Sony 4 GB Walkman Video MP3 Player Black
| Brand: | Sony | ||
| Average Rating |
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Take your entertainment with you Featuring a new compact and slim design the NWZ-E F GB Walkman video MP player provides up to hours of continuous music and up to hours of uninterrupted video while offering support of multiple audio codecs and video formats You even can listen to your favorite FM programming thanks to a built-in FM tuner View pictures or watch your favorite movies in vivid detail on the -inch QVGA high-brightness color LCD measured diagonally Easily load your music pictures and video by dragging and dropping them into the video MP player on your computer Headphones CD-ROM and USB cable are included This MP player is available in black red blue and pink p table width cellpadding align left tr td align more info
Tagged with: Black • NWZE436FBLK • Player • Sony • Video • Walkman
A lot of Bang for the Buck
Rating:4 out of 5 stars
I wanted to avoid the nightmare of an IPOD and hassle of downloading onto a portable device using Itunes. This is a sweet little unit that has great features and is easy to use. I use 128k bit rate and have about 50 albums on the unit. I use it mainly in my 3 cars that all have aux inputs and it sounds great. Battery life is as advertised. I also use it to easily download music to my office computer which is on a highly restricted network. Make sure to get the low-cost accessory kit for this unit. You won’t be disappointed.
Good idea
Rating:4 out of 5 stars
Purchased this Walkman to download digital books and it works great. Even tho I messed up and lost my place in the book it was fairly easy to find where I left off. Thoroughtly enjoy my Walkman!
software not compatible with 64-bit windows vista
Rating:2 out of 5 stars
although this product was highly touted by reviewers all over the net for its superb sound quality amongst MP3 players – which is really what i was lookin for in a music player, i could care less about it being able to play games, movies, have wi-fi, etc.. its operating software is NOT compatible with 64-bit Windows Vista ((((64-BIT)))). if you go to the sony support site and or talk to someone there they may say yes the player is compatible with vista-64, but may also forget to say that the loading software is NOT. some work arounds are offered on the sony website, but if you use I-Tunes like i do – you have got to make sure you get the ITUNEs PLUS labeled media.
Magtms
Rating:4 out of 5 stars
It is everything I expected since it is a Sony except the ear buds. Sony has some high quality ear buds, they should upgrade the ones that come with this product. Other than that super MP3 player and decent FM radio.
Good sound but keeps freezing
Rating:2 out of 5 stars
I bought this player mainly because it had a dedicated volume button and the user interface does not use an iPod-like scroll wheel. So I like the Sony’s user interface for those reasons. And the sound quality was also very good. However, after only a couple of months, the player froze on me. I contacted Sony tech support and they wanted me to reformat the player. But since the unit would not even boot up to the main menu, that was impossible. So they told me that the unit needed to be serviced. Since I had purchased the extended warranty at Best Buy for $10, I just took it back and got another brand new one (same model). But after less than 2 months, this new one froze also. There was no way I was going to replace it with another one of these lemons.
As a replacement, I finally ended up with the Sansa Clip instead and so far I really love it. The sound quality of the Clip is every bit as good as the Sony and the user interface is also very simple. It even does some rudimentary bookmarking for podcasts and audiobooks. The Clip’s screen is quite small and does not display pictures or videos, but that is not an issue for me at all. I would definitely look into the Sansa Clip.
There are a couple of other things that I do NOT like about the Sony:
(1) The fast-forward function of the Sony is very slow. With most other MP3 players, when you hold down then fast-forward button, the fast-forward gradually speeds up so that you can navigate easily to a specific spot in a 30-60 minute podcast. Not so with the Sony. No matter how long you hold the FF button, it plods along at the same slow pace.
(2) The Sony has no bookmarking feature. For me, this is a big detractor since I listen to a lot of podcasts.
Tiny Little Wonder
Rating:5 out of 5 stars
This is my second purchase of a Sony Walkman. My first was a 2 GB version. As was the first, this player is outstanding. It is easy to use, I bought it for my husband who is just beginning to be computer literate. With Windows Media Player software, you only need to download a song, then plug in the player and drag the song across the screen to the player. The player itself is user friendly. No instruction needed. Just plug and play. I love it and highly recommend it for those who want a good player for less money. My husband loves it too. He uses it so much, I suggested we learn sign language to communicate with each other!
A downgrade from the previous generation
Rating:3 out of 5 stars
I’ve been purchasing Sony mp3 players for years based on their stellar sound quality and battery life…This was the first one I had to return.
After two years – and honestly, not the best care on my part – my player (NWZ-S618FBLK) finally gave out on me. I purchased this one and found that not only was it missing sound options and playback features found on my previous model, but the audio level was noticeably lower, as well. There were no clear audio technologies present (like a normalizer, sound enhancer, etc.), bass boost was missing and I couldn’t find a way for all my songs to play in order by artist. These were all functions that were present in my older model and it was really surprising to find them all missing in a newer model.
To be fair, it’s still a good player and anyone looking for a basic player with okay/good sound will find this acceptable. However, if you take the time to check out a few of Sony’s other players then you’ll realize what else the company is capable of making.
In the end I traded this in and got the NWZ-S716F which has all the features which they deleted from this player and even comes with noise canceling headphones. I had to sacrifice a few hours from the battery but since that’s never been a problem with these players it’s nothing I’m going to miss.
JUNK
Rating:1 out of 5 stars
Item easy to use, nice and compact. I purchased this because I thought it was compatible with my Sony Stereo system with MP3 docking station…Nope not even an accessory item. SONY made everything compatible with IPOD so scrap that idea. Earphones very uncomfortable so I bought a new pair of ear buds that were better and a new skin with screen shield to protect unit. Also along with this purchase I had bought a traveling charger kit. Guess I won’t need any of this stuff because after using this SONY WALKMAN for a month it no longer works. It is a complete waste of money, maybe it is where I purchased it from, I don’t know? I am a committed customer to Sony products and this just leaves me pretty sour! I will now buy an IPOD. Live and learn and spend money on JUNK!!!
Excellent Product
Rating:5 out of 5 stars
Got mine a few weeks ago. The Ipod is a bit overrated, I have always loved Sony quality, so for the price, Sony was the best deal for the quality. It’s a very thin MP3 player. Perfect for working out. I got the 4GB, and I have uploaded a lot of pics and videos to it as well a great deal of my MP3 collection. Sound quality is phenomenal.. as other reviewers have stated, the bass is great, and it gets loud. Battery life is great – I leave it in my truck to grab it whenever I go to the gym every day, and I go a couple weeks without having to charge it at all. I am a bit picky, and cant find anything to complain about with this. Would highly recommend.
this is better then you think
Rating:5 out of 5 stars
Don’t dismiss this Sony if you are looking for a great mp3. It might be a 8GB, but it has more then enough memory for plenty of songs, pic’s and books. I have 1500 songs and I use it at the gym 4x a week and so far their are NO problems. It is easy to use and small, with great sound. My ear buds are Sennheiser CX400 and I think these are the best ear buds for the price I have ever owned, also with this Sony you get great sound so you don’t need to crank it up so it saves on the battery. I would recommend this over Zen or Zune any day of the week. It will do whatever you need. Do some research and you will come to the same conclusion.
A—MAZING sound!!!
