The Walkman is back! Sony unveils high definition portable music player to take on the smartphone
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Sony has brought back its iconic Walkman as a high definition audio player in a bid to win back users who listen to music of their smartphone.
The firm hopes its high resolution audio will convince listeners to switch back to a dedicated music player.
Its NW-ZX2 resurrects the iconic brand, first introduced in July 1979, with a 128gb capacity and 60 hour battery life.
The NW-ZX2 Walkman resurrects the iconic brand, with a 128gb capacity and 60 hour battery life.
'For a while there was a novelty in carrying 10,000 songs in your pocket,' said Sony's Mike Fasulo at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas.
'Now, people are seeking a higher quality experience.'
Sony also revealed a huge number of other high resolution audio hi-fi, speaker and headphones at the shop.
Other manufacturers are also beginning to focus more on high quality music files.
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'The new Walkman is a great example of the quality of hi-res audio, it is tailored for outstanding sound,' said Fasulo.
'I'm sure everyone here is not ready to delete their MP3 library - and we've got you covered.
'You'll be able to elevate the audio quality of your existing library.
The old and the new: Sony's new
'We can add quality, depth and more emotions to the cherished tunes in your collection.'
However, experts say Sony has a tough fight on its hands,
'There is clearly a resurgence it getting back to music in the purest way,' said Stuart Miles of Pocket Lint.
'If there is one brand that can associate with that it is the Walkman.
'However the question is whether there is enough of an appetite for enough people to justify bringing it back.'
THE HISTORY OF THE WALKMAN
The original 'Walkman', model TCS 300, made by Sony
Sony has sold 220 million cassette Walkman players globally since the product's July 1979 debut that changed lifestyles by popularising music on the go.
Legend has it that the device was first built in 1978 by Sony engineer Nobutoshi Kihara for Sony co-chairman Akio Morita, who wanted to be able to listen to operas during his frequent trans-Pacific plane trips.
A massive hit for the entire 1980s and early 1990s the Walkman was eventually superseded by the emerging digital technologies of CD, DAT and Sony's own MiniDisc.
More than 30 years later, the cassette Walkman has been rendered an anachronism by MP3 players and iPods.
Demand for cassette players in Japan is now largely limited to elderly users.
Sony will continue production of the cassette Walkman in China to accommodate users abroad, including in the U.S., Europe and some Asian countries.
The Walkman brand has continued in name only as part of the firm's mobile phone range.
Google also today join the hifi battle.
The search giant is set to bring its $35 Chromecast dongle to hifi systems.
The firm today revealed a major new push into audio designed to take on Apple TV.
It plans to partner with hifi firms to create speakers for the service, and today revealed it will already work with speakers connected to a TV.
Currently the system allows people to play back video from sites such as Netflix.
However, Google is now bringing the same technology behind its popular $35 Chromecast dongle into speakers, soundbars and A/V receivers.
It says users will be able to 'cast' audio wirelessly from a variety of apps on your Android or iOS smartphone, or the Web, in a similar fashion to the way people with a Chromecast stream video.
'Just like Chromecast, simply tap the cast button in your favorite music or radio app on Android, iOS, or the web, and select a Google Cast Ready speaker to get the party started.'
Similar to the video service, users can use their phone to control the music, which is then played directly through the speaker from cloud services, meaning they can use their phone for other things.
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