Vaio Pocket: Raise your hand if you love it

[Rumz]

Just signed up for the forum-- thank you Chris for taking the initiative to fill the void on the Internet that was left by a lack of Atrac device forum. This is what I've wanted for some time now

I simply thought I'd start a thread about the Vaio Pocket for general discussion. I've been using this thing since December 04 when Ishi seduced me into buying one And I love it. Favorite of any DAP I've ever owned. Gapless, 40 gigs, color screen, adequate battery life, and of course of importance to me is that it sounds great. No complaints about the sound... handles mp3s beautifully, etc. I so far have been using Shure E3cs, MDR-D66SL eggos, and even some Koss KSC75s with it-- all sound great on it. The Pocket has that little extra oomph in the lower range that my E3c needs. I'm very satisfied...

It's a little sad this may be an orphan product... I can only dream of Sony releasing another firmware update for it to fix some things, it seems to have potential compared to other players in the firmware upgrade department.

Now a little something you might laugh at:

Since I'm apprehensive of re-initializing the Vaio Pocket upon install of a later version of SonicStage, I've yet to upgrade...

Laugh at my laziness: I still use Sonic Stage 2.3 and am content to use atrac3plus 256k for gapless recordings and LAME mp3s for most everything else. Does what I need and I don't want to re-load 20 gigs worth of music back onto my Pocket. =P Yes, I'm lazy...

Anyhow, it's been fun to watch as the Pocket has become more affordable recently and gained some more fans. Who else loves their Pocket? What headphones do you use with your Pocket? How often do you use it? (In comparison to other DAPs you may have, if you have them-- only time I don't use the Pocket is at the gym... have an NW-E107 for that).

[Ishiyoshi]

Warmest welcome, Rumz!

I love my VAIO Pocket!

[auvi_joe]

Got my both hands up.

Interested in this device since Ishi did a preview some time last year on T-board. Tried it in store. Was not sure about Photo USB-OTG capabilities plus Sony's commitment to its firmware and SS software developments. Plus too pricey at $400+ tag for untested product then. Now at 6+ months later, it is all looking better and took the plunge and been very happy with Photo and music capability of this little box. There are lots of room for improvement in photo and accessories (and software)dept. but it is a very capable package as is.

I use it in the car (hooked to car stereo), at home(hooked to home stereo or with larger headphones), at the office desk, sometimes in the park, at the beach with more portable smaller headphones(KSC35, KSC75, MDR888, Sharp-heisers, Shure E2). I don't use it much in the gym and on the track for running, biking where impact is heavy. My Sharp MD players are very nice for those activities. I am also known to use my Dell Axim X50v for music at the office.

I am using SS3.1 with latest firmware on a W2k desktop and a XP home notebook. Have some MP3 albums with various bit rates(VBR, CBR mixed) but mostly using ATRAC3+ @256kbps. I have it loaded with about 20+ albums so far and I have barely scratched its 40gig space capacity!

I am sure certain white colored _pod's are very hip to be seen with and all but this little Vaio Pocket is a little known wonder that fits the bill for me. Big thumbs up!

[Rumz]

Yes I definitely get some looks with this player-- the tech savy, anyways, stop and say "what's THAT?" Because they recognize the Sony name and most of all that it's NOT an iPod They've never seen these little known-wonders before.

I did spring for a second cradle for this thing so as to have one stationary at the computer and another for moving around (I know-- $70+ for a cradle is steep) and do quite enjoy hooking the Pocket up to external stereos.

Of course, everyone asks if it can play video because they know my phone can. If only Sony were to continue the Vaio Pocket line... they could improve the way the player accesses the hard drive and throw in mp4 video playback I suppose that would compete with the PSP a bit though, huh...

[atrain]

i'd been wanting one since you put a single photo on the tboard. took me about a year to actually get one when to my pleasure i found that the price had dropped to an amazing extent. i'm using ss3.2, atrac 256 & mp3 cbr at 192-256 with d22 eggos, ex71 & ath-a500s.

awesome!