Rating:5 out of 5 stars
This is my first Sony mp3 player and I have to say that it is the best one I have ever had the chance to use. It is very simple to use, you just need the USP cable (provided) and a computer with the recent version of Windows Media Player to synchronize your songs to the player. The sound is astonishing. The quality of this walkman is overall absolutely worth the price. 4G is almost too much and I personnally haven’t managed to use all the space avalable. The only dark spot I found was that when you use the shuffle mode, it automatically starts with the last song you played of course, but then for some bizzare reason it plays always the same song in 2nd position, after which is shuffles randomly. So basically every time you turn the player on the next day, you know which song is going to be second, and it gets a little annoying after a while, but you can avoid the problem by re-shuffling everything after a while or simply skip the song. Overall a very good quality gadget!
A piece of crap.
Rating:1 out of 5 stars
I ordered this item off Amazon through J&R Music and Computer World. So the item I bought might be different than what amazon is selling here. J&R might have gotten my unit from a different, less reputable source.
It was a piece of crap. The “hold” didn’t work and following the troubleshooting directions, recharging, pressing reset with a pin, didn’t make it work. But, worst of all, when I turn it off and then turn it back on later it doesn’t restart in the same place. I have to dig through the files and fast forward through them to try to find my place. This makes listening to audio books or podcasts almost impossible.
It’s a piece of crap. If it worked it would be fine. But how do you know you will happen to get a unit that works. I’m so disappointed in Sony. They used to be good. Maybe my unit was made in China.
Mine is not returnable to the reseller. Go talk to Sony they say.
So be careful and think before you order. Cause this is a piece of crap.
Great sound and so easy to use…
Rating:5 out of 5 stars
This is the easiest one to use that I have had so far. You do have to use Windows Media Player to upload and manage your files on though. If you use the disc that comes with player, it will load the latest version of Windows Media player for you.
It was so simple that I was able to do all this by myself without my husband’s help for once.
The sound quality is great and the pictures show up much better than I would have believed possible. You can put a lot of pictures on it without taking a lot of space up also.
Also you can tune in to your favorite fm radio stations too.
I couldn’t find a way to delete pictures off the unit itself and downloaded 1500 by mistake! You have to delete them off from the Windows Media Player to get them off your unit. You also have to delete songs off the same way…unless I am missing something here.
The player also has a clock on it.
It doesn’t have a camera but I have a digital and didn’t care about that anyway.
It fits right in your pocket, it is very thin and lightweight. The directions say it will start playing funny if it gets damp so if you are doing a job that will be sweaty you need to put it in your pocket (versus in your bra! like I did while I was mowing). When my songs all sounded like they were being sung by Alvin the Chipmunk, I figured out the problem.
You can record videos on it too and the built in battery will last for 45 hours before you need to stick it in your computer to recharge.
I love it!
Easy to use – not compatible
Rating:4 out of 5 stars
I bought this for my husband for his birthday. He really likes the way it sounds and it is easy to use (he didn’t like the controls on the I-pod). The only complaint he has is that he has “Sync” in his vehicle and the Sony is not compatible.
Pump up the volume… or at least, I wish I could.
Rating:2 out of 5 stars
I tried out this Sony E-series player for a few days, and ended up returning mine. The reason was, simply, that the volume level is way too low.
I tried checking the volume limiter feature, but it was already off. Basically the deal is this: First, if you use headphones (such as my Sony clip-ons) rather than the included ear buds, it takes out a little bit of the volume. And second, if you use the equalizer, it cuts the volume even further, no matter how you adjust it. (What kind of equalizer does that, anyway?)
So bottom line, if your MP3 file is a bit quiet, or there’s background noise where you are, and you’d like to crank it up a bit to compensate, well you’re just out of luck. The Walkman just won’t do it.
It’s too bad, because otherwise, the Walkman has a pretty nice design. It’s very easy to use, and the battery life is among the best. But what would make Sony limit the volume so much is beyond me. I’ve since traded this in for a Sansa Fuze, which has every feature that this does, is super easy to use, and blasts the tunes as loudly and with as much clarity as you could ever want. Sony would do well to address this issue in future designs, or maybe even in this one if they could fix it through a firmware update.
Great Product!
Rating:4 out of 5 stars
This is a great product. It was easy to set up and great to use. The ear buds could be improved.
Great value
Rating:5 out of 5 stars
I actually returned the 4G and got the 8G version (NWZ-E438F). I love this MP3 player. Admittedly, I’m new to MP3. However, from feedback from my 3 kids, Sony has Ipod beat with the value this MP3 player brings with it. Again, being new to this, I didn’t know photos couldn’t be shown back from player to say, TV via RCA jacks. In other words, you can certainly play your music back through your audio system by using 3.5mm to L/R RCA audio jacks….but you cannot use jacks available that have the video RCA jack leg too. Sony verified that this cannot be done. No big deal, but I thought it would.
The supplied ear buds have surprisingly good sound. I bought this player primarily to use for running, and it is perfect for my needs.
Lastly, I have 3,378 songs on my 8G player right now, which is well over the estimated amount it will hold, and I still have 250MB left. I love it.
It’s got everything except for full resolution video playback
Rating:4 out of 5 stars
When I first started shopping around for a video player like this one, my only requirement was that I should be able to plug it into a Linux machine and just drop files into a folder without having to use fancy software. All content into a Zune and iPod must go through such software, which is not available on Linux. So I bought this one. As soon as you plug in to the computer, it shows up as a USB drive labeled WALKMAN. Songs go into the MUSIC folder and videos go into the VIDEO folder. It’s that simple. The second great thing is that it has got FM radio.
There are two things keeping me from giving it a five star rating. One is that the mp4 videos have to be under 320×240 resolution. Zune plays mp4 videos at 720×576 resolution and iPod plays videos at 640×480 resolution. Second reason (a minor one) is that I can’t delete content from the player (not sure if other players allow deletion from the device). If I don’t like a song or a video, I have to remember what it was and delete it later when I plug it in to the computer. It could have also been great if I could fast forward, but I suspect that is too much to expect from a device such as this one.
That said, the audio and video quality is great. Any one who wants a hassle free, no-need-to-read-the-manual mp3 video player should buy this.
Excellent for the price
Rating:5 out of 5 stars
An outstanding purchase. Great sound and video. Would like to have had more info on how to load videos into it, but otherwise great.
IT DOESN’T GET ANY BETTER THAN THIS
Rating:5 out of 5 stars
I ordered this Walkman after a lot of research and price comparison. I had another brand and took it back. This is the best one I have ever had and my son has the same one. The replay time is phenominal. The quality of sound and the ease of use make this a #1 choice.
Sony MP3/wma 8GB
Rating:5 out of 5 stars
I bought this in May of 09. This is a GREAT unit.
easy to use . It loads fast and shows all the album covers.I found that using Windows Media player to organize and load was the best and i converted all my file MP3 to 96mps WMA’s using window file convert LE, which allows you to save the original format also.
I got a boat load of music on it.
I highly Recommend this unit. After buying a Latte 4gb that was hard to use an real slow to load and a cheap sandisk this unit really shines…
Sony MP3 Player
Rating:5 out of 5 stars
Grandma is having fun with the new toy. The old songs sound great on it.
This is a totally new learning experience for an older person and a wonderful way to enjoy my music without disturbing others. No wonder the kids all have one.
Why doesn’t it play audiobooks?
Rating:2 out of 5 stars
Cute, but only if you only want to play music and radio. I bought it thinking that the 4 MB could be used to play audiobooks. But you can’t download adiobooks to it because SONY choose to not allow it to read the audiobook file format! What a waste. Why have so much memory if all you can do is play music on it?
