Better Than Minidisc?
Written: Feb 15 '01 (Updated Aug 17 '01)
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Pros: Small, Light, Good on Batteries
Cons: Software absolutely sucks.
The Bottom Line: If you need portability and expandability the Rio500 fits the bill.
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| shigg's Full Review: Rio PMP-500 (64 MB) MP3 Player |
I bought my Rio500 because I needed something small, light, convenient and good on batteries. I already owned a minidisc player but found it a real chore copying songs onto minidisc. The Rio500 works fine with only two drawbacks - the software and the headphones. These are absolute junk, I think they are bad enough to get the player a reputation.
Instead of using the supplied software I use either Rio Sync or RioGeo, using Rio Sync the Rio500 can be used to transport data as well as song files. Uploading files to the Rio is a simple matter of just plugging in the USB cable and running the software, it's really fast to upload songs, about 30 seconds for an average track. Occasionally I get the odd glitch on a track but I consider this a small price to pay for the convenience. Oh yes one final issue, make sure the battery has enough power or the computer won't be able to 'see' the Rio and will not connect to it!
As for the headphones throw them in a draw and get something decent, I use a pair of Technics ones which came with a personal CD player I bought about 6 years ago, these are starting to wear out now and so I'm looking for a replacement set. UPDATE! I've finally found a pair of headphones that sound better than the old Technics ones. After much searching around and trying different types I settled on a pair of KOSS Sporta Pros. To me they seem comfy, pack up quite small, the bass is plentiful and the treble's inoffensive. I did try a pair KOSS The Plugs, but I found them seriously lacking in real bass and the treble was painful! Another good point about the Sporta Pros and the Rio is that good levels of volume cam be generated without distortion. It's a combination I would recommend.
Recommended:
Yes
Amount Paid (US$): £175
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Epinions.com ID:
shigg
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Location: Great Britain
Reviews written: 10
Trusted by: 0 members
About Me:
I have a matter of fact attitude to life and like honesty, beauty and humor.
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