Sony Vaio® A617S

18 months ago I decided that I really needed a laptop of my own. One that was MINE and not my kids''. I read review after review and came to the conclusion that the more money I spent the better the laptop would be. I''m a rather niave lady of a certain age (mid fifties). Eventually I bought a Sony Vaio A617S on the internet. I liked this model because of the big 17" screen....I''m short sighted. It is somewhat heavy but as I was only going to use it at home it didn''t matter. I paid £1,600 which I agree is a lot of money. The laptop came with a docking station and various leads & cables etc. Needless to say I haven''t used the docking station yet mainly because I can''t understand the instructions. It is a very good laptop but my daughter says that it is no better than her £500 Advent, I can''t argue with her because I have never tried other laptops. I still prefer my Sony because it feels so solid and reliable compared to smaller lighter models. In hind sight though, I don''t think that I will ever spend so much on a laptop again. If I ever decide to buy a new one I''ll go to a PC store and try different models first.