Sony Vaio PCV Series is the first line of products of desktop computers introduced by Sony under their VAIO brand in 1996.[1] The series would be introduced to the Japanese market the following year, with the introduction of the mini-tower computer, PCV-T700MR on July 15, 1997.[2]
 | |
| Developer | Sony Corporation |
|---|---|
| Manufacturer | Sony Corporation |
| Type | Desktop Computer |
| Release date | 1996 |
| Discontinued | 2005 |
| Operating system | Microsoft Windows |
| CPU | AMD Athlon, Intel Celeron, Intel Pentium, Intel Pentium II, Intel Pentium III, Intel Pentium 4 |
| Graphics | ATI Rage series, NVIDIA GeForce, RIVA TNT |
| Successor | Sony Vaio VGC Series |
| Related | Sony Vaio SVL Series, Sony Vaio VGC Series, Sony Vaio VGX Series |
History
editAfter a long hiatus from building consumer PCs, Sony announced the re-entering into computer manufacturing market with the introduction the VAIO brand in 1996 while in Japan the following year. Sony's first lineup of VAIO desktop computers, the PCV-70 and PCV-90 would be introduced at the 1996 PC Expo Trade Show in New York.[1][3] While in Japan, Sony introduced PCV-T700MR mini-tower computer, and two notebook computers for the Japanese market.
PCV Lineup
editThe PCV series are broken into various sub-series variants, each focusing on specific consumers that fits their needs. Despite the variants introduced, the PCV series introduced 10 numbered models before adding a suffix to differentiate its future lineup. The letter(s)/suffix that starts before or after the model number indicates which sub-series it belongs to. The list below describes each suffix.
Sub-series Lineup
editThe sub-series consists of 18 variants:
- DS series (Digital Studio Series)
- E series (MicroTower series)
- HS series
- HX series
- J series
- JX series
- L series
- LX series
- M series
- MX series
- P series
- R series
- RX series
- RZ series
- S series
- T series
- V series
- W series
| Model Number | Processor | Memory | Graphics | Optical Drive | Floppy Drive | Storage Drive | Operating System | Release Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| PCV-70[4] | Intel Pentium (166 MHz, 256 KB Pipeline Burst SRAM ) | 32 MB EDO RAM (standard), expandable to 128 MB | ATI RAGE 3D (2 MB EDO RAM) | 8X CD-ROM | 3.5-inch Micro Floppy Disk Drive (1.44 MB) | 2.1 GB HD | Microsoft Windows 95 | 1996 |
| PCV-90[5] | Intel Pentium (200 MHz, 256 KB Pipeline Burst SRAM) | 32 MB EDO RAM (standard), expandable to 128 MB | ATI RAGE 3D (2 MB EDO RAM) | 8X CD-ROM | 3.5-inch Micro Floppy Disk Drive (1.44 MB) | 2.5 GB HD | Microsoft Windows 95 | 1996 |
| PCV-100[6] | Intel Pentium MMX (166 MHz, 256 KB Pipeline Burst SRAM) | 32 MB EDO RAM (standard), expandable to 128 MB | ATI Rage II (2 MB EDO RAM) | 16X CD-ROM | 3.5-inch Micro Floppy Disk Drive (1.44 MB) | 2.5 GB HD | Microsoft Windows 95 | 1997 |
| PCV-120[7] | Intel Pentium MMX (200 MHz, 256 KB Pipeline Burst SRAM) | 32 MB EDO RAM (standard), expandable to 128 MB | ATI Rage II (2 MB EDO RAM) | 16X CD-ROM | 3.5-inch Micro Floppy Disk Drive (1.44 MB) | 3.8 GB HD | Microsoft Windows 95 | 1997 |
| PCV-130[8] | Intel Pentium MMX (200 MHz, 512 KB Pipeline Burst SRAM) | 32 MB SDRAM (standard), Expandable to 256 MB | ATi Rage II+ (4 MB EBO RAM) | 24X CD-ROM | 3.5-inch drive (1.44 MB) | 4.3 GB HD | Microsoft Windows 95 | July 1997 |
| PCV-150[9] | Intel Pentium MMX (233MHz, 512 KB Pipeline Burst SRAM) | 32 MB SDRAM (standard), Expandable to 256 MB | ATi Rage II+ (4 MB EBO RAM) | 24X CD-ROM | 3.5-inch drive (1.44 MB) | 4.3 GB HD | Microsoft Windows 95 | July 1997 |
| PCV-210[10] | Intel Pentium II MMX (266 MHz, 512 KB Pipeline Burst SRAM) | 32 MB SDRAM (standard), Expandable to 384 MB | ATi 3D Rage Pro (4 MB SGRAM) | 24X CD-ROM | 3.5-inch drive (1.44 MB) | 4.3 GB HD | Microsoft Windows 98 | 1998 |
| PCV-230[11] | Intel Pentium II MMX (300 MHz, 512 KB Pipeline Burst SRAM) | 64 MB SDRAM (standard), Expandable to 384 MB | ATi 3D Rage Pro (4 MB SGRAM) | 24X CD-ROM | 3.5-inch drive (1.44 MB) | 6.4 GB HD | Microsoft Windows 98 | 1998 |
References
edit- ^ a b "A Look Back at the Golden Age of Sony VAIO PCs". PCMAG.
- ^ "Sony Global - Press Release - Sony Introduces VAIO Series PCs Leading-edge multimedia desktop and notebook PCs for the home". www.sony.net.
- ^ Warren, Tom (February 6, 2014). "Sony VAIO: a visual history". The Verge.
- ^ "Sony Computing Products: PCV-70". May 3, 1997. Archived from the original on 1997-05-03.
- ^ "Sony Computing Products: PCV-90". May 3, 1997. Archived from the original on 1997-05-03.
- ^ "Sony Computing Products: PCV-100". July 4, 1997. Archived from the original on 1997-07-04.
- ^ "Sony Computing Products: PCV-120". July 4, 1997. Archived from the original on 1997-07-04.
- ^ "Sony Computing Products: PCV-130". July 4, 1997. Archived from the original on 1997-07-04.
- ^ "Sony Computing Products: PCV-150". July 4, 1997. Archived from the original on 1997-07-04.
- ^ "Sony Computing Products: PCV-210". June 26, 1998. Archived from the original on 1998-06-26.
- ^ "Sony Computing Products: PCV-230". June 26, 1998. Archived from the original on 1998-06-26.