View Full Version : Sony Vaio Pocket Music Player 40GB. £224.99 (Inc. VAT)
bollecks
20-11-2004, 10:58
Just bought one of the £120 Rios in Dixons (http://tracker.tradedoubler.com/click?p=1468&a=60823&g=16569) (Offer finished), but this looks a good deal from E-buyer:
Sony Vaio Pocket Music Player 40GB.
QuickFind: 76264 219 in stock
The Latest Gadget from the Sony Labs. Featuring a massive 40GB Hard Drive and 2.2 Inch Colour Screen. Built-in battery provides up to 20 hours of continuous playback on a single charge.
£191.48 (Ex. VAT) | £224.99 (Inc. VAT)
There is also a 20 gig one for 2p more :cuckoo:
has anyone actually seen or used one of these?
ad
crazyniz
20-11-2004, 12:37
You reckon its a mis-price ?
dont really want to buy it then get a e-mail back saying its mis-price!
Want one of these cos ive got a cybershot camera which can dump its photos on the player without a PC :clap:
bollecks
20-11-2004, 13:01
Well it's in the e-buyer mailshot, rather than just some random item that I spotted in the database.
robpiggott
20-11-2004, 13:29
ZNET REVIEW (http://reviews-zdnet.com.com/Sony_VAIO_Pocket_Digital_Music_Player___VGF_AP1L/4505-6490_16-31107442.html)
does not get the best of reviews
rob
gazdude23
20-11-2004, 16:59
have to convert all your mp3's to use them on it, would of been great if you didn't as battery life is great!
Ekko Star
20-11-2004, 19:55
Superb quality audio from this and it's little brother the NW-HD1. Outdoes the Ipod on audio quality and battery by a mile.
Radiohead
20-11-2004, 20:51
Shame it doesn't accept the most widely used form of audio compression in the world then.
Ekko Star
20-11-2004, 20:53
True but mp3 is not everyones cup of tea. Some prefer AAC or Atrac cos you get better quality sound out of them.
I have an ipod, Archos AV340 and have used the Sony. It was by far the best quality wise.
TBH if you have one you will convert your tracks anyway, as i had to some of mine for the other two. You only do it once and it isn't that big a deal.
have to convert all your mp3's to use them on it
Can this really be true? Surely they couldnt make such a fundamental mistake?
Radiohead
20-11-2004, 20:57
True but mp3 is not everyones cup of tea. Some prefer AAC or Atrac cos you get better quality sound out of them.
I have an ipod, Archos AV340 and have used the Sony. It was by far the best quality wise.
TBH if you have one you will convert your tracks anyway, as i had to some of mine for the other two. You only do it once and it isn't that big a deal.
It is when you have 1500 albums to rip from CD.
Anyway, Sony have acknowledged their error by announcing support for MP3.
chespest seems to be 300 elsewhere
so can u put mp3 on it or not? simply say it does
Radiohead
20-11-2004, 21:34
No, you can't. It's ATRAC only, which is why it's not selling very well.
strange that the 20gb is more expensive at ebuyer, but empiredirect have it for 250
Radiohead
20-11-2004, 21:43
My guess is that a new model supporting MP3 is due soon and that could kill sales of this one.
surely it will be a case of updating the firmware??
Ekko Star
20-11-2004, 23:16
It is when you have 1500 albums to rip from CD.
Surey you would have ripped these to MP3 anyway in which case you just leave sonic stage converting them ?
I've got about 50Gb of music that I pump onto my Archos or Ipod, I can't see what's the issue ? Some of it was WMA files which I had to convert to MP3 to get them to play it, doing the same for Atrac isn't any different ?
True but mp3 is not everyones cup of tea. Some prefer AAC or Atrac cos you get better quality sound out of them.
That's a lie. MP3 has very, very good sound quality - better than every other non-lossy format at high bitrates - just relatively poor filesize to quality ratio (poor compression).
IMO, MP3 is the format to stick with just for portability. It's practically the universal format.
Surey you would have ripped these to MP3 anyway in which case you just leave sonic stage converting them ?
I've got about 50Gb of music that I pump onto my Archos or Ipod, I can't see what's the issue ? Some of it was WMA files which I had to convert to MP3 to get them to play it, doing the same for Atrac isn't any different ?
It isn't, but by converting them you're losing sound quality (lossy > lossy = even worst sound quality). Yay.
Sony - as with most things they do - are concerned with pushing their own formats onto people rather than being compatible with the most popular formats. It's usually so they can milk money out of it, ala Memory Stick.
However, they have realised their mistake and will be making future HD based music players compatible with MP3s, I highly doubt that they will update the compatibility of any current players though.
However, they have realised their mistake and will be making future HD based music players compatible with MP3s, I highly doubt that they will update the compatibility of any current players though.
They definitely won't update them as it will cost them a fee per unit to do so IIRC.
crazyniz
21-11-2004, 01:17
Sony - as with most things they do - are concerned with pushing their own formats onto people rather than being compatible with the most popular formats. It's usually so they can milk money out of it, ala Memory Stick.
