• terrific little player

• This digital walkman is not jam-packed with features. However the features it does offer are executed better than any digital player i've owned. It feels solid and well put together, the kind of quality you would expect from a top name like sony. Nothing feels flimsy or like cheap plastic held together by Elmer's glue. The buttons are all tactile and the feel/action of the buttons are all top notch. It is also very lightweight. By comparison, I owned the 16GB Creative Zen before returning it. Build quality was poor, specifically the button action of the direction pad. The Zen was riddled with problems (probably due to software programming more than anything).
  This Sony unit has a bright 320x240 resolution 2.4" screen. Images and video can be viewed with 3 orientations; that is either vertically or flipped 90 degrees to either side for widescreen. This is great for people who want to operate the controls with either hand during playback.
  Menus are very easy to read and navigate through. The "Now Playing" information screen is customizable and shows you everything you need to know, including scrolling song title, Artist, Album, Album Art, Genre, and a Time Elapsed bar.
  Because this unit uses flash memory the song recall is lightning-quick. play/pause happens instantly when pressed, and returns to the exact point in that song if the unit has been shut down and turned back on. Power on is so fast it seems as if the unit never actually gets shut off, but just goes into permanent standby. If you power off and put on the hold feature, the player turns on automatically when hold is turned off. battery life is 33 hours with music, 9.5 hours with video. My understanding is that this is great battery life for a single charge. Full charge takes 3 hours, 80% charge occurs in 1.5 hours. Device can be used as MTP for drag-drop from WMP 10 or 11.
  Now to the best part of this player: the sound quality. Bar none the best sounding MP3 player on the market. You will be blown away. The player offers many EQ settings including 5 bands, 2 fully customizable EQ's and a 3-notch bass boost feature. The supplied ear buds are some of the best included with any player, so you should not have to upgrade.
  I have not used the video feature yet so i cannot comment on its capabilities. The player takes either MP4 video or H.264. The player does not feature a line-in or a voice recorder. For $[...] more you can get this with bluetooth capability. Don't get it if you don't need it because Bluetooth drains the battry.
  Great little player. Not brimming with extra features but executes everything it does perfectly. Highly recommended.

• What's an Ipod?

• I'm going to go out on the limb and say that I'm not exactly a fan of the Ipod. It seems that everywhere I look, I see the ubiquitous optical circle of conformity that is the Ipod's interface. To be frank, I'm sick of it. But thankfully enough, my aversion to conformity has led me down the path of looking at options generally overlooked by the common mass of consumers.
  The Sony NWZ-A728 is quite possibly the best sounding mp3 player currently on the market. Sure, competitors such as the Cowon D2 perform better in terms of a flat EQ, but none of these other players pack the signature "Sony Punch". And none of these players bundle with ear-buds or headphones that sound as the good as the MDR-EX82's included with this walkman. So all in all, I can safely assure you that this is the best sound you can get "out of the box". Vocals are excellent. Clearbass comes as a welcome substitute to the "bloated" sound that megabass delivered. I find that the included buds provide enough fidelity to clearly hear the thrums of each cord on an acoustic guitar.
  As for the player's construction, I couldn't be any happier. Unlike the Creative Zen, this player does not exhibit the least bit of "plasticy" feel. The weight of the player in my opinion is ideal. It feels substantial yet light enough to carry without difficulty. In short, this does not feel like a toy.
  Perhaps the first thing you'll notice upon booting this player up for the first time is the screen's clarity. The included fifa video does a great job of showing off the player's 30 frames per second playback. I personally use a freeware program called Videora Ipod Converter to convert videos. All in all, I think the screen is beautiful. There are better offerings... but for this price segment, I think this quite alright. My only caveat with the screen is that it is made of plastic. I would have preferred glass but I guess a screen protector will have to do.
  In terms of value, I'm a little iffy. The player was bought for 160 dollars. The silicone case was approximately 30 dollars. If you choose, you could buy the ac adapter for another 40 bucks. I'd say your average customer would spend about 200 dollars. 230 with the adapter and case. But the fact that the headphones don't have to be updated aids the value argument. I would say the fidelity offering is about 50 dollars worth ( senn px100 or akg k26p). So all in all, this player actually initially seems iffy in terms of value. But I guess after weighing in the value of the headphones included, it kind of makes sense.
  I think most of the other points about this product are covered within the other reviews. I really don't think you can go wrong with this product. Since the initial warranty offering is a little risky. I would recommend logging onto [...] and purchasing a Sony authorized 2 year extended service plan which is $[...]. Hopefully, I can add to this review as I use the mp3 player more.

