Price Paid:  $125.00 from auction

Summary:
Not a bad CD player! Good features, but lacks the solid construction that Sony once was famous for. Sony, up to about 1992 made awesome CD players. They were made of metal and felt like a brick in your hand. The cabinetry was artwork back then. I still have all the models listed above and all still work on a regular basis. Wonder why? QUALITY CONSTRUCTION! These models didn't have shock protection, but I am not a Gorilla, so I don't need it. The D-555 was Sony's best CD portable ever made (my opinion). Today, things are made to be used and thrown away. It's a shame that society (as a whole) is so wasteful and careless with what they own. Manufacturer's are aware of this and make their products to reflect the current trend(s). The days of quality equipment, made to last are gone! Another disgusting trend it to make audio stuff with "splashy" or "goofy" designs. Everything has to be "EXTREME" these days for some reason? One last note:
"KISS" - Keep it simple stupid!

Strengths:
Backlit LCD.

Weaknesses:
Plastic

Similar Products Used:
D-35,D-555,D-303,D-25,D-50,D-7

Summary:
The sony D-844 is the best portable cd player on the market. It is a couple of years old now, and it is hard to find one. Its features and sound quality still compete with the new line of cd players now being produced by sony. The D-884 has six soundfields, two bass, two surround, and two car. The new cd players don't have the surround or the car soundfields. Another great feature is the electronic lid. No other portable cd player has a lid that will open by itself, let alone open 90°. The backlit lcd display is great, but its hard to see at certail angles. The wireless remote is unique to this model also. It comes in handy when your in your house and don't want to get up to change the track. The only bad thing about the D-844 is its size and contols. Size can be understood, but slippery buttons at a near 45° angle was a bad decision by Sony. Its sad to say, but sony has yet to make a better model than the D-844. Sony's premier model now, the D-E905, looks good, but if it sounds anything like it's prototype, the D-777, it's a piece of worthless junk comparabe to a shower radio purchased at radio shack. It skips and stops and plays when it wants to. It dosen't even have a backlit remote. The only thing going for it is it's size, but what good is that? Easier to steal. Maybe it's cool for some "Street Style" kid to take to school. I don't know. My favorite cd player now is the D-885. Tons of features and no wasted space. There is still nothing better than the D-844.

Summary:
These lines of car discmans are a must for anyone listening through a good pair of headphones. They include a sony's own matrix surround setting to make music sound positional. It's an impressive technology while listening through headphones or my car. I have regular Toyota speakers, which are turned into a concert hall when I've got the cd player plugged in. It's starting to be hard to find. I've noticed that Sony's newer car discmans that have ESP2 have skipped the surround setting. This is very displeasing to me, it makes so much of a difference. It's so much better then the standard mega bass boost, which still makes the music sound flat through headphones.