Photo gallery: Sony Walkman X-series (32GB) NWZ-X1060Note: We've reviewed the 16GB version of the X-Series, the NWZ-X1050. Aside from the difference in capacity, these two players are technically identical.
Every maker of MP3 players has cast an envious eye at Apple's iPod Touch and wondered, "how on earth can we out-cool that?" Some, like Samsung, have given it a fair crack, but none have captured the zeitgeist quite like the Touch. Well now it's Sony's turn, and CNET Australia had a hands-on preview of it earlier this week.
Upside
Right about now there's nothing cooler than touchscreens — well, except maybe cash handouts from Uncle Kevin07 — and as far as touchscreen devices go, the X-series is pretty cool. There's a 3-inch screen and, while it's bigger overall than the current S-series, E-series and A-series models, it's still smaller than Apple's iPod Touch.
As the screen uses OLED technology, viewing angles and sharpness were amazing, while Sony claims that it will also work well outdoors. The interface is a touchscreen adaptation of that seen on the last few generations of Walkmans, where lists and photos can be finger scrolled through. Naturally, there's a Cover Flow-like album browsing mode and video viewing capability. Naturally there's a de rigueur Home button below the screen, but there's also a hold switch, volume and noise-cancelling buttons along the sides, as well as play/pause, rewind and forward buttons along the top.
Like the Touch, the X-series comes with Wi-Fi networking, a web browser and YouTube streaming as standard — unfortunately, we weren't able to test these features as the X-series Walkmans we played with were fresh off the boat. Like other higher-end Walkmans, X-series will ship with EX Monitor headphones, which are great if you don't mind sticking bits of plastic deep into your ear canal. Noise-cancellation circuitry is also built into the X-series.
Downside
Bedecked in black, chrome and glass, the iPod Touch is, despite its large size, the master of cool. While we admire Sony's desire to make the X-series a not-to-drop device, the granite-coloured crackly plastic finish along the player's sides is a major design boo boo. While we're at it, the sparkle finish around the OLED screen is not quite ideal either. Also conspicuous by its absence is any talk of an app store — those wanting a selection of the coolest, the greatest and the most banal handheld applications will have to shop elsewhere.
Outlook
Two versions of the X-series will be available sometime in April, distinguished solely by storage capacity: 16GB or 32GB. While we at CNET central are eagerly awaiting the X-series' arrival, we have a sneaking suspicion that even if it's well priced — and with the depreciating dollar and the fact that this is Sony we're talking about, there's no guarantee of that — it will only appeal to a small minority of the MP3 player market; namely non-conformists and music aficionados with a burning touchscreen itch.
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