http://www.playerblog.com/ Information, News and Reviews of MP3 Players en-us lindsey@smithstanza.com 2004-08-09T15:58:30-08:00 hourly 1 2000-01-01T12:00+00:00 http://www.playerblog.com/archives/000325.shtml Jeff over at the Mistic River forum has posted some videos of the new iRiver H340 in action and has been answering questions on the device. Thanks Bill! 325@http://www.playerblog.com/ iRiver 2004-08-09T15:58:30-08:00 http://www.playerblog.com/archives/000324.shtml 4G iPod reviews are really starting to roll. Today's review is from the Gadgeteer: People in the market for an iPod should not hesitate to buy this model, but do I recommend that 3rd generation owners rush out and upgrade? No, not unless your current device has some type of defect or you just have to have the latest model. The 2hrs additional battery life and new clicker design are nice, but for me these features aren't that compelling. As far as power, most of the time I'm near an outlet and can grab some juice when needed. I didn't have any real complaints with the old wheel design. My advice to 3rd gen owners is to just wait for the 5th gen devices. Maybe they'll have some of the cool new features that were rumored for the 4th gen. 324@http://www.playerblog.com/ Apple 2004-08-09T15:51:52-08:00 http://www.playerblog.com/archives/000323.shtml We love device dissection around here. Today's victim is the iAudio M3. [Via DAP Review] 323@http://www.playerblog.com/ Other 2004-08-09T15:47:05-08:00 http://www.playerblog.com/archives/000322.shtml DAP Review has done a nice comparison of the voice recording capabilities of 4 popular devices (the iRiver H-series, the XClef HD800, the Neuros 2 and the Dell DJ). The versatile iRiver was the winner: Sound Quality of the recording is excellent, best of the bunch by a good margin. Recordings are fairly life-like, clear, and loud. The built-in mic is sensitive and can easily pick up voice from across a room. The one thing that hurts the results is the hard drive spin-up noise, which is picked up by the mic. It spins up every so often to save audio to disk. The noise is more audible on the iRiver than any other player. 322@http://www.playerblog.com/ Roundup 2004-08-09T15:41:29-08:00 http://www.playerblog.com/archives/000321.shtml We had previously mentioned some firmware hacks for Asian versions of iRiver's H-series devices, but we weren't sure if it worked on US or European versions. It turns out that you can change any of the graphics with these tools. They even have some nice, downloadable startup images to get you going. 321@http://www.playerblog.com/ iRiver 2004-08-09T15:31:15-08:00 http://www.playerblog.com/archives/000320.shtml Office Depot still has a $25 off $250 coupon (available until 8/30). Just use coupon code LST854 at checkout. PlayerCapacityBrandPriceChangeVendor iPod (3G)15GBApple$244 +$6Comp-u-plus iPod (3G)20GBApple$276 ---Software for Less iPod (3G)40GBApple$368 ---Software for Less iPod (4G)20GBApple$275 ---Office Depot iPod (4G)40GBApple$375 ---Office Depot iPod Mini4GBApple$225 ---Office Depot iAUDIO M3 + cradle20GBCowon$299 ---Amazon iAUDIO M3L + cradle20GBCowon$349 -$11Unlimited Sound iAUDIO M3 + cradle40GBCowon$340 ---Chief Value Nomad MuVo²4GBCreative$183 -$1eBuyer Nomad Zen Xtra30GBCreative$180 -$24Outpost Zen Touch20GBCreative$236 +$6Dcompute DJ-1515GBDell$199 ---Dell DJ-2020GBDell$223 -$56Dell H12020GBiRiver$288 +$19BuyDig H14040GBiRiver$363 +$9BuyDig Nitrus1.5GBRio$127 ---Broad Markets Karma20GBRio$222 -$19Electronics Expo 320@http://www.playerblog.com/ Deals 2004-08-09T15:26:14-08:00 http://www.playerblog.com/archives/000319.shtml Toshiba has announced a new 60GB drive in the 1.8" form factor presently used by the iPod. Reportedly Apple has already ordered a large quantity for what would be the highest-capacity iPod to date. Toshiba notes that the new drives (also available in a slimmer 30GB model) consume 20% less power than the previous 20GB and 40GB models. Unfortunately, they won't be available in quantity until near the end of the year. Apple will likely be one of, if not the first customer to get them, so 60GB iPods may appear by holiday gift-buying time. [Via Mac Observer] 319@http://www.playerblog.com/ Apple 2004-08-06T11:15:22-08:00 http://www.playerblog.com/archives/000318.shtml To complement the new user review, iPodlounge has published its power user review of the 4G iPod. Ironically, this iPodlounge review seems to be hardest on the new iPod out of all the reviews that we've read. Presumably this is because most reviews are written from the perspective a first-time