Sony Walkman NW-A1200 MP3 Player

Sony NW-A1200

By Paul  May 15, 2007

Pros: Sounds great. Sonic Stage software is a breeze to navigate. Recommend Sony headphones MDR-G57 sold seperately (about $30.00)

Cons: Internal battery lasted just slightly longer then the warranty.

I've always been a fan of Sony. To date, I've bought a TV that lasted longer then my marriage that got packed and repacked in moves from NY to KY to IN to NC and finally gave up the ghost in a move to OH. I've bought a PSX, PS2 and PS3, a... Sony-Ericsson cell phone, a bookshelf stereo, speakers, and most recently, the Walkman NW-A1200. Since I'm not a fan of in-ear earbuds, I also purchased the over the ear headphones MDR-G57. The controls are simple and intuitive. A handy "hold" button freezes other controls so you won't bump the buttons and do something you don't want to do. The "link" button allows you to quickly stay in the same genre. Navigating around the many features is a snap. It feels solid which I find comforting. Smaller, thinner and lighter do not necessarily mean better. However, recently, I've begun to have problems. The songs would inexplicable skip. Once fully recharged, this problem went away. However, now none of the controls are responding, and it freezes up in pause mode, not allowing the user to do anything. The "hold" button is the only feature that works. Purchased in the middle of January, parts are still under warranty, but I'll need to send it to Sony and take a 77 dollar hit for the flat fee labor. I believe I have a battery issue, but since it has an internal battery, replacing it myself would likely void the rest of the warranty. Besides, nobody at Sony or on their chat online would answer if they could just send me a battery. Perhaps they are made by Toshiba. Overall, when it works, I really liked it. I especially liked the layout of their online Sonic Stage music subscription site. Also very simple to navigate. The short life of the battery keeps me from giving this well-built mp3 player my whole-hearted endorsement. Read more Less