VAIO F16 Laptop Review – Can it stack up to an HP Envy and DELL G7?

I’m just your average remote worker, and far from a professional gamer, but I was on the lookout for a laptop that could handle my remote work, graphic design projects, AI tasks, and some casual gaming sessions with my teenager. I decided to give the VAIO F16 a try, which comes equipped with a 13th Gen Intel Core i7-1355U Processor and Intel iRISXe graphics. I was hoping the F16 would check those boxes for me. I found the F16 to have a top-tier design and capable performance. The sturdy matte gray build, brushed aluminum finish, backlit island-style keyboard, and vibrant Full HD display make it a handsome daily workhorse. Connectivity is solid with Wi-Fi options, USB 3.0, and a range of ports. Battery life is average at best, but quick charging helps. Priced competitively for its specs, this VAIO is worth a look for professionals seeking efficiency and style. It’s a reliable companion for demanding tasks with a touch of sophisticated design, though nothing flashy to make it stand out from a crowded laptop market. My review is based on my actual experience with the VAIO F16, and while I’ve mentioned some technical details, what truly matters is how well it performs in day-to-day use.

• Premium Design: The VAIO F16 laptop offers a premium experience with a classic design, high-resolution display, and advanced features like a backlit keyboard and matte gray plastic construction.
• Portability and Functionality: Weighing 3.448 pounds, the VAIO F16 laptop balances portability and functionality, making it lighter than competitors like HP Envy and DELL G7. Its thicker design accommodates increased ports and a cooling fan exhaust.
• Keyboard and Trackpad Quality: The backlit keyboard with a number pad, softer keypress feel, and standard trackpad responsiveness provide an ideal typing setup for proficient typists. The display offers sharp visuals with high resolution and vivid colors.
• Performance: Equipped with an Intel Core i7-1355U Processor, the VAIO F16 laptop competes with gaming laptops in performance, handling games smoothly. Its powerful hardware setup suits tech enthusiasts seeking a seamless user experience.
• Battery Life and Connectivity: The VAIO F16 laptop offers average battery life, impacted by gaming and streaming, but comparable to HP and better than DELL while gaming. It provides many port options, including HDMI, Ethernet, USB, USB-C, MicroSD, and a headphone jack, catering to power users and professionals seeking high performance.

The VAIO F16 laptop is a sleek and powerful computing device that offers a premium experience for users seeking a little style, functionality, dependability, and performance. With its classic design, high-resolution display, and advanced features, the VAIO F16 is a mid-range option in the competitive laptop market. In this review, I’ll delve into the key specifications, design elements, performance capabilities, and overall user experience of the VAIO F16 to help you determine if it is the right choice for your computing needs. I’ll touch on some seldom thought-of design elements that make the F16 an upgrade over my HP Envy and even my son’s DELL G7 gaming laptop.

This review aims to offer a analysis of the VAIO F16 laptop model, focusing on its design, performance, features, and overall value proposition as it relates to my daily needs, and possibly yours.

• Provide insights into the specific design elements of the VAIO F16.
• Evaluate the hardware specifications and performance capabilities.
• Investigate the connectivity options and port availability for improved usability.

The VAIO F16 is fairly unassuming with its sleek matte gray lid and robust construction, tipping the scales at scant 3.448 pounds. Constructed from a blend of black and dark gray plastics with what appears to be brushed aluminum. Noteworthy features include a power button with distinctive green illumination and a spacious palm rest region. Despite being lightweight the construction feels sturdy, though I wouldn’t bank on it surviving a drop test (which I DID NOT attempt in this review).

Crafted with matte gray plastics and featuring an understated branding, the laptop’s material and construction have a sturdy feel, weighing in at a lightweight 3.448 pounds.

