Sony adds 11in super-portable to Vaio E Series laptops

New line based on AMD Fusion APU chips gets smaller model for mobile users

Sony has rounded out its recently updated Vaio E series line with an 11in super-portable model aimed at users who need to stay mobile without sacrificing PC performance, according to the firm.

Available now from Sony Centres and Sony retail partner outlets, the Vaio E Series 11 is an addition to the 15in and 17in E Series models Sony announced last month.

Priced from £399, the E Series 11 laptops are based on AMD's Fusion APU chips, in this case the latest E2-1800 dual-core chip clocked at 1.7GHz with integrated AMD Radeon HD 7340 graphics, plus 4GB memory (max 8GB) and a 500GB Sata hard drive.

With a weight of 1.5kg, the new range is heavier than some ultrabook models, although 100g lighter than Sony's own ultrabook model, the Vaio T13.

Sony has equipped the E Series 11 with a single USB 3.0 port in addition to two USB 2.0 type, with other I/O consisting of 802.11b/g/n Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, gigabit Ethernet, and a memory card slot supporting both SD Card and Sony's own Memory Stick flash storage cards.

The 11.6in Vaio display supports a native resolution of 1366 x 768 pixels, but the system can drive an external display at up to 1920 x 1200 via its VGA or HDMI outputs.

Sony claims a battery life of up to 6 hours for the E Series 11 models, which also feature a Rapid Wake function that enables the system to be ready for action in moments.

The E Series 11 ships with the 64bit edition of Windows 7 Home Premium by default, but configurations vary, according to Sony.

Other software includes various Vaio utilities, Office 2010 Starter, and a 30-day subscription to McAfee Internet Security.