When Music Matter, Trust Philips [ACT7583 Portable CD Player]
Written: Feb 03 '03 (Updated Jan 09 '04)
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Pros: Visually appealing, nice size, covered membranes, lock / hold feature, power saver, extended bass.
Cons: No clock, buttons were hard to get used to.
The Bottom Line: The Philips ACT7583 CD Player is one of the best investments I have ever made. Two huge, freaky thumbs up for this portable CD player!
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| Freak369's Full Review: Philips Nike ACT758317 Personal CD Player |
About two years ago I had to come to the realization that my trusty Sony Walkman cassette player was on it's way out. The volume control wheel was broken, the AM / FM radio wheel was broken, the door made a terrible squeaking noise when opened or closed and the solar clock no longer functioned - how a solar clock dies is beyond me. I purchased several portable stereos that looked like they would do the trick, but all of them had one or more shortcomings. It was at a late night trip to Tower Records that I cam across this puppy and in all honesty – it was one of the best purchases I've made in the past few years. I had several gift cards that needed to be used up before they expired so the $99.99 price tag was brought down to $49.99 thanks to several online reward sites that offered Tower Records as a featured reward.
When you first see the unit it looks pretty impressive. The contrast between the yellow and frosted white pieces makes it easy on the eyes yet has a subtle hint of the Sony Sport line of personal audio products. The size, shape and weight of it are all extremely nice and the included headphones lasted about a year, much longer than I would have ever expected. This unit is still going strong and playing perfectly even with the extensive amount of use it gets from me at the gym. It's been dropped a few times and seen more than its share of moisture exposure and has yet to give me one single problem. If I didn’t think I’d be jinxing myself I'd say that this was as close to perfect as you could get from a portable CD player.
The Basics
The Philips ACT7583 is a waterproof, shockproof portable CD player that offers you a lot of features without costing you an arm and a leg. Now, when I say that this unit is shockproof - I mean it! Other portable CD players that I had purchased offered this feature but the product never lived up to the claim. I can say with total honesty that this thing has been through hell and back and has survived everything that was thrown at it. The clamshell design is sleek and makes it easy to fit inside sweatshirt pockets or most sweatpants. The unit is about an inch thick so getting it into tight spots isn't an issue. The buttons on the top of the case are flush with the unit so if you are used to buttons that are inset or larger than the player you might need a little bit of time to get used to them. I had been so used to my old portable CD player than I could reach inside my pocket and skip tracks, adjust the volume or turn on the radio – this one took a little getting used to but now I can navigate the controls blindly.
When I started to look for a replacement I initially wanted something that offered me AM / FM capabilities, CDR support, additional bass, battery saving and a clock. I realized that I needed to trim down my want list of features and ended up with the Philips ACT7583 CD Player that doesn’t have the clock or AM / FM perks but has far exceeded my expectations for a portable CD player that sounds just as good at it looks. The 45-second anti shock system has worked – without fail- every single time this unit was dropped, bumped or used on a treadmill. To give you an example of just how impressive this is - I run at a fast pace on a treadmill for about 30 minutes at a time [usually at an incline]. I can have this CD player tucked inside my jacket pocket or sweatpants pocket and run without ever experiencing a single skip or break in the music. If you have ever been to a gym that has a "cardio theater" you know that most of the time you won't be able to toss in your CD to one of the decks so you might be faced with listening to Dave Matthews or Charlie Daniels Band instead of your own motivational music. Having this CD player has made my treadmill cardio routine a complete breeze. This would also be great for those that jog, do mall walking routines or any type of Step workouts.
Features
Since I already covered how well the shock proof / anti skip feature works I really want to tell you about the other things that this unit is capable of. First off it will play almost all types of CD's including those pesky CD-R's that some players have trouble reading. So far I haven't had any trouble playing the burned CD's with the Philips ACT7583 CD Player and I'll go so far as to say this - the $300.00 CD changer that was installed in my former SUV had trouble playing a few CD-R’s and when I tried them on this portable unit - it passed with flying colors.
