the Atom offerings of the time. Higher-end models also featured generously sized blazing fast SSDs.
The 11.1" 1366x768 was highly praised for it's excellent, crisp, image quality thanks to Sony's XBRITE-DuraView LCD technology. An LED backlight was equipped instead of CCFL in order to improve image quality and make the display assembly thinner.
Despite it's small size, the TT packed a generous selection of ports: two USB 2.0 ports, HDMI, FireWire, VGA, Ethernet, a 2-in-1 memory card reader that supports Sony's MagicGate copy-protection and SD cards, as well as an ExpressCard/34 slot, headphone and microphone jacks.
The TT was featured in a James Bond film, though it wasn't clearly seen, or used.
Detailed Specs
Processor: Intel Core 2 Duo ULV (ultra-low voltage) SU9300 (1.20GHz), SU9400 (1.40GHz) or SU9600 (1.60GHz)
Graphics: Intel Graphics Media Accelerator (GMA) 4500M or 4500MHD
RAM: DDR3, 2x SODIMM slots, up to 8GB
Display: 11.1" 1366x768 Sony XBRITE-DuraView LCD with LED backlight
Storage: 1.8" uSATA (also known as Micro SATA) (very rare form factor), HDD instead of optical drive (lower-end models), single or dual RAID SSD (top-end models)
Weight: 1.27 kg
MSRP: 2000 to 4400€
Daily Usage Today
The VGN-TT is still usable today for light modern tasks like web browsing and text editing. It is strongly recommended to upgrade the RAM to the maximum of 8GB and replacing the 1.8" HDD (on HDD models) with the help of a uSATA (Micro SATA) adapters like this one or this one (compatibility not guaranteed, will soon be tested by the VAIO Library team). Gaming is not possible on this device. Only retro games (early XP era and older) will run properly on the GMA.
Resources
WIP
Downloads
Follow our guides to download and install drivers.
Recovery discs are not available for this model. We are currently trying our best to find them. If you have some recovery discs available, please archive them and send them to us!
Sources
Sony, NotebookCheck, CNET and Laptop Mag