[Leon]

Hey hey, not an owner here, but I was reading and wondered if anyone considered Hot Pocket as a nickname *ducks*

Just move/delete the post if it's too irrelevant, please

Just before the Vaio Pocket was announced, the newspaper rumors said Sony may release a whole line of Vaio-branded products, but this ended up being the one and only. We may not see a replacement if all portable audio get folded into "Connect Company", and I'm beginning to think the Walkman team = less interesting products (as opposed to the PSP team, Vaio people, etc).

Rumz, how's the E107? I was in the market for one but had to give up cause I need a player that works with OS X

[atrain]

Hey hey, not an owner here, but I was reading and wondered if anyone considered Hot Pocket as a nickname *ducks*

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it's slightly better an option than the 'pocket shuffle'

[auvi_joe]

Hey hey, not an owner here, but I was reading and wondered if anyone considered Hot Pocket as a nickname *ducks*

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Hot pocket...

More like hot and heavy pocket.... That thing is solid like a brick(not too big, just heavy for it's size). I can feel every gig of its 40 gig when in the pocket, and that's before loading up with some heavy metal music...

[Christopher]

More like hot and heavy pocket....

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You just reminded me of this article by Wired.

[auvi_joe]

You just reminded me of this article by Wired. 

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Funny. I am just about to go out for a 10k run with my MD, you can say I am about to cheat on my VP. Shhhhhhhh...... Don't tell her please

[Richard_p]

I just got my Vaio Pocket delivered yesterday. I decided to get a HDD walkman as i've had too many Mini Disc players which have broken.

I decided on the vaio as it seemed too good to be true 40GB Hard drive Coour screen, and remote all for £185 delvered brand new from the US.

I like that it is different to the usual iPod that it seems like everyone at my college owns. To me iPods are overpriced, overstylised (sp?) and overmarketed. There are much better players out there and they are more a fasion accessory than anything else. As i said i like that my Vaio is a little different

As for headphones i have yet to try the stock ones (most likely rubbish). I mainly use my MDR-ED21's and occasionaly (at least i did with my MD players) my V-300's.

I have used previous portables frquently and see no reason why the vaio ill be different. I will use it when cycling to and from work and probably whilst at work too (Pizza Hut lol...) as well as at college. I rarely leave the house without it.

[lamewing]

I just got my Vaio Pocket delivered yesterday. I decided to get a HDD walkman as i've had too many Mini Disc players which have broken.

I decided on the vaio as it seemed too good to be true 40GB Hard drive Coour screen, and remote all for £185 delvered brand new from the US.

I like that it is different to the usual iPod that it seems like everyone at my college owns. To me iPods are overpriced, overstylised (sp?) and overmarketed. There are much better players out there and they are more a fasion accessory than anything else. As i said i like that my  Vaio is a little different

As for headphones i have yet to try the stock ones (most likely rubbish). I mainly use my MDR-ED21's and occasionaly (at least i did with my MD players) my V-300's.

I have used previous portables  frquently and see no reason why the vaio ill be different. I will use it when cycling to and from work and probably whilst at work  too (Pizza Hut lol...) as well as at college. I rarely leave the house without it.

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I have a Pocket Vaio as well. Had it about a week. My question to you is what about the iPod makes it a lesser device compared to the Pocket Vaio? I ask because I am concerned about something regarding the Pocket Vaio.

1. It cannot display anything but English and Japanese, no Hangul. I have tried everything mentioned on this board and minidisc.org. iTunes and the iPod can easily display so many languages. The Korean Cowon X5/X5L can also display mulitple languages (Asian).

Am I doing something wrong or is the Pocket Vaio truly incapable of displaying Hangul? Thiis is a deal breaker for me. Thanks.

Joe

[Ishiyoshi]

Welcome to ALC!

The VAIO Pocket as is most Sony portable audio device does not support Hangul text (except for D-NE20, D-NE920 and likely the new NW-E400/500 series).

[lamewing]

Welcome to ALC!

The VAIO Pocket as is most Sony portable audio device does not support Hangul text (except for D-NE20, D-NE920 and likely the new NW-E400/500 series).

