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Sony to Release Digital Walkman
ari{Dal} writes "Sony has revealed plans for a new digital walkman for the Japanese market. " Not quite a Rio or Nomad, it will take Sony's Memory Flash Stiks, like the Vaio and Aibo. It can play the Sony proprietary musical format, as well as encrypt and play MP3s or Wavs.
I had never heard of it either until about 2 weeks ago when someone mentioned to me that his kids were all crazy over it.
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Since then, I've found out what it is, but I still see no indication that it's a "big craze".. just something that's moderately popular.
Maybe I'm just too old for the week-long fads..
Proprietary format? Why if we have CDs, MP3s, CD-RWs, RIOs...(following the thread)? What a loosing proposition. Only suckers will buy into that...
Huh? Never heard of it. I thought Myst was the most successful video game in the US.
clusless
Is that a Japanese word?
It sounds that you disagree strongly, but you didn't express it well.
Are you kidding,the memory sticks are smaller. If you said smartmedia it would have made sense. A bunch of match size memory sticks for songs will be lost in 3 hours.
A perfect size will be a minidisksize thing that carries enormous data. So typeII pci card is ok. Anythings has the CD/DVD size should all go straight to hell. The portable DVD player is cool and all that. But it's just too large for portable. I would buy a DV player(player, not recorder) if I have dough.
CY
Right now, I can't see why I'd ever want to use a product that uses Memory Stick rather than CF or SM, especially since CF is freakin' EVERYWHERE.
if i'm not mistaken, miniDiscs actually have compression on them. lossy compression, somewhat like mp3's. thus its not really a storage format but a combination of a media specification and a file format. thus you can't just store mp3s on them.
Every dropped a hard drive onto the floor? They never work properly again after being dropped, no matter how laptop like. Ever dropped a walkman? I have... at least once or twice (well, perhaps I'm just clumsy). Well built walkmans, like the sony sports walkmans, still work. Media like casettes easily survive drops, and CDs are very good at this too (as long as they don't land on their edge). I wouldn't want my $430 mp3 on an HD player to bust the minute I drop it... ;-)
Read the fine print. Upon transfering the MP3 into the Sony player, the translation software actually converts and saves the file as an ATRAC3.
did someone mean to say encode but it came out encrypt, or does this thing actually do some sort of 'security'?
Sony is trying to come out with some brand new fad, just like the mini disk. The reason mini disks havn't caught on is because its crazy, a good idea, but anything that can't be reverted to a computer isn't gonna happen. I mean.. you have to buy the portible player, the recorder/player, and the disks, sorry but Ill go out and buy a CD before I do all that, with the plus of being able to burn it onto a disk with a CD-RW. Basically what Im trying to say is until a format comes out that can hold more than a CD that is used like a minidisk(naming capabilities, ect.) and can be used in a CD player, no one is gonna spend all the extra money for something as exclusive as a minidisk because everyone already has their money tied up in CDs, port. and home CD players and stereo systems. Why can't they just make a DVD type CD with compressed info that is on a compression level low enough so that standard CD players can read it?
MiniDisc with MP3 support would be interesting. If there were a better data adapter for it. That or some sort of DVD based, MiniDisc sized player / media combination that's USB or firewire capable. Ah well. It'll never happen.
I think what they mean by "encrypt and play" is that it'll convert from MP3 or WAV to it's own format. Therefore, I don't believe the hardware will play MP3 files directly, only via "conversion" with what will likely be a Windows-only supplied software package.
I remember about the time the RIO was going to be released a bunch of people were talking about designs that would build a portable mp3 player based on CDRs for less than $70. Where'd they go?
I just think $100 (cheep-o Rio) is too much to pay for a mp3 player when it seems that the parts involved should cost significantly less, and when the $100 model sucks.
~Chris
Try to get a CD player to fit in your jacket pocket. Try to take your CD-R to a concert/lecture/meeting and record notes. Ever make a "bad" CD? That's $$ wasted. Minidisc overcomes all this. They're small, recordable, and re-recordable. Plus you can't scratch MD's unless you really try.
<tim><
I expect it to be released the day after they release the car that runs on plant oil.
I still like the idea of the discman like mp3 player posted a while ago. This goes back tot he point that the competition isn't between Mp3 and cds because mp3 is a file format, cd is a media format. The competition is between mp3 and cdda, and cd with tape, lp, 8-track, DAT, and whatever else comes along, aka memory sticks......Give me a portable mp3 player that reads cds, and some mozarella cheese sticks.......
Funny and I thought Perl == Paid employment recently located
Sony music is deeply involved in RIAA(aren't they?). Guess we all know the true purpose of the RIO-lawsuit then: Get a competing product off the market.
LINUX stands for: Linux Inux Nux Ux X
FRA: STFU GTFO
Yes thats right. The plan is that you can't use the sony thingie for distribution. It's a SDMI sortha solution(hey you can sing this! mmmm... free music).