• I really like this player

• I bought this little player on sale at Best Buy, and I have been thoroughly pleased with its performance. I have almost all my music library on it, and have only used about half its storage! The sound quality is excellent.
  
  I even like the earbuds that come with it, and that's saying something, because I am NOT an earbud fan. These buds fit snugly into my ears, and are comfortable. The salesman said that the player would accomodate the over-the-ears phones I have if I wanted.
  
  The battery life is great. I haven't maxed it out yet, but I've used it every day for a week without a recharge.
  
  It's simple to use, too, which is a plus to me. I don't want to have to fiddle with a bunch of different menus to get to what I want, and I don't have to do that with this player. It has several options for listening or viewing, but all the avenues to get there are easy, and not interdependent.
  
  The player uses Windows Media Version 11, which I'd tried before and didn't really care for--I'm a version 10 fan, and I can be pretty set in my ways. But I went ahead and did it, and I'm getting used to it, so it's not that huge a deal.
  
  The player is super thin and light, so be careful not to forget you've got it in your pocket!
  
  I do wish Sony had thought to include one of the little storage cases made specially for it; the window could get easily scratched on it. But the thing with this little player is that it'll fit in most cell phone cases you may have lying about, which is what I did.
  
  Overall I'm very pleased.

• Left me in a state of bliss

• If you like classical music you owe it to yourself to get this walkman. I cannot describe it but this is one of the few times I've really really enjoyed music. This device seems to have some sort of noise cancelling feature built in which makes it quite hard to hear outside noise but at the same time, it doesn't sound so loud as to make you deaf. Excellent device and yes, better than the ipod nano. It's not as flashy as the ipod touch but it definitely has better sound, which is the reason you want an mp3 player not so?

• Hands Down, The best

• I had the 8GB and just updated to the 16 GB.....out of the box just like the the 8GB this unit is hands down the best sounding MP3 player on the market today....can you say blows away Ipod? Easy to navigate, great looking screen, simple and light but not too small. The stock ear buds that comes with it are awesome. Bass response and top end are fantastic. I highly recommend this unit, You will not be disappointed.

• Walkman Player For Everyone

• Even though I am older in years my spirit is young so I wanted an MP3 player that was easy to use and understand and I also wanted a little bit larger screen so I could see some of the Pod Casts I was looking forward to enjoying. This fits the bill. I have had no problems downloading my music (Rock if you need to know)and the Pod Casts I wanted to see. Best purchase I could have made.

• I should have bought it with bluetooth

• I got this mp3 player from Amazon 2 weeks ago and I really liked it. I won't mention all the pros coz they have been already mentioned by others. Now I regret that I didn't go for the bluetooth enabled one coz I thought I won't be using it. However, I wanted to get a bluetooth adapter for it and bluetooth headset and that would cost me much more than if I had bought the one with bluetooth and headset. You might wonder why I am interested about the one with bluetooth and the reason is it just gives great freedom of wires

• Great Sounding MP3 Player!

• This MP3 Player is finally off my Wish List! I bought it at Best Buy with a 10% off coupon. I bought it for [...]. You can get the coupon at [...]. At first the cashier said it did not include MP3 players, but once she scanned it the discount went thorugh.
  
  I put my music on the 728 and I still have 5.6 GB remaining. I will be driving back East and look forward to the 36 hours of battery life.
  
  The different sound options is great. You can tinker around until you find what you like best. So many different choices!
  
  The 2.4" screen is a treat! I look forward to watching videos on it! It is very easy to move around the menu and find what you are looking for.
  
