Hopefully my recent painful experiences in this area will be of some help. I have also been a huge fan of the Sony Sports armband style radio. I purchased my first one in the mid to late 90's and used the hell out of it for a decade jogging, biking, working out etc. The digital tuning was a huge feature, and year after year it took all the sweat, bouncing, jarring and general punishment I could throw at it.
By the beginning of this year, however, the unit finally started showing its age. The headphones broke, battery life wasn't what it used to be and the velcro on the armband was losing its grip. Finally I gave in and a couple of months ago I started looking for a replacement. I went down to my local Best Buy and was surprised to find that they had no Sony Sports armband radios on the shelf. The clerk told me that Sony's updated 2005 model was due to arrive in a few months.
I can tell you that I then decided to purchase the relatively inexpensive Sony SRF-M37V as a gap filler. This isn't a true armband radio but it is small, lightweight and has an integral belt clip. Performance was acceptable, but build quality was lacking. The pricepoint would indicate that it's not meant to be as durable as the Sports series and it isn't. Most annoying of all is the fact that you lose all sound if the headphone jack is pressed
into the hole with just a little too much force. Bottom line- I wouldn't recommend this one.
Eventually the new Sony Sports SRF-M85V arrived and I was very excited. It was sleek, sexy and built like a tank. Any minor complaints I might have had with its predecessor appeared to be well addressed in this newest model, plus I now had TV and weather band coverage to boot. All signs were pointing towards another ten years of reliable service until I got the thing home and actually started using it. Come to find out that the SRF-85V is perfect in every way with the minor exception that it's essentially incapable of receiving FM broadcasts. This can't be, says I. I must have the headphone cord (which serves as the FM antenna) tangled. No, that's not it. Well maybe I'm just out of range of any FM stations. Oh wait, I'm in the middle of Los Angeles; guess that's not the problem. In the end I figured I just got the one lemon. Unfortunately, two more trips to Best Buy resulted in the acquisition of two more units that all had the exact same problem. Needless to say, Sony effed up on this one somehow and I can't recommend it either. They also make a slightly downgraded version, the SRF-M80V, which I haven't used and can't comment on one way or the other. It may be okay.
I have since discovered the Sony SRF-M97V, and this one I can recommend highly. It doesn't include the TV and weather bands, but I don't really care. Also it isn't a true armband radio. However, it's so compact and lightweight that I'll often use its integral clip to slide it on the collar of my t-shirt and forget that it's there. I actually consider this an improvement because I no longer feel like I'm working out with a tourniquet on my arm. And while it doesn't have the splashproof feel of the Sports series, the build quality seems exceptional especially for something so lightweight. Best of all, a single AAA battery last forever. The instruction manual rates battery life at anywhere between 45 and 60 hours (depending upon AM vs FM listening habits) and so far I'd tend to agree with them. You can see it here if you think you might be interested:
http://www.jr.com/JRProductPage.process?Product=4023674
