Philips AX5011 Personal CD Player

I've owned my Philips AX5011 Personal CD Player for over a year know (got it on Christmas of 2002, I believe), and I'm happy to say that it still works. This CD player has lasted through some tough times—falling off tables, magically falling out of my brother's hands *ahem*, and even getting hit with my niece's full baby bottle—but it still works just fine, so all is good. And while I cannot say that you should run out of your house to buy this CD player, I still find this particular compact disc player to be a good one.

♦ Everything You Need to Know ♦

The first thing that will probably jump out at you is the see-through, hard plastic outer casing, which gives the Philips AX5011 Personal CD Player a hip, cool look… even though the initial reaction of "the look" will dissipate quickly. Inscribed on the see-through casing is "45 ESP, Jogproof, 45 Second Electronic Skip Protection." Near the top of the CD player (where the buttons are) and around the edges is a shiny, silver plating—not real silver, of course. The bottom of this player is a dark grey. Overall, I think the look is pretty neat and well-designed; the see-through outer casing is by far the most prominent of features.

As with any CD player, the Philips AX5011 Personal CD Player includes a "Play/Pause" button, a "Stop" button, along with the "Seek Backward/Rewind" and "Seek Forward/Fast-forward" buttons. With this CD player, you also get a "Digital Dynamic Bass Boost" button (meaning there are two levels of bass; the second bass level giving you a louder, better effect in my opinion) and an "ESP" button which eliminates CD skipping. All of the buttons are located near the top of the CD player, and are very close together. In fact, all of the buttons are pretty much connected to each other, and while I don't find this to be an issue, I can see how some people might get frustrated after pushing a button they didn't mean to push. But because these buttons are pretty large anyway, I don't think there should be too many problems or confusion as to which button is which.

There are a few more buttons on this CD player—a "Program" button along with a "Mode" button, which when pushed, give the "repeat," "repeat all," "shuffle," and "scan" options. On the side of the Philips AX5011 Personal CD Player is a switch that gives the owner the "hold" option (which is the equivalent of locking a key pad on a cell phone), along with a "resume" option which allows the listener to pick up where they left off. Also along the edge is a line output/headphone output. I do not recall if this CD player came with headphones or not, but if they did, I must not have liked them. I use these headphones instead.

Unlike most compact disc players, the battery holder on the Philips AX5011 Personal CD Player is actually in the CD player, directly below where you put the CD. This helps because if the CD player were to be dropped, the batteries would not fall out. The only downside is that I find the plastic lid of the battery holder to be very fragile; it could easily be yanked off if not used with gentle hands. Two AA batteries are required, and I've found the battery life to be very decent. Of course it all depends on how much you use your Philips AX5011 Personal CD Player, but I can usually go two to three weeks (and occasionally a month) without having to do a battery change. There is a battery meter on the screen which tells you how much more "juice" is in your batteries.

The sound quality of this CD player is crystal clear; sound is not an issue. As for durability concerns, Philips AX5011 Personal CD Player does what it claims, and can be used for jogging/running/walking. Skipping is not an issue either; however, if you give your player a good whack or blow, sometimes it will skip. Be sure to note that these is no clip on the back of this CD player… which is kind of a downside because now you will have to carry the CD player with you instead of clipping it onto your pants.

Getting this as a gift over a year ago, I honestly do not know how much this CD player costs. But after looking at other reviews and stores online, I've come to the conclusion that the average price is around $50.

♦ Final Thoughts ♦

All in all, I think the Philips AX5011 Personal CD Player is a good deal. The look is what will attract people to this personal CD player, but the functional things like the skip protection, hidden battery holder, sound quality, and "Digital Dynamic Bass Boost" button are a few of this CD player's "hidden treasures." If I could change the Philips AX5011 Personal CD Player, I would add a clip that could attach to a person's pants for exercising, and I would also make the battery holder lid a little sturdier—the downsides are pretty minor. The price isn't too bad either, so if you come across the Philips AX5011 Personal CD Player, I'd encourage you to give it a try!

Four stars – not a "must buy," but a good CD player indeed.