LINUX stands for: Linux Inux Nux Ux X
FRA: STFU GTFO
It's kinda a middle thing: the size of a flash card, stores 340MB(more later).
LINUX stands for: Linux Inux Nux Ux X
FRA: STFU GTFO
You mean besides nearly *all* Digital 8mm cameras on the market currently? Check Crutchfield's catalog.
I've also spent quite a bit on MP3 players - I've bought the Rio Special Edition, plus a 32MB card - so I've got 90 minutes of 128k/s music. This will easily do for 2-3 days, before I feel compelled to load a new set on.
CJ.
The main reasons are skip protection and size. It is very hard to get a minidisc player to skip; you can shake it as hard as you can, and it'll be fine. They are also much smaller than CD players, and therefore much more portable, especially when you combine them with the added skip protection...
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In a real emergency, we would have all fled in terror, and you would not have been notified.
I'm still waiting for mini discs to get to the level cd players were a few years back (when i picked up my sony after prices began to drop). I think a mini disc recorder will be a great choice for myself as it provides me with enough room for a full length album, gives me the ability to record, is small as hell, and comes in nice colors. you can get a cheap one nowadays for near $150, though i'm hoping the higher end models come down a bit around to the range of $200 from the $300-350 mark they are at now (esp the sharp 831). I think for someone who wants a portable mp3 player, this is a good choice (if you can stand having a limited amount of space for the audio). moving mp3s to mini discs is supposedly easy (esp if you have a digital out on your sound card). titling can be done, which seems a nice addition. i'm strongly considering the pine mp3/cd player, but as it stands, for portable needs a mini disc seems much more appealing (also considering it would be better for someone on the go, say running). mini discs have caught on in japan, and from what i hear in other parts of the world. mini discs in america might not explode until the price becomes competitive with cd players and the portable mp3 players (though they too are overpriced). but i'm here eagerly waiting till that day arrives.
As one of the previous posters mentioned mp3 is a data format and CD ( or CD-R or CD-RW or whatever ) is a media format. I wonder why didn't some electronics company try to put together minidisk and mp3 technologies. Meaning make an mp3 player that uses MDs as storage. Think, MD is small enough to be comparable with all the flash based mp3 players out there. Storage would become vast and cheap ( I don't know MD storage capacity, but I am pretty sure it is more then 64 MB ). Still, nobody seems to do it. Are there any known problems with this?
Everybody Lies. But it doesn't matter since nobody listens.
I've never dropped one on the floor... but I did drop one in a lake once. :)
I'd heard about using these as storage devices ages ago. They would work wouldn't they? large storage, reasonable durable, small, low power usage... they'd fill the niche well. Who needs some proprietary sony product?
yeah, but the minidisc isn't solid state.
------- Oh damn.... the Sigfile escaped... -Great OM
CD-RWs can't be played on most CD players. And the blank media are really expensive. MDs are smaller and far cooler. I'm getting one next week :)
i was thinking when the rio and the memory stick came out, that it would just make sense to use them in combonation. i even had some computer eng. friends pull apart a rio and see if it was possible as a retro-fit. no luck, tho.
this one you have to convert all your music to their proprietery format first....
..makes me think of pretzel sticks every time I hear "memory stick"... sheesh!
but.. didn't the article say that it supported mp3?
Note this from the Wired article:
"Music in MP3 or CD audio can be stored on a hard disk using the OMG application which encrypts the data. Content can then be transferred to the Memory Stick via the USB port. "
Still, as others have noted, I think the whole Memory Stick thing is a joke.. come on, what's the point? They're going to have to invent something pretty darned revolutionary (that can only use memory sticks) if they want these things to catch on...
Insert mind here.
Well the trouble with that though is that there's too much shuffling of CD's in and out of PC CDROM drives, then you have to capture the tracks you want, store them, etc etc and then finally burn them. On the other hand, all I have to do with my minidisc recorder is hook it up to my stereo receiver and the rest is history (an extra convenience is a 200 disc CD changer here :)
So it is a question of laziness, no doubt you are quite right about the CD-R's though.
However, I am aware that Philips and several other companies are now making stereo component CD-R's. Anybody know anything about these? Like do you have to program your cd changer to play everything you want and do it all in a linear fashion so that the recorder never stops? Or can it start and stop like a minidisc recorder, or even a cassette recorder?
Why do we need these things? What is the advantage over a CD or cassette Walkman?
If you aren't part of the solution, there is good money to be made prolonging the problem
They're one of the few companies that spans all areas affected by Mp3. They have a record company, they make audio hardware, and they make digital equipment. I love the vaioaogh;x, I wish I had the cash.
If anyone can bring this all together, and I know SDMI can't, I think it will be Sony.
