I am pretty glad that Sony has not given up the fight against the iPod when it comes to portable music, reviving the Walkman brand name by coming up with some pretty funky and functional MP3 players in the past few years. This time round, Sony has released three more Walkman players from the S, E and B series that ought to offer a little bit of something for everyone, no matter what their taste and budget are like. More on the three new players are available right after the jump.

The S-Series Walkman players are sitting pretty on top of the high end spectrum, allowing owners to enjoy tunes from a variety of downlaod stores as well as personal music collections, allowing a simple “drag and drop” transfer method for non-DRM music, videos, podcasts and playlists. In addition, it also supports all the popular audio and video codecs so that you will be able to maximize your enjoyment, never mind the source of the file. The S-Series Walkman players are also the first MP3 players from Sony that feature their very own SensMe Channels function that creates channels automatically which are able to align with a user’s preferences. This means the SensMe Channels function will analyze a user’s music collection and suggest channels based on each song’s speed, mood and rhythm.

As for the E-series Walkman players, these aim to bring together both high-quality video and audio performance for the perfect device. Following the S-Series’ footsteps, all E-series models are format friendly, supporting the “drag and drop” user interface that allows one to transfer non-DRM files from online music services to Walkman players. In addition, it also supports Windows Media Video (WMV) with DRM, enabling rights-protected movies and video clips from other media collections.

Last but not least would be the B-Series Walkman players that is easy on your pockets without compromising on audio quality. It boasts open support for Windows Media Audio (WMA) and MP3 codecs enables users to buy, copy and manage music to fit their needs. It also features an illuminator that pulses in time with the music whenever the bass button is pressed, while an integrated FM radio ensures you get to catch up on what the local DJs are blabbering about once you’ve run dry of stored music.

Prices range anywhere from $45 to $180, depending on the model selected along with the storage capacity. Image courtesy of Slashgear.

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