FIRST TIME MP3 PLAYER OWNER
Rating:5 out of 5 stars
Okay so I wanted an MP3 player and I look at reviews for RCA, SYLVANIA, SANDISK and a lot of cheaper brands but I decided to go with the namebrand Sony. I just purchased the 8 GB today and all I can say is wooooooooooooooow!! I am NOT technology savvy and burning songs to the MP3 player from windows media was a breeze!! The sound quality is great!!! It has BASS…REAL bass!!! AND it has an FM Tuner that works perfect!! I LOVE LOVE LOVE LOVE it and I’m glad I spend a little more money on a quality product!! Ipod who??
Intuitive Screen, Easy to Use Software, Versatile
Rating:5 out of 5 stars
I’m an expert on MP3 players, if only because I’ve owned so many. All my reviews have been in comparison to iPods which I do not like because the battery life (I mean real life) has been six to nine months, the cost of replacement is worse than Sony, and Apple is so proprietary that I don’t want to convert files and use iTunes. I actually like Windows Media Player (11), and find it extremely easy to sync with this player.
So, having bought the 8 GB Walkman, I had it up and running in about two hours, but that included initial battery charge, and loading 1,700 songs/albums, a couple of photos, a couple of Quicktime movies which had to be converted to .wmv first (and have now been deleted), and finding and presetting five or six FM stations and diddling with the little settings like the graphic equalizer etc.
The sound is fantastic! Toss out the cheap earphones, something I’ve come to expect with all players, and try Sony earbuds (see review). I have set the Media Player to “equalize” the sound of each selection so that, when played in the MP3 player, all are at the same level. The volume rocker bar is a really nice feature as well.
The FM radio is also fantastic! Living in the SF Bay Area, and realizing that winter is the best time for FM anyway, I can pick up FM stations out of San Fran and that across what we call “hills” but folk back east think are mountains.
Any minuses? Yes, several, but not enough to dissuade me from buying a second one a week after I wrote this review: 1. I don’t know why the earphones attach on the bottom which means that when you put it in your pocket, it’s upside down. On the other hand, when it’s in your pocket, you’re not looking at the screen. 2. There’s no clip or armband or holder of some sort. However, I have an old iRiver clip that actually works, so no points off. The price for a sleeve with a 1ยข clip was $25 with shipping. As with most Sony after-market and even market stuff — like batteries — ridiculous. 3. Shuffle often plays the same second song no matter when I start up the player. There’s a four-page complaint page about shuffle problems with iPods and other MP3s, but my solution was to get a selection that is only 1.30 long, retitle it with an apostrophe at the beginning so it goes to the head of the songs list, and then I don’t have wait long to find out the next surprise selection of the 1700 “songs” on the player.
And yet, after all that, I’ll still give it 5 stars. Comparatively speaking, the iPod, Zune, Sansa, and iRovers aren’t in the same league. Mind you, I don’t watch videos, and only have 6 pictures of grandkids and Yosemite on the player. No one else wants to see those anyway.
I find it funny that on one site, the red Sony 8 GB gets 5 stars and the black gets 4. I don’t understand that, but I’m inclined to throw out both reviews. Oh, btw, this player was on sale for $98 at Best Buy. That’s a sure sign that there’ll be a replacement model soon. I don’t care. Not all new devices are as good as previous versions. (See my reviews of cameras.)
Great sound, not so great usability
Rating:4 out of 5 stars
There seems to be a trend among gadget manufacturers to create more and more dumbed down versions of their early hits. I looked for player giving most bang for buck and based on reviews this was one.
The good stuff: most important thing – sound is great. Navigation is easy (I really like folder navigations).
The bad stuff: earphones are useless. Their sound is clear with good bass when inside ear, but pure plastic won’t stick to it and they always get loosened, sounding like tin can. I always tried to press them more and more which ended in massive ear pain and finally ordered Koss KSC75. All sound enhancements from previous versions are gone. When playing music title, you can’t click genre and display all similar titles from library, which is again nice feature removed. Radio, which was somehow important to me, depends 100% on player orientation, so no fm listening when cycling.
And why, oh why they removed pin for neckband, so forget about hanging it around your neck while exercising unless you invest in 20$ carrying case.
Would I buy it again? If there are no older 6/7xx versions on sale, yes.
If you can get these goldies, get them! Because right now there is some bitter taste when trying to figure out where to wear it without pockets.
A pink mp3 player that has everything.
Rating:5 out of 5 stars
The sound is awsome, very simple to navigate, very simple drop & drag music, video & photos, love the fm stereo!
Good for the price
Rating:4 out of 5 stars
This works great, easy to use! It doesn’t have any “extra” features, it just plays music/video/view pictures. But it’s the cheapest 8GB that I could find that was Pink! I like it.
great piece with minor imperfections
Rating:4 out of 5 stars
beauty piece, great battery life, nice display, but- if the mp3 is off more than aprox 4 hr it takes about 20 sec to create library when turned on but will still resume where last stopped. (maybe it’s part of the secret to it’s long battery life, cause it completley shuts down after 4 hr!) 2. i experienced a few mixups with cover art, e.g. a few albums showed the wrong cover art. (maybe cause i pasted cover art & didn’t get it off the web.) 3. this mp3 is very user friendly but when it comes to features it seems sony was a little lazy… otherwise it’s a GREAT BUY!
product arrived promptly and in perfect condition
Rating:5 out of 5 stars
The product arrived very quickly, within a few days and was exactly as desrcibed. Its very easy to use and works great.
Sony 8GB Walkman Video MP3 Player
Rating:5 out of 5 stars
FANTASTIC. This was a gift for my husband who wanted a music and video player but did not have to deal with the whole proprietary thing of iTunes. We are THRILLED with this device. Solidly built, compact, multi-functional – it is hands down the best MP3 player out there. And the price is good too. Now I wish that I did not have an iPod so that I could have an excuse to get one of these. And you CAN change your music from iTunes MP4 format (on iTunes) to MP3 very easily (in iTunes for free) to be compatible with this device.
If you are comparing MP3 players, even iPods, consider this WAY above the rest.
Sony 8 GB Walkman video MP3 player
Rating:4 out of 5 stars
This little player has great sound and easy to use. Purchased online and it came in a week later. Opened the box, loaded software on the computer and started to download music without reading the manual. totally agree with CNET review of this item. Great buy.
nice sound/lousy earphones
Rating:4 out of 5 stars
This unit has good functionality ; but , quirky to set up. The earphone plugs would’nt
stay in my ears so I had to order a set of earphones. Overall, the sound is terrific. PeterC.
Great replacement for my Ipod shuffle!
Rating:5 out of 5 stars
I bought this Mp3 player because my Ipod shuffle broke and I needed a new one. I went to the store with the idea purchasing a new one I compared the price of this item and with the shuffle and went with the Mp3 player. For a few dollars more I can see pictures watch videos and listen to the radio. The I pod equelivent to this item is like 150 bucks in this economy you got to go cheaper plus sony is a brand I trusted in the past when cd walkmans where the norm. I like how you can upload music from windows media player wich is realy easy and most people already have it on threre computers. I higly recomend this Item.
Love my Sony 8 GB Walkman Video MP3 Player
Rating:5 out of 5 stars
I love the walkman & MP3 player figures, plus having it in red makes it easy to find in your purse or gym bag.
Love it!