buyer rather than a potential upgrader: For new users, the new fourth-generation iPod is an imperfect but solid update of Apple's earlier high-capacity iPods, and the new hardware is highly likely to appeal to virtually any prospective iPod user out there. With few exceptions, what was great about the iPod has become even better. And to the extent that some Power Users may be looking for an excuse to replace their iPods, these will no doubt make excellent birthday and holiday gifts.But other Power Users will unquestionably find that the new fourth-generation iPod is no mandatory replacement for older iPod hardware. It's actually a snore in that it offers only minor updates to the features that Apple introduced in last year's third-generation iPod and February's iPod mini. Click Wheel and battery life aside, the 4G iPod's other changes are iterative software tweaks mixed with one or two small aesthetic downgrades, and therefore we don't see this as a product that long time iPod lovers will line up to buy. It's also no surprise that some 3G iPod users are demanding that Apple support the older hardware with the 4G's software features. When a new iPod looks and functions so much like its predecessor, such complaints and requests are only natural. No one would be begging if the new iPod had shipped with a color screen and a dramatically enhanced interface. As you may have heard, there is a lot of speculation on what, if any, tricks Apple still has up its sleeve with the new iPod. In the past we've written quite a bit on the chips that power devices and how their potential isn't always utilized. Along those lines, iPodlounge has done some excellent analysis of what's under the hood in the new iPod, what Apple could do if it wanted and what they think Apple actually will do. Related Links: Hidden Features In 4G iPod? Some Corroboration for the New iPod Rumor? Apple Video iPod Demystified iPod Can Supprt WMA?!? 318@http://www.playerblog.com/ Apple 2004-08-06T10:58:17-08:00 http://www.playerblog.com/archives/000317.shtml PC World has a brief review of both the 4G iPod and the Creative Zen Touch. The new iPod gets high marks even though the reviewer includes a thorough list of what is still missing in the latest rev. The Zen Touch, however, doesn't fare as well: You might remember that a few months ago I went a little nuts (in a good way) over the playlist interface for Creative's Nomad Zen. I mean, I loved this thing. It absolutely changed the way I listen to music. The idea of an IPod-sized player with that interface had me drooling. But no, Creative wanted to simplify things, to aim for the ease-of-use found in its IPod rivals. So with its latest player, there's no more moving songs around within a playlist. No more treating albums and artists as objects so you can collapse them for easy navigation or move a full album of tracks with a few clicks. Gone. Poof. No more. And no "advanced menus" option that brings these features back. 317@http://www.playerblog.com/ Apple 2004-08-06T10:28:44-08:00 http://www.playerblog.com/archives/000316.shtml Early reviews of the Rio Carbon are already starting to pop up. CNet has a web review and a brief hands-on video. They liked what they saw: Rio is one of the first places to go if you're not an iPod fan. The Carbon's innovative and stylish design, intuitive interface, and extra gigabyte of memory give it a competitive edge over the iPod Mini--especially for those who prefer to purchase WMA files. Check back for our full review to find out if the Rio Carbon will be a force to reckon with. Gear, which has been pretty quiet on the audio player front lately (see reason below), also has a brief on the Carbon: Thankfully, Rio didn't screw around with the outstanding menu system. This scheme is basically the same it's been since the ill-fated Rio Riot. It might not be as intuitive as Apple's menu system, but it's damn close. With plenty of options and extremely easy navigation, the Rio menu system is one of the company's most powerful weapons. To my eyes the Carbon is one of the best looking portables on the market. The stripped down, quasi-industrial aesthetic is getting a little long in the tooth, but the Rio designers apply it perfectly. A few small physical changes help the looks while adding functionality. Gone is the familiar red stick. In its stead is a silver button with a D-pad surrounding it. The red stick might have been a distinguishing mark, but the button makes for a lower profile, which makes the Carbon more pocket friendly. Rio also scrapped the dumb volume buttons. (The