• Sturdy construction with matte gray plastics and brushed metal palm rest
  
• Understated branding with contrasting chrome VAIO logo embossed on top cover
  
• Power button glows green when the laptop is on
• Backlit keyboard with numberpad and sturdy plastic key with solid press feel
• Anti-skid “feet” offer minimal resistance against slides when screen is open
  

With a weight of 3.448 pounds there’s a noticeable weight difference compared to my HP Envy’s 4.22 pounds, and a drastic difference between my sons DELL G7 and its’ glutinous 5.04 pounds. Screen and palm rest dimensions are identical to my HP, both of which balance portability and functionality, while fitting easily into my backpack. However, the VAIO machine is almost twice as thick, when closed. That added thickness is due to the increased amount and style of ports, as well as the cooling fan exhaust available on the VAIO. Weight distribution feels more balanced and less cumbersome to carry when the screen is open than the HP and DELL.

I can’t emphasize enough how much I prefer the keyboard on the F16 over my current HP Envy. Since my HP has forward-facing speakers on the keyboard, they could not put a number pad on it. Although I thought this would not be a difference maker, it was one of the factors pushing me toward finding a new machine. Despite having a number pad, the F16, and HP Envy key sizes are precisely 1.5cm. The F16 has a softer feel to each key, and the haptic feedback of the key press feels softer but more sturdy. The backlit keys are another feature I didn’t realize I needed until I didn’t have it. Many people don’t realize how often they work in low-light conditions until they struggle to see the keys. 

As expected on any laptop, the trackpad is responsive. It offers no distinguishing characteristics or “game-changing” differentiator from other machines. On my HP, the trackpad is centered on the machine, while the F16 trackpad is centered under the spacebar. If you’re a proficient typer that uses the ASDF hand placement, this is probably an ideal setup. On the other hand, I am a quick typer, but I type from muscle memory, not in that position, and found the placement a little awkward. 

The display on the VAIO F16 laptop offers a 16-inch screen size with high resolution, providing a spacious canvas for work and entertainment. At first, I thought the screen size was smaller than my HP, but then I realized the glass is smaller not the screen. The HP provides the illusions of a bigger screen, but illumination shows the screens to be roughly the same size. The brightness and color accuracy are commendable, enhancing the visual experience with vivid and lifelike images. While lacking touchscreen capability, the display excels in delivering sharp visuals for every task I undertook. The matte finish to screen cuts down tremendously on the glare, especially when compared to the HP and the lack of a touchscreen also keeps the screen from getting gummed up by finger prints.

The screen size and resolution of the VAIO laptops deliver crisp visuals ideal for various multimedia tasks.

• The 16.4-inch display provides ample screen real estate for immersive viewing experiences.
• With a resolution of 1920 x 1080 pixels, the Full HD display guarantees sharp image quality.
• The Intel iRISXe graphics with 1GB video memory delivers smooth visuals when streaming
  

Brightness and color accuracy on the VAIO laptops’ displays provide visual clarity for multimedia tasks, but I struggle to see a noticeable difference between machines. Some images felt crisper on one machine or brighter on another. Colors seem to be rendered accurately, making images and videos appear true to life. The brightness levels are well-suited for both indoor and outdoor use, especially with the screen finish and lack of glare. Familiar websites still felt familiar, not deviating from my expectations or memories. Whether watching movies, editing photos, or working on creative projects, the display’s color accuracy guarantees that content is displayed as intended. The high-quality display on the VAIO F16 laptop delivers sharp images and vivid colors, making it a standout feature for users who prioritize visual clarity in a reasonably priced computing experience.

The VAIO F16 laptop is designed without a touchscreen, a feature that sets it apart from my HP. While touchscreens have become increasingly popular in recent years, the absence of this feature on the VAIO F16 offers several benefits, in my opinion. First, the lack of a touchscreen helps to reduce the overall weight of the laptop. Additionally, not having a touchscreen may result in better battery life as touch displays tend to consume more power. Furthermore, the absence of a touchscreen leads to a better visual experience as the screen isn’t constantly obstructed by smudges. Finally, when diminishing the need for constant cleaning it may prolong the life of screen. Ultimately, the decision to exclude a touchscreen from the VAIO F16 laptop enhances its practicality and performance, creating a machine I felt better suits my needs.

