Hi, Habr!

Ultra-compact laptops have been doing for a very long time, since the 80s. During this time, there was a long way from monochrome typewriters with a full replacement for a desktop PC. Over the years, the concepts of super-compactness and performance also changed, but such devices never lose their charm.
By the end of the 90s, manufacturers managed to form an image of a universal mobile computer and began their mass production. Laptops of the VAIO C1 series, launched in 1998, were among the first ones that were closest in concept to modern counterparts. About one of these subnotebooks and will be discussed in the article. Under the cut a lot of pictures.



Even before the New Year at Savelovsky market in Moscow, I was able to hold the laptop in this series in my hands. The subnotebook was small, light, comfortable and had a nice appearance. Japanese characters on the keyboard immediately issued the country of origin. Initially, due to the size (3x15x25 cm), the device immediately attributed to the motley "hiking and backpack" category of typewriters, but I was mistaken. This VAIO was unusual and very interesting.


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Immediately I liked the complete absence of black gloss in the case decoration and the large matte screen (8.9 "TFT 1280x600). The viewing angles are average, but for an ultra-compact industry veteran, this is excusable.

1. Web camera "MOTION EYE"
2. Microphone
3. Bluetooth switch (not available in US version)
4. Built-in stereo speakers
5. LEDs for power status of the battery and hard disk
6. Bluetooth indicator (not available in the US version)
7. Power switch
8. Video Capture Utility Button
9. JogDual Joystick
10. Ventilation inlets
11. Memory Stick card reader
12. Port Replicator Connector
13. Microphone input
14. Headphone jack
15. USB 1.1 port
16. DC OUT (Power Output for i.LINK devices)
17. RJ-11 connector for dual-up modem
18. DC IN (Power Input)
19. i.LINK (IEEE1394) port
20. Connector for PC Card CardBus (Type II × 1)
21. Ventilation outlets

1. VGA Video Output (DB-15F)
2. RJ-45 network connector
3. A / V output (NTSC / PAL video, + stereo line-out)
4. A / V input (NTSC compatible, stereo line input)
5. USB 1.1 port

The webcam turned out to be a swivel with a focus adjustment wheel. A separate “Capture” button was conceived to launch the video capture utility. The JogDial joystick, which I saw for the first time, at first seemed unnecessary and inconvenient to me. But later I guessed that the lack of space for installing the touchpad fully justifies its presence, for such a small and wide screen it is simply necessary. The ribbed surface does not allow the finger to slide. The wheel travel is discrete, pressing the joystick button is elastic, you cannot accidentally press it.



The keys on the laptop turned out with an average elastic course skewed by 3 mm. optimal size just under the finger sling. Ideal for touch typing. Immediately it is felt that this part of the computer was worked out in advance with the mind. Unfortunately, modern representatives of the series (VAIO P), in pursuit of design ( keyboard ) and gloss ( body and screen ), have lost these qualities.



From left to right: ASUS A3F, LG C1-P.AP78R Express Dual, SONY Vaio PCG-C1MV / M)
In Savelovsky version there was only charging and 384 MB of RAM. Without discs and accessories. I did not find the required amount and the purchase did not take place. But the device was taken note of and in January it was found in on ebay for $ 225 in the maximum configuration.
Usatiy American sent the goods only in the United States, because of what had to connect the capital intermediary ebaytoday.ru. EMS delivery, insurance, surcharges ... as a result, the cost grew to $ 337. On February 6, the laptop began its journey from the state of Alabama, after 2 days, left the United States and on the 16th found itself in Moscow. The next 10 days, the national postal features made me nervous, but in the end, the infamous EMS Russian Post did not fail and the package was handed by a tired courier personally to my hands.

The machine was in good condition, without noticeable scuffs and scratches. As I understand it, the laptop was either stored for a long time, or it was treated very carefully. because I after a short use and a couple of moves in the backpack with other accessories on the bottom of the laptop there were scratches and the licensed sticker from Microsoft wiped out.



Given the age of the device, the build quality and material does not cause any complaints. The disadvantages include only a slight backlash of the Web camera. The plastic of the lid is thick, but when pressed hard, it still temporarily appears cloudy streaks on the screen. Under heavy loads, the body creaks a little. The finish of the case is made in blue-silver colors, which is typical for many devices made in the practical design of the late 90s. In reality, the machine looks much nicer than in the photos.



Immediately I want to say: “Appearance, reliability and performance used to be better!”, But this is not so. In those years, at the time of their appearance, any laptops were positioned as well-thought-out and reliable solutions for wealthy clients who are ready to sacrifice speed for mobility. For that price (~ $ 3000), even today you can find business models that are in no way inferior to past legends of the past.

The whole package was very frozen, and I did not dare to immediately start the laptop. In addition to the laptop itself, there were many interesting accessories in the box. While the laptop was warming, I had something to look at:
The complete power supply unit (43W) turned out to be universal on 100 \ 240V. After a brief search, a cord from a cassette recorder was found, which successfully replaced the American plug. At maximum load without cdrom or wifi, the device ate up to 15W / h from the outlet



Li-ion battery turned out to be 18 W / h. Wear about 5%. Offline hold for about an hour.



