Sony Walkman NWZ-A829 (16GB, black)
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CNET Editors' Review
CNET Editors' Rating
- Reviewed by: Donald Bell
- Released on:
- Reviewed on:
The good: The Sony NWZ-A820 Walkman MP3 player series offers high-quality music, photo, and video playback, along with built-in Bluetooth audio streaming, EX-style earphones, and phenomenal battery life.
The bad: The Sony NWZ-A820 series doesn't come cheap, and it lacks an FM radio, voice recording, memory expansion, and a standard USB connection.
The bottom line: The Sony NWZ-A820 is the best sounding, best-looking Walkman series yet, and the inclusion of Bluetooth audio makes it a top choice for cable-hating audio enthusiasts.
The Sony NWZ-A820 Walkman series is a subtle evolution of the NWZ-A810 series we enjoyed in 2007. This year, Sony is treating us with a larger screen, built-in Bluetooth, and a more assertive design, offered in 8GB ($270) and 16GB ($320).
Design
Given Sony's track record with curvy, rounded designs, the Sony NWZ-A820 is refreshingly square. Measuring 2 inches by 3.75 inches by 0.4 inch, it has a metallic body and a 2.4-inch screen. The NWZ-A820 is a little larger than its predecessor, but it maintains a slim, pocketable profile. The circular ... Expand full review
The Sony NWZ-A820 Walkman series is a subtle evolution of the NWZ-A810 series we enjoyed in 2007. This year, Sony is treating us with a larger screen, built-in Bluetooth, and a more assertive design, offered in 8GB ($270) and 16GB ($320).
Design
Given Sony's track record with curvy, rounded designs, the Sony NWZ-A820 is refreshingly square. Measuring 2 inches by 3.75 inches by 0.4 inch, it has a metallic body and a 2.4-inch screen. The NWZ-A820 is a little larger than its predecessor, but it maintains a slim, pocketable profile. The circular four-way navigation pad found on last year's Sony NWZ-A810 has turned into a more solid-feeling square on the A820, flanked by two small option and menu buttons. All other buttons are confined to the right side of the player, including a rocker switch for volume control, a Bluetooth activation button, and a hold switch. The bottom of the A820 Walkman features a headphone output and proprietary USB connection.
Features
The Sony NWZ-A820 is stocked with features, including music, photo, and video playback, and built-in Bluetooth audio streaming. On the audio end of things, Sony is continuing its support for MP3, AAC, WMA, WAV, and DRM-protected subscription music files. In typical Sony style, the restrained design of the music playback screen betrays the awe-inspiring music enhancement technology working behind the scenes, such as a 5-band EQ, Clear Bass, Clear Stereo, DSEE high-frequency restoration, and dynamic normalization.
With its 2.4-inch QVGA LCD and excellent video battery life, the Sony NWZ-A820 is the most video-worthy Walkman we've seen. Sony offers limited video format compatibility, however, including MPEG-4 and H.264 sized at a strict 320x240 ratio. Fortunately, the popularity of the iPod and video podcasts has made the QVGA MPEG-4 file format one of the most abundant on the Web.
The Sony NWZ-A820 is a solid player with plenty to brag about, but the exclusion of features such as an FM radio, voice recording, and memory expansion, is worth keeping in mind as you compare the Walkman with its competition.
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Compare selected Donald Bell is CNET's senior editor for tablets and portable media players. He's also a musician, a hardware hacker, and a collector of vintage audio gadgetry. He appears every week on CNET's Crave video podcast. His band, Aloha Screwdriver, plays regularly around the Bay Area.
User Reviews
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Most recent user reviews
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"The greatest MP3 player on the market" By riddion
Pros: Totally magnificent sound. Can use my Bluetooth handsfree if I choose to. Menu is easy to use. The "Now playing" screen is really lucid with clear big letters. Great battery life.
Cons: It was bit of a clutter to make use of my huge iTunes library, going from iPod to the Walkman. The album art have to be importetd in JPEG format into the track to be shown in the player. It has small gaps between the tracks
Summary: All in all I am hugely impressed with the Walkman NWZ-A829. It is has the best sound of any player I have heard, having bought every iPod since the first with a touch wheel. I have a huge music library in iTunes (around 35 000 songs) and all of stereo ... Expand full review
"Best player not on the market" By stevem5000
Pros: Superb sound quality...Bluetooth connects very easy... BT sound is every bit as good as wired phones...I use JBL 610 BT headphones..just have to find the right equilizer..
Small...I have a silicon cover and it does NOT slip out of my shirt pocket...
Cons: Touch screen like iPod, extra memory would be nice...
Summary: I looked at the A829 a few years ago, decided it was too expensive...After I got a pair of JBL 610 BT headphones, paired to my laptop and found out how good the JBL's sounded, I started my search again...Was gonna get the classic iPod, but at ... Expand full review
Where to Buy
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Specifications
See full specsQuick Specs
- Digital Storage / Capacity: 8 GB
- Flash memory installed: 8 GB
- Digital player supported digital audio standards: MP3 Protected WMA (DRM) WMA AAC PCM
