Sony MZ-E500 MiniDisc Walkman

The electronic guts of the MZ-E500 are shared with Sony's superb MZ-G750, which means you get the same excellent quality of sound. It's rich and detailed and doesn't push any part of the range too far forward. Instead of the simple bass boost modes of lesser models the MZ-E500 has separate bass and treble controls each with eight levels. Battery life is superb, Sony quote up to 75 hours, but this is the absolute best you can expect though. If you listen to standard length recording, not the higher compression LP2 and LP4, you actually get around 42 hours, which is still remarkably good. Using the rechargeable battery drops this to about 14 hours. This compares very favourably to other portable MiniDisc players. The rechargable keep the player nice and small, but an alkaline AA provides more punch, with the MZ-E500 you get the choice.

The remote comes complete with an LCD screen and has a jog/shuttle control so you can leave the player in your pocket and still have virtually full control. You've 160 seconds-worth of Sony's excellent G-Protection system too, so you can give it a pretty rigorous shake without skipping a beat. All in all it offers a cut above the average MiniDisc player without attracting a high price. A metal casing would have been nice, the plastic is a little prone to scuffing, although it is surprisingly tough.

The only real point to make you stop and think is that it doesn't record. This is a problem since most music is on CDs and unless you want to severely limit your listening choice to what's commercially available on MiniDisc, you'll need access to a recordable MiniDisc too, such as within your home Hi-Fi system, or another portable device. That aside, the MZ-E500 is a highly pleasing proposition. --Miles Berkeley

Product Description
The Sony MZ-E500 MiniDisc Walkman has a bubble like design incorporating the new Walkman logo and is finished in silver. This Playback Walkman has an impressive range of features including G Protection Jog Proof, up to 65 hours of playback using the supplied rechargeable batteries in combination with Stamina batteries (not supplied) and MiniDisc Long Play (MDLP). The MDLP feature offers the user 2 or 4 times the playing time of Standard Play in digital stereo, allowing up to 320 minutes playing time on one 80 minute MiniDisc - that's over 5 hours! It also comes supplied with the new stick remote control for ease of use.

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