And Sony's going to town with the roll-out: not only has it got TV presenter Kirsty Gallacher (right) to recreate Olivia Newton-John's Physical workout from almost 30 years ago(!), it's also commissioned a survey into how people use music to help them exercise.
The NWZ-W202 packs the MP3 player into the headphones, keeping users cable-free when working out.
That's as well, given that the survey reveals that 10% of us have injured ourselves by fiddling with our MP3 players while exercising, with 'a significant number having hurt themselves after getting headphone cords tangled in exercise equipment.'
Even more worrying is that while half of us consider an MP3 player an essential part of their gym kit, only 35% thought a towel was necessary.
The survey also asked about favourite exercise tracks, revealing that while men preferred 'rock' music, women went for 'pop'
Top five tracks for the men were:
1. Queen – Don't Stop Me Now (17%)
2. Bruce Springsteen – Born To Run (11%)
3. Snap! – The Power (8%)
4. The Killers – Mr Brightside (8%)
5. Bodyrockers – I Like The Way (7%)
Women, meanwhile preferred:
1. Girls Aloud - Jump (16%)
2. Lady Gaga – Just Dance (11%)
3. Duffy - Mercy (8%)
4. Salt ‘n' Pepa - Push It (8%)
5. James Brown - I Feel Good (8%)
A doctor writes...
And it seems the new Sony gets the scientific thumbs-up, too. Dr Costas Karageorghis, a global expert on the effects of music in exercise who has recently been working with Sony, commented that: “The W Series Walkman represents the single most exciting development in personal music playing devices since the advent of sports-specific MP3 players almost a decade ago.”
Meanwhile, Kirsty Gallacher coos that "Using my W Series Walkman means that I can stay motivated whilst working out and push myself to the limit. I feel like I'm in my own little world and the music really helps me to get in the zone.”
The NWZ-W202 is available from www.sonystyle.co.uk and retailers nationwide from today.
Now, let's hit the showers. Oh no, we forgot – you don't have a towel...
