An MP3 player with special features for language learning

[laurenth]

Last week, I was shopping for an mp3 player and I almost randomly purchased a Sony "Walkman" MP3 player (serie NW A45). I was surprised and delighted to discover that it comes with a special "language learning" mode with useful features, i.e.:

•  slow down the speed without quality loss
•  select arbitrary chunks of the podcast or the song for looping
•  rewind 10 secs or 3 secs (of fast forward 5 secs)

 

It’s not the cheapest MP3 player around (I paid 179 €) and I don’t know whether other MP3 players (Sony or other brands) have such features, but I thought it could be interesting information for those who intend to buy an MP3 player to listen to Chinese podcasts. 

[mungouk]

Interesting to see that there are hardware devices doing this, but there must also be lots of smartphone apps that will do the same, for much cheaper or even free. 

 

Any particular reason for buying a hardware device?

 

 

 

[laurenth]

16 minutes ago, mungouk said:

Any particular reason for buying a hardware device?

 

When I bought my phone, I wanted a big screen to be able to read ebooks. As a result, using it when I want to expose myself to Chinese anytime anywhere feels a bit overkill and bulky.

 

Or,  just maybe, it's a lame excuse for compulsive shopping.

[mungouk]

 

[Wurstmann]

The advantage of having a dedicated listening device is that you can let it play the whole day and pop in your earbuds at any time. If you use your phone for listening you probably always have to stop and restart whatever you want to listen to because you want to make phone calls, play games etc. and to conserve battery life.

[simc]

For me it was the one touch 5 sec rewind that I loved about my Sony E Series Walkman MP3 player. It was a sad day when it died.

 

Bit hard to justify buying an new MP3 player at that price though.

[Balthazar]

54 minutes ago, simc said:

Bit hard to justify buying an new MP3 player at that price though. 

 

Different strokes for different folks etc... I agree with Wurstmann regarding the benefits of a dedicated listening device (although I sadly no longer have one), and I'd rather buy a quality device than something likely to break after 1-2 years. My previous player cost slightly less, and lasted for seven years. Wouldn't pay anything above EUR 179 for a new phone though, seems like planned obsolescence is true pretty much across the whole price range :D.

[Dawei3]

One of my earliest devices was an Ipod Nano from 2005.  Notably, it still works (!!!).  Amazing quality... It's battery  is a bit weak, but I use it in the car, so this isn't an issue.   I use it for old Chinesepod lessons I arranged in a certain order.  

[murrayjames]

On 7/21/2019 at 2:34 AM, Wurstmann said:

The advantage of having a dedicated listening device is that you can let it play the whole day and pop in your earbuds at any time. If you use your phone for listening you probably always have to stop and restart whatever you want to listen to because you want to make phone calls, play games etc. and to conserve battery life.

 

A dedicated listening device leaves you free from distractions.

 

Some days I think it would better to lug around a standalone word processor, audio playback device, calendar, diary, and pager, than a smart phone connected to the internet.

[DavyJonesLocker]

41 minutes ago, murrayjames said:

Some days I think it would better to lug around a standalone word processor, audio playback device, calendar, diary, and pager, than a smart phone connected to the internet.

 

 

and to think, we use to have a sony walkman clipped to our belt at all times with a few tapes stuffed into demi jacket pockets  

[murrayjames]

5 minutes ago, DavyJonesLocker said:

and to think, we use to have a sony walkman clipped to our belt at all times with a few tapes stuffed into demi jacket pockets  

 

The good ol’ days.

[mungouk]

11 hours ago, murrayjames said:

The good ol’ days.

 

Ah yes, trying to stop-rewind-play so you could hear it again, only to get the tape irrevocably twisted around some spindle or other... ;-)

 

I taught myself 12 weeks of Beginner's German on my beloved Sony Walkman, which is still packed away in a box somewhere... Happy days!

 

I'm starting to wonder about the Sony NWA45 now... if you're in the UK there are plenty on ebay for under £70 at the moment. 

 

 

 

 

 

[Flickserve]

Try the “repeat player” app on Android. 

 

You can set the speed to playback faster or slower

 

you can also adjust the rewind to as many or few seconds as you wish. 

 

Its free