LuLu

There's been threads on this here and here for starters. Hope this helps.

Another thread posted somewhere on this forum (it is really hard to find stuff using this interface!) mentioned that the ID3 tags are of a version that SS doesn't tolerate. Using iTunes the author of this post provided steps on how to role back the version of the tag (to 2.3 if I recall correctly) and then cover art would show up in A80X devices. I had the same problem with my A806. Tried the solution using iTunes. In order for me to get it to work I had change it version 2.0. Plus not all the MP3 files would have this option once imported into iTunes. I don't know what happens with the new video MP3 players that don't use SS. Anyone care to share their experiences?

In this article the author mentions a recent review of another Sony DAP, the NW-E015. He writes that these devices have the same "small, three-line colour TFT". When you look at the review for the NW-E015 there's a picture of the unit that shows cover art on the display. So my question is does the NWD-B100 also have cover art capabilities? Thanks. LuLu

Great review. Thanks for taking the time to write it and share your photos. Just curious. Can you see this file when you have the player hooked up to your computer? I'm thinking that as long as you can transfer it over you can probably find a way to edit or play it on your computer. If I recall correctly back in the day of the old minidisc players Sony finally added a utility to transfer your own recordings. Perhaps they are going to get to this (fingers crossed)... I hope you can also shut off this autorun feature! Nothing worse than a device automatically doing that everytime you plug it in to recharge. One other thing...I noticed in your photos (the one that shows the backside with the cap off)...is there a way to hook a lanyard on the back (is that what that small metal loop is in the middle of the player but close to the top near the reset button?). Thanks.

I would encourage everyone to consider buying something from Sony's new pink (ya, I know pink - what can we do?) line. The proceeds support breast cancer research (I work in this field, we need $$$, it's reaching epidemic rates !!!). Here's some more info from Engadget. Sony paints gadgets pink, donates to breast cancer research As companies continue to give their products pink makeovers in support of National Breast Cancer Awareness Month, Sony is joining the fray by introducing a trio of items that all give back. Up first is the 14.1-inch VGN-CR290EAP laptop (starting at $1,369.99), which features a 2.2GHz Intel Core 2 Duo processor, 200GB of hard drive space, DVD writer, a 1.3-megapixel webcam, integrated X3100 graphics, 2GB of DDR2 RAM and a slew of ports to boot. The 4GB NWZ-A816PNK Walkman ($149.95) boasts a 320 x 240 display, up to 33-hours of battery life (8-hours when playing back videos) and support for MP3, WMA, AAC, MPEG4 and M4V formats. Finally, the 8-inch DVP-FX810/P portable DVD player ($189.99) offers up a swiveling flip-screen and promises around 5.5-hours of life on a full charge. And just so you know, Sony will be donating $75, $10 and $10 (respectively) from the sale of each aforementioned gadget to the Breast Cancer Research Foundation. Thanks for your suppport. LuLu

Try searching under the new A810 series. They are same size/build as your A808.

Try either the Sony Style store in your country or eBay.

You can still get an A806 (the 4 gig model) that uses ATRAC at sonystyle.ca.

The problem about the exchange rate is very annoying. They are selling many items at the Sonystyle.ca and Sony stores that are ridiculously overpriced when you compare them at the US site. C'mon Sony the dollar is almost the same!! If I need to buy anything I'm trying to get it directly from the States (Amazon.com rather than Amazon.ca for example). Even with the shipping costs I still save.

I'm using XP still so I don't know what the options are Vista...but what about using the compatibility install? In XP if you right click on the .exe file that installs, chose properties you get a series of tabbed items. Click on "compatibility" and chose "run this compatibility mode for" and pick an earlier OS.

I would update/create a backup of your songs using the "Backup My Library" feature in SS. Then install the patch. If anything happens to your songs then just re-install them from SS.

I think the A8XX look more stylish as well. It might be the buttons. I prefer the ones on these models. I also agree about the space. Notice also that on both the A-8XX and the S-61X the bottom section of the DAP that contains the buttons takes up almost one-third of the device. On NW-A910 the buttons are only about one-quarter of the face. It would have been great if they used the buttons from the A-8XX on the 910. I think the S-61X series look "cheap" because of the way they framed the front (the rounded edges).

