Sony D-EJ625

Still the best portable music player I've had, still lasting, and will continue to do so. It's still alive seven years later and has the best bass and sound settings I've heard from any portable music player.

Not compatible with MP3 CDs, which is a given considering its age.

The Sony D-EJ620 & D-EJ625 Discmans are relatively safe purchases.The latter is slightly more expensive because it's packaged with a `fancy` inline remote, rechargeable batteries and adapter. Both units are exactly the same though. Costing less, the `barebones` D-EJ620` comes supplied with just standard in-ear headphones. If you do opt for the cheaper & aren't fussy about brand names - common ac/dc adapters & rechargeable batteries are easily found in any gift shop So, no endless hunting for specialist bits or lengthy phone calls to suppliers. With this typical set-up you've got playing time of around 13 hours & recharge time of 5 hours - (depending on the battery brand /type). The unit is minimal, if a little bulky depth-wise. It doesn't fit in a pocket very easily and it weights a lot. Somehow though, I can't help feeling the dated design contributes to its durability. I had someone accidentally knocked mine off a 4 ft tabletop - it didn't sustain any damage. I also have to credit the clear plastic lacquer coated over its chrome trimmings & LCD display. It prevents common wear `n` tear scratches like you might get, for example, on your mobile phone display. Great attention to detail, as always.

Sony's G-protection/jog proof is absolutely flawless; this thing just doesn't skip and there's little reduction in volume like you sometimes get with jogproof. Put this unit in a belt pouch and it's ideal for sports activities like cycling or pumping at the gym. (Providing you have an inline remote). There's also a convenient AVLS switch (volume limiter) located under the battery flap and a line out port for plugging into any exterior recording source. More importantly, the sound quality is everything you'd come to expect. Sometimes the bass can be a little heavy, causing distortion & only features 3 adjustable settings. That's my only criticism.

I prefer the digital volume buttons as oppose to rotary dial disks. This piece of kit has a great range of volume settings, moving up or down in sets of 3, it's sensitive. It`s a shame they couldn't have made the bass control like this. There are several play modes/intro scan, random, programmable ect..

I wouldn't say this Discman was amazing value for money because of the extras you might have to buy. Also, there are cheaper players or equal on the market, hosting more features than the more costly version. Expect, for a minimal £79.99, superb sound quality - a durable, reliable player packed with just about all the basic features you'll ever need. It's also a nice design, looks kinda cool. You could even be forgiven for thinking there's more to it, except there isn't - its just a CD player! I'd rate it as `safely average` which might not be good enough for serious CD enthusiasts or ex mp3/minidisc fanatics alike.