  The biggest negative is the amount of acessories the 728 currently has. I will be going to a Sony Store to pick up a case for $19.99
  
  If you are looking for an MP3 with excellent sound, this is for you!

• Great player for the money

• This Sony Walkman is amazing! It is small, lightweight, and easy to operate. However, watch out as this model does not actually come Bluetooth-equipped, even though the image shows a Bluetooth option. Besides that, this player is perfect for just about anyone. It's screen is sharp and clear, it has a decent volume range, and comes with many equalizer presets to really bring out your music. The only downside is that you cannot create playlists from the player; you must use a computer to do that. All in all, I would recommend this player to anyone. It's a great buy!

• Top Notch Sound and Video!

• Honestly, as my first MP3 player, this Walkman 8GB impressed the heck out of me. I actually went to the store looking for the older model (600 series) but found this instead. The price was decent for the features, and when I loaded up a few of my favorite songs, the sound quality blew me away. The EQ bands are great, and being able to adjust the ambient sound and other features (like fixed volume) made this even sweeter. Then I downloaded about 50 photos into it, and suddenly I had a great pocket photo album! Video is smooth and clear, too.
  
  But the feature I found best is the ease of use of the controls. The 4-way toggle ring with Enter/Play in the middle has a firm mechanical feel, so I truly know if I've selected something. (The funky rotating wheels on other brands of MP3 players still don't impress me as a sensible way to select things.) The download and sync times are quick, and with Media Player they are relatively painless, too. Also, the included earbuds have great bass response in conjunction with this player.
  
  Two minor quibbles: The included Sony Media Manager is lame. Ignore it and use your favorite media player to sync. Second, there are precious few accessories available, and they are NOT to be found at your local electronics store. Apparently the Zune/iPod monopoly precludes anyone carrying anything but their approved accessories. BTW, there is a nice leather case with a snap clip available through Sony, but it is a bit pricey. A belt-looped case would be nicer.
  
  Also, recharge time is good: 1-2 hours over the USB2 connection. And I recently played this thing for 18 hours (9 hours each on 2 successive days), and the battery meter indicated half a charge still left. Follow Sony's FAQ advice on prolonging battery life, and you could easily beat the 30-hour rating on this thing.
  
  Most wanted feature: Sorting songs by Title within a playlist. Are you listening, Sony?
  
  NOTE: The picture shown on this page as of May 17, 2008, does not show the actual screen of NWZ-A728. The picture shown here is for the NWZ-A828 that supports Bluetooth headphones, which this one does not do natively. (A Bluetooth adapter and headphones are available for the 728.) However, this model does have built-in support for Rhapsody channels and downloads -- for those who care about such things.

• Could have been a contender

• I agree with the other reviews that the screen is large and sharp, and that the sound quality is awesome. I also like the menu system and enjoy the ability to sync the device using Windows Media Player. So far, so good. Where this device strays from a 4-star review is in its ability to play songs seamlessly.
  
  THERE IS NO GAPLESS PLAYBACK! If you listen to continuous DJ mixes like I do, you will be annoyed listening to this device as it inserts a half-second moment of silence between each track. This is completely unacceptable and should have been fixed in a firmware update. As of the date of this review, Sony has not fixed this and has not expressed an interest in doing so. This is a total deal-breaker for me. Even non-mix albums have songs that blend from one track to the next and this player totally ruins that. Unfortunately, the lack of gapless playback is not noted in any product specs, so I did not learn about it until I purchased this product.
  
  A much more minor criticism is that the device is a fingerprint and smudge magnet. This is not that big of a deal, but if you watch a lot of videos it could be an annoyance.
  
  I had such high hopes for this device, but the lack of gapless playback annoyed me to the point of hating this product.

• What's an Ipod?

