Great things can come in cheap looking packages
Written: Jul 15 '03
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Product Rating:
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Pros: +Solid state-skip free +Compact Flash expansion +Sound +Upgradeable +Battery life (1 AA) +No SDMI
Cons: -Random playback subpar -Cheap plastic feel & buttons -Small LCD Display
The Bottom Line: A should-be-5-star-product if only random playback was better. An awesome sounding mp3 player/sound recorder/USB storage device without copy protection nags in one tiny portable package, with expandable with flash memory.
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| mvirata's Full Review: Diva mp3 player / Model number 3128W |
I purchased the Diva MP3128W 128MB mp3 player because I wanted to find a solid state mp3 player that doesn’t use a hard-drive (like the I-pod) so that I don’t have to worry about possibly damaging any moving parts when using it for outdoor activities. I own a Rio 300 and an Ericsson HPM-10 for mp3 playback, the former uses a SmartMedia card for expansion and the later uses a MMC card. Neither suit my mp3 playback needs because of the expansion cards themselves being limited. I own a PDA and a digital camera both of which use CompactFlash cards, having three different CompactFlash cards and the MB to price ratio of these cards being the best, I wanted to find an mp3 player that uses CompactFlash cards for expansion.
After much on-line research, I decided upon the Diva mp3 player. Based on my experience thus far and in looking at the specs, there’s a lot to like:
No ridiculous digital rights management, simple file transfer
The Diva player reads mp3’s, no need to convert mp3’s to some sort of other file format for digital rights management. You don’t need any special software either. The Diva player with the supplied cord, hooks up to an available USB port and in Windows XP it automatically recognizes the Diva as a hard drive (Windows 98 and other OS requires drivers which can be downloaded). (BTW, the USB cord is also not proprietary, so it’s easily replaceable). If no CompactFlash card is in the Diva, the internal memory is active, you can now transfer files back and forth from the internal memory to the computer using Windows. If a CompactFlash is in the Diva, you can now transfer files back and forth from the card to computer using Windows. The key work here is files, while the Diva plays mp3’s, it can be used as a USB storage device and you can transfer back and forth files of any sort. File transfer uses the computer for power so battery life is not expended.
Internal Memory to Suit Your Needs
The 128 in the model number MP3128W means 128MB of internal memory. While this is the model I own, Diva currently also makes other models with 32, 64, & 224 megabytes of internal memory. For all practical purposes, size, look, function, and performance of this model should be no different from that of other models with the exception of the amount of internal memory. This is evident by the same product manual and specifications being used for all models as well as the fact that they all use the same firmware to upgrade. Epinions also lists a 224MB model, expect the pros and cons to be the same.
Further Compact Flash information
In fact, if you have a favorite card reader, you can simply use the card reader to transfer files to/from your CompactFlash card. Pop the card full of mp3’s into the Diva and it plays. The Diva only accepts Type I CompactFlash cards, no microdrives. In looking at the manufacturer’s website, they maximum card site is theoretically limited to 2.1GB, way cool. I’ve used a 1GB CompactFlash card with no problems. Those of you familiar with CompactFlash realize that the SanDisk brand seems to cause problems with CompactFlash devices, this may be the case with the Diva based upon information I’ve found. In my case, I’ve used Viking, SanDisk, and PNY without issues on the Diva.
Size, look, and feel
The player is small, (2.2” x 2.9” x .65”) and light, smaller and lighter than a deck of cards. The Diva fits easily into a shirt pocket. The light weight is likely due to the plastic housing, no aluminum/magnesium metallic-type housing. The housing combined with the plastic buttons make it look like a child’s toy (baby’s first mp3 player?) It doesn’t look like a million bucks, you’re probably safe leaving it in a public area, whereas an I-pod wouldn’t last a minute. I’ve accidentally dropped the unit a couple of times onto carpet with no ill-effects. I’d venture to say that the lightness of the Diva due to the plastic might make it more durable in the long run than the fancier counterparts.
The display for the Diva is a small LCD screen (.4” x .8”). As a result, display information is limited. On the other hand, a smaller LCD is more comforting when you’re jogging or out an about, there’s less likelihood of breaking the screen. When playing mp3’s you can choose between displaying the track time or the ID3 tag/filename (in absence of an ID tag, the player displays the filename) but with a maximum of 5 characters at one time, filenames/ID tags are scrolled. Additional information displayed includes battery level, trash can icon (when choosing to delete mp3’s), transfer icon (when using USB connection to transfer files), play/pause mode, card and all icons (which shows whether you choose to play mp3’s from just the card, internal memory, or both), microphone icon (which shows that you’re in recording mode), and finally various playback modes, including playing all, playing one mp3 on repeat, playing a playlist, playing from one track to another, and “random” playback.
