Sony VAIO PCG-FXA36 Notebook (1-GHz Athlon, 256 MB RAM, 20 GB hard drive)

1. this computer is powered by the new amd palomino core (a.k.a. athlon4/athlon xp) so that means it can support pc133 sdram and ddr-sdram which are higher bandwidth memory modules. the fxa currently the fxa series only support pc100 sdram so there is a relatively low bandwidth so you won't get to experience the true power of the athlon4. let's hopethat the next fxa machines have these memory
2. you cannot upgrade your operating system. a stupid thing from sony. so if you want another operating system you would have to do a clean installation but you won't be able to use the bundled software.
3. ati rage is an old video card with only 8mb sdram at a slow 2x agp so this computer actually [is bad] for games. i would recommend at least a newer video card with 16mb ddr-sdram at 4x agp because fxa machines are supposed to be powerfull. another stupid thing from sony.
4. amd processors eat up a lot of battery power so don't expect your battery to last long, even if powernow technology and the .18 micron process are big features of the athlon4. also remember that fxa are powerfull machines. the more power the more energy. amd is finally moving up to the .13 micron process and it is about time to catch up with intel.
5. their customer support simply [is bad] if your vaio happens to fail, but that will LEAST likely happen.

so this is still a great machine if you compare it with other brands. you can get all this stuff for a relatively low price. even the gr series which are also powerfull are at least $300 cheaper than dell inspirons. so buy this machine if you are lookingfor something powerfull for a low price.

1. For starters this machine has trouble regulating its internal temperature causing it to seize. This problem comes and goes.

2. The docking mechanism for those who don't have one has a flaw in it. Sony didn't do a blanket recall. They want you to call them to get it fixed. It involves putting a new capacitor to regulate the video signal.

3. Sony will try and not fix it until your warranty runs out. We excecised our retailer warranty and upgraded to get rid of our FXA49 which had been in Four times.

4. The laptop has software compatibility issues for the power user. Virus scanners will almost certainly halt the machine. Including the one provided by Sony.