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That is too bad because it really is a nice device (minus the text limitations and needing the cradle to recharge). Thanks for the info.

Ishiyoshi, do you have any insight as to WHY Sony chooses not to support multiple languages? If a company as small as Apple Computer can, why cannot a large electronics company do the same? I cannot believe that the programmers/engineers at Sony are that inept. Is it a philisopical choice or something? Thanks.

Joe

[Ishiyoshi]

That is too bad because it really is a nice device (minus the text limitations and needing the cradle to recharge). Thanks for the info.

Ishiyoshi, do you have any insight as to WHY Sony chooses not to support multiple languages? If a company as small as Apple Computer can, why cannot a large electronics company do the same? I cannot believe that the programmers/engineers at Sony are that inept. Is it a philisopical choice or something? Thanks.

Joe

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It is definitely most unfortunate that VAIO products do not support multi-language text since it’s now a common feature in portable audio device. However, please note that the VAIO Pocket (started with the VGF-AP1) was first developed solely for the Japanese domestic market then released in Europe, North America and Asia-Pacific - it was never intended for other East Asian market. So, you could factor this into why there is no Hangul support. But then, this is just my opinion.

Another factor you should consider is that the VAIO pocket was designed by the VAIO division and not the Walkman division. From my experience with VAIO products, multi-language support is usually limited to English, Japanese and Chinese.

In addition, I don't believe the engineers at Sony is that inept so to speak (in reference to Apple Computer: I read that ex-VAIO engineers were now employed to assist with future Powerbook development in heat related issue – an example of their know-how); rather, you should blame the absence of multi-language support on departmental bureaucrats. The lack of Hangul support is definitely a poor oversight rather than a philosophical choice.

Hopefully, the next VAIO Pocket variant - that is if there is one - will have multi-language support.

[lamewing]

Ishiyoshi,

Thanks for the info. I guess it doesn't matter what the reasoning behind Sony's decision not to provide full language support for their devices. The end is the same. I listen to music from many cultures and want the song titles in the correct language.

To me, this type of action is one of the things hurting Sony in its competiion against the Apple iPod. Apple has made a product that works on both PC and Mac (SS doesn't). Apple also has created a simple naming scheme so that anyone can instantly recognize what their product is. Sony still uses this archaic system that worked with their other home electronics, but it confuses the public now. NW-1, NW-2, NW-3, NW-5 (where is the NW-4? I understand why, but most non-Japanese won't). Don't get me started on their naming system for their MD units! If they had somehow just use the term Walkman - 20gb, Walkman - 40g, etc.

Don't get me wrong, the pocket vaio is a beautiful, and well-built machine, but some of it limitations are going to force me to return it tomorrw morning.

If only Sony would truly listen to their customers...that reminds me, WHY cannot Sony provide consistancy in their machines. Music can be loaded onto a Sony PSP via SS or by DRAG and DROP. Why won't Sony do the same thing with all their machines? It Sony so large that one section of the company truly doesn't know what another section is doing?

EDIT: It seems I may be keeping the Pocket Vaio after all. I compared it to the iPod in regards to build quality (see my posts at minidisc.org regarding plastic versus metal MD bodies ) and the iPod just doesn't come close, well the iPod mini does, but I want a color screen and more storage potential.

It seems I am now on the search for extra battereis for the Pocket Vaio, in addition to trying to find the NICE SONY leather case that only seems to be sold in Japan. If ANYONE can help me with these issues, PLEASE let me know.

Thanks.

Joe

Edited August 9, 2005 by lamewing

[pato128]

:ol_biggrin:I just got my Vaio today and I’m really impressed. I still have to learn a lot about it, but I like what I see so far. The best think is that I paid only $212.50 on ebay and the seller lives in the same city, so I didn’t even have to pay for shipping!!!!!!. OK, no let’s get back to work; we have a lot to do to fill the 40GB with music and pics.

[kaban]

Finally, uploaded most of my collection and 15 gigs still remains

Just one question about VIAO Music Transfer utility. Why it's so slow? SS 3.2 uploads in seconds, in comparison?