Rating:5 out of 5 stars
The sound quality is outstanding and the battery life is great! My last sony player was a minidisc I bought 8 years ago and it’s still going strong. You won’t regret buying this player. I recommend a hard plastic case such as:
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Enjoy!
Great device but you have to buy a charger for $40 more
Rating:4 out of 5 stars
Great little device — good sound, compact, great interface. However: comes with only USB cable for charging. When my computer goes to sleep, it stops charging. So consider that when you calculate the price — you WILL want an A/C adapter for an outrageous $40. Sony AC-NWUM50 AC Adapter for NWZ-A800 and NWZ-S600 Series Sony Walkman Video MP3 Player The armband/case is also overpriced at $25. Sony CSE005ARM Contoured Sports Armband for the A720 & A820 series Walkman.It’s the Gillette model: overprice the accessories.
Amazing Sound Quality!
Rating:5 out of 5 stars
The first word that came out of my mouth when I listened to a track on this MP3 / Video player was WOW! The sound quality that this tiny little device generates is just amazing. When it comes to MP3 players, I’m VERY picky. I look for a device that gives me rich, crystal clear, high quality sound… with BASS! And this Walkman delivers it. That’s not to say that other brands don’t deliver high-quality crystal clear sound, but at the same time, not all brands deliver it with outstanding bass and balance. At least, not for this price range.
The equalizer on this Sony Walkman is just perfect, as far as I’m concerned. When you crank up the bass level, you get exactly that – thick, solid bass, without distorting the earphones or affecting the treble. You can either select the presents that are pre-loaded in this device, or customize the frequency levels until you reach your desired sound.
At 4GB, this Walkman can hold approximately 900 songs if they are at 128 kbps in MP3 format. But personally, I would highly recommend you rip your MP3s from your CDs to 192 kbps, which would pretty much give you CD quality. The downfall is that you won’t be able to load 900 songs. Since 192 kbps files are a little larger than 128 kbps, you’ll be looking at something like 600 songs or so (assuming they are the standard 3 to 4 minute songs), which is still a lot. As for the video player, I was quite impressed with both the picture and, of course, sound quality. The videos don’t freeze up or skip or anything like that, they play just as smoothly as what you see on your television screen at home.
Importing audio, video, and images onto this device is pretty easy. Simply connect one end of the USB cable (which comes included) to your Sony Walkman, and the other end of the cable to your computer. Then, on your computer, go to Start, My Computer, look for the “Sony Walkman” drive, double click on it and then drag / drop your files in the appropriate folders. The other option is to use Windows Media Player 11 (which you can download for free on the Internet) to synchronize your files to your Sony Walkman. This is probably the better option if you want everything neatly organized. It may take a little bit of practice for some, but it’s fairly easy to do once you get the hang of it.
IMPORTANT NOTE: This review is written specifically for the NWZ-A815 model, not the NWZ-E436F series (BIG DIFFERENCE!). Sony screwed up royally with the MWZ-E436F series as the sound quality is nowhere near as good. Heck, I had a SanDisk Sansa that actually sounded better than the MWZ-E436F series. The problem is that the MWZ-E436F walkmans come with cheap, very standard earphones and have very limited sound enhancement options. I know this from personal experience as I purchased an E436 series thinking it’s the same as the A815 series. I was VERY disappointed. Since the NWZ-A815 looks like it’s discontinued, I would recommend you invest in the Sony NWZ-A726 instead to get that superior sound quality.
Summary for the NWZ-A815 Sony Walkman:
Pros:
Amazing sound quality
Excellent Equalizer
Ridiculously long lasting battery
Ultra slim design (less than half an inch thick)
Has FM Radio
Great bass!
Cons:
Memory not expandable
No voice recorder
This is an excellent product. I highly recommend it.
Not bad, not great…
Rating:4 out of 5 stars
This seems to be a good MP3 player for the money, though I’m no fan of the uncomfortable earbuds and USB-only charging.
Superb sound
Rating:4 out of 5 stars
This small device deliver great sound quality, if you are locking for good sound quality this it, i don’t care about the other capabilities but they are really nice to, i bought a Sony Erickson 580i and expand its memory to 4g, but it doesn’t deliver the quality of sound of this device. great bass an treble.
A very well made product by SONY
Rating:5 out of 5 stars
Good build quality and very small and light with a nice screen.
Upgrading the system version through the official site is recommended though to fix the mp4 files sound being out of sync, as mp4 files provide the best visual quality with a relatively small file size than other formats.
If only …
Rating:4 out of 5 stars
The SONY WALKMAN 8GB MP3 player is a very good MP3,EZ to use w/ great sound.The battery play time is long and recharges fast. Now IF ONLY it was water proof….and make it possable to create a play list fron the internal libary….THEN IT WOULD BE THE BEST MP3 PLAYER IN THE WORLD!!!
Awesome product…..
Rating:5 out of 5 stars
This one I have already used since 10days and its really a cool product…
The music and video quality is really cool…..
I like it and it’s no less than my iPod nano….
you can go for it….
Sony rocks….
Great MP3 player
Rating:4 out of 5 stars
I bought this walkman in January after receiving a 2gb Ipod shuffle for Christmas. I wanted something with a screen and was able to get the walkman 4gb for only about $10 more than the ipod. The only thing I wish it had is a turn dial instead of buttons to access everything. It is a great player for the price.
Not for Itune users
Rating:2 out of 5 stars
I thought I was getting a deal when i read some of the descriptions and the drop and drag menu seemed wonderful. Until you try to use it that is. Most of my music from i tunes is not compatible with the mp3 player. So are many pic.s and movies. i don’t feel i will ever buy one again. I would like to return it but the only thing that does work half way decent is the fm radio. Even though there is static noise and no antenna. I will never buy another one of these again.
Have 4 of them
Rating:5 out of 5 stars
I like this product so much that we have 4 of them amoung the family. Price is great & you are not limited to using iTunes. I use Windows Media player to load songs or even Window Explorer. I even have two full length Disney movies on this device!
A perfect option for purely music.
Rating:5 out of 5 stars
I have had this player for more than a month and I am completely satisfied with it. The menu is very intuitive. The dimension is pocket friendly, and the build is firm, stable. The battery has been superior so far, but I doubt it lasts 40 hours, let alone 45 hrs as advertised. Nonetheless, it lasts quite long. And for the sound, it is rare to find any better mp3 players than this.
Keep in mind, however, I purchase this item because I want to have a device that can play music well only. I don’t use it to watch video or view picture. Although the image is crisp and clear, I find the screen too small for these purposes. So you might want to look for other options if you want to do more than just listening to your music library, like me.
Sony vs. iAudio7
Rating:4 out of 5 stars
I agree with all the other reviews praising this unit’s sound quality, intuitive style, etc. I also own an iAudio7 (Cowon) and I mainly listen to audiobooks (ie., NetLibrary and Overdrive). Having said that, I’d like to point out a few features that I wish the Sony possessed:
1. ability to bookmark;
2. a timer, or “sleep” function;
3. a way to scan (FF or Rew) in variable intervals; for example, if I’m listening to a 12-hour audiobook from NetLibrary and I lose my place, or want to listen to another book, or music for awhile, the first book restarts at the beginning. Holding down the FF button, the scanning takes place at one speed only, and can take several minutes to get back to where I left off. Longer if I didn’t notice the elapsed time beforehand.
4. when the temporary rights to listen to the audiobook expire, the Sony simply refuses to play it anymore!