Nitrus ones were extremely small and worked poorly, which made volume control a pain in the ass.) The scroll wheel now controls volume. You will be happy to learn that the Carbon will hit shelves in two to three weeks for a very reasonable $249.95. Apple users should note that the Carbon will support both Windows and Mac OS. The Gear article also notes the present whereabouts on the long-awaited Rio Karma 2, specifically that it is being redesigned and won't appear until early 2005. Finally, we also hear the Mike Wiley, author of countless articles and reviews, is no longer with the site. He says that he'll contribute occasionally and we wish him the best in his next venture. 316@http://www.playerblog.com/ Rio 2004-08-05T11:38:20-08:00 http://www.playerblog.com/archives/000315.shtml From the minds behind the gadget site I4U comes a new site devoted to personal video players of all sorts, PVP4U. Also, in addition to the main weblog-style site, they have a PVP discussion forum as well. Best of luck to them on the new site. Related Links: PMC Player Site Launches 315@http://www.playerblog.com/ PVP 2004-08-05T11:27:42-08:00 http://www.playerblog.com/archives/000314.shtml Archos seems to have all its bases covered in the burgeoning portable video player field. On the heels of the more compact Gmini 400, PC Magazine has a brief review of its bigger sibling the Archos AV420. Clearly the AV420 is more of a video player than the Gmini 400 (which is essentially an audio player with a color screen): If you want to be an early adopter of a capable portable media player, the Archos AV420 won't disappoint you. More cautious souls might want to see what's just over the horizon with Windows Mobile-based Portable Media Center players from Creative Labs, iRiver, Samsung, and others. Related Links: Spiffy New Archos Gmini 400 Archos AV 400 PVP Reviews 314@http://www.playerblog.com/ Other 2004-08-05T11:19:39-08:00 http://www.playerblog.com/archives/000313.shtml Archos has announced a pretty neat new device, the Gmini 400. It's a 20GB portable video player with a 2.2" color LCD. Not having the larger 3.5" LCD yields a pretty compact device at 4.17"x2.37"x0.69" (compared with the 4G iPod at 4.1"x2.4"x0.57"") that weighs only 5.64oz (nearly the same as the iPod at 5.6oz). I'm not sure I would want to watch a movie on that 2.2" screen, but it does play MPEG4, DivX, XviD and AVI video formats.And of course it can display JPEGs on the color screen. Notably, it has a CompactFlash slot for downloading pictures from a digital camera. If you're camera uses CompactFlash media, this is great. Otherwise, more general-purpose USB Host functionality would be nicer. At a first glance, the new Archos Gmini 400 seems to have a lot of potential, especially if Archos prices it competitively relative to the iPod. More bits at Magma (French) DAP Review, Portable Media World, Gizmodo, Gear Live and Engadget. 313@http://www.playerblog.com/ Other 2004-08-05T10:17:24-08:00 http://www.playerblog.com/archives/000312.shtml Pocket Lint has managed to get one of the new Rio Carbons. Here's their brief first take on a Carbon review: It seems Rio has listened to the criticism that reviewers and the public made with the Nitrus and this is the result. Gone are the complains, and rightly so. This is a player that offers 20 per cent more memory that the iPod Mini in a smaller shell all for the same price. File transfer is fast, while the introduction of a pink for the GizmoGirl’s and blue will certainly appease the fashion set that aren’t happy with the Carbon (get it) colouring. Any criticisms? Only that it hasn’t been available sooner. 312@http://www.playerblog.com/ Rio 2004-08-03T15:11:08-08:00 http://www.playerblog.com/archives/000311.shtml There have been some rumblings about "hidden features" in the 4G iPod that Apple would spring on its competitors at a later date. Not suprisingly, heavy speculation ensued. However, an iPodHacks user has it nailed down definitively: I have it on good authority that the secret code in 4G iPods is a portable version of RealPlayer, as users have been clamoring for stuttering, scratchy sounding audio for the iPods. According to beta tester Audrey Helpern, "Having RealPlayer on the iPod is like being in touch with the very beginning of multimedia on computers. Sometimes I close my eyes and pretend I'm on my Quadra 660AV listening to a distant sounding AM-radio feed over a 33.3k modem. Then I open my eyes and realize I'm on a 4G iPod. It's a trip." [Via GMSV] 311@http://www.playerblog.com/ Apple 2004-08-03T11:30:47-08:00