"Share your knowledge. It's a way to achieve immortality." -- Dalai Lama
No mention of capacity? Features?
They just seem to be announcing another portable mp3 player except with this one you have to convert all your music to their proprietery format first....
Anyone have a clue how much storage space one of these might be able to support?
Josh
I don't see where the 'big stack of CDSs' comes in. A CD certainly will fit more mp3s than a memory stick. And if you're thinking, 'But I can unload/reload different mp3s onto the memory sticks.', that's great, but if you're away from your computer for a while, where are you gonna keep those other mp3s? On a laptop?
Back to Sony: if history is any guide, this thing will be only as popular as minidisc. MP3 is out of the bottle and here to stay, like it or not. But remember that Sony is a HUGE company that is not only a consumer electronics giant but also a big ol' recording label as well, so of course they're going to come up with a proprietary, copy-protected-up-Uranus, crippled format.
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Overheard: "Aww, why'd you go and install Windows on a perfectly good machine?"
Hmm. If it gets stolen nobody can listen to your stuff without a code? Or erase it and reuse it, maybe. So all he's got is a useless piece of hardware. Hmm. Not bad. - dom
- dom
- gnome
What's up, Mr Jones?
I've seen a 64mb module memory stick. The things are tiny. This is what I've been waiting for to jump into the portable MP3 player arena. Can't wait to get one.
r owse_the_products/memory_stick/memory_stic k_models/msa_16a/index.html
From:
http://www.sel.sony.com/SEL/consumer/dimaging/b
General Specifications
Memory Type: Flash memory (MSA-32A: 32MB) Connector: 10-pin Interface: Serial
Operating Voltage: 2.7V to 3.6V
Power Consumption: Average: Approx. 45mA;
Standby: Approx. 130A
Access Speed: Writing: Maximum 1.5MB/second;
Standby: Maximum 2.45MB/sec
Operating Environment: 0C - 60C (non-condensing)
Dimensions (LxWxH): Approx. 21.5 x 50 x 2.8mm
Weight: Approx. 4g (0.14 oz.)
Supplied Accessories: Memory Stick Storage Case, label, operating instructions.
According to what I've read on minidisc.org, ATRAC3 is an updated version of the ATRAC1 compression that minidiscs use which is able to store the same audio quality at 128kbps instead of 292. It can "easily be transcoded into ATRAC1".
As per ATRAC compression itself, it does sound a bit better than MP3 as per audio quality (using my minidisc units as a reference, an Aiwa AM-F7 - Sony ATRAC1 v3.5, and a Sharp 821 - Sharp ATRAC 6.0)
However, the amount of audio that can be encoded on a single stick is too little. If we used ATRAC3 on minidisc players then that would be 160MB on a 74:58 disc, which at 128kbps would be around 171 minutes... not bad...
Considering the Sony track records, it will just make a player so samll than make all you cd-r zealots SICK. If you think carrying a cd-r/mp player and a big stack of CD is cool, then you might as well get a Newton instead of a Visor.
.85 X .11 in.), storage: 4m-16m, Speed: 1.5m/s
Memory stick size: 5X2.15X.28 cm (1.97 X
Note that I'm not preaching memory stick, but it does has its advantage, size. And Sony can easily make a player as small as my aiwa am/fm receiver, which is about 1 X 3 X 5 cm, and run weeks on a AAA battery.
CY
Granted, I am biased, because I own a digital camera which uses them, but smart media cards are impressive.
... (at least not yet).
...
I also don't understand the appeal of memory sticks. They look dumb (OK, that's not a technical reason, but its what my aesthetics are screaming); they're no 'better' a shape than Smart Media (though perhaps a little thinner than CompactFlash); and IIRC, are not available in denominations as high as those available in CF and SM
I hope SM sticks around, for all these reasons. Or perhaps even better, if it goes down the tubes and I can buy some large pieces for cheap
timothy
jrnl: http://tinyurl.com/c2l8yr / foes: http://tinyurl.com/ckjno5
It debuts at a retail price of $430, with flash cards ranging from $60-100? Not to mention that it is a Sony product (not known for the greatest quality) and it is using the lastest unknown and unsupported proprietary compression format. How many of these from how many different companies do we need? I suppose if the lawyers recognize them as a good thing, they might forget that mp3 is still free and available to everyone, which is better for us.
Anyway, I'm still waiting for pine to hurry up and release their mp3/cd player (if it's not vaporware). 650MB of storage; I've yet to see anything else come close.
It looks like sony is looking for a product to use their memory sticks cince noone else will use them. I'm waiting for a mp3 player that uses a pcmcia slot so I can slap my Clik drive in there (Ok a CF slot will work, as they have an adaptor for that now.)
What would be great is a device that will record in stereo mp3... that way I can compress all meeting thoughts into nice snippets that I can play on the computer.
Do not look at laser with remaining good eye.