The iAudio7 has all of these features, and will play the book until I delete it (however, I can’t transfer it after the expiration date).
Overall, a great little mp3 player, and I’m very pleased I bought it. I haven’t had an opportunity to use the video function, but for audio, I would highly recommend the Sony.
Sony Customer Service – 1 star
Rating:1 out of 5 stars
Having done a fair bit of research I bought this Sony MP3 player. It certainly looks good and feels solid, but following interaction with Sony’s customer service department will be returning the MP3 player unused.
The driver disc that comes with the unit is a mini-CD, I have the old style PC where the CD is not held from the centre, when I asked Sony’s customer service department where to download the driver from the web (link as specified in the manual was no longer functional) they told me to contact my PC maker and buy an adapater – unbelievable!
I am at a complete loss as to why Sony would not continue to make this driver available for download, as with the indifference of their customer service department – I would have been perfectly happy with an electronic version of the driver.
And now on to the iPod store.
Sony 8GB walkman
Rating:5 out of 5 stars
This an excellent product that is economical and practical. Excellent sound and quality, easy to navigate, and long battery life. No problems connecting to Windows Media player and transferring music. I previously owned a SANSA 4GB, and this product malfunctioned within a week of owning it and careful use; there was also not a graded volume control on the device which made it frustrating to listen to with headphones. I have had absolutely no problems with this product, so I would definitely recommend it for someone who wants a simple, durable MP3 player.
I LOVE IT!!!
Rating:5 out of 5 stars
LOVE IT!! LOVE IT!! LOVE IT!!!! LOOOOVE IIIIT!!! its soooo easy to use, its very slim and confortable, image is amazing, sound quality is AWESOME!! I’ve had many mp3’s i don’t remember them having such clear sound!!…. I just LOVE IT!! the day i got it, i started using it immediatly, and later on, when i wasn’t using it, i couldn’t stop staring at it! =P (ok i realize that’s a little too much) but its SOOO cute!! the red color is a very very nice color, i mean, cause its not bright ugly red, its just a great color this little guy has… battery lasts so much… its the BEST! in every single way!, you would NEVER regreat getting it!
Great sound, easy to use reliable
Rating:5 out of 5 stars
My wife has an iPod nano, and while the sound is good, the iPod has had a reputation for breaking and I found the iTunes store a nightmare to navigate.
For me, it came down to the Sony or the SanDisk. While the SanDisk is less expensive and has the microSD slot, it is almost as fragile as glass. When I looked at them at the local BestBuy, the SanDisk on display was broken after 2 DAYS on display.
The Sony has been reliable (so far), the sound rivals anything that I’ve owned and it was easy to use and to download onto. I have been using My Computer to copy over files, but it comes with software that makes it a matter of drag and drop to download. And in my opinion, it’s a better deal than the iPod, especially with 99-cent downloads from Amazon, compared to $1.29 for new tunes from the iTunes stores.
wrong ear pieces sent
Rating:1 out of 5 stars
I selected this item based on the ear pieces. I was surprised to find that they did not send what they advertised. Rather they sent the cheaper version ear pieces with no explanation.
Works good but could be better.
Rating:4 out of 5 stars
I set the Sony Walkman up on a Apple computer running OS X Leopard.
Pros>
1. Battery lasts a LONG TIME.
2. Fits in your pocket nice.
3. Videos look very good. Screen size is small but good quality.
4. Sets up on the Mac just fine. It sees the player just like any other external device. Just drag and drop your files into the appropriate folders on the walkman.
5. Sound is pretty good. Better than the flat sound an iPod shuffle.
6. Plays mp3’s fine.
Cons>
1. Had to convert all my iMovies to MP4 using iSquint. Not that big of a deal.
2. It seems happiest with straight up JPG’s for photos. What I mean is if you edit your photos with an editor like Adobe Photoshop and save as jpg the player won’t read the Adobe jpg because of the embedded profile. Not an issue if you just drag and drop straight from iPhoto into the player.
3. The player does not want to “Eject” or “Unmount”. I thought this was only on my Mac but I fired up my old Win XP pc and it didn’t want to eject the player either. Kind of odd. It “unmounts” but reconnects again. This is very ANNOYING!
4. I’m not sure if it plays .acc protected files or whatever format iTunes songs typically are in.
Overall a very nice player for the money I just wish it would unmount correctly.
The best!!!!!
Rating:5 out of 5 stars
I’ve had this product for about a week now, and I am so happy I chose it! The quality is amazing, it feels solid and very well built. The headset is good, and I love the sound quality!! iPods are no comparison when it comes to sound quality. This also has an FM tuner, and the drag and drop option of adding music and building playlists makes this a breeze to use. Definitely recommend.
It just WONT work on any 64 bit plataform, but sounds very good when working – buy a good phone
Rating:3 out of 5 stars
In short,
Sound is VERY good (with a good phone)
Nice shape and look
Turns on easy on pocket… use the hold and hope it dont break on hold off
Headphone provided is ridiculously cheap!
Proprietary cable makes me unconfortable… if it breaks i dont know.
AND the most IMPORTANT: It wont work at all
if you have a xp or vista 64… i wish i could read it anywhere
before buy it. What era is Sony living in? 32 bits compatible only???
Other: Now that i have used my notebook as a proxy to be able to load it
with desktop content, i must say the sound is realy good, it almost
makes me forget the headache that is to transfer files on my
“XP64 condition”. I cant find the timer to switch it off after
some minutes of choice… if youre going to sleep listening music
i guess it must play all your sleeping thru, i may be true,
after all, for me it’s unthinkable not to work as mass storage on
XP64 and it happened. I’ll correct my review if i find how to
program it to play for as long as i wish and not till it drains
itself. And again i say – GET a good phone and youll have GREAT
sound… better than i expected for mere 128k mp3’s, but even
more incredible playing uncompressed WAV.
An Excellent MP3 Player for the $$$
Rating:5 out of 5 stars
I owned a lesser name brand MP3 player with a 2GB capacity but I had more music that I wanted to enjoy on an MP3 player. That is what prompted me to buy my Sony Walkman MP3 player with 8GB capacity. I have ownwd a few Sony products before and always had great experiences with them. I find the ease of volume control a plus on this unit, to me some songs seem to be louder than others. Another plus is the battery life on this unit I can go a week or more on one charge and it doesn’t lose power during times when not in use (like the MP3 player I had before).
A fine player
Rating:5 out of 5 stars
As a musician, I am pleased with the sound reproduction from this mp3 player. My prior experience with the Sansa Fuze was a total disappointment. Given the fact that the Fuze would play off speed and off pitch, I was unable to use that player for practice sessions. I can’t see how any mp3 player would be off speed or off pitch. We aren’t talking about a cassette tape player here that might be subject to motor speed or tape stretch. An mp3 player should reproduce digitally with precision.
The Sony NWZ-E438F is convenient with a clean and friendly interface. Tagged files are managed well, and the sound quality is top notch.
I’d highly recommend this player to anyone interested in a higher quality mp3 player. My only gripe about the case is the slippery (non-rubberized) back. For some users, it may actually slip into a pants pocket more easily, but mine sits out on a table. Perhaps when the humidity of summer arrives, it will stick to surfaces a bit better. Display quality and brightness are very good with little noticable pixelization present. The included ear buds are usable, unlike those of the less expensive players. Fortunately, the transfer software is uncluttered as it is absolutely necessary. Without it, all of my file tagging info wasn’t readily transferred. No hiccups with the software, though.
