sony

Sony's new NWZ-S610 Walkman reviewed

Hallelujah! Sony has done away with its horrible SonicStage software and is opting to go the PlaysForSure route with all of its new Walkman players. Yes, it's not the most traditional way to start a post, but I couldn't bear to place this most exciting tidbit anywhere but front and center, so there you have it. The death of SonicStage comes wrapped up in two nice new MP3 players, the NWZ-A810 and the NWZ-S610, a compact, flash player that is the subject of this review. Of course, an improved software relationship isn't the only thing this device … Read more

Slim PSP, in the flesh

PHOTOS: Sony's new PSP, in depth

It's not hitting stores until September 10, but Sony is already sending review samples of the new, slimmed-down PSP to various media outlets, CNET included. Not counting the brief walk-through we got four weeks ago, this was our first bit of quality time with the final hardware. A full review is forthcoming; but in the meantime, here are some first impressions of what Sony is calling "the PSP 2000."

Thinner and lighter: While the 19 percent depth reduction may not look dramatic in the comparative photos, when you actually pick … Read more

Sony NWZ-A810 coming to an Internet near you

Again with the Internet slip-ups, only this time the company itself is to blame. This morning, a new Sony MP3/video player sneaked onto SonyStyle briefly. As anyone who listened to my podcast rant about broken NDAs might infer, this tidbit was not welcome news first thing in the morning. (At least one other gadget journalist knows the sting of this pain.) I'd been sitting on the Sony NWZ-A815 info for a while, and I kept my mouth shut, even when a blurry rumor blog posted about it yesterday. But--I'm sorry--when the company itself cannot keep its own … Read more

Nikon tops SLR customer satisfaction survey

Update 11:25 a.m. PDT: Some folks seem confused about what exactly J.D. Power and Associates is measuring, so I've added some more detail about the study and about Sony's rating.

Well, this news isn't going to go over well at Canon.

According to a new survey by J.D. Power and Associates, Nikon is the clear leader in customer satisfaction among digital SLR (single-lens reflex) customers in the United States. Adding insult to injury, SLR newcomer Sony came in second.

The survey doesn't measure product quality, but rather how happy more than 7,… Read more

The Gizmo Report: Victorinox's Trevi 17 briefcase

(Before I get started with this review, a note of caution about one of my other gizmos. My Sony PRS-500 eBook reader has developed some kind of display problem; the leftmost inch of the screen no longer updates. I checked around online and the going price for this repair appears to be about $250. That's on a gizmo that sells for $279 on Amazon right now. Not a good deal. I'll check with Sony and update this information if I get a better price.)

I've been carrying around a cheap nylon briefcase I bought at the Apple Company Store about ten years ago. I bought it because it had a front pocket the perfect size for my… Read more

Rootkit woes for Sony again?

Remember the hubbub over Sony BMG Music Entertainment's rootkit debacle, involving its CDs?

Well, another arm of Sony, this time Sony Electronics, may face a little of the brouhaha, as well.

According to a blog posting Monday by F-Secure, Sony's Micro Vault USM-F thumb drive comes with software that contains a rootkit.

For those who missed out on the Sony BMG fiasco, a rootkit is a tool that can cloak the presence of certain files or processes and prevent users from performing certain tasks on their computer. While Sony BMG used the rootkits as a means to prevent … Read more

Sony's new Vaio LT19U: some all-in-one firsts

Update: It took us a minute to figure out that the Blu-ray region hadn't been set in the software. That and the sheer length of this review mean you should look for it tomorrow. Almost done.

Apple's new iMac remains the all-purpose all-in-one to beat, but Sony's just-announced Vaio LT19U has three features we've never seen in a PC/monitor combo before. This $2,899 model (an update to last year's Vaio LS1) has a Blu-ray burner, a pull-out sled for adding a second hard drive, and a VESA-standard wall mount input. It also comes … Read more

Vote: Battle of the non-violent robots

Voting is now closed for this round. See the results of the battles here and vote on eight more first round battles here.

Complex as they are, most robots solve dilemmas in a basic way: they fight each other. Then Michael Bay films it, charges $10 a ticket, and everyone enjoys the marvelous robots-kicking-the-crap-out-of-each-other show.

But there are plenty of robots that have no appetite for destruction. What about these robots, ones that have to rely on personality, artifical wits, social skills, and dance moves in order to survive?

Even if they banded together, these robots couldn't fight their … Read more

Shiny Sony Ericssons in a shiny box

It's been a while since I received any new cell phones from Sony Ericsson. So when the company called to tell me they were sending me not just one, but three new handsets from the last CTIA show I was very excited. But leave it to Sony Ericsson, which takes its handset design very seriously (and to great success) to make the packaging equally as exciting.

While most of the review cell phones that I receive come in the standard box, Sony Ericsson packed the new models and a couple of accessories in this fancy faux leather container in … Read more