However, they have realised their mistake and will be making future HD based music players compatible with MP3s, I highly doubt that they will update the compatibility of any current players though.
I agree with the fact that sony are trying to push there products, especially there memory stick ! The new portable Playstation uses the memory stick plus all the sony ericsson mobile phones use this memory !
I myself ordered a gmini 400, the fact that i could dump my photos off my camera was a real selling point, this player also does that and as i have a sony cybershot camera it saves me buyng the £30 quid archos adapter !
so today ive cancelled the order and im gonna get this one ! Ive looked for press releases for newer sony hard disk type players but cant find anything !
Hopefully sony will allow mp3 playability because that what my collection is in (40 gig in mp3) ! Just thought id say that the reasons why im cancelling my gmini 400 order is cos
1 - getting 40 gig instead of 20
2 - better battery life
3 - No need to get memory card adapter (£30)
4 - No need to buy remote control (£35)
5 - £10 cheaper ! :clap:
6 - Get docking station
I only hope sony will improve the firmware to support mp3 and also maybe video playback (a little optimistic on that last one)!
Radiohead
21-11-2004, 08:04
Surey you would have ripped these to MP3 anyway in which case you just leave sonic stage converting them ?
I've got about 50Gb of music that I pump onto my Archos or Ipod, I can't see what's the issue ? Some of it was WMA files which I had to convert to MP3 to get them to play it, doing the same for Atrac isn't any different ?
As already mentioned, you're compressing an already compressed track from MP3 to ATRAC, and therefore completely negating the improved audio quality you're claiming you get. If you're at all interested in quality then you won't be doing that again.
192k MP3 is more than acceptable for mobile listening anyway.
a lot of the retailers are false advertising with this then, claiming its mp3
Ekko Star
21-11-2004, 09:41
IMO, MP3 is the format to stick with just for portability. It's practically the universal format.
True, not denying that, but I don't see what's a lie about claiming AAC sounds better ? IMO in lots of cases it does ? Especially so on an Ipod.
Seeing as I have an 40 Gb Ipod, Archos AV340 have used both new Sony's extensively and have just ordered an Archos AV440. I think I can reasonably say that I am in a position to draw a fair comparison....
As already mentioned, you're compressing an already compressed track from MP3 to ATRAC, and therefore completely negating the improved audio quality you're claiming you get. If you're at all interested in quality then you won't be doing that again.
TBH I wouldn't really want to convert compressed files anyway. I'm just trying to point out that if you got this thing as your only & first portable audio player, well you would probably rip your CD's to Atrac right anyway ?
When I first got my Archos I had to rip them CD's. Then on the Ipod I had to do quite a lot of them again in Apple lossless mode and AAC to get better quality out of it. It's not a case of great just wack those MP3's on there, it'll sound the same.
So either way whatever portable you get, you will have to rip your CD's at least once or maybe more times anyway ?
Of course there are some people that don't care for the difference in quality......but there are lots of others that do.....
True, not denying that, but I don't see what's a lie about claiming AAC sounds better ? IMO in lots of cases it does ? Especially so on an Ipod.
If you take a >256kbps MP3 and a >256kbps AAC, the MP3 will sound better - people have spectrum analysed the sound from the MP3 and compared to the AAC and the MP3 was closer to the original sound and therefore had more accurate/better sound. Of course, if you compare a 128kbps AAC and MP3, the AAC will beat it by a clear margin.
A lot of people also claim the iPod sounds relatively poor, but it sounds like a loada crap to me. The bundled headphones aren't supposed to be great though.
TBH I wouldn't really want to convert compressed files anyway. I'm just trying to point out that if you got this thing as your only & first portable audio player, well you would probably rip your CD's to Atrac right anyway ?
Most people rip MP3s to listen at their PC, and then buy an MP3 player to play those. By converting to a format, you're also tied down to particular players if you ever want to upgrade - whether that is ATRAC for Sony, AAC for Apple, WMA for Microsoft-licensed players, OGG for the Iriver (since they are practically the only ones that support it). However, with MP3 there are countless players you could buy.
Ekko Star
21-11-2004, 10:40
Most people rip MP3s to listen at their PC, and then buy an MP3 player to play those. By converting to a format, you're also tied down to particular players if you ever want to upgrade - whether that is ATRAC for Sony, AAC for Apple, WMA for Microsoft-licensed players, OGG for the Iriver (since they are practically the only ones that support it). However, with MP3 there are countless players you could buy.
Yes which is exactly my point, whichever you buy, is what you will most likely convert to. Surprise surprise the proprietary conversions and compression methods sound the best on the relative device, broadly speaking. Yes of course the MP3 route is the 'quick & easy' but it isn't necessarily the best sounding on that particular device. Therefore whatever you buy you are likely to stick with it's format until you run out of disk space.
Atrac3plus64kps sounds roughly equivalent to MP3 192kps for general music. The Sony also has one above at Atrac3plus256kps. It really is VERY good.
after misbuying a 15gb ipod for about 500cds im tempted by this. i had to rip my cds down a lot to get most of them on the ipod. if this comes down after xmas i may well go for it
Ekko Star
21-11-2004, 11:01
Yes probably will have dropped even further by then.
