Sony unveils Blu-ray playing Vaio NW

On the heels of Apple cutting the price of its MacBooks, Sony fires back with its brand new bargain-priced VAIO NW, priced at just $880. The best part: it comes with a built-in Blu-ray drive!

There haven’t been very many computer releases so far that feature Blu-ray drives, and while we all wait for Apple to jump on the Blu-ray bandwagon, Sony has stepped up to the plate with a very affordably-priced PC that has a nice, sleek look, a widescreen display, built-in webcam, a strong variety of ports and software, and all in a package made of 98% recycled materials.

Here’s a look at the full specs for the VAIO NW laptop, the first in a new line of affordable, Blu-ray-inclusive PCs:

• Intel Core 2 Duo processor
• ATI Mobility Radeon HD 4570 graphics card
• 15.5 inch widescreen display, with Sony’s XBRITE-ECO LCD technology
• HDMI output connector, should you want to watch your Blu-ray discs on a big screen TV (meaning you get a PC and a Blu-ray player all in one)
  
• Transluscent, textured touchpad
• “Display Off” button to turn off the screen while the notebook continues to run in the background (surprised Apple didn’t think of this first)
  
• “Instant Internet” button launches directly to the Web without waiting for Windows to load (nice!)
  
• Comes with Sony software: VAIO Movie Story, VAIO MusicBox, and Click to Disc/Editor
• 3 USB ports
• ExpressCard, SD card, and Memory Stick PRO slots
• Windows Vista Home Premium 64-bit pre-installed
  

If the VAIO NW can live up to the hype, that low price is absolutely astounding, and it all comes in a sweet package that will let the casual PC-user do just about anything they want. The VAIO NW comes in three colors: walnut brown, birch white (pictured), and rattan silver. Look for it to start arriving in Sony Style stores and other licensed retailers this month, as well as online retailers.

Image: Copyright 2009 ©Sony Electronics Inc.