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In recent times, there has been a slew of hi-tech mp3 players available at highly affordable prices, and one wonders if the traditional walkman is not fast becoming obsolete.
True - mp3 players do have several advantages, but there is a beauty to the old walkman, as well. I will, of course, not deal with the merits and demerits between the walkman and mp3 players. That is not the purpose of this review. Instead, I am writing about a walkman that is so well designed, as to make the user to simply fall in love with it! Hard to believe? Read on.
The brand ’’Panasonic’’ needs no introduction! It produces several wonderful products; the model RQ SX53 is one such from its stable.
So, what is so great about this model, you say? You probably are thinking, a walkman is a walkman, however wonderfully designed? Not so, this one is different!
To understand what I am trying to say, just visualise in your mind for a moment how you normally see a walkman.
a bulky piece that you clip on to your belt
one that does not easily fit into your shirt pocket, and sags it when you do so
a raw, functional piece that is not really aesthetic looking, but simply delivers the goods
very limited features
Keeping all these user critiques in mind, companies have been redesigning the traditional walkman. Panasonic is not an exception, and the result is the visually appealing RQ SX53.
Apart from delivering the goods, that walkmans’ are normally associated with, this particular model is also aesthetically designed and has very pleasing looks. You can be sure that when you carry this piece with you, you will most certainly be piqued by the curiosity of the people around you. At the same time, you will be very proud to own this piece.
The model does not carry any of the conventional looks of the traditional walkman. It is simply out-of-the-world!
It is encased in an Aluminium Body finish. It is an ultra Slim Design model(Dimensions(WxHxD) 108.8x75.0x18.2mm). You won’t find any of the glaring switches that you find in the run-of-the-mill walkmans’. Of course, it does have touch buttons on the front of its body, but these are just 3 semi-transparent blue buttons that look good!
It is also pretty feature-rich, and comes equipped with several attractive and exciting features like.
4 track, 2 channel, stereo
Dolby B NR - To reduce noise on tapes recorded with Dolby B NR to 1/3
S-XBS - Boosts the low frequency range
Tape Program Sensor(TPS) - For skipping up to 3 tracks and start Play from the beginning of a track
Auto Reverse Mechanism - The tape is played up to 3 times unless manually stopped
Hold Function - Helps in preventing the unit from operating in error
Remote Control(not cordless) - Don’t go about thinking that this is a cordless remote! Because, it is not! It still operates on the earphones cord.
The additional benefit is that you don’t need to operate the main unit while having this in the palm of your hand! It incorporates all the main features of the main unit like Play, Stop, Rewind, Forward, Skip, and Volume Control.
The walkman also has a dual mode battery system that when combined gives 75 hours of play time. It features the standard Alkaline AA Single Battery system that gives around 55 hours plus of play time. For this, it has an innovative battery compartment that is not built-in into the walkman, but has to be attached to the walkman by screwing it on.
Further, it has an additional rechargeable battery compartment that is built-in into the walkman. The rechargeable battery is a very cute-looking, slim battery that fits in neatly into the rechargeable battery compartment. The rechargeable battery takes up to 4 hours to fully recharge, and once this is done, it gives a play time of around 17 hours.
As per specs, the battery can be recharged up to 300 times. Assuming this is true, it gives a play time of 5100 hours, before it needs to be replaced. The rechargeable battery comes with its own battery case, and charger.
The walkman is also equipped with a Battery Check feature that lets you know the battery charge status.
And of course, the walkman also has all the standard features / accessories like volume Control(both on the walkman and the remote control), an output jack, and trendy earphones.
Pros:-
# That is what I was talking about till now;-) If you did not notice that, then I must have done a pretty bad job:-(
Cons:-
# No pouch
# No belt clip
# Price on the higher side(Rs.2, 500+)
# Does not seem to be available in India in the white market( I bought it in a customer counter)
# Slightly heavy(Mass: 156g with rechargeable battery; and may be more when the alkaline battery system & battery is also fitted-in)
Subsequent to my purchasing this model, there have been several other more sophisticated models introduced into the market by companies like Sony and Panasonic.
But, I still like this piece. I feel that it gives me all that a user would want at a very reasonable price.
For those readers for whom price is no object, you might want to enquire about the Sony WM-EX61 walkman which is quite good. Others, be warned that the price is not going to be easy on your pockets.
This is my first review on any product. So, please let me know how you feel about it.
You can check us out at https://urbanohermits.blogspot.in/