Sony may have started a revolution with Walkman, prior to the Apple days when revolution was not the most overused adjective. However the device witnessed mass extinction upon the arrival of the mighty iPod. Sony has been trying hard to revive the brand with new and smarter Walkmans.
At CES Sony announced ZX2 which is targeted at really high-end audiophiles. What got my attention is the fact that the device is powered by the Linux-based Android operating system.
There is a problem in paradise: instead of using the latest and greatest Android 5.x, aka Lollipop, they are using the ancient 4.2. I really don’t understand why companies keep doing this, but in Sony’s case it may be that they chose a 3 year old version of the OS over Lollipop because the device is not meant to be an all-purpose tablet-like device. While you can download and install apps from the Google Play Store, the device is not meant to be used in that way; it is all in all a very high-end music player that happens to use Android.
NW-ZX2 comes with 128GB of built-in memory, in addition to a micro SD card slot. It comes with WiFi connectivity and a really large capacity battery that will give you over 60 hours of music playback. It supports many media formats including DSD, WAV, AIFF, FLAC, Apple Lossless, etc.
So how much does this thing cost? Hold onto your breath. Sony’s ZX2 is going to cost you more than the price of a Macbook Air. Sony will be selling the device for $1,119.00.
As I said, it’s a high-end device targeted at hardcore audiophiles. Before you are turned off by the price I have one piece of advice: Go try it (when it’s available in stores) and you might understand what Sony is trying to do.
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