• I'm going to go out on the limb and say that I'm not exactly a fan of the Ipod. It seems that everywhere I look, I see the ubiquitous optical circle of conformity that is the Ipod's interface. To be frank, I'm sick of it. But thankfully enough, my aversion to conformity has led me down the path of looking at options generally overlooked by the common mass of consumers.
  The Sony NWZ-A728 is quite possibly the best sounding mp3 player currently on the market. Sure, competitors such as the Cowon D2 perform better in terms of a flat EQ, but none of these other players pack the signature "Sony Punch". And none of these players bundle with ear-buds or headphones that sound as the good as the MDR-EX82's included with this walkman. So all in all, I can safely assure you that this is the best sound you can get "out of the box". Vocals are excellent. Clearbass comes as a welcome substitute to the "bloated" sound that megabass delivered. I find that the included buds provide enough fidelity to clearly hear the thrums of each cord on an acoustic guitar.
  As for the player's construction, I couldn't be any happier. Unlike the Creative Zen, this player does not exhibit the least bit of "plasticy" feel. The weight of the player in my opinion is ideal. It feels substantial yet light enough to carry without difficulty. In short, this does not feel like a toy.
  Perhaps the first thing you'll notice upon booting this player up for the first time is the screen's clarity. The included fifa video does a great job of showing off the player's 30 frames per second playback. I personally use a freeware program called Videora Ipod Converter to convert videos. All in all, I think the screen is beautiful. There are better offerings... but for this price segment, I think this quite alright. My only caveat with the screen is that it is made of plastic. I would have preferred glass but I guess a screen protector will have to do.
  In terms of value, I'm a little iffy. The player was bought for 160 dollars. The silicone case was approximately 30 dollars. If you choose, you could buy the ac adapter for another 40 bucks. I'd say your average customer would spend about 200 dollars. 230 with the adapter and case. But the fact that the headphones don't have to be updated aids the value argument. I would say the fidelity offering is about 50 dollars worth ( senn px100 or akg k26p). So all in all, this player actually initially seems iffy in terms of value. But I guess after weighing in the value of the headphones included, it kind of makes sense.
  I think most of the other points about this product are covered within the other reviews. I really don't think you can go wrong with this product. Since the initial warranty offering is a little risky. I would recommend logging onto [...] and purchasing a Sony authorized 2 year extended service plan which is $[...]. Hopefully, I can add to this review as I use the mp3 player more.

• Great audio but video? (3 stars - not 4)

• I purchased the NWZ-A728 thinking that I was getting an MP3 / video player. I already owned a Sansa 4GB mp3 player that I was happy with (overall) but it lacked any practical video playback features.
  
  The NWZ-A728 is slim, lightweight and sturdy. Its menu system is user-friendly and its sound quality is superb.
  
  Unfortunately, the NWZ-A728 is to video players what a McDonalds hamburger is to steak: technically it's beef but its definitely not a t-bone. Want to download and view Amazon Unbox movies? Sorry, doesn't support it. Want to transfer your home video to the NWZ-A728? Be prepared to locate a converter to transform the files to MP4 format (and even then, most won't play).
  
  I must just be missing something. I use WMP to sync music to the NWZ-A728. Of course WMP doesn't support MP4. Surely Sony will have plenty of information about converters, where to find MP4 video, etc ... not so much. It's as if Sony assumes that obtaining MP4 video is some kind of innate knowledge or, worse, doesn't care.
  
  If you're looking for a great MP3 player and don't care about video, this certainly fits the bill. If you're buying a player to take on the plane with you to watch movies, keep looking.
  
  UPDATE: According to Sony's tech support, any MP4 file can be downloaded to the player (although they will not identify any sites or software). However, neither downloading MP4 files nor converting files to MP4 format resolves the issue. The player simply says "Cannot play; file format is not supported." I would downgrade my rating of this product but Amazon doesn't allow it.

• I really like this player

• I bought this little player on sale at Best Buy, and I have been thoroughly pleased with its performance. I have almost all my music library on it, and have only used about half its storage! The sound quality is excellent.
  
  I even like the earbuds that come with it, and that's saying something, because I am NOT an earbud fan. These buds fit snugly into my ears, and are comfortable. The salesman said that the player would accomodate the over-the-ears phones I have if I wanted.
  
  The battery life is great. I haven't maxed it out yet, but I've used it every day for a week without a recharge.
  
