Sony VAIO M netbook leaks
updated 08:55 am EST, Thu March 4, 2010
Sony VAIO M would replace W
A discovery at retailers yesterday has confirmed that Sony is developing a direct replacement to its VAIO W netbook. Just called the VAIO M, the 10-inch system appears to be more a change of design than performance and would run on the same 1.66GHz Pine Trail-era Atom, 1GB of RAM and 250GB hard drive as the recently freshened W series. The primary changes would be to use a lower-resolution 1024x600 screen and to move the headphone and microphone jacks to the front.
As a consequence of the internal similarity, the M is likely to have a similar eight-hour battery life, webcam, Bluetooth 2.1 and other features ported over. Only black and white versions are rumored to be available, however, and the simpler display hints that the netbook should cost significantly less than the $450 Sony charges for a VAIO W today.
The leak confirms the resurrection of the VAIO M badge. Previously, Sony had used the name six years ago for a short-lived all-in-one desktop line. [via Sony Insider]