Further on playback
A feature that I haven’t tried yet is the playlist feature. Using the supplied software, you can create playlists of the mp3’s you have on the Diva. Apparently the Diva allows you to select from different playlists stored and it will then play them. The playlist is apparently not the same as popular playlist files like WinAmp. This is a potentially great feature for anyone using larger storage cards, being able to create playlists based on genres, bands, etc and then select them for playback.
Random playback is my only disappointment with the Diva. Normally with random playback, an mp3 player randomly chooses which songs to play on a device and then prevents that song from being played again while randomly choosing from the remaining songs. Not the Diva. Each time a song is randomly chosen it is apparently chosen from all the songs, including the ones previously played. I haven’t had the same song picked back-to-back, but among 40 songs, I’ve had some songs played 3 or 4 times while others I’ve heard only once or none at all.
You can update it via firmware
My hope is that with the updated firmware capability, the random playback can be tweaked a bit. The manufacturer of the Diva has issued numerous firmware updates in the past, further improving a great product. Features have been added over the history of the Diva, such as a user customizable equalizer, support for USB 2.0, and support for the Mac. Updating firmware is a simple process of downloading the file from the net, transferring it to the internal memory, press a couple of buttons at the same time and the player does the rest. Each time you start up the Diva, it briefly displays the version of firmware you’re running.
Button operation
The buttons as previously mentioned have a cheap plastic feel to it. No jog dial or disc for control here. Instead there are eight buttons: play/pause, track forward, track reverse, volume up, volume down, play mode/record mode/hold mode, eject switch to remove the CompactFlash card, and the Shift button. The Shift button, when pressed in combination with other buttons allows you to get at other features such as toggling between song name or track time, choosing the playback mode (shuffle, all, etc.), treble/bass boost, as well as choosing the graphic equalizer. You need to commit the shift functions to memory as there’s nothing intuitive about which Shift-button key combination activates which function.
How Does It Sound?
One might expect something that looks like $5 sounds like AM radio, not the Diva. The RioVolt mp3 cd player I have exhibits white noise at lower volumes but the Diva has no such noise. The signal to noise ratio is outstanding on this player. Bass and treble are clear and with a customizable equalizer (a ten band equalizer no less) plus bass and treble controls, you’ll be hard pressed to not find the sound you like. As usual with almost any mp3 player, dump the included headphones for your preferred headphones for the best sound. I’ve experienced mp3 players that choked on mp3’s encoded at high bitrates or variable bitrates, not this one. Everything I’ve thrown at it from talk to 320 VBR’s has played without hitch. It even advertises to apparently plays 48 khz mp3’s which the RioVolt could not. Finally this player also puts out power, with a volume level up to 40, I can barely go above 20 without needing to turn it down.
Battery life
With all the power, it doesn’t appear to compromise battery life. The player advertises more than 12 hours of battery life on a single AA alkaline battery. My experience thus far has been about 6 hours using rechargeable NiMH’s. These NiMH’s are older 1200mAh’s which have been washed in the washing machine a couple of times so they’re probably not an ideal benchmark for performance. My on-line research of others who have the product do claim though that 12 hours is accurate. The company does state though that battery life is slightly less when playing mp3’s from the CompactFlash card, which is understandable.
Recording feature
The Diva also boasts the ability to record audio using the built in microphone. You have the option to record onto the internal memory or the flashcard, theoretically limiting you in recording time only to the memory size and battery life. Per the manufacturer, 4 hours of recording takes up 64 MB of space. The Diva saves the audio as a wav file which can then be transferred to your computer. I haven’t experimented with the recording feature that much but it does pick up sounds cleanly in my testing. The Diva even has the ability to adjust the sensitivity of the microphone or record sound based upon voice activation. Not too shabby.
Overall
Other than the random playback not eliminating previously played songs from the play selection, this is the perfect player for me. I hope that future firmware enhances will address this issue. I don’t care for aesthetics, it may look cheap but it functions and sounds like a product that should cost more. The Diva itself has four models ranging from 32MB of internal memory to 224 MB (memory is the only difference). An awesome sounding mp3 player/sound recorder/USB storage device without digital copy protection nags in one tiny portable package, expandable with flash memory is the best way to sum up this wonderful device.
Recommended:
Yes
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Epinions.com ID:
mvirata
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Location: Fort Collins, CO, USA
Reviews written: 19
Trusted by: 0 members
About Me:
Quasi-tech junkie, lazy by nature. Content with a computer, guitar, or Sportscenter.
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