Sony NW-HD3 Review

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Sony NW-HD3
3.8 stars
Average rating for this product is: 3.8 out of 5

From 4 ratings and 22 reviews

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lukeirving's Review of Sony NW-HD3 MP3 Player

21st Jun 2006

Overall Rating

3.5 stars
  • Value for money
    4 stars
  • Sound Quality
    4 stars
  • Features
    3 stars
  • Time MP3 Player Owned
    6 - 12 Months
  • Battery Life
    5 stars
  • Memory
    Very Very Good!
Good Points

Long battery life-up to 30 hours
Software updates available
Easy navigation to songs


Bad Points

No playlist creator on player - must create playlist on Sonic Stage
Long upload time
Annoying black cube thingy that connects to the player before you can charge it.
Flimsy power on/off switch
Long manual with unnecessary info
Poor screen quality - hard to see in sunlight


General Comments

I have owned the Sony HD-3 walkman for 11 months now and I have just had to send it back for repair work! This was because when ever you put the headphones in it they would crackle and get quiter.
Another problem was the original headphones had a little black rubber ring around them which fell off. This ended up causing a small electric shock above my lower lip which happened in January 2006 and the headphones had not worked right ever since. I did change the headphones for the player after the electric shock incident but the problem persisted.
Eventually it got so bad that i returned the player to the shop and they immediately sent it to a sony service centre for repairs. I was dissapointed as it was a birthday present off my mum and dad and it was the last one in the shop when they bought it. This meant a replacement was not possible and the next model was launched around a month later.
I also dislike the display as it is very dark and not very clear. It is not something you would expect sony to produce with their knowledge in LCD technology.

It does have some good points as it is very small and fits comfortably in the palm of your hand. The carry case provided with the player is easy to use as the walkman is not an extremely tight fit.
I also prefer the battery life of 30 hours as the iPod only has a battery life of 14 hours and the walkman can be charged via the mains. The iPod must be connected to the computer to charge unless you own an expensive mains powered docking station which can charge the iPod.
The built in HDD is very good but ATRACK songs from sonic stage do not play as well as mp3 tracks. The ATRACK system means you can store up to 13000 songs at 48kbps but it does take a long time to load tracks onto the Walkman as you have to burn them to Sonic Stage 1st.

All in all this is a GOOD mp3 player for a teenager or child who might eventually fill the 13000 song capacity.

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