A Great CD Walkman for Runners

I bought this product to use for running in all weather conditions & for my morning commute on the train. I have had the product since 8/16/02.

So far it functions flawlessly. The batteries last about 40 hours. It comes with a hand strap that fits comfortably & allows you to change the stations or CD tracks & adjust the volume with your left thumb. This is extremely useful as it allows you to hold the walkman securely while freeing up your right hand. Also comes with a power supply that doubles as a battery charger.

The latch that holds the walkman shut is both exceptionally strong & easy to open & close. It will not fly open while you are using it. There are 3 preset buttons & a TV & Weather Band(WB) buttons on the front. You can also store additional stations using the Preset /- button. There is a Bass Boost & a Hold switch that allows you deactivate the other buttons.

With the 10K Anti-Skip G Protection it is near impossible for a CD to skip. I have even shaken mine violently while it is playing to test it & it refuses to skip. CD Sound is excellent. It sounds even better with upgraded headphones but the ones included are more than adequate. It plays regular CDs, MP3s, CD-R, & CD-RW. FM & AM reception is better than average but nothing to write home about. The TV & Weather Band are virtually useless. Reception is horrible but I don't think this is the fault of the walkman. Unfortunately all Walkmans I have used suffer from this problem.

It is water resistant. I took it out on a 2 mile run in a heavy downpour & I had no problems with it. Also the design of the headphones keeps sweat from away from the speakers. The headphones also allow you to listen to music at a reasonable volume without everyone knowing what you are listening to. To me this is important because I commute to work on a crowded train.

The only problems I have experienced with this walkman are as follows. The plastic on the bottom has started to come loose but it is in no danger of breaking off. The buttons require a little pressure to push. Finally when the batteries start to get low it has an annoying habit of loosing your EQ/Bass settings from CD to CD & from FM to CD.