Sony Canada quietly introduces new S-Series

Sony Canada recently began selling the new S-Series via the Sony Style website. Unfortunately there was no press release from Sony regarding this event, so the appearance of the new S-Series was a surprise.

New S-Series shows up up in Sony Australia pdf

Supposedly the new S-Series (74x) has appeared in a PDF from Sony Australia. Release date is slated for November 2009.

New S-Series shows up outside of Japan

The new S series has just appeared on the Sony Asia Pacific site in 8 and 16 GB flavours. No mention of a release date or pricing but it does state “coming soon”. Does this mean the new S and A are ready for a global debut? Hopefully yes.

Little or no news

By now I am sure most have realized that there is little or no new news related to the Walkman world. Sure some special edition of the W-Series was released, but that is nothing special. I believe there is also some special edition of the old S-Series, the Hanna Montana edition.

New Walkmans break cover, S640, S740, A840

• A-Series available in 16GB, 32GB and 64GB
• S-Sereies available in 8GB, 16GB and 32GB
• S740 and A840 feature noise-cancellation
• 2.8in OLED screen on A-Series
• TV-out on all models

Some more photos and links to all the information in Japanese and prelim info from Sonyinsider in English after the break.

Creating playlists using Windows Explorer

I usually created my playlists using Windows Media Player 11 in the beginning and then moved onto WalkmanMTP, but have since abandoned playlists all together due to not having the program installed on my laptop. Javajeff from the ABI forums provided me with this tip on creating playlists using windows explorer in Vista or XP.

Le Journal du Geek's Brief hands on with the Sony S-Series

Le Journal du Geek has a hands on video of the Sony S-Series. The menus are in french but they do go through most of the options and features.

Photo Update of new Sony S-Series (S74x)

Last day, a new S-Series Walkman was spotted at a dealer show in Japan. AV Watch has updated their site with more photos of the new S74x with a plethora of colours.

Sony lowers the price of the W-Series

With the introduction of the 4th generation Shuffle, it seems that Sony has quietly lowered the price on their W-Series. The price in Canada has dropped by $20 to $79.99 CAD with models available in orange, black, pink, white and violet; in the US the price has gone down from $69.99 to $59.95 USD and models come only in black and pink. Links after the break.

New Walkman spotted at a Sony Dealer Convention

An unknown Sony Walkman model has been spotted at a Sony Dealer convention being held from September 9 to 11. Could this be the new S-Series with noise-cancellation? Looks like it.

Everytime you buy an iPod, a Walkman dies

You aree probably thinking, “why is an Apple event getting coverage on The Walkman Blog?” Well 2 reasons:

1. new iPods usually mean lower pricing for the entire industry,
2. I got to make an awesome image for the post

How to disable the touchscreen on the X-Series while keeping the buttons operational

This information can actually be found in the operation manual on page 123. Instructions with images after the break.

Thanks Soozieq (Juli)

Sony S-Series available for Order on Sony Style Canada and Bestbuy.ca

Well it seems that the 16GB version of the new S-Series can be ordered from the Sony Style Canada website. Three models are available for ordering, 8GB black, and 8GB and 16GB violet. More after the break.

K-Bench Review of the NWZ-E443 (in Korean)

The Korean site K-bench has a review up of the new E-Series. Unfortunately I cannot read Korean so I used a translator to see what I could get out of the review. The reviewer does make a mention that the sound reminded them of the minidisc days and from the video, it appears the new E-Series seems to work just fine with Windows 7. If anyone does read Korean and wishes to provide a quick translation of the main points please do email me. Two videos and photos after the break. (btw, both videos are in Korean).

S-Series demonstration Video from Sony Europe

Sony Europe has a quick video of the new S-Series up on their Youtube channel. The preview does not go into much detail but it does give a nice sense of the size of the new S-Series. Video after the break.

Walkman Clinches Top Spot in Japanese PMP sales

Marketing research firm BCN conducted a survey on the sales of Portable media players in Japan last week and it appears that the Walkman is back on top after 4 years of ipod reign. Unfortunately the margin is slim, 43% for the Walkman and 42.1% for the ipod. Link to the article after break.

Hmm nothing, well this sucks....

Well I was hoping for something to appear at the press conference, but no Walkman, nada. I waited and refreshed Engadget’s IFA page and sure the Xperia X2 debuted (699 euros, ouch) and of course the new Vaio X series. Perhaps Sony has something saved up for Friday but I am doubtful now, since why not release the information today?

Furthermore Creative just announced their new Zen X-Fi2 PMP.

Check it out at Engadget

32GB at $229.99 and microSD expansion slot. Oh Sony when will you get with the program and release something competitive at the top end of the market?

New A-Series to debut at IFA 2009?

According to Sony Insider, another Walkman is supposed to debut at IFA 2009. Could this be the new A-Series? More after the break.

CNET Asia’s Review of the NWZ-S545

Kelvin Low from CNET Asia has a nice review of the new NWZ-S545 up on CNET's website. Here is a quick recap of the review:

• Screen not always readable
• Battery life averaging around 30 hours
• Built in speakers are impressive but lack bass
• Unfortunately speakers are located in the back and not front
• Forced into MTP mode in windows
• Lack of on-device playlist creation

Rest of the recap and the link to the review after the break.