  It's simple to use, too, which is a plus to me. I don't want to have to fiddle with a bunch of different menus to get to what I want, and I don't have to do that with this player. It has several options for listening or viewing, but all the avenues to get there are easy, and not interdependent.
  
  The player uses Windows Media Version 11, which I'd tried before and didn't really care for--I'm a version 10 fan, and I can be pretty set in my ways. But I went ahead and did it, and I'm getting used to it, so it's not that huge a deal.
  
  The player is super thin and light, so be careful not to forget you've got it in your pocket!
  
  I do wish Sony had thought to include one of the little storage cases made specially for it; the window could get easily scratched on it. But the thing with this little player is that it'll fit in most cell phone cases you may have lying about, which is what I did.
  
  Overall I'm very pleased.

• Left me in a state of bliss

• If you like classical music you owe it to yourself to get this walkman. I cannot describe it but this is one of the few times I've really really enjoyed music. This device seems to have some sort of noise cancelling feature built in which makes it quite hard to hear outside noise but at the same time, it doesn't sound so loud as to make you deaf. Excellent device and yes, better than the ipod nano. It's not as flashy as the ipod touch but it definitely has better sound, which is the reason you want an mp3 player not so?

• Hands Down, The best

• I had the 8GB and just updated to the 16 GB.....out of the box just like the the 8GB this unit is hands down the best sounding MP3 player on the market today....can you say blows away Ipod? Easy to navigate, great looking screen, simple and light but not too small. The stock ear buds that comes with it are awesome. Bass response and top end are fantastic. I highly recommend this unit, You will not be disappointed.

• Sony NWZA729BLK

• Bought this little player about a month ago. I was very excited to get it based on audio quality reviews and user interface quality. The player delivered on battery life, ease of use, screen quality and overall construction. However the audio quality in my opinion was disappointing. Paired with a pair of Shure E500 PTH, the bass and warmth at the low end cannot come close to my old IRIVER H320. Even ripping music in lossless format any trying every audio setting available cannot overcome the lack of power in the low end. It does produce great highs and midrange however. Audiophiles need look somewhere else to get the total package.

• Walkman Player For Everyone

• Even though I am older in years my spirit is young so I wanted an MP3 player that was easy to use and understand and I also wanted a little bit larger screen so I could see some of the Pod Casts I was looking forward to enjoying. This fits the bill. I have had no problems downloading my music (Rock if you need to know)and the Pod Casts I wanted to see. Best purchase I could have made.

• I should have bought it with bluetooth

• I got this mp3 player from Amazon 2 weeks ago and I really liked it. I won't mention all the pros coz they have been already mentioned by others. Now I regret that I didn't go for the bluetooth enabled one coz I thought I won't be using it. However, I wanted to get a bluetooth adapter for it and bluetooth headset and that would cost me much more than if I had bought the one with bluetooth and headset. You might wonder why I am interested about the one with bluetooth and the reason is it just gives great freedom of wires

• Great Sounding MP3 Player!

• This MP3 Player is finally off my Wish List! I bought it at Best Buy with a 10% off coupon. I bought it for [...]. You can get the coupon at [...]. At first the cashier said it did not include MP3 players, but once she scanned it the discount went thorugh.
  
  I put my music on the 728 and I still have 5.6 GB remaining. I will be driving back East and look forward to the 36 hours of battery life.
  
  The different sound options is great. You can tinker around until you find what you like best. So many different choices!
  
  The 2.4" screen is a treat! I look forward to watching videos on it! It is very easy to move around the menu and find what you are looking for.
  
  The biggest negative is the amount of acessories the 728 currently has. I will be going to a Sony Store to pick up a case for $19.99
  
  If you are looking for an MP3 with excellent sound, this is for you!

• Great player for the money

• This Sony Walkman is amazing! It is small, lightweight, and easy to operate. However, watch out as this model does not actually come Bluetooth-equipped, even though the image shows a Bluetooth option. Besides that, this player is perfect for just about anyone. It's screen is sharp and clear, it has a decent volume range, and comes with many equalizer presets to really bring out your music. The only downside is that you cannot create playlists from the player; you must use a computer to do that. All in all, I would recommend this player to anyone. It's a great buy!

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