Speed test between two Sony Origami PCs

Akihabara News posted today a small, yet nice, comparison review between two “twin” Sony “Origami” PCs. The difference between them is that one has a Flash HDD. The problem is the even smaller size of the Flash HDD, it only has a 16GB capacity.

In General terms, the reviewer (and I) prefer the new Flash-based model, due to it’s increased speed and durability (Windows XP booted about 10 seconds faster on the Flash HDD than on the other), however, I found it a bit weird that he mentioned no word on battery life, and on their sponsor store they state that they both have the same battery life, which I find a bit awkward, because supposedly flash HDDs should have add a 13% increase in battery life.

After a small research I found out that it does have a (slightly) longer battery life:

HDD models
: Standard (included) 3.5 hrs (max) 2.5 hrs (actual)
Large (Optional) 7 hrs (max) 5 hrs (actual)

FMD models
:Standard (included) 4 hrs (max) 3 hrs (actual)
Large (Optional) 8 hrs (max) 6 hrs (actual)

Source: conics.net

The tv tuner is useless outside of Japan, however, the black body does help make the big small PC/big PDA a bit more attractive, and makes a nice contrast with the blue light that comes from the qwerty keyboard.

Personally, I’d wait a bit more until Flash HDDs reach a higher capacity, but if you’re looking for something more functional than a PDA but just as durable (if not a bit more, due to it’s casing), I recommend this Origami PC, out of the other models, due to it’s sleek design and features.