kwbarrett's Full Review: Sony Network Walkman NW-HD1 (20 GB) MP3 Player
I moved up to the HD3 from the MZ-RH910 HiMD player. The HD3 blows even that away on sound quality. I'm using Sony MDR-EX51. I never even unpacked the included earbuds. It also interfaces with Sonic Stage much better and quicker than my old NetMD or HiMD.
The size is the first thing you notice about the HD3. It is considerably smaller/thinner than an Ipod. My dad has the Ipod Photo 30GB and it looks and feels like a brick next to my HD3. Sound quality of the HD3 also blows the Ipod away even with my dad using his Bose QuietComfort headphones.
My main reason for moving from HiMD to the HD3 was I was at full capacity on my RH910 with all 450+ tracks converted to Atrac3+64K. Transferring these tracks was excrutiatingly slow. Sonic Stage recognized the HD3 quicker and transferred ~1000 songs (both Atrac and mp3) in about 7 mins with no conversion. There's even the option to auto transfer when the player is first plugged in--very convenient. I solved the capacity problem. I have used just over 3GB of disk space.
People say the Ipod is so simple to use, but side by side, dad and I found the HD3 to be at least as simple to use. Ipod gets the nod in the end for interface and the ability to rate songs on the player and create playlists on the go. The HD3 version of on the go playlists is called Bookmarks, which I was familiar with on my HiMD player. For me this is acceptable, but the Ipod's is better. In the end, the HD3 wins on price, sound, size, and looks.
I am not writing this review based on Sonic Stage or ITunes because the problems of Sonic Stage are well documented and because I've never used ITunes. I will say that, besides Sonic Stage being slow at times, I've never had a problem with it on my old NetMD, HiMD, or the HD3.
Recommended:
Yes
Amount Paid (US$): 205.00 Recommended for: Music Lovers - High Capacity Storage for an Entire Album Collection
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