Music to the ears

You can now listen to music while smashing a ball around on the tennis court thanks to the new Sony WS Series MP3 Walkman, a portable digital music player that’s totally wireless.

Unlike other MP3 players that come with a player and a pair of headphones, the WS Series is integrated with in-ear phones that are linked with a strap.

Even better, all the control buttons are also built in.

The WS series come into two models: NWZ-WS613 and NWZ-WS615. They have the same features but the WS615 has four times more storage – 16 GB worth – than the WS613, which has four. The 16 GB version can store up to 4,000 songs in standard MP3 music files. I did the test using the WS613.

Weighing a mere 37 grams, the WS613 was comfortable to wear for several hours, meaning I could take it jogging and cycling and even swimming. Since the player and earphones are integrated with the neck strap that fits snugly around your head, you can move freely while wearing it.

The WS series MP3 player is waterproof and compliant with the IPX 5/8 rating, meaning it can be under two-metre-deep water for half an hour. The waterproof feature is really fun because you can enjoy music at a swimming pool or a water park. But before you go into a swimming pool, you must make sure that you change the ear buds from standard type to swimming type. The package comes with both types of ear buds in various sizes.

All the control buttons are integrated with the parts connected to the earphones. The mode button and volume control are on the left while the play/pause button and buttons for skipping to the next track or returning to the previous track are located on the right. The power button is also on the right while a Bluetooth button is on the left.

Unlike previous Sony neck-band MP3 players, the WS series come with Bluetooth function. You can use the Bluetooth function with the ring Remote Commander. The Remote Commander is Bluetooth-linked the player and allows you to conveniently control the player without having to feel for buttons behind the earphones. You can play or pause the music, adjust volume and skip tracks with the Remote Commander.

You can also use the player as Bluetooth headphones for your smartphone as well as a headset for making or receiving calls. The WS series comes with NFC technology for assisting Bluetooth connection with a smartphone that also has the NFC function.

You can use the play/pause button to answer or hang up the call. Pressing it firmly for two seconds rejects the call.

After the player is Bluetooth-linked to your smartphone, the player will prompt you to download SongPal to your smartphone or tablet to take control of your music collection. For iOS devices, SongPal requires version 6.0 or higher.

When it is connected to your smartphone, the WS series player can be switch backed to its MP3 player function and play files stored on its internal memory. You simply press and hold the play/pause button until you hear “Walkman Mode”. You can switch it to the Headphone Mode by pressing and holding the same button again until you hear the mode name spoken out.

While it is being used as an MP3 player, the WS Walkman has three modes of play – with Normal playback, Shuffle playback and Repeat playback. The Repeat playback does what its name implies – set songs that will be played repeatedly.

Normal lets you change from the default setting of Folder play to Playlist and Album playback modes. Playlists can be created using the supplied Media Go software.

To transfer music files from your computer to the WS Walkman, you need to connect the player to the supplied USB cradle and plug it into your computer’s USB port.

The cradle also functions as a charger for the WS Walkman. The player supports fast charging. 

You can give it a 3-minute quick charge and then enjoy 60 minutes of non-stop music. After it is fully charged, it can play music up to eight hours.

During the test, I found that the WS613 reproduced clean and good quality music. The highs and middles could be heard clearly, resulting in good details of musical instruments and beautiful vocal sound. The bass was not particularly powerful but it was adequate.

I enjoyed using it listen to pop and instrumental music like the “Best Audiophile Voices V” and “Sax for Sex – Beautiful Night Vol 1” albums.

I was also able to connect the player to my iPad and enjoyed the music without trouble although the SongPal could not be installed on the first edition of the iPad.

Sony Thailand sells only the WS615 for Bt5,990. It’s available in black, blue and green.

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