Nice job, Sony. I’ll buy another if I see it on sale.
Very Nice Music & Video Player
Rating:4 out of 5 stars
I’ve been using this player for about a month now. I watch videos on it as well as listen to music.
Pros:
Plays music very clear and sounds great. There is an equalizer with 4 or 5 presets plus 2 customizable presets so you can adjust sound to taste or requirement. I found for instance that a setting that sounds good through headphones may sound awful through a car stereo, so I would have to change the setting and then everything would sound great.
Plays videos very clear. The screen has very good resolution. I download youtube videos to the player and it plays them very nicely with perfect sound.
Small size – less than 1/2 the size of many cell phones, maybe slightly smaller than a Ipod nano, or whatever they call the smallest ipod with a screen.
Minor Cons:
Difficulty in finding accessories. Lots of stores carry Sony walkman accessories, such as cases, but it’s hard to find them for this particular model. Hopefully this will change in time.
I can’t transfer songs that I purchased on I-tunes, even when I use the included software that is supposed to allow it. Apparently, my itunes songs have some kind of protection or whatever. Kind of frustrating, but I guess that’s more Apple’s fault than Sony’s.
Update 01/20/09 – I’ve found that “podcasts” from Itunes work on this player – both video and audio. Just drag them from Itunes to the content transfer app. Very nice!
Sony 8 GB
Rating:5 out of 5 stars
Great player – much easier to set up and use than either of my two previous players! Battery goes on forever between charges.
Walkman
Rating:2 out of 5 stars
I bought this as a Christmas gift. Ten minutes after it was opened, the screen started flashing white. After about 7 or 8 calls to customer service, I was able to send it in to get repaired.
You’d have to spend at least $40 more for headphones
Rating:2 out of 5 stars
Bought this product for $90+tax in Best Buy 5th Ave NY. Opened the sealed packaging to discover the worst type of headphones ever. Not worth a dollar. Didn’t even include the little piece of foam to cover the earphone so it won’t hurt your ears. The right earphone was damaged. The only help Sony offered was to send them the earphone back and they would “consider replacing” it, for the same “not worth a dollar” headphones.
Thanks. It’s not even worth the postage costs.
Would be Great with .AA Audible.com support
Rating:2 out of 5 stars
I’ve owned a few MP3 players and this one is very well designed and made. I love how you can browse MP3’s by folder.
The one thing that ruins it is no Audible.com, .AA support. I listen to a lot of Audio Books on my MP3 player and the lack of this support makes it impossible for me to download from the largest online library, Audible.com.
I spoke to Audible, they say you can download, burn to CD, then rip to MP3 but I dont have that kind of time. I cant imagine anyone does. Sony, please add .AA support to this otherwise great device.
It rocks!
Rating:5 out of 5 stars
Decided to scrap my iPod Nano after the latest software change rendered the Nano useless. The Sony Walkman requires no special software. I am using Windows Media Player 10 to load the Walkman with my playlists. The only glitch has been that in shuffle mode, the Walkman always plays the first playlist song second no matter which song I start playing. I worked around this by creating a blank mp3 file that is one second in duration and using that as the first song in each of my playlists. I contacted Sony Tech Support about this and they could not understand the problem, so I tried the blank file solution and it worked. The Walkman is far superior to the iPod Nano. I highly recommend it.
Good things come in small sizes…
Rating:4 out of 5 stars
The product is definitely worth the price and lives up to the Sony name; very user friendly. I love the compact size; perfect for workouts.
AMAZING
Rating:5 out of 5 stars
The good:
The Sony E-Series Walkman is very competitively priced and features a compact design with a nice, bright screen. It’s easy to use and offers a variety of desirable extras, such as an FM tuner, a user-customizable EQ, and support for Rhapsody To Go and Amazon Video On Demand. Rated battery life is superb and sound quality is great.
The bad:
The Sony E-Series Walkman tops out at 8GB and doesn’t offer memory expansion. There’s no integrated podcast support, and subscription-content syncing is slow.
The bottom line:
The Sony E-Series Walkman is a great value. It’s an excellent option for anyone looking for an easy-to-use MP3 player with a pocketable design, a long battery life, handy features, and solid sound quality.this is what you need,when im on the train the peoplw with ipods stare at me and ask where did i get it because the look is sexy.
Most Amazing mp3 Player Ever!
Rating:4 out of 5 stars
This mp3 player is the best on the market for the price. The equalizer is a nice feature and the overall design of it looks great. The battery life on this is phenomenal. I didn’t have to charge it for two weeks! I also love the drop and drag feature and not having to mess around with itunes. One con though is that the headphones aren’t all that great. They were way too large for my ears and doubt they would fit a kids any better. Overall though a great little mp3!
Sony 8 GB Walkman
Rating:5 out of 5 stars
Better than expected!! Fast shipping and the Walkman works great. Highly recommend this product to anyone who likes MP3s.
great for working out, and the sound….awesome
Rating:5 out of 5 stars
Just a little input… This is the third Sony mp3 I’ve tried, and it’s the best so far. Just when I thought I really liked the previous version, I realized that I was wanting more music to carry. I began with just the 1gig walkman which was perfect for working out and running, but then I hated that I had to use the Atrac format (and the program, sony stage, that came with it sucked) and it wouldn’t let me turn my music back into mp3 format.
The previous version was excellent in sound and I liked the display to see the cd art when showing the recordings. The smart random play was also great. Well, now I have all of it, and the fm player still there…yeay. The screen a tiny bit bigger, and the buttons a little crisper when you press them.
The only negative I have found is that the random feature always returns to the first song that was recorded on the mp3 player as long as it first plays the last song that was playing when I last shut it down (weird).
The battery does last a very long time, the only thing is you have to tweak the settings for the screen brightness, time it stays on etc… If you want a little extra memory, you can dig into the settings and delete the videos and demos that come preloaded on the player…now hopefully the 4 gig will be enough for me to listen to.
The sound out of this thing is incredibly good for the price, it goes great with my Sure headsets. Also the size and weight is perfect when going for a run, or a mountain bike trail ride.
By the way, it does have a “hold” button, unlike some silly players out there….hope this helps!!!
Pretty good
Rating:4 out of 5 stars
I finally got with the times and bought a non-cd portable device and this is it. Overall, I like it. I just wish it were Mac compatible. i thought I’d plug it into my Mac just for charging purposes and it completely froze. Besides that, it’s been very good. Not sure about the headphones though. Either I have oddly shaped ear canals or the headphones are not a good shape because they don’t quite stay in.
I’d buy it ASAp if you’re thinking about it though, as i paid $10 less when i bought it two weeks ago and a friend of mine bought it for $10 less than me when he bought it. Seems like the price is creeping up.
Good player – but not for Itunes!
Rating:4 out of 5 stars
I have had this player for about 6 months now. Yes, it is a great player with solid features – just read the other reviews. However, I have two things to say about this player that I wish someone had told me before purchasing it:
1.) If you are looking for a player that you want to use with your Itunes library, spend the extra $50 and buy an ipod.
The headache of trying to copy and paste files in a folder as if the mp3 player was a flash drive is terrible. I spent hours and hours trying different methods of making the transfer of my Itunes music to the Walkman player simpler, but cannot find anything.
I tried to save money by not buying the Ipod, but if I could buy a player over again, I would definitely buy the Ipod and save myself the trouble from trying to get my files to download smoothly onto this player.