Black E-Series available for order in Canada and S-Series available for order in US

Checking the US and Canadian Sony Style websites, it appears some of the new Walkmans can be ordered right now. More information and a coupon to save 25 dollars on the new E-Series in Canada after the break.

Blog news: Comments and User Reviews

First, I removed the "need to sign in" if you want to leave comments. If you have a Google account or an OpenID account you can sign in if you wish, but otherwise you can post without signing in. However I did have to turn on comment moderation so that any spam comments can be deleted before posting.

Second, I have changed the layout a bit by making the side wider and increasing the size of the text so it is easier to read.

Thanks

Admin

Live photos of E-Series and S-Series from CNET (Updated)

CNET’s Jasmine France got a hold of the new E and S from Sony. The new Walkmans look surprisingly good in the live shots and should sell well due to competitive pricing, but CNET did mention this had its downsides. Link to the review and gallery after the break.

SonyStyle Visit and the X

I had some free time this morning when I was downtown so I hoped on over to one of the SonyStyle stores. I decided to see if I could convince the sales person to lower the price of the X-Series to some civilized level. I mentioned I could get the X-Series (32GB) shipped from the UK with taxes for 410-415 Canadian. The sales representative was puzzled by the low price but still decided to see if they could match it or at least come close to it.

New Walkman Accessories

In addition to the new S-Series, Sony Europe also unveiled quite a few new accessories to compliment the new S and E. These include armbands, silicone cases for both E and S, and a soft carry case for the new S, but more importantly 3 docks, the BCR-NWU7, SRS-NWGU50 and the E440K. More after the break.

E versus E (Updated)

While I was preparing the E-Series post for the blog I ran into a problem, lack of information in the Canadian press release. I was aware that the E-Series in Europe shipped with FM radio and even voice/radio recording functions, but neither was mentioned in the press release for the E in Canada. So I went to see if SonyStyle Canada had the new Walkmans up for pre-order (available around September 23). To my surprise it turns out there are 2 different versions of the E-Series, the NWZ-E-34x for North America and the NWZ-E44x for Europe and probably the rest of the world.

Sony E-Series lands in North America (NWZ-E34x)

Coupled with the new S-Series debut, Sony has also introduced its new E-Series Walkman Video MP3 players for North America, designed for those looking for great functionality at affordable prices.  More after the break.

Sony Walkman S540 Series breaks cover

Sony unveiled the new S-Series Walkman, here are the details from Sony:

• S540 series: First WALKMAN video MP3 player with built-in stereo speakers for sharing your music
• Digital Linear Phase Speaker System with Virtual Bass and Linear Phase Correction for rich, satisfying sound
• High quality listening with Clear Stereo and Clear Bass technologies
• Large, bright, high resolution 2.4-inch LCD for comfortable video viewing
• Extra-long battery life up to 42 hrs audio /6.5 hrs video (17 hrs audio / 5 hrs video using speakers)
• FM tuner with record ability to enjoy radio broadcasts any time
• Available in four stylish colours: Black, Pink, Violet, Red
• 8GB - $110 US/$130 CAD, 16GB - $130 US/$160 CAD

The rest of the press release and more images after the break.

Here is hoping Sony finally Getting it Right

Well it is the second to last Monday in August and supposedly the Sony goods from IFA are meant to start flying a week from today, August 31. Samsung’s new YP-M1 MP3 player is set for its European debut at the show and it sports the Nvidia Tegra chipset, a 3.3 in AMOLED display and comes in 8, 16 and 32 GB capacities. Will Sony wow us with anything similar? More after the break.

W-Series Walkman Moisture Issues

Sony Insider recently followed up on the moisture issue with the W-Series and it appears Sony USA will be replacing the models affected free of charge until 2011.

Sony IFA 2009 Preview

It is almost the end of August and that means it is time for the world’s largest consumer electronic show, the Internationale Funkausstellung (IFA). I am anticipating the new A-Series Walkman, which I believe is to go on sale this October. Last year Sony revealed the S, E and B Walkmans, with most available for sale shortly after. This of course is a good indication since, "IFA is a trade show which is focused more on market-ready technologies” according to Jens Heithecker the executive director of Messe Berlin, which organizes the IFA trade fair each year. Unlike CES, any new products at IFA should go on sale within 1-2 months, and not 4-6 months as with the X-Series.

X-Series Walkman Scoops up EISA award

The Imaging and Sound Association (EISA) has awarded Sony with 6 award for 2009-2010 with the X-Series Walkman picking up the award for 'Best European Personal Media Player'. The 2009-2010 EISA Awards will be presented at a special Gala Event in Berlin on the 4th of September 2009.

Welcome to the Walkman Blog (Updated)

I am sure this world does not need another blog devoted to electronics, and I agree, but I personally believe that the Sony Walkman does not receive the proper coverage and discussion that it deserves. I own a mini collection of old and current Walkmans, and am currently evaluating which new Walkman to purchase, either the X-Series or wait for the new A-Series.