Sony has recently released its own entry into the growing tablet wars, yet its netbooks are also excellent products. Indeed, these devices were a great step for laptop computers, and there are a few models which are worth investigating for people who want something highly portable and affordable.

The Sony M Series netbook is an excellent option for business users. It has a 10.1 inch screen, which is small yet more than adequate for most tasks, combined with a 250GB hard drive that is certainly beefy enough. The processer runs at 1.66 GHZ alongside 1GB of RAM – this comes with a perfectly adequate built in webcam. This product is by no means new, yet it executes a variety of tasks with speed and efficiency – business people will find it much easier to work on than a tablet.

The Y Series (Ultraportable) is aimed more at regular consumers with a slightly larger screen (11.6 inches) and a weight of just 3.2 pounds. There is more space on the hard disk and it generally has the increased performance that you would expect from a newer model. 2GB of RAM is certainly a welcome addition and the battery appears to last for at least three and a half hours.

These two Sony products are cost-effective solutions for people on the move – they perform quite well and are much cheaper than getting a tablet. Indeed, these Sony laptops might give you cause to think twice before buying something flashier.

If Sony’s original netbook was too overpriced for you, then the good news is, Sony are releasing a new netbook model at a lower price of £300. While still not really a budget netbook it does make owning a VAIO netbook more realistic. The VAIO M is due to be launched at the end of the month in the UK for £300. Tesco currently have the netbook listed on their website and their new catalogue, with an end of March release date. The netbook is available in both white and black but, Tesco are charging an extra £30 for the white model.

After finally seeing the Sony Vaio netbook in the flesh, I fell in love with it immediately. The VAIO W netbook has been released in two varients, the W11S1E and the W12S1E. The difference between the two are the hard drive size, operating system, battery and price, while the rest of the specs remain the same. The W11S1E has a 160GB hard drive, Windows XP and is available for £300 with a 3 cell battery, giving 2.5 hours battery life. While the W12S1E is equipped with Windows 7 Starter, 250GB HDD, a 6 cell battery providing 7.5 hours battery life and retails for £350. So naturally, I went with the W12S1E. Both models are hard to find in most shops within the UK, with only one store in my area having the netbook (W12S1E) on display. Both models are available in white, pink and tan/brown. Although Argos also lists the W12S1E available in charcoal.

Other specs of the netbook include an Intel Atom N280 processor, 10.1 inch display, with an impressive screen resolution of 1366×768, which really does make a difference, 1GB RAM, web camera and an SD and Memory Stick card reader. Connectivity wise, it features WiFi b/g/n and bluetooth.

You can view my unboxing photos of the netbook after the break.