Category: MP3 players
Zappin – the mini Sony Walkman
Sony has announced a range of mini USB-based MP3 players that should more than rival the iPod shuffle in the gym bunny market.
The Zappin name comes from its functionality which allows users to listen to a five second clip of a song before deciding whether or not to play it. Handy if you’re working on your guns and you need to find the exact tune to pump you up and you’re unable to move your head to look at the LCD screen.
The players have 2GB of storage, can play WMA as well as MP3 and also have a built in FM radio. The battery life is an astonishing 18 hours from a single charge and the Zappin’s only weigh 26g. Drag and drop is supported so no need to install any software.
No price has been confirmed by Sony. Sorry about that.
(via Akihabara)
RUMOUR: Sony working on Android based Walkman and PND?
Reports from Japan indicate that Sony are looking at more than just mobile phone handsets in terms of utilising Google’s open source operating system, Android.
Rumours of an Android based Walkman and also a personal navigation device (PND) are true, according to an analyst speaking to Japan’s Nikkan and should hit the market next year.
The thought of two of the biggest tech institutions teaming up may seem terrifying for some but it could be great news for consumers. With Sony already attempting to connect the user experience between its existing products, the possibilities when you throw Android into that mix could be monumental.
(via Engadget)
Free Music Friday for Vodafoners
Tomorrow is Free Music Friday, well, if you’re a Vodafone customer it is.
Vodafone is marking the release of unlocked tracks on it’s music store by offering eight songs for free! Eight whole freaking songs!
Want to see the songs? Ciara featuring Justin Timberlake – Love Sex Magic; Daniel Merriweather – Change; Lady GaGa – Poker Face; Lily Allen – Not Fair (Style Of Eye remix); Pixie Lott – Rolling Stone; Simple Minds – Rockets; Tinchy Stryder feat N-Dubz – Number 1; Clubbers Guide 2009 Mixtape.
Awesome yes? What a reward for Vodafone’s loyal customers. Finally, you’ll be able to listen to song’s you’ve, you know – bought, on whatever you like, not just your phone. And to celebrate that momentous victory of consumer over company, you can listen to Dappy and his buddies making raps and what have you.
That is what you do isn’t it – make a rap? I mean rap isn’t a verb, unless you’re rapping someone across the knuckles – surely…surely!
Vodafone is clearly hasn’t realized since Spotify appeared everyday is Free Music day.
Vodafone: What. A. Joke.
As a mark of protest can everyone on Vodafone please download all eight songs and then delete them.
Philips GoGear Opus: iPlayer-friendly, inexpensive PMP
Philips has launched the wallet-friendly MP3 (et al) player known as the GoGear Opus. We saw a little something of the 8GB/16GB device – well Zara did – out in Lisbon and now we hear it allows you to pay downloaded BBC iPlayer content too. Nice touch.
The news since then is that it’ll cost £99 or £129 depending which model you go for and it supports MP3, WMA, AAC (non-DRM) and FLAC (hurray!) for audio and MPEG4, WMV and SMV on the video side. Fear not, though, AVI, MOV, RM, WMV and DVDs can be converted by the software included. Make sure you factor in the time for that.
It measures 107mm x 11mm x 57mm and sports a 320 x 240-pixel, 2.8″ LCD capable of 262,000 colours. Not exactly mind blowing stuff here certainly good for the money.
You get the ever-reasonable free Philips headphones backed up by the ever-dividing FullSound upscaling technology with 30 hours of audio and 6 of video battery life to consider you point of view.
There’s some hook-you-in 30-day trials of Napster, if you wish, or you can go and get your music like a real (wo)man instead.
All in all, a pretty good package from Philips. Perfect for downscaling those iPod Touch birthday present requests without the bad taste in the mouth.
Philips
Zune HD to be released on 5th September?
The Zune HD will be launched in the US on 5th September according to Microsoft guru Paul Thurott.
But as the American launch edges palpably closer a UK launch is beginning to seem more like an impossibility than a improbability.
The Zune’s HD radio wouldn’t work in the UK where we use DAB and the ZunePass music subscription service used in the US is none-existent in Europe.
Pipe smoking, tech high-brow, Jack Schofield writes on Guardian.co.uk, “Sony is already offering much better sound quality than Apple, OLED screens, built in FM radio and better file support at reasonable prices. Admittedly it still has to re-educate a market that still thinks Sony supports ATRAC and requires horrible SonicStage software, but that’s probably an easier job than establishing the Zune brand from scratch.”
Which he’s right about. Well, the Zune thing, not the iPod thing: The sound quality on Sony Mp3 players is simply not any better than the iPod’s. That’s just not true. The thing that has made the iPod successful is how seamless it is. From it’s beautiful design, across every device and generation, to its amazingly simple and balanced UIs and a sound quality that’s as good as any personal media player out there.
That’s what has made the iPod ubiquitous, it’s simplicity. And that simplicity isn’t something Microsoft has ever been good at (ie… Vista). That being said, I’d be sad not to see the Zune HD launched here in some form, purely because it looks like a good product. I’m sick of these US only products. What have they done to deserve them? I want the Kindle and Zune HD on these shores by the end of the year – got it.
(Via SlashGear)
Microsoft unveil Zune HD – still not sexy
Microsoft has announced the arrival of the Zune HD, portable media player. The new Zune will aim to be a web surfing, digital radioing, multi-touch screened thorn in the side of the smug iPod touch.
Boasting a yummy 3.3 inch OLED screen (with 16:9 ratio) and HDMI output it looks like Microsoft are finally getting serious about taking on Apple’s iPod, although no comment was made as to the capacity or pricing of the new Zune.
