RCA Lyra 1071 - Great Buy
Written: Aug 12 '03 (Updated Aug 14 '03)
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Pros: Low Price; Expandable Memory; Easy to Use
Cons: Headphones
The Bottom Line: With the built-in 128mb memory and the expandability of this unit - this is well worth it for $100.
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| kblondina's Full Review: RCA Lyra RD1071 (128 MB) MP3 Player |
This is a great mp3 player for the money.
The Setup:
It is extremely simple to use - it was 5 minutes from the time I took it out of the package until the time I was listening to music I downloaded onto it. I used Windows Media Player and Windows XP - just plugged it in to the USB cord that was provided and XP did the rest. There is Music Match software included with the player but it really isn't necessary with XP and Media player. I have heard complaints from others that it doesn't work well with Windows ME.
The Player:
It is very small - it fits right in a pocket or in the optional arm band that comes with it. Controls are small but manageable. It has a Alphanumeric Display to show which song and track that it is playing. You can skip forward or reverse and set the different modes - shuffle, continues, continuous shuffle, program. It has a built in 128 mb memory which is sufficient for a few hours of music at 96kbps. The unit takes a AAA battery and so far I have gotten about 8 hours without getting a low battery indication (also in the display). The volume controls are on the side and the headphones are on the top. The arm band that comes with it does cover up the display and the program and skip buttons but not the volume. It is a minor inconvenience. It also has a button for the different play modes - flat, bass, rock, jazz and pop which work very well. It has a button on the side that also locks the control so that you don't accidentally hit the buttons and skip tracks, etc.
The headphones that come with the unit are clip-ons which I really didn't like. They are very flimsy and uncomfortable - I will stick with my old headphones.
Doesn't come with an FM radio but I really wasn't looking for one - I use this mostly for the gym.
The sound is great - I didn't notice that much of a difference between an mp3 at 96kbps and an mp3 at 128kbps. I didn't notice any kind of skipping from workouts at the gym.
Two things about the design could be changed - one - when it plays back it plays the songs in alphabetical order unless you program the player separately - two - it doesn't have a backlight in the display.
I have already dropped it a few times (and my 5 year old smashed it in to the wall) and no problem at all with the durability so far.
Optional Equipment:
I picked up a 256mb SD card at Staples for about $50 after rebates (well worth it) and that worked immediately without any type of formatting or programming. This card fit a 4 cd set that was configured at 128kbps. I will probably drop it down to 96 to be able to load more songs on it.
Summary:
Extremely easy to use
Great memory and expandability
Very Good sound
Really small size
Pretty durable
Headphones are not very good
Excellent Value
This really is an excellent little mp3 player especially for $100.
Recommended:
Yes
Amount Paid (US$): 100
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Epinions.com ID:
kblondina
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Reviews written: 6
Trusted by: 0 members
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