Sony are re-introducing their iconic Walkman music player, albeit in a form that those who owned an OG model in the 1980s will struggle to recognise.
The new NW-ZX700 series edition is described as "an engineered evolution in portable sound", which, Sony say, "inherits the philosophy of the Signature Walkman®"
It boasts a S-Master HX™ hi-res audio digital amplifier, a large solid high polymer capacitor, and a high quality sound solder containing gold, for improved sound localisation and a wider sound stage, apparently.
The caption under the official YouTube video of the new product reads: "Experience your music as the artist intended, wherever you go, with the astonishing sound quality of the NW-ZX700 series, which inherits the philosophy of the Signature Walkman®.
"With enhanced battery life, a larger 5″ display, easy downloading and streaming functions, it is also portable and stylish for the most demanding music lover."
Watch the video below:
Fans of the original Walkman will doubtless be thrilled to hear that in 2022, sales of albums on cassette tape in the US increased by 28% to 440,000 (up from 343,000 in 2021), according to the Luminate U.S. Year-End Music Report for 2022.
Nirvana's Bleach album sold 7,000 copies on cassette in America last year, while Ghost's Impera sold 5,000 copies on cassette in the US. The year's top-sellingt cassette in the US was the Guardians of the Galaxy, Vol. 2: Awesome Mix Vol. 2 soundtrack, which shifted 17,000 copies.
In the UK, sales of cassettes continued to grow in 2022, up 5.2% year-on-year to a total of 195,000 units, according to the Official Charts Company.
The biggest-selling cassette in the UK in 2022 was Arctic Monkeys' seventh album The Car, which sold more than 10,000 copies on cassette. Ozzy Osbourne's Patient Number 9 was the 20th biggest album on cassette in the UK in 2022, while a 40th anniversary edition of Iron Maiden's The Number Of The Beast was the 21st best-selling cassette in the UK.
