Cramazon.com (ahem)
April something-or-other, 2001.
Armed with nothing but a credit card and a mean disposition, I stared down Jeff Sleezos.
"Give me the best deal you got, you greasy bastard!"
Jeff, after spitting on the ground and cursing my name, shows me this blue thing...
translucent blue...
I have a thing for translucent blue devices (computer case, Q-Ball, telephone... in fact, about every electronic device I purchase is translucent blue these days)

"Come on, Jeff... you think you can win me over with that???"

Sleezos - "It's refurbished..."

Me - "How much off?"

Sleezos - "Welp, it's normally $149... how about $115?"

Me - "Not enough."

Sleezos - "Ogur, this MP3 player has 64 mb. Where are you gonna find this deal?"

Me - "All over ebay, buster... beat it."

Sleezos - "*sigh*... alright... what if there's a rebate?"

Me - "How much?"

Sleezos - "$50"



So... a few days later, I excitedly opened my $70 (incl. shipping) mp3 player in a feverishly excited state on the D train heading to class. Batteries included??? HOW MARVELOUS!!! Of course, the excitement was somewhat squelched when I realized that no MP3s were loaded on at the factory (woulda been nice...), but it didn't stop me from pressing buttons and touching things.

My first useful discovery was that of the record button. I have seen mixed reviews on the recording features of the Cabo, but sitting in the second row of a class where the professor walks baaaack and foooorth and baaaack and foooorth, it recorded his every word without a hitch! On the train heading home, I took great pleasure in reliving his nasal ramblings in stereophonic bliss.

Recording - A-
It's not studio-quality (not even close), but considering the tool and what normal tape recorders sound like, it's pretty durned good.

Touch me, I'm a computer technician.
Touch me, I run Windows 2000.
Guess what... Best Data's software doesn't WORK on Windows 2000.
Oh my.

God Bless the Internet, the company Best Data bought the technology from DOES make software that works with the Cabo on Windows 2000, and what nice software it is! I downloaded the Jazpiper software, connected the parallel port cable through my external Sparq drive, and...
and..
where's the kaboom?

Guess what... those of you with external Zip or Sparq drives using parallel port pass-throughs can forget it. You have to connect the Cabo directly to the printer port or it won't work at all.
*Sigh*
Ok, connection made, time to transfer files to/from the Cabo. Moved the enormous professorial monologue to my hard drive. Queued up some songs to copy (can't switch directories when preparing to copy... I organize my mp3s heavily, so this is a pain in the butt.) Ok... now... COPY!
Go on, copy!
Please?

Parallel port connections are slow as a redneck gramma crossing railroad tracks in her '72 Chevy. I live in New York, home of the New York Minute (go figure). When I want to go, I want to go now!
NOW!
It takes about one minute to copy each mp3. The player will hold about 10-15 mp3s, so we're talking 1/4 of an hour before I can go, plus I have to keep switching directories to add songs? Yuck.
I wasn't happy at this point.
Copy done.

Software - C-
Gets the job done, but would really like to be able to build a queue and copy it. Also would LOVE to be able to set up playlists... come on, guys... can't be THAT tough!
Also, Best Data needs to ship Windows 2000 software, period.

Conection - D-
Only not an F because the cable is long enough for me. Parallel port sucks. Not being able to pass through sucks. Missing the bus because I was waiting for a file to copy REALLY sucks.

So...
Cabo strapped on (and lemme tell ya, this thing clips on like crazy. I've run after real buses, climbed virtual stairs, biked up virtual mountainsides, and run away from real scary people... every time, my mp3 player stayed put.

Belt Clip - A+
Unlike a chinese buffet, this guy stays with you.

Running, walking, standing on a tightly-packed subway... you name it, I can work the buttons. The big D-Pad is fantastic for the play/pause, forward, backward, stop control, and I LIKE the volume controls being on the top. Thumb controls the volume, pointer/middle fingers control the playback. EASY! Repeat and DSP (nice feature) controls are on top as well and nicely out of the way. And hey, since I do use public transit, it's nice to be able to set that hold button on the side there to prevent accidental bumps from hot half-naked women from messing up my groove.
Except it doesn't work.
Actually, it works sometimes.. and sometimes it causes the player to lock up. You have to fight it to get it to really set. It's a sort of sliding mechanism (like on most cd players), not a real button, so it can jar loose (which it's not really fond of doing).

Controls - A (not counting "hold" button)
Fully functional, easy to use, logically placed, and pretty.

Sound.
That's why I bought this thing, right?
And the sound is faaaantastic.
I've been asked to turn it down.
The earphones that came with the player are marvelous. They even have the nice extra-long cable so that two people can share the music (awww).
I have a nice sound system in my computer, two sets of speakers, and I still have never heard some of the intricate little musical nuances that were hidden deep inside these mp3s. Beck makes funny noises. Radiohead has even weirder sounds than normal, and I can hear Les Claypool poppin' open a cold one with his teeth while listening to Primus' bad-arsed bass riffs.

Sound - A+
DSP makes it even nicer. Earphones are an extra treat. I never try to communicate how something sounds to any great extent because there's no good way to do so. The clarity is fantastic, the bass is good.. The sound is pure, basically. Volume gets loud enough to annoy others in a quiet room and to drown out Schizophrenic wackos on the subway!

All in all, a fantastic deal. The rebate ended, but it'll likely show up again or the price will drop. Always check the price of the Rio, but don't fear the Cabo Wabo bay-bee!

Love, Ogur.

Recommended: Yes

Amount Paid (US$): 70