Sony Vaio Tap 11 review: A slimmer, lighter competitor to the Surface Pro 2

It's been nearly one year, but we still point to Microsoft's Surface Pro as the best example of a full Windows 8 tablet with a high-res screen and an Intel Core i-series CPU. That configuration makes for an experience much closer to a full-power PC, but we've seen only a handful of similar models, with many more low-power slates powered instead by Intel Atom CPUs.

8.0

Sony Vaio Tap 11

The Good

The <b>Sony Vaio Tap 11</b> has a full Core i5 CPU, but is thinner than Microsoft's similar Surface Pro 2 and weighs less. A keyboard cover and active stylus are included in the price.

The Bad

The slender kickstand and free-floating keyboard cover don't work well on laps or other uneven work spaces. Battery life could be better.

The Bottom Line

Sony's thin, powerful Tap 11 tablet shows up the competition in terms of design. It's not ideal for everyone, but only a few tweaks away from being the runaway leader in this smallish category.

The Surface Pro 2 is close to release, with an updated fourth-gen Intel Core i5 CPU but the same thick, chunky design as the original model. It certainly sounds like the field is wide open for a serious competitor, and the new Sony Vaio Tap 11 fits the bill.

The slim, powerful Sony Vaio Tap 11 (pictures)

+10 More

See all photos

This is a slim, sharp-looking 11.6-inch slate, powered by (in our review configuration) a fourth-gen Intel Core i5 CPU, a 128GB solid-state drive (SSD), and 4GB of RAM. It has a larger screen than the Surface Pro 2, but is thinner and lighter.

Both Windows 8 tablets base a lot of their promised functionality on the use of a proprietary keyboard cover. The Surface Pro version snaps on magnetically to create a laptoplike vibe, while the Tap 11 keyboard has a Bluetooth connection and can sit anywhere nearby, and only snaps on via a weak magnetic connection for travel.

Confusingly, the Vaio Tap 11 has a lower starting price, but our configuration costs more than a comparable Surface Pro 2. The Tap 11 starts at $799.99, but that's for an Intel Pentium-class chip (yes, they still make those). Our Core i5-128GB SSD config is $1,099.99, while a Surface Pro 2 with the same basic specs will cost $999. The final catch: Microsoft charges an additional $129.99 for its keyboard cover, while the Sony version is included, so let's call that a closely matched final cost.

If you're looking for a system that's 75 percent laptop and 25 percent tablet, go with a Lenovo Yoga, Dell XPS 12, or another hybrid. If you're in the opposite camp, looking mostly for a tablet with some laptoplike capabilities, the Vaio Tap 11 now feels like the best of the bunch, with its slim design, reasonably varied configuration options, and included keyboard.