Sony's VAIO PCs weren't always fantastic, but they almost always looked fantastic. There were some genuinely iconic designs in the '90s and 2000s, and my favourite was always the VAIO P, Sony's 8-inch ultrawide, ultraportable laptop from 2009.
The problem with the VAIO P, and it's admittedly a big one, is that it was a really bad laptop. The processor was underpowered even at the time, the mouse nub was difficult to use, and the high resolution made everything tiny on screen.
I don't want the world to give up on this form factor, though. I still love the idea of a full-fledged laptop that's basically the size of a laptop keyboard; it'd make for such a great writing machine to carry everywhere. Sony used to market the VAIO P as something you could fit in your jeans' back pocket, which was admittedly a bit of a stretch, but there's still nothing quite like it.
Today you'd probably deal with a similar scenario by using a tablet and maybe a keyboard case. It's just not the same, though. The promise of the VAIO P is that it gives you a near-normal typing experience in a device with a tiny footprint. It's the perfect café computer. Ultracompact laptops like the GPD Pocket kind of scratch the same itch, but they don't have the same wide keyboard design that makes it practical to type on the VAIO P.
Ever since Sony sold the VAIO brand to private equity firm Japan Industrial Partners back in 2014, the new owners have been cranking out premium business laptops. They're fine for what they are, but let's be honest, they're pretty boring. Full credit to JIP for keeping VAIO alive at a time when Sony was cutting free of its unprofitable businesses, but well-regarded business laptops are not really in the original spirit of the brand.
VAIO needs to get back to its roots and put out some weird laptops again. I'm not just saying this for the sake of wanton gadget desire — or at least, that's not the only reason I'm saying this. The truth is that we actually have the technology to make the VAIO P a useful device today.
Here is how I would do it.
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