Home > Consumer Reviews > Sony Walkman NWZA-826 4GB Video

Great MP3 player. This is the third Sony MP3 player I have owned. (not really got into the iPod thing). This is by far the best yet. I never had a problem with sonic stage but this new way to down load my music from computer to player is so much easier. I got the 16 GB player because I like to carry my whole CD collection around with me. 5 star for the sound quality but miss some of the old features my other players had. (e.g. delete from player and book mark play lists). Blue tooth good for in the car as no more wires to CD player as it has Blue tooth too. Very easy to use and a good battery life, sound great and not an iPod.

I have got one few days ago, and what an awsome machine you cant buy a better sounding MP3, this is got to be it.
It is very easy to use, it is very easy to upload, do not use the sony's own programme,I think it is rather basic. use the window's own media player, it is good, and does the job nicely, just plug in and sync.

The sound is astonishing if you use good head phones that I use, it is waste of money to buy such an expesive device, and listen to your favourite tracks with an inferior head or earphone.

I love it, and I very much hope that those who may invest in this little device will do so as well.

I have had 5 iPods to date, but this player beats them into the ground!
I am a bit of an audiophile, and spend ridiculous amounts on cables, interconnects etc, so I do know and require good sound quality in my components. I had read reviews regarding this players sound quality, and I can assure that even playing back 192kbps music fom Napster, it sounds INCREDIBLE!!
Try playing MP3's at 320 kbps, and it blows you away! The headphones included are a revelation for a portable, they are in my view astounding, (and I have a pair of Sennheiser 650's so I think I can make this comment confidently).
The player also plays lossless WAV (and supports gapless playback in this format), and I can assure you that this player playing back this format is nothing short of a truly high end piece of portable kit! I have heard it through my Graham Slee Voyager amp, and it is amazing! WAV is memory hungry however, so unless you need gapless playback from an album, stick with 320 kbps MP3, it is almost as good!
It doesn't suport BBC iPlayer, but here's a hint, it DOES support converted playback of Sony Play TV material, when encoded using the Sony Media Manager software, included in package! You do have to pay about £7.99 to upgrade to Media Manager PRO, online, but this does mean that if you copy recorded material (any channel) from Play TV to a memory card using the PS3 USB connection (I used an 8gb SDHC card) and then drag the file into the Media Manager PRO Transfer window, it then converts it to the format needed for the A829, and hey presto! It works brilliantly! It takes ages, but it's worth the wait!
Any channel, any film, any programme! If Play TV records it, this player (using the software above) will play it! It looks great too on the superb screen!
I really can't praise it highly enough! Three months FREE Napster, fantastic sound quality, superb style, and the ability to play back Play TV recorded material!
This is the best player on the market in my view! Highly, very highly recommended!!

The important question has to be "do you want an IPod?" IPod is a culture, a fashion statement for some, and thus any talk about sound quality and user friendliness is not for the IPod community. Be honest, everything is compared to an Ipod, and it takes more guts to look elsewhere.

However, if you want sound quality then this Sony player really does take the IPod and walk all over it. I didn't buy it for user friendliness, or looks. I love my music, I have a quality hi-fi at home and I wanted an MP3 that I could enjoy. When my old Sony started making worrying noises (it was a 20GB hard disk model) I decided to read some reviews and find a suitable replacement. It did not take too long to figure where all the professional reviewers were looking for quality sound.

Sony have been in the personal audio business for many years. Clever marketing and making everything out of white plastic is no alternative for experience and years of investment. Everything about this Sony player oozes quality. OK, so the screen is not touch sensitive, but does that make the music sound better - not to my ears.

I must be one of the few people who never really had a problem with Sonicstage software. I could fit the whole of my CD collection on the old 20GB player, so did not spend hours doing bespoke playlists etc. The new player is a more conventional drag and drop interface, and I use Windows mediaplayer to control my CD library. I have no idea how this compares to other software because it is very simple to use and works. I have never had a problem.

Bottom line. Decide whether you want sound quality or an IPod, then buy the Sony. It might not be as trendy, but your ears will thank you.

Sony NWZA829K 16GB Video Walkman
I have never been a fan of ipods, partly because I am not a sheep & partly because the sound quality is rubbish! Talk to any ipod owner & they will try & tell you otherwise but I know good sound & I know good music & they just don't cut it. Sony hardware has always been far better than anything Apple can produce & it may not be a 100GB ipod but I don't care! This little piece of gear is as good as other reviews I have read if not better. The sound is exceptional! The screen is amazing! And the ease of use is perfect! I have not bought a Sony audio product since 2002, their CD players were always good but have been looking for THE MP3 player since (I think I have found it). One thing I will advise people is to forget the Sony software, not good but also not needed, Media Player 11 works perfectly & as I already used it (as itunes kept making my computer crash) it suited me perfectly. Believe me, if its all about the music, this is the player you want!!!