Portable MP3 players?

[Ted Gould]

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On Tue, 2003-02-18 at 10:25, Jenny Charlene wrote:
> I'm considering several models, and would like to know what y'all are usi=
ng.=20
> I'll tally the results and post a summary if I get a decent sample ( >10)=
.
>=20
> Which model do you have?
> Do you use it with Windows, Linux, or Mac X?
> Likes / dislikes?
> If you're thinking about upgrading, what model(s) are you thinking about?

I just recently got the Archos Recorder FM 20 GB.  It's pretty cool
overall.  It has a 20 GB hard drive, USB 2.0, FM tuner and the ability
to record MP3s from line-in or FM.  I haven't quite filled it up yet,
but I'm kinda concerned about it (seriously now, and only with my own,
purchased, music).  I haven't found something portable with more space
though.

Bad:  The UI is only okay, the iPod is a lot better, but I'm not willing
to pay $250 more for a cool UI (and firewire, which is probably more of
a sell to me).  Also, the exterior looks cheap, but the unit seems
solid, and I've had no problems with the device itself.  Lastly, it
doesn't seem to read the bitrate out of some MP3's ID3 tags correctly -
this causes it to misreport the length of the track, but it plays fine.=20
I'm happy with it overall, but I would say that it's far from perfect.

Good:  I like the FM and the recorder.  I haven't used it a lot (I can't
get FM at work because of an elevator), but I like the idea of being
able to grab humor stuff from the radio.  It also pre-caches 30 seconds
of audio, so when you hear something you can actually get all of it.  It
is also awesome to have that much music with you, without extra cards or
CDs.  I haven't tried USB 2.0 (don't have a card) but I'm excited about
having the speed over a lot of other players.  It also sounds good on my
nice headphones, I can't hear any noise in quiet sections or silence.  I
can't say the same thing about many other audio devices.  Battery life
is about 8-10 hours, which is good.

Overall: I'm happy with it.  Judging by the outside or the UI I would
probably put it in the 'Crappy Chinese part' pile, but it has many good
features and good sound quality.  Seems to be atleast at market for
features, and below for price.

I use it with Linux.  It's a USB mass storage device, and seems to
behave correctly.  I have found though, that in RH8 using a USB mass
storage device messes up SCSI CD-ROMs...  kinda annoying.  Anyone else
getting that problem?  I imagine that it would work with other OSes, but
I haven't tried.

		Good Luck,
			Ted

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