The port of the replicator departs from the typical concept of the stand with a lot of connectors. I think this is a necessary measure, because the ports located on it are simply physically impossible to fit on the body of the laptop.



The size of the case did not allow cdrom to be squeezed in there, but, apparently, Japanese engineers really wanted to solve this problem. This is how the external PCMCIA cdrom was born. The design is well thought out, has a hardware button. Discs only reads and only CD-R \ RW



On the bottom of the drive in a special slot, a small removable rod was found (the blue triangle in the photo). It turned out that it is intended for manual opening of the drive tray.



USB floppy is the most common



Network card PCMCIA WiFi G. Unfortunately, in Windows, WPA2 is not compatible with Windows 8 (.



copies of original discs - 6 pieces.



After checking the performance, on the bottom of the compartment was opened for RAM.



The memory module was very small, rare and expensive.



Then another 1 screw was unscrewed on the bottom and I managed to look under the hood.



I did not dare to completely remove the train, so calmer. Offhand, more than 50% of the internal space is occupied by a PCMCIA slot and a basket with a hard disk.
Due to the lack of a Memory Stick card, I could not verify the built-in card reader. But even theoretically, it can not do more than 1 MB / s - a system-wide USB 1.1 will not allow you to unwind faster.



The original Windows XP Home SP0 Gold English was immediately restored from the “native” disks using a proprietary console utility. Unfortunately, I immediately had to deal with the ineradicable despotism of the manufacturer’s desire to make the world a better place. When restoring, the sizes of the partitions were fixed by the utility, the image was restored only on FAT32, and the system was packed with many unnecessary programs and advertising applications. Utilities Web cameras, power profiles management and JogDial joystick corporation found it especially valuable and therefore did not post them with other wood on the support site in the USA. Here come complete disks. Then the utilities began to refuse to be installed on another OEM, too, but already clean Windows XP Home SP3 English.



Nevertheless, thanks to Sony for leaving at least the wood available for the devices, many brands are closing support for older devices. All these problems were solved, but the unpleasant residue remained.



The sound quality is average, 2 built-in speakers are in front of the keyboard. Built-in microphone has excellent sensitivity. Stereo effect is observed when you are strictly in the center of the laptop. The sound is quite juicy, but it lacks volume. You can unscrew it to the maximum and then there will be a good rattling and distortion.



To perform x86 commands, software emulation in the form of a virtual machine is used. This technology simplifies the hardware of the processor, which, in turn, reduces power consumption. But there is also a downside - even by the standards of the early 2000s, the processor noticeably lagged behind its competitors in performance. According to my observations, it is somewhere at the level of the first generation Pentium III. Hard disk and memory are trying to even the situation, but the forces are clearly not equal.

[MEM]
Read
298.22 MB / s
Write
196.26 MB / s
Read / Write
195.62 MB / s
Cache
3355.04 MB / s

[HDD]
Read
34.17 MB / s
Write
34.01 MB / s
RandomRead 64K
5.07 MB / s
RandomWrite 64K
7.73 MB / s

Nevertheless, you can watch the video. Media Player Classic v. 1.5.2.3236 without problems digested avi video file in 267 MB (DivX 5 704x400 25.00fps MPEG Audio Layer 3 48000Hz stereo 128kbps)

Responsiveness of browsers leaves much to be desired. News can be read, but we are not talking about comfortable work. The speed in their work is the same, the difference is only in the amount of memory eaten off.
As an alternative system in a machine without the Xs, Debian 6 was installed with the kernel compiled exclusively for Crusoe. Perhaps this will help solve the problem with speed, but so far only a lot of file work is ahead.



When working, the laptop case heats up weakly and the noise of the cooler is almost invisible.



The most unusual feature of the notebook is the presence of a built-in video capture card with hardware MPEG2 support. The port replicator has RCA video input. Branded video capture utility works in 3 modes: photo, video 640x480 and video for 176x144 network. Photos from the Web camera are clear, contrasting, of good quality, but not more than 0.3Mpix. I did not have the necessary cable to connect an external signal source, so I limited myself to a brief recording from a Web camera. The result was a .mpg MPEG2 video file with a resolution of 640x480 30fps with stereo sound for 27 seconds. Such a miracle weighs 20Mb. The most amazing thing is that it works and works without brakes. But why is it necessary on such a device?
The only thing I could think of was checking and adjusting the position of analog video cameras in security systems.



Interface proprietary utility switched to receive a signal from an external source

Conclusion

The laptop can not be rated in the usual categories, he is the first such. And even now, ten years later, this Vaio remains unique. And this is +. Design, screen, keyboard, mobility. More +. The laptop is about 10 years old and it works well without hanging. Another argument "For". At the same time, there are many weak points in the model - the processor, the amount of memory, USB 1.1., Ethernet on the replicator ... But this is an inevitable feature of many technologies a decade ago.
The device was bought as a mobile device for typing and working on the Internet. But, unfortunately, VAIO subjectively failed to cope with the second task. Because of this, the laptop turned into an exotic toy for collecting dust in the closet for me.

PS Preparation of the article made me think and make a decision. Therefore, if someone thinks that a subnotebook is worthy of a better use, I’m ready to part with it fully loaded for $ 337

UPD: Any questions about the purchase - only on habraposhta, you should not clutter up the block comments.