Here's the other Walkman Sony announced at IFA

Sony Walkman
This ain't your mama's Walkman

It wasn't all new Xperias and smartwatches for Sony at IFA. The company also outed some new Walkmans, a term that feels really weird to say.

In addition to the hi-res Walkman NWZ-A17, the Xperia Z3-maker also announced the wearable NWZ-WS613. This Walkman that focuses on durability and versatility for workouts, rather than hi-res audio playback.

It has a ring-type controller for audio playback that makes it easy to use during physical activity.

Sony is making a big deal out of the fact that the WS613 (just as terrible name a name as the NWZ-A17) lets users "indulge [their] passion for bottomless bass" with a paired MDR-XB950BT Bluetooth headset, run in the rain with a MDR-AS800BT waterproof Bluetooth headset, or drown out the world with a MDR-ZX550BN Bluetooth headset.

(Did Sony fire its branding department, by the way? Sheesh.)

The headsets also include NFC for easy connecting, and built-in microphones in case you want to pair them with your smartphone instead. But, strangely, the WS613 itself, being a wearable, can also double as a Bluetooth headset for your smartphone. Weird.

The Sony NWZ-WS613 Walkman launches in October for $160 (about £100, AU$170), while the three headsets launch in September for $200 (about £120, AU$215), $150 (about £90, AU$160) and $130 (about £80, AU$140), respectively.

Michael Rougeau

Michael Rougeau is a former freelance news writer for TechRadar. Studying at Goldsmiths, University of London, and Northeastern University, Michael has bylines at Kotaku, 1UP, G4, Complex Magazine, Digital Trends, GamesRadar, GameSpot, IFC, Animal New York, @Gamer, Inside the Magic, Comic Book Resources, Zap2It, TabTimes, GameZone, Cheat Code Central, Gameshark, Gameranx, The Industry, Debonair Mag, Kombo, and others.


Micheal also spent time as the Games Editor for Playboy.com, and was the managing editor at GameSpot before becoming an Animal Care Manager for Wags and Walks.