Breakin' the Mold!
Written: Apr 29 '01
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Pros: sexy design, great skip protection, panasonic name, perfect for jogging
Cons: headphones are scary, don't work. Expensive! Some minor gripes
The Bottom Line: A wonderful buy except for the headphone. How's that for less than thirty words?
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| Fizz911hk2's Full Review: Panasonic ShockWave SL-SW880 Personal CD Player |
You know, the world of electronics is a complicated one. There are so many companies and so many things trying to be perfect for you. I was looking for something perfect in the section of (discmen, discmans? aw forget it) portable personal extreme jogger friendly CD players. This is an area dominated mainly by Sony and Aiwa and maybe Phillips. Now I've had a really old sony one that was actually pretty good and still works pretty well (everybody seems to have it), the Aiwa Crosstrainer (a superb performer), and some crappy Sony one that doesn't really work anymore (I wrote an epinion on it giving it a pretty positive review. Ignore it. I'd rather stick two cat's paws in my ear and try to enjoy the sounds than hear that piece of junk skip). Looking for a replacement for that terrible thing, I turned to the internet. Some nice things around but this baby caught my eye. It's red and black and really cool looking! It's really expensive too! I must have it! That's not it though. I'll show you what I loved when I saw it and what I still love now that it's mine.
First of all, I got this baby because it's a jogging thing. And boy is it. It comes with a strap that goes around the back so that you can hold it and has convenient finger indentations on the top. It's got 40 seconds anti-shock and when you put it on some little guy runs on the LCD. I'm not sure what it means but it must be good. I hit the thing and shook it but it didn't miss a beat. The problem is it's only got 40 seconds anti shock. Want to save battery power and have 10 seconds anti shock? Tough stuff, because the SL-SW880 isn't going to go out of it's way to serve you. 880 likes batteries and she doesn't pace herself. She eats and eats. Actually, I haven't played with her enough to run the batteries down yet (and now that I look at her, where is the battery meter? It's got to have one somewhere!). Despite her love of batteries and inability to pace herself when she eats, she's still quite thin and not that heavy. Though she's definately more heavy than your average CD player, she's about just as thin (she's all muscle, you see).
In my opinion, the SL-SW880 is one nice lookin CD Player. The Red and Black deal does wonders for me and the locks being on the side is cool. Even cooler is the fact that if you open one, the other one opens automatically. I love it. But looks aren't everything. Under that nice body, she's one tough chick. Yeah she's water resistant, and I like my women that way but you're not supposed to go swimming with her or anything. It just means she can take it. It's a shame because I'll never take a shower with her. But does your girl have this feature? Heat resistance? 880 can take heat without even whining. I'm sure this is limited but it's one of the reasons I bought it in the first place. I mean, you could brag to your friends saying that you could dip your CD player in lava and only the buttons would burn off (if that). Of course, this won't actually work but it's way cool.
One of the more insteresting features is the headphones. Known as something like "the Brain Shaker Extreme" and with a design like no other, the chicks will either flock to or run away from the sight of them. They go around the back of your head like so many headphones do today, but then you fold out the ear things and put them in your ear. Then, when you press the bass button, the thingy on the back of the headphones vibrates to simulate bass. The catch is, this doesn't work. I haven't felt them vibrate once and I didn't notice much of a change in bass at all. Meanwhile, the earphones hurt where they go in your ears. Nice concept, bad executuion. What is nice though, is that there's controls on your headphone. Say if you're biking and you have it in your backpack or something. You just press your headphones and skip to the next track or adjust the volume. This does mean that you'll have two volume controls fighting over each other but it doesn't matter much. This whole thing is done very well with the buttons on the headphones. Too bad you look wierd wearing the things.
What else is there? I'll just give you the little odds and ends. The listening features are nice. There aren't many sound options but you can program the order, skip tracks, or play on random. To play on random, you have to open up the CD player which is dumb. The batteries are right at the top which is nice because the stupid cover won't get in your way and scratch your CDs. They're also in there very tight so they won't pop out. Oh yes, the price. She may be nice, but she's not forgiving with your money. You'll have to shell out 200 dollars for her. BUT! I found the way to her heart for just 150 dollars off of www.mysimon.com. How about them apples? It's also nice having Panasonic's name on them. Panasonic has a reputation for reliability (I've had my TV downstairs for maybe 13 years and it's just beginning to turn a little green and purple on the sides). It better be for 150 dollars.
All and all, she's great looking, has a great personality, will be the perfect aid for running, although there's something funny about her mouth. Get her some dentures you'll love her.
If you didn't catch that, the whole mouth thing was the headphones (where she speaks? Get it?). By Dentures I meant knew headphones. I'm lame.
Recommended:
Yes
Amount Paid (US$): 150
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Epinions.com ID:
Fizz911hk2
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Member: Hunter King
Location: New Orleans, Louisiana
Reviews written: 91
Trusted by: 10 members
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