Sony D-NE500 ATRAC Walkman Portable CD Player (Black)

Rating:
Summary: Great little MP3 player
Review: I've probably gone through 2 or 3 CD/MP3 players - most of which were the cheaper RCA players (all of them flaked out and were a frustrating experience to operate). I picked up this Sony at the local discount superstore with a Belkin TuneCast II FM Transmitter (read my review on that also) as a gift. These two units work very well together (especially when using the Sony remote cord which acts as an antenna for the Belkin TuneCast II).

What I like about best about the Sony is that it works - and it works well. It doesn't skip, hang, or take a long time to figure out what is on an MP3 CD. It takes a little bit of time getting used to how to access the menu mode with the little 'joystick' button and the scroll wheel. After glancing over the manual, I had it all figured out.

I do not plan on using the ATRAC3 format (tempting, but I prefer a non-proprietary format) - nor do I need AM/FM/WB/TV in a CD/MP3 player - this unit will be used primarily for listening to MP3's while traveling in the car.

How well does this unit work? Well- if I stop the unit and it turns off - when I turn it back on and press play, it picks up where I left off. That shows a little bit of intelligence in design. It takes a split second to jump from one track to the next (no hang time trying to relocate the beginning of the track). It doesn't hang half way through a track either (the RCA models would act like a record player stuck on a scratch - at which point I had to fast forward through the track or jump to the next track - or turn the unit off and on).

The best part of this unit? It runs on 1 AA battery. I figure if I used it for only 3-4 hours a week while traveling in the car, I might get 10 weeks out of a single AA battery!

Yes - it is pricey, but this unit is worth it. Having gone through 2-3 RCA's in the last couple years, I wish I would have had this one to start with.