Sony Vaio Can't Find Operating System (Windows 7 X64)

I have a 8-month-old Sony Vaio, running Windows 7 x64. The last couple weeks, it does this thing, where the screen goes totally black, and it says, "Can't Find Operating System". The only way to get out of this black screen/error message, is to turn the laptop off. When I turn it back on, it seems fine (except, it does seem to be running slower), but, the next day, there is the black screen/error message again.

I don't know a lot about computers, so these are the only things I could think of trying: running disk check, running sfc/ runnow, checking for viruses, and doing a quick diagnostic check on the HD (using Vaio Care). Nothing. I took it to a tech, who said I clearly took good care of my laptop, inside and out, and he could not figure out what was wrong with it. His only idea was to wipe it back to out-of-box, using F10.