You’ll be able to use the Zune to watch 720p HD video on your HDTV too, which is pretty neat. But looking at the release pictures, it doesn’t look like the Zune is going to rival the iPod in the sexyness stakes. Although an improvement on the original Zune which was undeniably hideously proportioned, the new Zune is still far from sexy.
Think of it as going from Nora Battie to Sonia Jackson – it’s only a bit better.
Microsoft might have done better to spend all the money they’ve spent on developing the Zune trying to tempt Jonathan Ive to come over to the dark side. Sorry, did I say dark side, I meant Microsoft, easy mistake to make.
(Via TechTree)
iPod touch vs Sony Walkman X Series vs Samsung P3
Intro
Apple’s iPod touch has some serious rivals in the form of the Sony Walkman X Series and Samsung P3 PMPs.
Which one stacks up as the best for music, video, and all round appeal? Read on as the Tech Digest guide pits these mighty touchscreen handsets against one another.
Battle of the Specs: Feature Comparison
Let’s leave aside fanboy love for Apple and Sony (does Samsung have fanboys too? I’m not sure) and take a look at how the main features stack up.
This is top-of-the-line stuff. If you want detailed specifications you’d better skip to the end of the page.
Display
For pure real estate, the iPod touch trumps both the Walkman X Series and the P3, with a 3.5-inch display compared to just 3-inch for the others.
However, when it comes to aspect ratio, the Samsung’s screen is 16:9 — perfectly suited for widescreen video — whereas the Sony has a rather bizarre 9:5 aspect ratio and the touch 3:2.
That means, in raw resolution terms, the touch (480 x 320) trumps the P3 (480 x 272) which trumps the X Series (432 x 240).
Having said all that, Sony’s screen is based on OLED technology for a much brighter, crisper display than the other two handsets…
Sony Walkman X Series – hands on VIDEO
It used to be a fairly obvious choice if you wanted a high end MP3 player. Like them or not, Apple seemed to be making all the good looking ones. Then along comes CES 2009 and suddenly we have two contenders in the form of the Samsung P3 and the one that hits the shelves today – the Sony Walkman X Series as modelled by Zara.
There’s no denying the specs of the thing but the reflection and smudge factor on that screen could be an issue in the sunlight after a good thumbing. We all like a good thumbing.
The price is also depressingly in line with the iPod Touch, so keep an eye out for the P3. That’s my tip.
No Zune in June but base specs for next Microsoft PMP revealed
There’s been some degree of toing and froing regarding the launch of the Microsoft Zune HD or Project Pink and after some excitement it seems there will be no Zune in June. In fact, there’s a very good chance that we won’t see the this cult PMP get a refresh until 2010. I know one man who’ll be shedding tears tonight. (not me, honest.)
What has been rescued from the barrel of circumspect are some pretty solid looking details for something known as the Windows Mobile 7 Chassis 1 which is apparently what has been driving all the Pink rumours. Detailed spec list over virtual leaf…
WM7 Chassis 1 Specification
Core requirements:
Processor: ARM v6+, L2 Cache, VFP, Open GL ES 2.0 graphics HW (QCOM 8k, Nvidia AP15/16* and TI 3430 all meet spec)
Memory: 256MB+ DRAM, 1G+ Flash (at least 512MB fast flash – 5MB/s unbuffered read @4K block size)
Display: WVGA (800×480) or FWVGA (854×480) 3.5″ or greater diagonal
Touch: Multi-touch required
Battery: Sufficient to meet Days of Use LTK requirements.
Controls: Start, Back, Send and End are required (soft controls allowed as long as they are always present).
Peripherals:
Camera: 3MP+, flash optional, 2nd camera optional (VGA resolution sufficient)
GPS: aGPS required
Sensors required: Light Sensor, Compass (3 axis, 5 degrees, 100 Hz sample rate), Accelerometer (3 axis, 2mg resolution, 100 Hz sample rate)
USB: High speed required, 20 MB/s transfer rate.
BlueTooth: BT2.1 required, must run MSFT BT stack, CSR BlueCore6 or later recommended.
Wi-Fi: 802.11B/G required, must run MSFT Native Wi-Fi stack, Atheros 6002 or Broadcomm 4325 recommended.
Connectors: Micro USB and 3.5mm Audio required.
Options:
FM tuner: If tuner HW is present it will be detected and supported by the Media application.
Haptics
SD Card (Micro SD recommended)
DPAD, qwerty or 12/20 key keyboards all optional
Nothing wildly stand-out going one here. There appears to be little to celebrate or complain about. Can’t see any 3G there, which might have been nice, but otherwise I reckon we’re looking good. So, when we going to get one then, Softie?
(via ZDnet & Neowin)
Danielle Bux as an usherette at Sony X Series luxury cinema
Sony is launching the X Series Walkman today along with a luxury cinema to show it off complete with Welsh lingerie model Danielle Bux dressed as an usherette. Why did I let Zara go to this event?
The X Series has a 3.0″ OLED touchscreen and comes in 16GB and 32GB versions, and Sony reckons the audio-video experience on the 432 x 240 display is like having a cinema in your pocket, hence the event which is open to the public and takes place on a specially converted Tube carriage.
I doubt Ms Bux will be there all week but from tomorrow (13th May) you can get yourself down there to experience the popcorn, films and, of course, the X Series itself if you drop the organisers a line.
The X Series is available to buy from tomorrow. It’s £209 for the 16GB version or £279 if you’d like the full 32GB. Both will play all the standard files including WMAs and non-DRM AACs but don’t support the lossless FLAC.
They have FM tuners and Wi-Fi for access to iPlayer and YouTube and they also feature noise cancelling technology and Sony S-Mater. I recommend picking them up a little cheaper here and here.
Sony Style Store
