Sony is unveiling a premium variant of its 47-year old portable audio-player brand 'Walkman', whose price surpasses that of most mid-tier automobiles, such as hatchbacks. This new version, the 'NW-WM1ZM3' is set to make its debut on the marketplace on Nov. 27, in Japan, as per the company. The device will retail for a whopping 655,000 yen or $4,440. This amounts to roughly Rs 4.2 lakh. Preorders for the device in the US are priced at $5,900 or Rs 5.6 lakh.
One of the device's notable features is its ability to convert the digital audio present within music that the device streams into analog audio that has close resemblance to the original recording. This feature was only available for downloaded music before this particular model was announced.
Other unique features include dual capacitors to supply power in lieu of a single capacitor in Walkman devices, which would aid in streamlining the transition between high and low frequencies.
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The audio device also sports a rear chasis made of gold-plated oxygen-free copper which provides higher conductivity which facilitates better quality sound. The shift to copper from aluminum is due to the former being able to transmit finer electric signals, which provides finer details of the audio, making the listening experince, more immersive.
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The company used to use gold-plated copper solely for the main chasis, in the NW-WM1ZM3, the screws are also gold plated to reduce noise.
Sony will launch two additional models: the NW-WM1AM3, priced at about 347,000 yen, and the NW-ZX900, priced at around 215,000 yen.
These three models include high-end Kimber Kable wiring and provide up to 40 hours of battery life. The NW-ZX900 model sports an “ultra-low noise” LDO regulator along with crystal oscillators.
The NW-WM1AM3 model retails for $2,999.99 (about Rs. 2,85,000) in the US and 4,199.99 Canadian dollars (around Rs. 2,82,000) in Canada. The NW-ZX900 model costs $1,899.99 (close to Rs. 1,80,000) in the US and 2,659.99 Canadian dollars (nearly Rs. 1,78,000) in Canada. These two models are also currently available on a pre-order basis.
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The Sony Signature Series Walkman models feature S-Master HX digital amplifier technology and support the Native DSD format. Sony has equipped all three new Walkman models with its DSD Remastering Engine.
Sony claims the NW-WM1ZM3 and NW-WM1AM3 can deliver up to 35 hours of 128kbps MP3 playback and up to 31 hours of streaming. The NW-ZX900, meanwhile, offers up to 40 hours of 128kbps MP3 playback and up to 35 hours of streaming.
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