IFA 07: Sony WALKMAN A and S series – DRM and DRM-free listening

Alexandra Roumbas Digital Music, IFA 2007, MP3 players
Share

sony%20walkman%20silver%20A%20series.JPGIn the midst of telling us about their plans to turn the world HD (stay tuned for video of this for soon!), Sony also found time to launch a colourful new array of WALKMAN Video MP3 players that now include WMA as a supported format and bear the “PlaysForSure” Windows certification logo.

There are eight palm-sized models altogether; that’s three A series WALKMAN video players (pictured left), and five S series MP3 and video MP3 players. Full specs for each model after the jump, but, in brief, the new players are Sony’s response to consumer demand for more freedom over content. DRM-free formats are now supported, meaning you can download and listen to WMA, MP3 and AAC, and they’ve opted for MPEG-4 and AVC Baseline video codecs on the grounds that these represent the most popular formats and should mean little to no conversion required. WMP 11 is bundled with the new players with its simple drag and drop interface, and full connectivity with the PS3 and Sony Giga Juke is a given.

sony%20walkman%20red%20S%20series.JPG

A Series WALKMAN Video MP3 Player specs:

– 2GB (black, white), 4GB (black, white, pink, silver and violet) or 8GB (black, white, pink, violet)
– 88mm x 43.8mm x 9.1mm
– 53g
– 2″ TFT colour screen, horizontal and vertical display
– 33 hours music playback, 8 hours video playback
– JPEG viewer
– Also supplied with ATRAC to MP3 conversion software

S Series WALKMAN MP3 Player specs (pictured):

– MP3 only: 2GB, 4GB (black, white, pink, blue)
– MP3 and video: 2GB, 4GB, 8GB (black, silver, red)
– 79.5mm x 42mm x 11.5mm
– 50g
– 1.82″ TFT colour screen, horizontal and vertical display
– 33 hours music playback, 9.5 hours video playback
– JPG viewer
– FM tuner on video models

Available from October 2007 across Europe, although you can preorder from tomorrow at Sony’s website.

Alexandra Roumbas
For latest tech stories go to TechDigest.tv

One thought on “IFA 07: Sony WALKMAN A and S series – DRM and DRM-free listening”

  • =====

    Let me get this right.

    1. It’s cheaper than the Nano.
    2. Has more memory.
    3. Has more features.
    4. Is more sturdily built.
    5. Supports PlaysForSure.

    I bet all the fanboys and tech bloggers will STILL slag it off as a failure in waiting.

    Sony could cure cancer and hand the remedy gratis to the UN. They’s still get slagged off.

    Nice to see this site at least show details without any criticism or back-biting. Head over to iEngadget iGizmodo and see the Sony hate spew forth at its greatest rate.

    =====

Comments are closed.