Review of VP

[Atomos]

I feel i have used it enough to write a short(ish) review, so here goes...Sorry it is in chunks, there must be some minimum length rule on the forums 😕

A couple of weeks ago my trusty Sony MD Walkman decided it didnt want to work for me anymore

I was looking for a replacement and was originally considering one of them new HI-MD walkmans, but looking at all the minidiscs i have lost in the past and the amount of clutter they cause, i decided against it and thought HDD walkman is the way to go.

At this point i didnt even know the Vaio existed and was eyeing up ipod photo, creative zen 40gb etc
While checking out these on the internet i came across the VP and after reading several articles about it, decided this was the one for me....

Although I was a bit apprehensive in buying this as i had lingered here in the forum for quite some time reading most of the threads in here while sat at work...some mixed thoughts and feelings on this product....

It finally arrived after a week.....the first thing i noticed when getting it out of the box was how light it felt, i thought it looked pretty bulky and heavy in pictures but in the flesh this thing is just right.

I quickly set about getting the cradle attached to my computer and plugged to the power socket and inserted the VP to charge, the first thing i did was install the sonicstage software and updated all the software and the firmware of the vp, this went very smoothly - no problems at all. I then switched on the VP while it was in the cradle and went through the initial set up procedure, again no problems, the G-Sense pad is much better and easier to use than i expected.

Ok, I am ready....grabbed a pile of CD's from my collection, booted up SonicStage and threw a disc into my DVD drive, SonicStage performed a quick drive speed test and set about instantly copying the CD at ATRAC3 default settings and also gathering the CD info from the Net, easy as pie.
At this stage i was wondering why do people complain about SonicStage?? The software sets out to do what it was designed to do and i have had no problems whatsoever with it. I have never used I-tunes so i am unable to comment on that but SonicStage seems to do a pretty decent job for me.
While this was copying i Googled the Album cover and it is easy to just Drag and Drop the image straight from the Google results page into my Music Library in Sonic Stage.
The pile of Cd's was rapidly going down as this process of copying them seemed very quick, after about 20 cd's (took about 45 minutes) i decided to transfer them across to the VP, again this was a simple and quick process as it automatically transfers any tracks/albums that have not been transferred, i was amazed at how quick this transfers....about 2 minutes for the whole 20 cd's...WOW

Ok now to test the VP out for its main purpose - listening to music....

I disconnected the USB cable from the cradle as i wanted to leave it in there charging up while using it.

After i removed the USB cable the VP took a few miuntes re-organising the albums i have copied on there, then it presented me with the main menu where i can choose to browse the collection using various methods; Genre, Artist, Album, Group, All Songs, and also to access the Playlists.

While Browsing through the music, the VP and G-sense seemed responsive and i was finding it very pleasurable to use.
Il'll also take this chance to mention how nice the colour screen is, as it displays the album cover and music information very clearly. It is also very well managed for battery consumption as the backlight will fade but the screen stays on for a little while longer then switch off, it will also switch straight off when the VP is put on hold mode.

[Atomos]

Ok Now for the sound quality...

After owning several Sony Walkmans over the years i have noticed a decline in sound quality and volume from their products over the years (i hope its not that im getting deaf!) but i remember my first Minidisc walkman (mzr-30) used to nearly defen me, even just half volume, but my last one (the MZR-910) was very tame in comparison and just didnt 'do it' for me..

So i was a bit eager to see how the VP performed....
I was impressed, playing it through my Philips he590's (which i consider to be superb headphones) the sound was clear, loud, and crisp, much better than i expected. However playing them through my Sony MD-EX71's was very dissapointing...(im not sure why people rate these headphones so high anyway)..sounded flat, too basey and very quiet....back to the philips.

Ok the next day i was ready to give the VP a field test on the way to work, took the remote with me. As i was walking to the bus stop i started it up and selected an album all from the remote control - nifty, then the album started playing and it immediately skipped, just the once, i presume this is while the buffer is filling it could skip if knocked, or moved....but then walking, running or whatever it performed flawlessly, gapless play also works a treat!!

I decided to test the buffering/skipping theory and it seems to be the case, if the unit is knocked or moved during the first second or so of playback it may skip. I dont think this is an issue, and you try to get this baby to skip after wards....no chance..

Build Quality / Design 10/10
Very nice looking, sleek and sexy, the screen , feels very tough and does not creak when squeezed/twisted slightly. G-sense is awesome and works very well. Everyone i have shown it to wants one

Sound Quality 10/10
6 preset sound settings doesnt sound much but they are varied and offer a wide selection of sound. Sound is Louder than expected and very clear, nice Bass / Treble when used with good headphones, ATRAC3 is better than MP3.

Interface 9/10
Very intuitive and responsive, skinnable (after firmware update)
Clear Display. Sometimes a little slow when skipping tracks.

SonicStage Software 9/10
Does what its supposed to, Quickly, efficiently and easily. Had no problems and cant think why people have soo much trouble with it..

All in all, im glad i didnt let the negative comments on these forums put me off buying this, i based this review around most of the negativity in the forums and described my findings against them. Hope this helps other potential VP buyers out there as there is not many reviews to be found out there for this awesome device....stick ipod up yer Creative Zen

Superb Device 10/10

[stuadam91]

Excellent review, Atomos. Your experience is exactly the same as mine. I have had no problems whatsoever with the VP, software and firmware updates, and the useability of SonicStage.

To anyone thinking of buying a VP, I would definitely recommend it!

[hldomster]

As much as I appreciate the review, I must say I cannot agree. The VAIO pocket is not that perfect, and I still reccommend the NW series. I have had a few problems with BOTH my VP's, and neither give continuous playback, which is critical in my opinion. It's nice to hear some people having good experiences, but I simply can't agree.:smileywink:

[Hornby]

Could I ask why on earth do you have 2 VAIO Pockets?

[the_real_gazza]

I previously owned an NW-HD1. Excellent peice of kit, but the VP is leagues ahead. Yes it is not perfect, but what is these days, but it does everything I want it to do faultlessly. I have a kid brother who bought an iPod, and this then made me buy the Sony as I wanted to be different. I can honestly say it was the best bit of brotherly rivalry I have won. He has long since conceded that "mine is better than his", and the final insult half the cost that he paid.

[hldomster]

Could I ask why on earth do you have 2 VAIO Pockets?

I had one, destroyed it, then got another one from insurance. Thank god for Coverplan:smileygrin: :smileygrin:

It's all a matter of opinion really, but I really wish I had an HD5.