Stat clash: Sony X-Series vs Apple iPod Touch

It’s the showdown we’ve all been waiting for. Two of the biggest heavyweights in the gadget world going head to head, as Sony attempts to wrestle back its music crown from Apple. Oh yes, it’s the spec smackdown between the Sony X-Series Walkman and the Apple iPod Touch…



Thank you for the music
Awesome audio quality has always been the preserve of Sony music players, but the Touch really improved on previous iPods. Unfortunately, Sony has raised the bar again with the X-Series thanks to the inclusion of built-in noise cancellation. There’s also processing to improve sound quality. Sounds good? You bet it does.
Winner: Sony Walkman X-Series

Size matters (part 1)
We’re talking capacities here. Both the X-Series and Touch come in 16GB and 32GB flavours, however, the Touch gets the vote here for the added third option of an 8GB flavour.
Winner: Apple iPod Touch

Size matters (part 2)
This time we’re talking actual size. The Touch wins on the screen stakes, with a display measuring 3.5 inches (half an inch bigger than the X-Series. However, Sony’s offering is more portable measuring 52×97x9.8mm, compared to the Touch’s 110×62x8.5mm. It’s a tight one, but we’re giving it to the Touch.
Winner: Apple iPod Touch

Display the way
On paper, the iPod Touch’s screen size should win this, but you need to see Sony’s OLED display in action first. The X-Series Walkman’s offering is small, sure, but it’s also ultra-bright and beautiful – if you’re planning to gorge yourself on album artwork, or squint at mobile movies its quality just squeaks past the iPod. Shame the X-Series will only support MPEG-4 and H.264 video files with resolutions up to QVGA 320×240. That means vids will have those horrible black bars down the side. Still, it’s a better screen than the iPod’s.
Winner: Sony Walkman X-Series

Battery flattery
Easy one this. The iPod Touch’s battery lasts 36 hours for audio and six hours for video. The X-Series, meanwhile, has a 33-hour battery life for audio and a nine hour life for video. All of which means a draw!
Winner: Draw

Extras
This one’s by points. The second gen iPod Touch includes Genius playlists and integrated Nike+ iPod. Not to mention the App Store. But, and it’s a big but, the X-Series Walkman is the first PMP to offer built-in digital noise cancellation, so you can ditch the battery boosted headphones. If you’re an audiophile rather than a fitness fan, you’ll give the verdict to the latter, but if you like what’s online at the App Store, you’ll probably have seen the iPod land the killer blow.
Winner: Draw

And the winner is…
It’s too close to call this fight. The iPod Touch redefined the way PMPs have been made, but Sony’s stood up to the plate with some innovative new features, and traded blow for blow.
Winner: Draw

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