[cuhiep]

I LOVE MY VAIO POCKET

[iyareu]

I LOVE my VAIO Pocket.

I just love it.

I also love atrac3+.

Initially I was very excited to have mp3 playback but the files are quite large.

I have started reimporting the tracks I put on as mp3 initially as atrac3+ (64kbps) now.

This means that just changing the mixture a little - I have 10200 tracks on it and

about 500Mb of pictures and still have 7Gb left to play with.

This means I could get 15000 or so on the player at 64 which for my purposes sounds fine.

What a machine - great to have all (or mostly all) of my music with me at all times in such a stylish package.

People stop, stare and sometimes ask - "what is that and where did you get it?"

When they are told it was under £200 and is a 40Gb player with a colour screen which displays album art and personal pictures as well as sounding wonderful, they are just blown away.

As well they should be.

It is just a shame that they are discontinued.

[Dimitri]

I love my Vaio so much I have twins.

[ameachasag]

I just love my Vaio I have it since Jan 05, and definately would pay the same amount again for this wonderfull product. It´s a pity there are no accessories available.

[brick]

Yeah, I love mine too, except for a few annoyances

I want a case to protect it, but Ebay sellers want £50+ for one!

I want to be able to use it as a file transfer device (but cannot source another cradle)

I want to be able to charge it up at work (but cannot source another cradle)

I want to be able to backup my library on my PC (Just in case). There is no way (afaik) to do this from the Sony software

The G-Sense pad sometimes goes ballistic and wont respond normally (touching the buttons doesnt select the right area etc)

Shuffle is not truly random - Each day I set it to play random and I get the same tracks as yesterday.

If anyone can help me with any of these issues i'd be eternally grateful! Does anyone know of a bastardised cable that can be used for file transfer?

TIA

[atrain]

I want to be able to use it as a file transfer device (but cannot source another cradle)

I want to be able to backup my library on my PC (Just in case). There is no way (afaik) to do this from the Sony software 

just cary the case with you in a bag. there's no need to take the power suply as it'll work fine without it.

what version of sonicstage are you running? my advice is to run the sonicstage backup tool included in the software. you can just do that or better you could run it then update to 3.2 then reimport the database. there's a trick to do next. reconvert all your atrac files to the same bitrate butmake sure you have the no DRM ticked. this will remove all of the computer specific drm keys from the tracks. you can then search for oma & omg files on the hard drive & back them up as data files anywhere you wish.

[jkim]

Just recieved mine yesterday, transferred about 11 gigs already. I love it, i've been collecting jacket art all day, yes it's a slow day at work

Volume doesn't seem to go that high, but that's okay, the quality of the sound is more important than volume. The Vaio seems to have a very rich, rounded sound to it.

I just need a case and i'm all set. I'm probably going to go with the PDAir case in brown.

Actually, does anyone know of a way to create your own skins?

[mmercer13]

I just bought a second one because the first one is almost full, and I figure for 200.00 I'll have an extra remote, battery, and dock in case something happens to one of them. I have a question though. Can I use both of them on the same computer or how does that work?? Let's say I fill one up with my music from SS, can I just hook the other up to put the rest of my music on that one?? How would that work?

LOVE THE VAIO!!!!!!!!!!!!

[chiefj]

I love my Vaio Pocket. I have about 5000 songs on it. Most of them I had to translate the track data into english before I transfered it. I use a converted Smart phone case and carry it on my belt. The case has a clear plastic front so I can see the display and control it without taking it out of the case.

[KJ_Palmer]

It's more 'like' than love with my 40GB Vaio pocket:

Pluses: Sounds great - usual Sony standard - could do with a customisable 6 band EQ, though. Looking at album overs and lyrics is truly wonderful, storage capacity very good. Transfer speeds good (for Sony).

But: battery life isn't too great, not keen on the G-pad sensor, menu navigation is awkward and its a bit bulky.

It's doing service as a playback unit for the hifi via line out, rather than a daily portable unit - MD still rules here as far as I'm concerned.

Rating: 7.5/10

Edited April 6, 2006 by KJ_Palmer