VAIO announces refreshed SX12 / SX14 ultrabooks with Intel Core i7-1195G7 processors and premium features borrowed from the Z lineup

VAIO is refreshing the SX lineup of ultraportable notebooks with Intel Tiger Lake processors, as well as a set of premium features specific to the Z lineup. The new 12.5-inch SX12 9VJS124) and 14-inch SX14 (VJS144) ultrabooks are powered by Intel’s Tiger Lake-Refresh i7-1195G7 processors with integrated Iris Xe graphics that use the C0 die stepping, bringing a significant upgrade over the previous Comet Lake-U models. The jump to the latest Tiger Lake platform also enables the addition of Thunderbolt 4 ports.

Since the CPUs are only rated for a maximum TDP of 28 W, the cooling solution retains the single fan + heat pipe design from the previous models. Maximum RAM capacity is 32 GB and the storage solution now benefits from the PCIe Gen 4 interface for up to 2 TB capacities. The upper lid covering the display is made of forged carbon fiber that is also used to reduce weight on racing cars and airplane fuselage parts. This feature is borrowed from the Z lineup, which applies this treatment on all of its sides. Also borrowed from the Z lineup are the prop-up keyboard mechanism, an FHD webcam with IR sensor and Windows Hello compatibility, a larger 53 Wh battery, fingerprint sensor integrated in the power button, plus noise cancellation for the microphone array.

The SX series comes with some advantages of its own that are not found on the Z lineup. First of all, the display options include not only a 4K variant, but also an FHD touchscreen with support for Wacom pens. Secondly, the port selection includes 2x Thunderbolt 4 connectors, an HDMI video output and the stereo jack from the Z lineup, and adds 2x USB-A connectors plus a GbE jack. Unfortunately, the refreshed models do not feature the SD card reader any more. Besides the Wi-Fi 6 and BT 5 connectivity, the refreshed SX models also include a new Snapdragon X20 LTE-A (Cat.9) 450 Mbpps cellular modem with Nano SIM support.

As far as thickness and weight go, VAIO managed to keep the same measurements as on the previous models (just under 1 kg and 17.9 mm profile), despite the larger batteries and the heavier touchscreen displays. No exact pricing mentioned for now, but VAIO specified that the starting prices should be around 150,000 JPY, which would convert to ~US$1,320.

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