The long life battery adds around £130 to the price of the system although Sony are currently offering a £20 price reduction with a purchase. It ships in a plain box, as shown above.
Sony include some literature on how to use and install the product, alongside a VGP-BC10 battery adapter. This can be used to charge the battery without the laptop involved in the process.
The battery is a very clever design, as it slots onto the bottom of the Z series laptop while maintaining the airflow. The side which connects to the laptop has several areas ‘cut out' which force hot air out from the side of the Z series laptop at specific locations.
The battery pack is rated at 11.V and is a 4,400 mAh/49 Wh design. Sony claim it doubles the battery life of the machine from 7 hours to 14 hours, but we will look at this later.
The sides of the battery have locking screws which are rotated to lock into the body of the Z series. There is a release lever which is used to remove the battery from the main body. It only takes a few minutes to attach the battery and to ensure it is secured in place.
Before attaching the battery, a rubber cover has to be removed from the Z Series. This should be safely stored.
The external battery adds a little thickness to the body of the Z Series, as shown above.