Its "unparalleled visual and audio experience" – their words, not ours – includes viewing video footage on the 2-inch colour-rich LCD screen.

While this can be viewed both horizontally and vertically, watching stuff on a 2-inch screen can easily be paralleled in our experience.

At least downloading the MPEG-4 video content is easy, with a simple drag-and-drop mechanism, giving it one up on the iPod.

Battery life stretches up to 30 hours for music and eight hours for continuous video playback, so that's your average transatlantic flight covered.

It also allows you to store and share JPEG photos, with the option of watching them as a slideshow.

Meanwhile, the bundled in-car kit and stereo Bluetooth transmitter let you hear your music wherever you are.

The Sony Walkman NW-A800 range is available from April 2007, with a 2GB model costing £119, a 4GB version selling for £149 and the 8GB player reaching £199.