The VAIO F16 laptop is admittedly not a gaming machine and shouldn’t be evaluated as one. However, the 13th-gen Intel Core i7-1355U (1.7GHz) Processor is deemed suitable for gaming by CPU Benchmark. As mentioned in the introduction, I am not someone who identifies as a gamer, but I play games with my son. Our game of choice is Rocket League, and it is a processor-heavy game that my HP is incapable of running without crippling lag. In fact, I bought my HP, thinking it could handle the game. It couldn’t, and shortly thereafter, I bought an Alienware Aurora desktop so I could continue playing. So, how does the VAIO stack up when faced with the rigors of Rocket League?

I am happy to say that the game did not lag under the heavy burden of gaming with my son. Unfortunately, the graphics were a bit choppy but comparatively the VAIO is a better gaming machine. I wouldn’t hesitate to play less burdensome games like Among Trees with the F16. One commendable feature of the F16 that even my sons DELL gaming laptop doesn’t have is a hinged screen connection which lifts the palm rest. This feature is not only ergonomically better for day-to-day tasks, but also creates a gap between the laptop and surface. For a gaming machine, this is crucial! My sons DELL gets hot enough to practically burn you when under heavy load, and makes the fan work overtime. While playing a few matches, his fan was working overtime, whereas the F16 was quiet and cool. Frankly, that’s a real feather in the cap to VAIO, in my opinion. Despite not being a gaming laptop, the F16 hung in there with the Top Guns of the gaming space. Kudos!

As an everyday workhorse, the VAIO meets every expectation. The F16 was more than capable of handling my AI computing, graphic design, and the excessive amount of tabs I had open when browsing. With a solid internet connection, running Netflix and HULU streamed without a hitch, though I must admit I don’t normally run streaming services on my laptop. It was only for this review that I tested that functionality.

The VAIO F16 laptop offers an average battery life, which might not meet expectations for users seeking extended usage periods. Battery usage and life is going to depend so much on outside factors that it’s hard thing to evaluate in a review. Gaming, streaming, and running second monitors crushes the battery of the best laptops. In the month of use while writing this review, I didn’t notice a difference compared to my HP. Compared to the DELL, the battery seemed to be stronger, even while gaming. The DELL demands power while gaming, where the VAIO held its juice longer before needing a boost.

The first thing I noticed about the ports was the abundance of options. The second thing I noticed was the placement. My current HP is a USB-C charger, but it’s placed on the laptop’s right side, about one-third of the way down. This puts it squarely in the way of my wired gaming mouse. The VAIO charger port is on the left side, near the top. However, the HDMI is about halfway down on the right, presenting the same problem when working on a second screen. This may not be an issue for most and is a minor inconvenience when I am in the office and not plugged in at a coffee shop.

Right now the VAIO retails for $1,299.99, but I have seen VAIO put them on sale for as low as $999.99, which is a steal for a laptop with the functionality and performance. I feel especially confident in making that claim when compared to my HP, which was closer to $1600 and seems to rival performance with the VAIO but with some functional drawbacks that give the edge to the F16. At $1300 the VAIO seems like you’re getting what you paid for, but with the REVOUPON exclusive coupon code VAIOREV you can save an extra $55 on the F16, or any other VAIO laptop – that feels like a steal.

Overall, I believe that when you’re comparing this tier of laptops, it’s harder to find real differentiators, but VAIO managed.

In conclusion, the VAIO F16 laptop presents a compelling choice for users seeking a blend of style, performance, and functionality in a crowded laptop market. With its premium design, high-resolution display, and advanced features, the VAIO F16 stands out as a versatile workhorse suitable for everyday tasks. The laptop’s lightweight construction, backlit keyboard, and powerful hardware make it a dependable companion for professionals and tech enthusiasts alike. Despite minor inconveniences with port placements, the VAIO F16 excels in providing a seamless user experience with minimal bloatware. Overall, I highly recommend the VAIO F16 as a reliable and capable everyday laptop that competes well with its counterparts, making it a solid choice for those in search of a dependable workhorse in today’s competitive market.