Sony Walkman D-FS18 Personal CD Player
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Similar in Portable CD Players
- CD-R/CD-RW Playback: CD-R/CD-RW
- Bass Boost: With Bass Boost
- Anti Skip Buffer: G-Protection By Sony
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The best portable CD player around... and yeah, it's versatile too
Pros
Water-resistant, you can jog with it, all kinds of cool features.
Cons
Cheap headphones.
Recommended it?
Yes
The Bottom Line:
Great versatility, with a price that won't kill you.
I have been shopping around for a good portable CD player for some time, looking for one with all the features I could ever want, at a decent price. I found this one thanks to a brilliantly designed Sony website, and made the purchase yesterday at Best Buy.
First, the basics. It has 45-second G-Shock Protection, which means you can jog with it. I haven't actually tested the theory yet, but I've never heard of it failing under those conditions, from other people that have it. It's also water-resistant, which is nice. My only qualm is that it's not impact-resistant... a problem that was easily solved by purchasing a Best Buy 2-year warranty for $17.99, which I think is well worth it because I plan to jog on some rough terrain with it.
The CD player itself has a nice locking door, so it doesn't just open whenever it feels like it. It also has a programmable memory play feature, repeat, shuffle, bass boost (x1 or x2), and a nice hold button. I didn't understand the hold button until I tried it... if you're doing more active work, you keep the hold button locked and no buttons get pushed accidentally. The radio has digital tuning, and can store 30 preset FM stations and 6 AM. The display is very nice and easy to read, with track numbers and run times clearly displayed.
The CD player sells with the detachable handstrap (for jogging), a DC adapter, and earphones, which are built rather cheaply. But really, when you buy a $129 CD player, you're not buying it for the headphones.
The other thing I liked about the technology on the D-FS18 was that it can play CDRs and CDRWs. I don't do a lot of burning right now, but the flexibility is nice to have, especially for such a growing medium. The only thing it does not have that I might enjoy is the ability to read MP3 CDs. Sony has other models that do that, but they are more expensive. Battery life on this model is supposedly 35 hours, I haven't gotten that far with it yet to test the theory.
Overall, I recommend buying from a store that offers the additional 2-year warranty, which is a great buy. Best Buy will replace any part of the CD player (or the whole thing) no matter what I do to it. And with all these features, who'd want to be without this CD player for very long?
First, the basics. It has 45-second G-Shock Protection, which means you can jog with it. I haven't actually tested the theory yet, but I've never heard of it failing under those conditions, from other people that have it. It's also water-resistant, which is nice. My only qualm is that it's not impact-resistant... a problem that was easily solved by purchasing a Best Buy 2-year warranty for $17.99, which I think is well worth it because I plan to jog on some rough terrain with it.
The CD player itself has a nice locking door, so it doesn't just open whenever it feels like it. It also has a programmable memory play feature, repeat, shuffle, bass boost (x1 or x2), and a nice hold button. I didn't understand the hold button until I tried it... if you're doing more active work, you keep the hold button locked and no buttons get pushed accidentally. The radio has digital tuning, and can store 30 preset FM stations and 6 AM. The display is very nice and easy to read, with track numbers and run times clearly displayed.
The CD player sells with the detachable handstrap (for jogging), a DC adapter, and earphones, which are built rather cheaply. But really, when you buy a $129 CD player, you're not buying it for the headphones.
The other thing I liked about the technology on the D-FS18 was that it can play CDRs and CDRWs. I don't do a lot of burning right now, but the flexibility is nice to have, especially for such a growing medium. The only thing it does not have that I might enjoy is the ability to read MP3 CDs. Sony has other models that do that, but they are more expensive. Battery life on this model is supposedly 35 hours, I haven't gotten that far with it yet to test the theory.
Overall, I recommend buying from a store that offers the additional 2-year warranty, which is a great buy. Best Buy will replace any part of the CD player (or the whole thing) no matter what I do to it. And with all these features, who'd want to be without this CD player for very long?
