Most Helpful Customer Reviews
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60 of 62 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Awesome!, December 28, 2005
I received this player as a Christmas present from my girlfriend and was immediately impressed by the size and unique design. Despite some of the more negative reviews posted here, I have to say that I think that this is fine player for the size and price. I had no need for an iPod-like device since I really only use an MP3 player at the gym.
Yes, the software that it comes with is a bit bloated and clunky, however there is a simpler program that can be downloaded directly from Sony's website that does not require the use of SonicStage at all. The program allows you to simply drag-and-drop your music files right into a window that in turn quickly converts them for use on this player. I still, however, use SonicStage just because it lets me customize the organization of files on the player itself a little better. Yes, it's not the greatest software but I personally don't think that it's worth rating this player lowly over.
As far as sound quality goes, the headphones that come with the device leave a bit to be desired but do you really buy an MP3 player because of the headphones it comes with? I doubt it. The sound quality on my own set of earphones is spectacular (even when I choose to convert my files to 103kbps ATRAC3 format to squeeze a little extra time out of the 512MB of storage).
The shape and size is perfectly ergonomic and fits in my hand quite comfortably. The layout of the jog switch and the design of the hold/unlock switch (which also serves as a cover to an internal, spring-loaded USB dongle) makes it easy to adjust volume and track position while running.
I don't use iTunes so it's not an issue for me. Personally, I am not a fan of the iPod or iTunes or anything produced by Apple. Not because I'm a PC vs. Mac guy, but that I'm very disgusted with Apple's marketing tactics and lack of customer appreciation (namely their having the gall to continue selling an overpriced MP3 player with known defects [i.e. the power interruption/sync interruption fatal flaw]), but I digress.
The main drawbacks I find with this unit (and that prevent me from giving it 5 stars) are the following:
1. No belt-clip style carrying cases currently available. The only carrying case for this device is an armband case sold directly through SonyStyle.com exclusively. I personally am not a fan of armband cases. I have chosen to use a generic micro-pager RipOffs case to clip on my shorts while at the gym.
2. SonicStage software is clunky but once you get the hang of it it's certainly not worth glossing over this sweet player.
Actually, that's all I can think of for now. Hope this helps.
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9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Don't Believe The Bad Reviews On This!, July 10, 2006
A Kid's Review
Many people just straight bomb on this thing without a second thought. I just bought this from Sears for $80.00 a week ago after reading some of the bad reviews on this site. I figured that as my CD collection grew( Yeah, I still buy those things), I could just buy a player with a larger amount of space. Besides, the space, the bean comes with an FM radio, a pop-out USB connector, and 50 hours of battery life. But before I just go and tell you why you shouldn't listen to some of the negative reviews on this, I'm gonna clear up a few things:
1)The USB cover on this thing is NOT flimsy. You have to push the cover all the way back and then the USB connector will pop out. When you're done using the Bean at the computer, you disconnect it, and push the USB back into the Bean and push the cover on it. I can't believe I almost didn't buy this because of the amount of people saying the USB was flimsy.
2)The Beans construction isn't as bad as people make it out to be. The 5-way D-Pad does not feel like it's flimsy. In fact it's built extremely close to the bean itself, so the D-Pad feels like a button, not a joystick.
3)The Bean can take a fall. I'm 5'11 and I dropped the thing on my carpet in my room and the thing works just fine.When people say that things are flimsy, they usually mean that didn't use the thing like it's meant to be used.
With those out of the way, I'll tell you about the software. Sonicstage is just as easy to use as Creative Mediasource or the Windows Media Player software. The people who say that Sonicstage is hard to use are the people who say things like "My camera is defective. I dropped it on the ground and it's lens is messed up." The only thing wrong with the software is that you can't change screens when ripping music and it's a little slow. However, you could just not run any applications while you use Sonicstage. You shouldn't really be on the computer putting music on a player for more than 10-15 minutes anyway.
This thing does what it's supposed to very well. I can liten to my music in smaller formats without compromising (that much) sound quality.I listen to alot of old school hip hop like Ready To Die, Reasonable Doubt,Illmatic, and some new stuff to even things out. (Just copped the new Busta Rhymes CD. If you plan on buying it,go ahead. It's right up there with ELE, The Coming,When Disaster Strikes,and Anarchy.) I've charged the battery last week and the battery meter still reads full. The Bean might not win any trend setting awards, but it's still worth having if you only have 345 songs.
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7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
An updated version is better, February 3, 2006
After i read millions of reviews of this product, i went to target and bought it.I was sceptical that it would hold enough music for me to be happy with, but decided to give it a try.
Several Reviewers complained about sony sonic stage..i think its no worse than the i-tunes software and once you get the hang of it (one or 2 days max) its really simple to use, once you buy music from the sony connect store, it automatically downloads to the program, and if you choose, will send straight to your mp3 player as well.Its simple to arrange the playlist into folders. One downside is that the sony connect site is only for sony products, but you can convert to mp3 and burn a cd straight from the program as well. Ive come to a conclusion that all the programs want you to buy music, and all will make it hard to exchange music from one computer to another. sony will let you authorize up to 5 computers to accept music from..
I give this 4 stars because the first nwe305 i bought, the cover for the built in usb connector was breaking. I returned it to target, and got a new one, no hassle. the new one i noticed is remodeled slightly from the other one, so i think that the usb cover has been strengthened.
I love the sound quality, and lots of options to choose from on the display. I did get some better headphones from sony. I recommend this, cause i forgot them one day and used a cheapie pair, i couldnt figure out why it sounded so strange. then i realized it was the crappy headphones. It does make a difference! I like the sony ones that go behind your neck. they are the least obtrusive and dont fall off when running.
I happen to love that the thing charges from the computer,no ac adapter needed. the battery lasts days and days after charging an hour max. I really wanted to test the battery myself, so i intentionally left the thing on all night, about 10 hours strait and it was still on 3/4ths battery.
I am pleased with the amount of music i am able to shove into this thing. IVe so far put 123 songs on here, with 345 supposed to be max. Im at about 1/2 memory left, and lots of my tracks are really long.
I am hoping they will come out with more accessories for this item, I find it odd that the player comes with a spot to hang a lanyard or hook something on it, but there wasnt anything included. Its not usually a problem but when i dont have a pocket it is inconvienent.
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