The Dynamic Bass system offers you three levels of bone shaking bass. Simply press the button to have it increase the level of bass until you find one that you find to your liking. Being the sound junkie that I am, this is something that I do as soon as I power up the unit. When I say that I like it loud, I mean it. The volume control is a slightly recessed wheel on the bottom front part of the unit. It would have been nicer to have this as a digital control to prevent the volume from increasing or decreasing when in a backpack or pocket, but you can't have everything you want.
The controls on the unit are as follows: play, stop, forward track, back track, forward and back scan. The Dynamic Bass control is above the LCD read out screen so you never have to worry about accidentally pressing the wrong button and getting an unwanted bass boost. To power on the unit simply press the play button, to shut it down press and hold the stop button until the screen is blank. Since the controls are under a thick membrane you might need a little time to get used to pressing them. The first few days that I had this I had a nasty habit of double clicking the buttons and ending up on the wrong track. For the most part the screen is perfect, it could be a little bigger but it is extremely easy to read which track you are on, if the battery save feature is on or off and what level of the Dynamic Bass you are set at. The screen is recessed about a sixteenth of an inch so it says in good shape.
Opening and closing the unit is simple and with the front locking lip you never have to worry about it accidentally opening on you. This feature combined with the "lock" capabilities makes the unit a steal for the suggested retail price. The "lock&" toggle can be activated to prevent the keypad functions from being accidentally pressed when in a backpack or jacket. One thing to mention – the side hinges of the CD player are stellar in design and keep the lid propped open when you are changing CD's however they hurt like hell if you get your finger caught in them. Make sure that there are no CD's, clothing or finger in the way when you close the lid. This helps keep the rubber seal [for water proof safety] intact and working properly.
The Philips ACT7583 CD Player comes with an AC adapter in case your batteries are running low or you want to use this for extended periods of time without having to worry about draining the batteries. When I used the adapter it was perfect, the only thing I'd like to mention is that after a few hours the housing of the pack tends to get a little warm. Make sure that there aren't any drapes or furniture near the adapter when it is plugged into the wall and in use to avoid any potential disasters. Kids should also be kept away from the adapter when it is in use in case it gets too hot.
What continues to impress me about this player is the sound that it delivers. Regardless of whether I am playing classical music or hard-core metal - the sound is superb. With the original headphones I had the best sound possible [in my opinion that is] and the replacement headphone have all worked out great - but they just never managed to capture the music like the ones that came with the player. I listen to a wide variety of music and this unit has handled them all - from the grinding metal licks of hair bands to the operatic outbursts of my favorite Orff Carmina Burana CD. Since this can take more music abuse than you could possibly ever through at it - consider this a great family type CD player that teens as well as adult can use [and abuse] without having to worry about it breaking or falling apart.
One last kudo about this unit - it has the ability to shuffle songs, repeat a track, loop the CD [repeat it over and over – great for CD singles] or play selected tracks. These commands are easy to use and are displayed on the screen so you know exactly what is going on at all times.
Headphones
Sadly, the headphones that came with this died after about a year of steady use. These were the funky "over the ear" type headphones that took me a little while to get used to. Previously I had used ear buds or standard "in ear" types that always worked well for me. Replacing these was simple since the jack accepts all standard headphones. The protective membrane that covers the AC plug and headphone port are nice little touches, great for when you get caught in an unexpected downpour or want to make sure that the unit is completely waterproof.
Water Proof Feature
Well, this might be construed as a little white lie. The unit is marketed to be waterproof but it isn’t meant for underwater use. It is simply meant that if caught in a rainstorm or a drink is spilled on it, the unit won't be any worse for wear. If you are looking for something that is truly waterproof stick with the Sony Sport line. So far I haven't had any trouble with this being exposed to 100 degree weather, high humidity, occasional soda spills and sweat.
The Bottom Line
So far this unit has been as perfect as possible. I really wanted something that had the AM / FM capabilities with a clock but like Mick Jagger once said "You can't always get what you want". For the final price paid out of pocket - $49.99 [remember those gift cards!] I am more than impressed with the features, functions, overall sound quality, provided but not deceased headphones and durability. I highly suggest this model for anyone that does any type of exercise, weight lifting, jogging, biking or running since the anti chock system will allow you to continue thought your routine even if you are jumping around like a maniac.
As always, thanks for the visit ...
^V^ Freak ^V^
© 2004 Freak369
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Recommended:
Yes
Amount Paid (US$): See Review
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