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Before the digital music player age, because of the Walkman brand, the name Sony was synonymous with portable music players.

However, since the inception of mp3 players and smaller digital storage devices, Sony has been on the outside looking in. That is, until this year's CeBit electronics trade show.

During the conference, Sony used the opportunity to show off their new line of flash-based mp3 players. Some view Sony's attention to this market as a direct challenge to Apple's iPod line-up, namely the iPod Shuffle.

According to Reuters, Sony's new mp3 player line will be priced competitively: "The cheapest models will retail below 100 euros ($132.2) or 70 pounds, a price point the electronics conglomerate hopes will address complaints that its products are overpriced."

Much like the iPod Shuffle, Sony's players use flash memory cards for storage purposes. According to Sony's product page, the capacity for the upcoming mp3 players (available in April 2005) ranges from 512MB to 1 gigabyte. Reuters indicates there will also be a 256MB version available.

The following are product specs for their upcoming players, provided by Sony:

NW-E507 Network Walkman Digital Music Player

1GB1 Built-In Memory / Stores 695 Songs2
Built in FM Tuner
3-Line EL (Organic Electroluminescence) Display
Quick Battery Charge (3 Minute Charge = 3 Hours Playback)
Up to 50 Hours of Playback w/Rechargeable Embedded Battery
Plays Back MP3/ATRAC3/ATRAC3plus Audio Formats

NW-E405 Network Walkman Digital Music Player

512MB1 Built-In Memory / Stores 345 Songs2
3-Line EL (Organic Electroluminescence) Display
Quick Battery Charge (3 Minute Charge = 3 Hours Playback)
Up to 50 Hours of Playback w/Rechargeable Embedded Battery
Plays Back MP3/ATRAC3/ATRAC3plus Audio Formats

NW-E505 Network Walkman Digital Music Player

512MB1 Built-In Memory / Stores 345 Songs2
Built in FM Tuner
3-Line EL (Organic Electroluminescence) Display
Quick Battery Charge (3 Minute Charge = 3 Hours Playback)
Up to 50 Hours of Playback w/Rechargeable Embedded Battery
Plays Back MP3/ATRAC3/ATRAC3plus Audio Formats

NW-E407 Network Walkman Digital Music Player

1GB1 Built-In Memory / Stores 695 Songs2
3-Line EL (Organic Electroluminescence) Display
Quick Battery Charge (3 Minute Charge = 3 Hours Playback)
Up to 50 Hours of Playback w/Rechargeable Embedded Battery
Plays Back MP3/ATRAC3/ATRAC3plus Audio Formats

Chris Richardson is a search engine writer and editor for WebProNews. Visit WebProNews for the latest search news.