The Sony Vaio NS Series laptop measures 15.4” and weighs 6.4 pounds. May not sound very unique at this point but the textured surface sets it apart. Not only is the texture unusual but the colors are as well. Nightfall Blue, Silk White, Granite Silver and Pink (Amazon) will definitely not look like the majority of the other notebooks out in the market.

With a laptop of this size handling it can be somewhat less than graceful. Often we are placing it into a bag and removing it from a bag. Typically it is a one handed operation – one hand on the laptop and the other holding the bag open. Most laptops are shiny slick. You know where I am headed – the NS has a textured surface that would make handling it easier.

Anyone that regularly works from a laptop knows what it is like to need more USB ports. Sure, there are USB hubs that are small and inexpensive – but wait – isn’t being mobile the whole idea? The Vaio NS Series has a total of four USB ports. Two are located on each side. They even thought of placing them towards the front so all USB ports are easily accessed.

Some other features are not necessarily unique but they are pretty impressive.

• Intel Core 2 Duo Processor – 5800
• Up to a 250GB hard drive
• Up to 4GB DDR2 SDRAM
• Up to 4 hour battery life
• The XBRIGHT-ECO LCD screen measures 15.4 inches with a resolution of 1280 x 800
• Integrated CD/DVD-RW drive with an option of a Blu-ray Disc
• Intel HD Audio Sound System
• Mobile Intel Graphics Media Accelerator – GM45 Express Chipset
• Windows Vista Home Premium 64Bit or Windows Vista Home Premium 32-bit with SP1
• 82 Key QWERTY keyboard
• Integrated 1.3 Megapixel MOTION EYE video cam with microphone
• Touch Pad
• Biometric Fingerprint Sensor
• Gigabit Ethernet
• A/V mode one button launch – no need to boot up laptop
• Integrated slots for Memory Stick Pro, SD memory cards and ExpressCard
• Integrated Fast Ethernet, Modem and Wireless LAN WiFi

These are advanced features for any laptop. I am amazed that the price starts at under $800. Even though coming up with that much money is not always an easy thing to do – I can remember paying a much higher price for a lot less laptop than those included in the Sony Vaio NS Series.