SONY Walkman A series NW-A35 (B) (16GB) (charcoal black) (International version/seller warranty)

I have used this hi res digital audio player now for 250 hours and so far I would say Sony has a real winner with the NW-A35, which is the entry level DAP in their new Walkman line that includes the higher quality, and more expensive, WM1A and WM1Z DAPs. Here are some early thoughts:1. The NW-A35 is small and light, smaller than Sony's promotional pictures suggest and much lighter than a smartphone, which is a good thing for anyone needing a dedicated music player for use while exercising. It disappears into my gym shorts pocket and I almost forget it is there.2. Sony's own UI is intuitive and aesthetically pleasing. With firmware update 1.10, the touchscreen is more responsive that my HTC One M8 smartphone, even with a screen protector in place. Album artwork is displayed correctly. No horizontal or vertical clipping of the image that occurs with other DAPs.3. Strong Bluetooth connection with the Bose SoundLink Mini. I can walk around my single story house and not lose connection. Bose does not used Sony’s LDAC codec, so the sound quality could be better when paired with an LDAC speaker, but I am satisfied with the quality. The only downside is battery life is significantly reduced.4. FM radio5. The casing feels a bit thin in my opinion and the material is slippery. Drop it and there will be damage, so get a silicon sleeve or case of some kind. I purchased the iGadgitz Black Silicone Skin Case Cover; and while it works okay, I consider it a stopgap measure until something better is acquired.6. Gapless playback appears to not work with ALAC files, but not an issue for me.7. Up sampling lower bitrate files does not seem to add any benefit as Sony suggests it does.8. Connecting a headphone amp is convoluted at the moment since Sony does not offer a proprietary cable for such purposes. I do not use an amp, but I would say the NW-A35 is not the best DAP for stacking with an amp.9. There is an english language option. Upon first boot up, multiple languages are offered, including english; so disregard any bad review suggesting otherwise if you are considering this DAP.The light weight, size and Bluetooth capability of the NW-A35 is ideal for being on the move; and the price is targeted at individuals not wanting to break their wallets; but for anyone not needing the compact portability, or anyone wanting to dive deep into the digital audio world, the price of the NW-A35 is best applied to the purchase of the WM1A or WM1Z.Update: I have purchased the Sony SRS-X55 Bluetooth speaker to use with the NW-A35 and I will say that the pairing is a step up in sound quality from the Bose, at least for Rock albums. The bass is slightly less overpowering and the sound is less muddy on the SRS-X55; the battery life is slightly better; and the NW-A35 acts as a remote control for the SRS-X55.

Overall, this MP3 player is good, and the expandable memory is extremely welcomed. It is for this reason that the device itself gets a favorable rating.However, Sony's mandatory music software, Media Go, is downright glitchy in comparison with iTunes and is the reason I returned this MP3 player. Upon importing thousands of songs to my library, I discovered that a large number of files were, seemingly randomly, cut off by anywhere from 5 to 50 seconds at the end. There are other people who've reported the same issue online, but Sony seems unwilling or unable to address or fix this issue. It simply wasn't worth my time and effort to rebuild and reorganize thousands of files only to have the software aversely affect songs that remained in tact in several other media programs.

Sony, as they most always do, built a BEAUTIful device with the NW-A35, with a sturdy case and ease to use. The battery life is good (12-14hrs with bluetooth going) and sound quality is 6 stars. Sadly, the same can't be said of the 35's OS as, based on my experience so far:1) Turning the 35 off has a 30% chance of the unit locking up and turning itself back on, requiring a second go to turn it off.2) Creating playlists can only be done on a full computer plugged into the 35 and is as intuitive as as the US Tax Code, written in Sanskrit transcribed by a drunken Klingon.3) Every few weeks the 35 will have it's version of BSoD and reset itself, with everything not on a memory card, like playlists and bookmarks, GONE.4) The 35, as of now, can't be Rockboxed and thanks to Sony likely never will be.Physically one can't get better than the 35 but until Sony fixes the OS issues (given past experience very unlikely to happen), I'd strongly recommend buying your next player from another manufacturer.

Certainly glad this MP3 is comparable to the Sony NWZ-E384 to which I elected to replace ( due, in part, to battery charging time/ intrinsic component failure). Only annoying setback to the NW- A35 compared to the NWZ- E384 is the 'start up' time. It makes me think 'computer' --not quick start up mp3. But like most things, I'll get used to it. I only hope it holds up for several years. P.S. The size is right; just a bit larger and a bit heavier.

Greate device, i had an ipod classic and was looking for a new mp3 player mass storage with the same quality. The Sony walkman was a greate surprise in terms of quality, audio fidelity, battery life and storage. I added a 128 sdx card so i can carry witj me all the music i care. Also can read losseless formats like aiff wav and flac. If your mp3 archives are not as good in terms of audio quality, the Sony Walkman comes with an option to boost the audio quality up and it works really good. I also use a bluetooth headphone (aiwa) and both compatibility and sound are awesome. The devise comes with a software to administrate your music from the computer way better than itunes, easy to share and personalize your collections. the size of the device is very practical, you can take it anywere due to its comfortable size and the screen has powerfull bright, the touch system is smooth and love the way album covers are shown, good size.I been using it for a month every day and i have no complains, i recomend it