Yes, you can get Itunes music to play correctly, but it takes an awfully long time and it is not set up well if you want to resync your music often.
2.) One of the nice features about an Ipod is that while you are listening to a song, you can search through your music and pull up another song that you want to hear afterwards. It will keep that song “locked into position” so that when you are done listening to the first song, you can just hit play to listen to the next song.
With the Walkman, however, there is no such feature. If you set up a second song to listen to while listening to the first song, it will not remember the actions you took to pull up that song, and it will lose your place. You then have to go back in and refind the artist or song name to play the song. Another nice feature about the Ipod that the Walkman doesn’t have.
Good luck searching and happy listening!
Player is great, software is garbage
Rating:4 out of 5 stars
I had an iPod 2GB Nano and wanted to get something with larger capacity. I did some research and finally bought the Walkman. I was around for the very first Sony Walkman casette tape player, so the idea of getting a Sony MP3 player was appealing.
After using it for over a month, I find it a great little device. The battery life is amazing. I charged it over two weeks ago and have used it on multiple three hour car rides. I also had it hooked up to a speaker in my office and left it on for several hours and it stil has battery life.
It took me some time to get used to the navigation, but now I am fine with the difference between the Walkman and the iPod. The sound quality is good and although the volume could be better, it is acceptable for my use.
The major problem I have with the unit is the software. Sony included one of those mini disc’s which loaded a couple of software programs on my computer. The main program is one which allows you to drag and drop files from your computer to the player; however, it doesn’t work. I dragged a few tunes to see how it worked and then started dragging all the music. The software kept accepting the tunes, but after it “loaded” for about 2 hours, I discovered it had only loaded the first set of tunes. The rest, and the two hour wait, was for nothing. The software also has a “delete” function, which also doesn’t work. It tells you that it delets items from the player, but they are still there.
So, I junked that software and decided to use the Windows Media Player. This is ok, except that the Media Player has a very odd way to create playlists. There are some round about ways to create the play list and I have finaly learned how to do it, but it took way too long compared to iTunes. The other odd thing is that when you create a play list it has to be from tunes on your computer, not on the device. Then when you sync the device to load the playlist, it may or may not put duplicate versions of the music on the device. Sometimes it finds the songs on the device and sometimes it does not. So, I ended up with multiple copies of some songs. The device software is also pathetic. It doesn’t allow you to create playlists on the device, and as others have noted, there is no way to delete items from the device without using the software.
I finally just had the computer recognize the device as an external drive and was able to load songs and delete them with no probme.
Despite the isues, I still like the device better than my Nano. For one thing it has an FM receiver, which works great. Now that I have come to terms with the crappy software, it works great. So, if you are looking for an alternative to the iPod, this is a good option. Just stay away from the software provided by Sony and you will be fine.
Lives up to the Sony name!
Rating:5 out of 5 stars
I knew I would have a good product the minute I saw “Sony”. I gave it to my son for Christmas, he loves it. Great product for the fraction of the I-Pod costs and better looking.
A Great MP3 Player
Rating:5 out of 5 stars
I bought the Sony Walkman NWZ-E436F in February, and several months later I am very happy with my purchase.
The sound quality of the player is fantastic. Several EQ presets along with 2 customizable EQ settings help you dial in the sound to your own preference. The inherent sound quality of the unit is clean, crisp, and punchy.
The battery life is nothing less than spectacular. I get 4 days of 6 hour use out of it every week – and it still has at least an hour of life left when I recharge the unit.
The ease of use with the unit is another nice thing. The enclosed software makes it easy to delete songs or whole artist files, and the unit sync’s up very well with the Windows Media Player to add music or video files.
Another thing that doesn’t often get commented on is just how solid this player is. It’s heavier than most MP3 players that are larger than this one – because it’s made out of metal! This is a sturdy, solid unit that is much more durable than many other makes.
The video screen has a decent size, and is very clear. The only downside to this unit is the poor FM Radio reception. (But I’m not using it for the FM radio, so that’s not an issue for me. If it might be for you then that would be something to consider.)
All in all this is a great MP3 player and comes highly recommended.
Don’t buy Sony MP3 Player Video Slim Noise-Canceling
Rating:2 out of 5 stars
Sony MP3 Player Video Slim Noise-Canceling is expensive. I just bought it, and I don’t like it. The noise canceling is not that good. My ears hurt when I used it. I had a mp3 Samsung and I liked it a lot better. Unfortunately, I decided to buy Sony, and I really regret it.
I am a big fun of Sony products, but I am not that impress with the MP3 Player.
A Downgraded Model
Rating:2 out of 5 stars
I second that this is a downgraded model of previous series. The main cons with this player are: The quality of the sound is not that good. Someone who used to listen to CD quality audio would notice it immediately. Also, the highest available volume still seems low and finally video doesn’t play horizontally.
If you are looking for a player that’s far better than any iPod, infact far better than any portable mp3 player out there in the market and also has “folder drag & drop” wonderful option, then I’d recommend: “Sony NWZ-S639FB”. Specifically this model is truly a masterpiece, a top brand of Sony. It has 16GB of capacity, and lots of great features such as senseME, etc, for further details you may want to check reviews in amazon.co.uk as well. Not just me, many people testify that this model is shoulders above any iPod. You can find it at Best Buy. If only Sony had focused on NWZ-S639FB alone, iPod would have been considered a waste.
I Love My Sony Mp3 Player
Rating:5 out of 5 stars
I love this Sony four GB mp3 player that holds around 500 songs. I like the different colors you can choose from. This Sony mp3 player is way better than the Ipod and alot easier to use. If you have windows all you need is windows media player. I like that you can charge your mp3 player on your computer. it’s a lot easier to put songs on the Sony mp3 player compared to the Ipod Nano. I use my mp3 player everyday at least 6 hours. I say you should get this Sony mp3 player over the Ipod Nano, because it’s cheaper and way easier to use. I enjoy my mp3 player everyday, and wouldn’t live without it, because for me music is life without music there is none.
Nice, reasonably priced mp3 player with loads of features
Rating:5 out of 5 stars
I just bought this player and I should say I am impressed. Well…had iriver clix2 before this (got stolen), which was awesome and I know how these should sound. Won’t compare it to that but it still a player worth praising. I did not try the standard headphones provide inside the box but my Audio Technica earphones which give stellar performance. I am not including battery life in this review. Will update the review when I have done an in-depth review.
PROS:
1. Form, shape and size: This is a nice simple looking player, nothing flashy. It’s perfect sized, light-weight and has a solid feel to it. Yeah, all made of plastic but not flimsy at all, it feels solid in the hand. The front of the player is black glossy, the side is dark gray glossy and the back is black matte. It’s good that the back is matte so that it won’t get scratched easily.
2. Buttons: It’s got the right buttons in the right places. Home/Back, Power/Option, 5-way ‘joystick’ (not a joystick really as you can see 4-way buttons with a select key in the center), Volume +/- and Hold buttons. These are pretty standard buttons and are at the right places.
3. Connecting to computer (Windows Vista): This is really important and a big plus for this player. When I first connected the player with the supplied cable, the player started up and started connecting to the comp. The comp installed the drivers easily and it was all set. It showed up as ‘Walkman’ on My Computer and I could drill into the folders and see the files. I dragged and dropped some music files into the ‘Music’ folder and it zipped through the transfer. It was really fast. The mp3 files went straight into the folder and it did not create folders or anything, which is fine as I tend to browse the songs by their names not by albums. The drag and drop feature is really awesome as it is so easy. Windows Media Player 11 recognized it easily and synced songs with ease. So, the bottom line is you really do not need the supplied disc if you use Windows Vista (don’t know about XP, it should recognize and install the drivers right away though, else just use the supplied disc). It even works with iTunes (at least a flyer in the box says so…not with 8.0 though).
