Sony Walkman NWZ-W252

As you know, Apple’s iPod has always been known for its style coupled with really good added features, Sony has shown that they definitely can come up with mp3 players that have a touch of class too. While Sony’s mp3 players don’t really sell as much as the iPod, the NWZ-W252 is really worth a look, or may I say a hearing?

Design

There’s no real change in the design, and just as before it’s quite a beautiful thing to have in public (everyone wants to see what that wire’s doing behind your ears!). It has that portability factor which means that you can take off the headphones and it’ll hang around your neck without any problems. Of course, if you want to carry it in a bag, it can be quite a hassle, because like the previous product, it switches off only when both the ends (which are magnetic) are locked together. To make sure that something like that doesn’t happen, Sony provides you with a plastic case which can hold both ends together, but sadly, the design of the case is such that once the case is closed, both ends don’t really lock, putting you back to square one!  Apart from this slight glitch, there’s no reason as to why this shouldn’t be called a nice looking mp3 player.

Moving on to the function keys, just as before you have the volume keys, the jog lever and the mini USB port covered with a rubber flap on the right piece while the left piece has a button to activate Shuffle playback or play from a playlist. Also, it has the same in-ear headphones which help in cutting the noise in your everyday environment.

Features
Well, surprisingly there’s no feature that is different than the previous W202. It comes with the same Zappin feature where a small part of the song is played, thus, helping you to get your song quickly. This is done by pressing the jog lever for 3 seconds, and once you get the song you were searching for, press it again and the song starts!

Transferring songs is easy; thankfully that you only have to drag and drop your favorite tracks and your mp3 player is ready for use. The player comes with a Content Transfer User Interface to help you sort your playlists, using it is optional. With a capacity of 2 GB, there’s enough to keep you entertained for those long train journeys. Coming to battery life, charge it once and it’s meant to give you a full eleven hours of playback.

As we move onto the sound quality, which obviously plays a very important role for music enthusiasts, you’ll find the clarity to be real nice, the treble doesn’t pierce your ears and the bass has that heaviness which can set your feet tapping even though you are in a crowded train! While listening to music on full blast would probably make you oblivious to every sort of noise, distraction and abuse you might receive in the surrounding, it’ll help people around to dance to your tunes! But, even on an average volume, the music plays at a very decent and satisfactory level. Thus, in terms of sound and features, you wouldn’t have an issue really.

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Almost at the end, you might be thinking what “is” different about this player from its predecessor? Well, it has one amazing feature, and that is that this one’s a water resistant player! Though it’s not meant to be dunked in a bucket of water, you won’t really have to worry about tucking it away just as you see some drizzling! So, for the ones who are reputed to be bad bathroom singers, you can keep your singing to yourself and wear the W252 while having a shower. Oh yes, a perfect companion for those morning jogs, where you don’t worry about electrocution when your sweat trickles down your forehead and makes contact with the player!

Final Verdict
To conclude with this review, I can say that this player is definitely a good buy for those who might be contemplating to buy an Apple iPod shuffle. With an eye-catching design, some good features (let’s not forget that it’s water resistant), good sound quality and a good no. of playback time, there’s no reason why you shouldn’t go for this. If there’s one thing that Sony might have to change, it definitely should be the plastic case that comes with it to prevent the player from opening. A price tag of Rs. 4990/- is a good deal for those looking for a good quality mp3 player with most of the features, and last but not the least it’s a Sony!

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