Sony Vaio L117FX/B: 24-inch Multitouch PC Doubles as an HDTV

Like the Vaio LV180J all-in-one that it replaces, the new Vaio L117FX/B has great performance, a Blu-ray drive, an HDTV tuner, a media center remote control, and a gorgeous 24-inch display. But this time around, Sony has included a multitouch screen, Windows 7, and a design that's sleek and modern.

The Vaio L117FX/B starts at $1300; we tested a high-end, $2000 (as of December 8, 2009) configuration. At that price, you could score a standard tower desktop that has greater performance and upgradability, but such is the nature of all-in-one PCs.

This Vaio ratchets up the Intel processor to one step past that of the 2.33GHz quad-core chip found in the Gateway One ZX6810-01--a $1400 23-incher that also has a multitouch screen and a TV tuner (but no Blu-ray). However, despite its combination of a 2.66GHz Core 2 Quad Q8400S processor, 6GB of DDR2-800 memory, and a 1TB hard drive, this Sony AIO in some ways doesn't surpass the Gateway in performance.

Both systems earned a WorldBench 6 score of 105, the best general performance by an all-in-one without an Apple logo. For comparison--as tested using 64-bit Windows 7 and Boot Camp--the $2200 Apple iMac (27-inch/Core i7) scored 128 in WorldBench 6, while the $2000 iMac (27-inch/Core i5) notched 123.

The Vaio also delivers strong gaming performance for an all-in-one, but falls behind the Gateway and the iMacs. Still, its 69 and 41 frames per second in our Unreal Tournament 3 tests (at 1024-by-768 and 1680-by-1050 resolution, respectively; high quality) make it better suited for gaming than most all-in-one-desktops.

The Vaio's picture quality is as lush in its saturation as it is strong in its contrasts within a scene. That's partly thanks to the screen's glossy finish, which does much to amplify the perceived richness of the images--almost too much. It's very easy to catch a reflection of yourself in this display, let alone any nearby light source. Meanwhile, the built-in speakers definitely sound better than your average laptop. It won't shock and awe you, but it's a sweeter sound than what most competing all-in-one desktops can offer.

External port connections are extensive. The side of the screen has two USB and a FireWire 400 port, plus separate slots for a Memory Stick and a standard SD card. Three more USB ports are on the back, along with one optical audio output, a gigabit ethernet port, an RF connector, an HDMI input, and a composite video input. Sony clearly wants this system to become an essential part of your living room setup, which is possible to do in a wireless fashion thanks to the Vaio's integrated wireless-N connectivity. An included Blu-ray reader/writer rounds out the system's high-definition multimedia capabilities. Except for a faster connection standard like eSATA, it's difficult to think of other pertinent connections that the Vaio could offer. On the other hand, you may wish for more upgradability: You could upgrade the hard disk in the previous Vaio all-in-one, but this time around you're limited to notebook-style RAM upgrades.