Sony Refreshes Vaio E Series Laptops

Sony has refreshed its Vaio E series line of laptops, adding more screen sizes and the ability to stream content to a digital TV.

The smallest of the new E family is the 14-inch EA, which includes an Intel Core i5-540M processor and up to a 500 GB hard drive and 8 GB of system memory. The new system is also available with a Blu-ray disc player and burner and an optional ATI Mobility Radeon HD 5470 graphics cards.

Similar specs are available with the EB model, which has a 15.5-inch screen. The EA and EB come with Intel Wireless Display, technology that streams video, images and other content to a digital TV. Besides a compatible laptop, IWD requires an adapter that attaches to the TV, which must have an HDMI or composite A/V input. Compatible devices carry an IWD icon.

Sony's expansion of the E series includes the addition of the EC, which has a 17.3-inch display. The system is available with a 1 GB ATI Mobility Radeon 5650 graphics card. With the exception of the faster graphics and larger screen, the specs are similar to the other E series laptops.

Prices for the new systems start at $700. Sony markets the E series as multi-use systems with entertainment capabilities to appeal to people who take the laptops on the road.

Sony also introduced on Tuesday the Vaio J series all-in-one desktop, which is a smaller version of the L series. Like its bigger cousin, the J series includes a touch screen, but it's smaller at 21.5 inches. The high-definition display is 1920 x 1080 pixels.

The J series includes a Blu-ray disc player and comes with an Intel Core i7-620M processor, up to 6 GB of memory and an optional Nvidia GeForce 310M graphics card. Pricing starts at $1,100.