From Engadget I like the look of this. The brushed metal finish on this unit reminds me of an MD player (the mz-nh1). Notice the comment, "As this is Japan, it still supports ATRAC..." Also note the 16 gb flash memory. Must be coming to the dedicated DAPS soon. If this gets released in Canada it is going to be my next purchase for sure!

I think the answer to the question about cost is up to you and how much value you are going to get out of it.BTW, what is the Nokia BH-500 for? I like those headphones (DRBT50), they are a nice fit for my ears, the sound quality is appealing to me and I can use them with my A-806 and my bookshelf unit (CMT-U1BT). The headphones come with a nice carry case, are rechargeable (but have a good battery life), come with the recharger but are not made for outside use though (this may impact your purchase decision). In another post someone on this board I mention how delicate the WLA-NWB1 is. I only had a week or so before I lost the button on the back. Also pairing can be kind of tedious. If it works, it happens pretty much instantly. If it doesn't then you know you're going to have difficulty. Also it doesn't seem to always "stick" so sometimes you have to re-pair. Now that the bluetooth stuff is being released in the US I'm looking forward to others getting this gear and discussing it here.

PM Ishiyoshi directly, mention you followed all the steps correctly (including re-booting) and see what advice he has.

You are correct, it does not. I can clearly see your DAP is connected but there is no icon. I can see the icon file and .inf files on the DAP root directory. Did you edit the .inf file to reflect the name of the icon you want to appear? Here's mine: [autorun] icon=A80xB.ico label=Network Walkman NW-A806 Note the reference specifically to A80xB.ico, which is the black one. Also note I the text after the label=. You can call it whatever you want. I think everything I've written above can be found on this board (perhaps not posted recently though). I first did this with my NW-407 a few years ago now. Maybe the instructions used to be included as a text file in the zip with the icons...

It means you may get something more or less out of it. Your experience might be different. It refers to gas mileage in cars in which different drivers might experience better or worse mileage depending on the way they drive their car, the type of car, etc.

Your milage may vary.

I have a few BlueTooth devices - all Sony products except for my laptop. If you buy Sony the BlueTooth will work. I can use the bluetooth headphones (DRBT50) with my A806 using the WLANWB1 as well as my bookshelf unit (CMT-U1BT). But I had buy the adapter (HWSBTA2W) to get the latter to pair. I had some difficulty getting any of these devices to work with my laptop (Dell). I think I got the headphones to work but I'm not sure. It was very frustrating. Make sure you read the instructions on any non-Sony product before you buy it if you want it to work with Sony. Sony does warn you about compatibility issues in the manuals.

The icon appears in "My Computer" or Windows Explorer. When you click on My Computer you can see a tree of all the items on your hard drive and devices attached to your computer. Icons appear on the left hand side that represent the item. The icon to the left of your local drive looks like a minature hard drive. Yellow file folders appear besise directories, etc. If you have the icon and the autorun file on the root drive of your DAP then the icon will appear in My Computer when the device is hooked up to your computer.

I'm not so sure the lack of US release was because it was doing poorly elsewhere. I think Sony was just waiting until the SS free version was ready (although I can't imagine how hard it would have been to create that given the otherwise similarity with the A800 series). Who knows what they are thinking. We can conjecture forever but I doubt we'll ever figure Sony out!

You can get one from eBay. Here's the link.

Welcome! How are you transferring the files? Did you install the SS software to transfer the mp3 files?

Have you tried to reset it?

I purchased the AVS Video Tools package (after testing the demo version) specifically for this reason. I've had no problems transferring videos with Image Converter after using AVS Video Converter or AVS Video to Go. Several weeks ago I downloaded the free first episode of "John from Cincinnati" from HBO through iTunes. I was able to use Image Converter and put it on my A806 without incident. Perhaps if those who are having video conversion problems used a file that someone has succesfully converted and transferred we might be able to narrow down some of the problems with Image Converter.