Sony Announce New NWZ-A820 Series Walkman MP3 Players – Official Press Release

Sony have announced the latest models in their distinguished Walkman
range of portable digital audio players in the form of the NWZ-A820
which boasts a 2.4' QVGA screen, 16GB integrated storage capacity and
Bluetooth connectivity.

Official Sony NWZ-A820 Walkman Press Release:

Sony expands the innovative WALKMANยฎ family of digital media players
with the easy-to-use NWZ-A820 series of WALKMANยฎ Video MP3 players.
Delivering superb audio and video quality, it's packed with advanced
WALKMANยฎ features, extra-long battery life, a large 2.4-inch screen and
quick connection by Bluetoothยฎ stereo to enhance today's digital
lifestyles.

Slim, light and beautifully styled, the NWZ-A820 series is offered in a
choice of four colour variations (black, silver, gold, and pink). Three
storage sizes are available. The NWZ-A829 (16GB) can store an incredible
62 hours of video plus sound or 3,800 songs. The NWZ-A828 (8GB) boosts
this to 30 hours 40 mins of video/audio or 1,850 songs. The NWZ-A826
(4GB) can store up to 15 hours of video or 925 songs.

The NWZ-A820 series lets you enjoy your personal media collection on the
move for longer. Generous battery life allows up to 10 hours of video
playback or 36 hours of uninterrupted music playback. Even with
Bluetoothยฎ stereo enabled, playback stretches to 7 hours of video or 15
hours of music.

The clear, bright 2.4-inch QVGA screen on all models supports
super-smooth video playback at up to 30 frames per second with excellent
contrast and colour reproduction. For extra flexibility, videos and
photos can be viewed in any screen orientation (left, vertical, right)
to suit personal tastes. Photo collections can also be viewed as
slideshows accompanied by your chosen music track.

A somewhat obligatory pink version of the
NWZ-A820 Walkman will also be available.

Support for Bluetoothยฎ stereo opens up an exciting world of wireless
connectivity options to enhance your enjoyment of digital media on the
move. The NWZ-A820 series can stream audio files and track/artist data
through a Bluetoothยฎ stereo enabled micro hi-fi such as the Sony
CMT-HX70BTR and CMT-HX50BTR.

If you're out and about, it's easy to enjoy a high-quality digital music
experience via your Bluetoothยฎ headphones such as the Sony DR-BT50 or a
Bluetoothยฎ in-car head unit like the Sony MEX-BT5100. A conveniently
placed button on the side of the player allows one-touch connection to
other Bluetoothยฎ devices.

In common with all WALKMANยฎ models, the NWZ-A820 series supports a
broad range of media formats. These include security-enhanced Windows
Media Audio (WMA), copyright-free AAC, MP3 and Linear PCM music formats,
plus JPEG files for photos. High quality video codecs support playback
of AVC (H.264/AVC) Baseline Profile and MPEG-4 video files.

The NWZ-A820 series is perfect for enjoying your personal media
collection as well as podcasts and video content downloaded from sharing
sites on the web.

Certified for Windows Vista, the new range also carries Microsoft's
'�PlaysForSure' logo, indicating compatibility with a wide range of
certified online content providers. It's easy to transfer files from a
connected PC to the NWZ-A820 series via Windows Media Player 11, simple
drag-and-drop file management or using supplied Sony Media Manager for
WALKMANยฎ software.

'We are continuing to add products to our WALKMANยฎ portfolio that offer
customers the flexibility and freedom to choose how they download and
manage their digital music content, which only open standards can
provide', said Paul Gyles, Strategic Product Manager for Audio Marketing
at Sony Europe. 'And now with added Bluetoothยฎ compatibility in the
NWZ-A820 series, it's never been easier to enjoy your music on the go,
without the hassle of wires.'

Superior sound of WALKMANยฎ is assured by four 'Clear Audio'
Technologies. The supplied 13.5mm EX headphones feature extra-large
driver units for dynamic playback with extended frequency response and
solid, powerful bass. The Sony-developed Digital Sound Enhancement
Engine (DSEE) restores high frequencies that are degraded by audio
compression for more natural sound that's closer to the original source.
Clear Stereo prevents audio signals from leaking between left and right
channels, resulting in a cleaner, more widely separated stereo
soundstage. Furthermore, Clear Bass strengthens low frequency
reproduction without adding distortion that conventional equalizers can
impose on the signal. Even richer audio is provided by a choice of
effect settings including a 5-Band Equalizer, VPT Acoustic Engine and
Dynamic Normalizer.

While it's packed with advanced features, the NWZ-A820 series is easy to
use with an intuitive on-screen menu plus improved play and search
functions. Super-quick scrolling makes it easy to search for the right
track when you're in a hurry.

Sony's new NWZ-A820 Walkman range is due to be release in April though
no word has been forthcoming from Sony at the time of writing concerning
pricing (of course, we’ll ensure that we offer an update the
moment pricing details have been released).

Sony