4. Player Interface: The software interface is simple intuitive and very easy to use. I did not have to look at the user manual at all to figure out where to go for what. For browsing the music files, it organizes files by their first alphabets and you can easily search through a huge list of songs easily. I really like this feature, its quite handy.
5. Features: It plays a lot of sound, photo and video file formats. The biggest plus over an ipod is that it has FM tuner. It’s got equalizer with two custom settings which you can edit as you wish. It has a clock display which shows both digital and analog time (this is just two dots but does the work).
6. Sound: Now, we come to the real part. I wouldn’t say sound quality is stellar but it is very good. It is better than other players I have listened to (except iriver clix2 of course). You can set your own equalizer settings or use the in-built ones.
7. Video: The video is crisp clear and the colors are vibrant. I was viewing the video at brightness level 3 (5 being the highest) and it was great. I didn’t have to bump up the brightness or change any settings. It even saves the time where you stop and starts playing where yu left off, but it refreshes if you play another video.
8. Picture: The picture quality is superb (as is with video). You can watch a slide-show or browse through photos easily. The pictures can be viewed in portrait or landscape mode (both left and right orientation).
9. FM Features: FM is quite nice on this. It scans automatically or you can scan yourself too. Nothing much to say here, its ok.
Languages: There are several languages you can set the player to, this might becritical for some people.
10. UPDATE (8/31/2009) The included earbuds are great…won’t provide noise cancellation or stellar sound but for the class of earbuds included with an mp3 player they are awesome.
CONS:
1. Design: The design might be boring for some, it’s not eye catching.
2. Screen: I don’t say the screen is not good, it is very nice crisp and clear, but it could be better with an OLED which would be just awesome.
3. Expansion: There is no expansion slot for microSD or even memory stick media. This might be an issue for some.
4. Storage: It maxes out at 8 gigs. There is no 16 gig model.
5. Color Options: Well, this is a subjective issue. Some people like the gazillion colors of ipod nanos which I think is lame. Yellow, green, purple…I mean seriously. Black, Red and Pink are just fine.
6. Ear buds: To be honest, I haven’t tried these but they look cheap…just like other out-of-the-box ear buds. UPDATE (08/31/2009): Ear-buds are great…removing them from ‘CONS’ category.
7. Noice cancellation: Sony has noise cancellation built in to its other mp3 players but I think for the price, this is fine.
Bottom Line: This is a nice mp3 player with lots of features and very good sound quality. This could be very handy for people who are buying their first mp3 player and do not want to have anything complicated. The price is very reasonable too.
UPDATE (8/31/2009): The battery life is awesome…it gives over 24 hours of music with no equalizer, 27/30 volume setting (which is quite high)…which is great.
Sony GR8
Rating:5 out of 5 stars
I have purchased several Sony items over the years and they never disappoint. I expect, and always get, outstanding quality. Sony knows what quality means.
Battery Life Less than Claimed
Rating:3 out of 5 stars
First the good news. This product has excellent sound quality when playing songs or when using the FM radio. In fact, on the FM, it has much better quality than the Sony radio I was previously using.
The bad news is that the 30+ hour rated battery falls woefully short. I get from 15 to 20 hours and that’s using the FM radio (which should require less juice than playing songs from the hard drive). Very disappointing.
Also bad news is the female contact on the unit. It is unique to Sony. And to add insult to injury, it will only charge up using my computer and the USB cord that was provided. It will not charge on the AC or DC chargers that I purchased separately.
Great product! Very Cool!
Rating:5 out of 5 stars
Purchased the Sony Walkman for my wife. Has all kinds of bells and whistles. She loves it. Has 8gb of memory, probably too much. Typical person could easily get by with only 4. Guess the kids will be occupied with movies during our long road trips.
Son loves it
Rating:5 out of 5 stars
Bought this for my son when he broke his old MP3 player. His last one was a $250 player and he says this one is just as good.
Sony 4 GB Walkman
Rating:5 out of 5 stars
It is very easy to operate, download & sounds great! I use it everyday. I have downloaded 715 files & still have memory for about 100 more tunes. It is compatible with every site I have downloaded from. When I purchased, the price was less than the now quoted price. Only drawback, the headphones that came with it were uncomfortable but I purchased a set that are. I wish I could find a clear skin with clip for it.
Sony Walkman
Rating:5 out of 5 stars
For the price, the walkman is a great buy, it does everything I want and more!
A Downgrade from Previous Models
Rating:3 out of 5 stars
Sony has done it again. They took a really good product and made it mediocre. This is supposed to be the 3rd generation upgrade of their new line of Video Walkman Mp3 players. You would think it would be better than the 600 and 700 series players. Well, in IMHO it is not.
Yes, they added the radio,extended the battery life to an amazing 45 hours,added more and support for a couple of other video formats,and improved the build quality but come on Sony, the most important feature of an mp3 player is the Sound.
This one does not sound nearly as nice or clean as the 600 and 700 series Walkmans. If you have never heard the other Sony players, then you might think this one is great, but it does not compare to the older models in sound quality.
There are several sound enhancements that were included in the earlier versions of this player that are missing here. There is no VPT ( Virtual Surround), No Clear Stereo, No DSE and no Bass Enhancement. And most of all, the volume capability seems to be about 60 % of what you got on the older units. That may be how Sony got the extra 12 hours of battery life.
The tuner in the older units was awesome, this tuner is very weak. I compared the two units side by side, and it is not just a little weak, it is almost unusable.
The video does seem to be about the same as the older players,which was very good, and they did increase the size of the screen, but video was not a very important feature for me.
Shame on Sony….. I bought this to give as a gift to friend and I am now to embarrased by the performance to give it as gift. I am taking this unit back,and I already ordered another 600 and 700 series unit while they are still available on clearance.
what an underwhelming device
Rating:2 out of 5 stars
sorry, but i can’t recommend any SONY products.
i got this for a friend. and after trying
it out, it’s just a clunker.(but i’m
still giving it to them)…
why do all sony products have terrible software?
the limited conversion/transfer program is terrible.
most of the video files i converted never worked properly,
and yes, i have plenty of experience in working with them.
the playlist management is non-existant, i had to get a
freeware program of the internet to make them properly.
i hate how it has to rebuild its library every time you start
it. can’t you turn that option off?
yes, the video looks fine once you get it on there, and the
sound quality of everything else is ok. but that’s a small
consolation. i don’t like apple products either, so i’ll look
at other players like sansa, and zune next time.
save your money for a better player, and make sure the software
for it is good, otherwise, its going to be a huge struggle to
make it useable.
Perfect MP3 and Video Player
Rating:5 out of 5 stars
The Walkman E438 does music, FM radio, pictures, and video well. The sound is excellent, the controls are intuitive, and the 2 inch display is dazzling. Plays Amazon unbox-mobile video movies, also has pictures with slide show. Works flawlessly with Windows Media Player and Amazon’s MP3 store. For those Apple die hards, it also plays unprotected AAC.
FM radio is a plus when at the gym (tune into what’s playing on the tv).
Small, pocketable. As with any MP3, invest in some good headphones.