Sony Unveils New Digital Walkman
By Colleen Taylor -- EDN, October 13, 2006
In an attempt to take a bite out of Apple Computer's stronghold on the digital music player realm, Sony Electronics has debuted a new digital version of its Walkman player with built-in noise-canceling technology.
The NW-S700F Walkman player comes with an FM tuner, a 50 hour battery life and a "quick-charge" feature which offers up to three-hours of playback with just a three-minute charge, Sony said. The player also comes with 13.5 mm diameter headphones with a built-in microphone that Sony claims reduces most ambient noise. In addition the new Walkman has embedded noise-canceling technology in both the player and headphones that Sony claims eliminates the need for listeners to "pump up the volume."
"While Sony has offered noise canceling headphones, this is the first time that we've integrated the technology into the player itself," Koba Kobayashi, general manager for personal audio at Sony Electronics, said in a statement. "We've created an entirely new category and are confident that even audiophiles will be pleased with this Walkman digital music player."
The new Walkman aims to look as good as it purports to sound. The player's design includes a three-line color organic electroluminescence display with cover art. The artist, track and album information appears on the screen beside a picture of the album cover.
Direct encoding, enabled with a cradle or a cable, allows consumers to record an analogue audio signal directly from an audio player without using a PC. The new devices support ATRAC, ATRAC Advance Lossless, MP3, AAC (non-DRM), WMA (non-DRM) and Linear PCM music files. They are compatible with the Sony CONNECT online music service and include SonicStage CP software to import, manage and transfer music collections.
The Walkman is available in 1GB and 2GB models that cost $169 and $199, respectively. The 1GB NW-2703F, which is available in violet and pink, can hold approximately 685 songs, while the 2 GB NW2705F, which comes in black, can hold approximately 1,350 songs, Sony said.
Sony's new Walkmans will be available in stores in November, while pre-orders begin today on Sony's website.
Sony isn't the first Japan-based company that's aimed to crash the iPod party in recent months. In August, KDDI Corp., Japan's second-largest mobile phone operator, unveiled 12 new handset models that feature improved audio playback capabilities, while Toshiba Corp. released details of the Zune, the forthcoming Microsoft MP3 player it is making in an attempt to rival the iPod.
