Sony’s Upcoming NW-ZX507 Walkman: Multi-source music with high quality sound
The NW-ZX500 Walkman builds on the success of the previous ZX300. The new model brings, WiFi, Bluetooth 5.0, a new design and Android 9.0 to the table. All of this sounds great but how does it compare to the ZX300? Read on to find out.
So before I begin, I originally thought that any special 40th anniversary model would naturally be a high end model like the ZX-Series but that is not how things turned out, instead Sony opted for the less expensive A-Series for their Anniversary model, the A100TPS. But even that model at 440 Euros is no bargain.
Design
The design is an evolution of the ZX300. The most obvious change is the curved bottom versus the flat design of the ZX300. This change should make the player more comfortable to hold. Just like with the new A-Series, gone is the proprietary WM-port, and replaced with a standard USB type-C on the left side. The micro-SD expansion slot remains in the same place, along with identical internal memory, 64GB. The NFC is on the back as previously. With the change to Android OS, the LCD has been upgraded to a 1280 x 720 3.6in touchscreen. Dimensions are almost identical but the weight has increased 7g to 164g.
The aluminum milled frame remains like on the ZX300, even the photo on the product page is identical to the ZX300 (see below) but they are not the same of course. The hardware buttons are on the right side as with the ZX300, with a similar round design. And on top we have the 4.4 φ Balanced output and 3.5mm jack.
Sony does provide the actual frame photos for the ZX500, in both black and silver.
The new design looks great and it almost makes me want to get it but not sure I could afford it. Colour options seem to be region specific again, with Europe receiving the black version, where as in Asia according to the press release, it will be available in either black or silver again. Likewise the press release states it will be sold in select Asian countries, so I am guessing if the ZX300 was not available in your country, the ZX500 will not be either. As for North America and Japan, if the player is released there (should be the ZX500 passed through the FCC), then North America should only have black and Japan would receive black and silver like the ZX300.
Features
The big and exciting change is the return to the Android OS. This switch from Sony’s own OS should add some great features, like the ability to stream music from various online services like Spotify or Google Play. It is unknown if any streaming apps will be pre-loaded or users will have to download them individually from the Play Store. Not sure if all Android apps will be supported, it all depends how powerful the SoC is and how much RAM is installed. From my understanding the OS has been modified a bit, especially when it comes to volume control. Phileweb has an explanation on how this works:
For music playback, the volume is the final volume is determined by multiplying the media volume and master volume. The volume adjustment range of a general Android smartphone is several steps, but this time it is now possible to adjust the volume in 120 fine steps.
In order to play with the highest sound quality, Sony explains, “It is better to maximize the media volume and adjust the volume with the master volume.” W. Music app always bypasses media volume at maximum.
I tried to clean up the translation from how I understood it, so hopefully I interpreted it correctly. Once reviews appear, the way the volume works should become clear. Although if someone wishes to translate the actual text from the Phileweb article more accurately, please post it below in the comments.
I believe two features from the ZX300 have been removed, the first the Bluetooth receiver mode, and second the USB DAC. The reason for the first is supposedly because WiFi was added, as for the USB DAC, I know Android 9.0 supports USB DAC, so I doubt the change to Android was the cause. The same occurred in the new A100. If anyone has any idea why USB DAC could have been removed, please post it in the comments.
The rest of the features appear to be identical to the ZX300, DSD, DSEE HX and S-Master HX (see left) are all present still. Codec wise, both aptX and LDAC are supported.
Cassette Tape UI
Like the new A-Series, the ZX also features the cassette tape UI. I cannot find any actual photos of the ZX500 with the new UI but it should look like the UI on the A-Series seen here. The tapes in the UI change in appearance depending on what type and quality of file is being played.
Battery Life
The battery life has decreased just like in the new A-Series, likely due to the larger and higher resolution LCD and Android OS. There is no mention of battery life while streaming, but I am guessing it will be much less considering WiFi is being used as well. A full recharge takes 6.5 hours, 1 hour more than the ZX300.
