Japanese electronics maker Sharp Corp unveiled on Monday a series of portable and mass market-priced audio players using its one-bit audio technology, a digital amplifying method touted for its near-natural sound. One-bit technology, mostly used in high-end audio systems and home theaters, allows 64 times the sampling rate of standard CDs, meaning it samples an analog wave of sound with 64 times the frequency of CDs. The products are due for release in Japan later this month and a full line-up of one-bit audio devices will be rolled out overseas next April, the company said. A portable mini-disc player with one-bit audio is expected to retail for about 28,000 yen ($240) while a home theater system with a DVD player would sell for about 80,000 yen, the company said.

"In the future we hope to put this in cellphones and all sorts of media," Yasuo Masuda, head of Sharp's audio product planning division, told a news conference.

Sharp's shares ended Monday trade down 2.7 percent at 1,226 yen, underperforming a 1.4 percent drop in the Tokyo Stock Exchange's electrical machinery index IELEC. ($1=118.55 Yen)