OR go for the EXTREMELY impressive Sony NW-HD1. It's 20Gb but it is incredibly tiny and so well built that it has to be considered the most robust thing out there. it feels like a solid brushed aluminium matchbox. In the cool stakes it is far ahead of anything as well...
£258.95
http://ws2.richersounds.com/productlist.php?cda=productlist&sgroup=PORTABLEMP3&sort=price
Review here....
http://www.the-gadgeteer.com/20gb-sony-walkman-review.html
Yes probably will have dropped even further by then.
OR go for the EXTREMELY impressive Sony NW-HD1. It's 20Gb but it is incredibly tiny and so well built that it has to be considered the most robust thing out there. In the cool stakes it is far ahead of anything as well...
£258.95
http://ws2.richersounds.com/productlist.php?cda=productlist&sgroup=PORTABLEMP3&sort=price
Review here....
http://www.the-gadgeteer.com/20gb-sony-walkman-review.html
......and it uses the absolutely marvelous SONY MD-like remote control! :clap:
tredders
06-12-2004, 09:58
Sony have just announced a firmware upgrade to these machines, to allow native playback of MP3 files without the need for converting them.
See http://www.vaio-link.com/vaiopocket/downloads.asp?l=en
Now that you're all interested again, I've got one for sale on my thread here: -
http://www.thedvdforums.com/forums/showthread.php?t=335865
Mark.
fanmeister
14-12-2004, 11:24
ZNET REVIEW (http://reviews-zdnet.com.com/Sony_VAIO_Pocket_Digital_Music_Player___VGF_AP1L/4505-6490_16-31107442.html)
does not get the best of reviews
rob
Err 91% give it a thumbs up, and one idiot who has never seen one thinks it's 2.3" thick.
I'd say that was a favourable review.
Anyway I have one, and having used other mp3 players including Ipod, it is so far an outstanding purchase, and at approx £250 for a 40Gb these days good value for money. :clap:
Sony’s finally bowed to popular interest and began adding MP3 support to their devices. But good god, wasn’t half the point for us to get away from using SonicStage, their awful music organizing software? Well, apparently a lot’s changed but not a lot’s different with Sony’s NW-HD3, their native-MP3 playing Network Walkman; according to a dude in Japan who bought and reviewed it, noise issues and bad software lead to one inevitable statement: “If there was a way I could return this thing, I’d do it in a second.” Ouch.
http://www6.head-fi.org/forums/showthread.php?p=1114659&posted=1#post1114659
fanmeister
14-12-2004, 19:41
From one tangent to another..
Sony’s finally bowed to popular interest and began adding MP3 support to their devices. But good god, wasn’t half the point for us to get away from using SonicStage, their awful music organizing software? Well, apparently a lot’s changed but not a lot’s different with Sony’s NW-HD3, their native-MP3 playing Network Walkman; according to a dude in Japan who bought and reviewed it, noise issues and bad software lead to one inevitable statement: “If there was a way I could return this thing, I’d do it in a second.” Ouch.
http://www6.head-fi.org/forums/showthread.php?p=1114659&posted=1#post1114659
I have to agree about the mp3 support...
Sonic Stage, I find perfectly acceptable, and have no problems sticking with..
But
Err the review is for a completely different product all be it a Sony product, but a completley different product!!
Background Hiss.. perhaps this is not an indication of poor quality.. I have some CD's that when listened to you can hear coughing, footsteps and all manner of hiss, clicks and thuds.
Lets get this in perspective, it's a pocket sized device, costing less than the interconnects on a decent Hi-Fi set-up. To start talking about sound quality is like saying that a family saloon doesn't handle like a Porsche (or ferrari if you like that sort of thing). If you want music on the move, with tube announcements, traffic noise, people talking et al.. then this is a good deal for it's versatility, size and cost.
If you want perfect sound recreation.. it doesn't come in a pocket sized player that holds 10,000 songs.
The difference in sound between there devices may be a £20 set of ear buds.
The difference in quality between my Arcam CD player, Pioneer DVD player and any mp3 player is like F1 to WRC to Family saloon.
The Latest Gadget from the Sony Labs. Featuring a massive 40GB Hard Drive and 2.2 Inch Colour Screen. Built-in battery provides up to 20 hours of continuous playback on a single charge.
£191.48 (Ex. VAT) | £224.99 (Inc. VAT)
Does it do WMA? If not then no wonder its cheap...I would hate to have to recode my music collection to twice the size and also get the lower quality of MP3
fanmeister
20-12-2004, 18:01
Just in case anyone has one of these, the firmware update is out..
Follow the instructions, but at the bit at the end where it says
"When the firmware update is finished, turn your VAIO Pocket back on and reset its settings (date, time, language...)."
If it's like mine, you need to find a paper clip or similar and actually reset the device. I spent a good Ten minutes rehearsing my phone call to Sony tomorrow when it died completely after the update.....
About to try throwing a few different formats at it, first noticeable difference is it's now a very expensive clock whilst it's on charge. I suppose it's better than the old charging screen though.
did you try some different formats fanmeister? :)
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