At the rate that MP3 players are shrinking, you might wonder if you should just skip a generation and wait for the implant-sized models that they'll inject into your earlobe. However, if you can't wait, the Panasonic SV-SD75 e-Wear SD Audio Player -- which the company is touting as fashion item -- is about the same size as a four-pack of AAA batteries. But beware: This little player comes with a bit of Big Brother as well.

The acronym SD stands for Secure Digital. The tiny SD memory cards used by the SV-SD75 are hardly larger than a thumbnail, yet they store 64M of tunes. They also live up to the secure in the format's name. Music is stored in an encrypted format on the cards, with the bundled RealJukebox software taking care of format-switching duties. You have to check out music to copy it to an SD card, as the SV-SD75 complies with the Secure Digital Music Initiative. We had no problems copying MP3 files that we'd recorded ourselves or downloaded from the Internet, but the fine print in the documentation states that Panasonic can change functionality as SDMI rules evolve.

The legal issues may make you leery, but at least you'll never have to think twice about bringing this player along with you--it's small enough to fit in the tightest pocket. Panasonic includes an armband, a belt clip, and a neck lanyard as well. The SV-SD75 comes with earphones that attach to your ears with a creepy, claw-like action. They sound much better than ear-bud style headphones, and they're very portable, but we couldn't get used to the odd feel.

The controls are very straightforward. A three-position dial lets you switch between Normal, Mode Change, and Hold settings. Forward, Reverse, and Play buttons are used for navigation, and up and down buttons control volume. The LCD screen is reversed, with the background appearing in black. It looks cool, but it would benefit from back lighting.

The SV-SD75 delivers good audio quality overall. There are three playback settings: Normal, Train (which dulls the bass and high frequencies so as not to disturb others in crowded situations), and S-XBS (which increases bass so as to disturb others in crowded situations). The player also offers random and repeat play. It claims to support playlists, but not playlists recorded by the Panasonic software--and there's no word in the documentation regarding what you're supposed to use to create them.

To add or delete songs, you remove the SD card and place it in the included external USB reader. While the SD card reader does show up as a drive in My Computer, you can't drag and drop files to it; you must use RealJukebox to manage and download music. Note that the version of RealJukebox that's included with the player will record in AAC (Advanced Audio Coding) SD format at a sampling rate of 128kbps, but it will only record MP3 files at 96kbps.

We had no problem transferring and playing 256kbps MP3 files that we ripped using other software; however, transfer times were among the slowest that we've seen from all the players we've tested. It took more than two minutes to transfer our three test files (around 11M of data).

The SV-SD75 supports Windows 98 and Me only; Windows 2000 and Mac users are out of luck. A rechargeable nickel-metal-hydride AAA battery and charger are included, but you can also use alkaline batteries. The player will run five to six hours on a single AAA alkaline battery.

Panasonic e.wear SD Audio Player
Company: Panasonic
Price: AU$1,049
Phone: 

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