Player Blog Category Archives: iRiver
iRiver H10 Gets a 6GB Boost
It looks as if iRiver will be upgrading (in Korean) the H10 from a 4GB capacity to 6GB in the near future. Moves like this are pretty much a no brainer these days, as the iPod Mini and Creative Zen Micro have already made the jump. [Via DAPReview].
iRiver H10 Review
Gear @ IGN.com has been dormant for a while, at least with respect to audio players, for quite some time. However, they emerged briefly from slumber to post a new review of the iRiver H10.
The review author, Chris Roper, gave it an 8.5/10 and strong praise:
I really like the iriver H10 quite a bit. The audio quality is excellent and the touch strip works very well. The whole interface is simple to navigate through with this setup, making for a quick and easy track selection process.
iRiver H10 Review
Engadget does its thing with a new iRiver H10 review. They said:
iRiver's H10 5GB portable audio player has a lot to like, but there are a few flaws that were deal-breakers for us. In the end, we're returning this item, though the positive features may make the issues with this unit worth it for some.
However, note that the more serious cons that the list for the H10 have been fixed by the recent v2.0 firmware update, so take those negatives with a grain of salt.
Related Links:
iRiver Fixes Some Annoying H10 Issues
In Depth iRiver H10 Review
iRiver Fixes Some Annoying H10 Issues
iRiver community forum Mistic River brings word of a major firmware update for the new iRiver H10 (available for download here).
As we reported previously, the H10 had a annoying bug that made it play tracks in alphabetical order, even if track filenames started with numbers or had track number ID3 tags. If you upgrade to the v2.0 firmware, you have to refresh the H10's track database to get it behave properly. To refresh, go to Settings > Extra > Database Refresh > Yes.
Note that this firmware update is for the US version ONLY. The EU and Asian versions of the H10 use different firmware and should be released by iRiver shortly.
Related Links:
In Depth iRiver H10 Review
iRiver H10 Accessories
Mistic River has the lowdown on new H10 accessories that iRiver is producing. Unfortunately they're available only in Korea right now, but we assume that some or all of these will end up in other markets eventually.
The new H10 toys are a cradle, an LCD-less remote and a proprietary-to-iRiver USB cable.
iRiver H10 Review
Tom's Hardware is the latest source for another review of the H10, iRiver's new 5GB, color audio player.
iRiver H10 Review
Another iRiver H10 review checks in today, this time from Everything USB:
All in all, the iRiver H10 is makes for a well rounded MP3 player that is sure to last through the unintentional abuse we give all handheld electronics. The color screen is vibrant, the audio quality is great, and the battery lasts. About the only things lacking are the interface and data partition. For $279, the iRiver H10 is a bargain.
iRiver H320 Review
Omar Shahine has written up his thoughts on the iRiver H320 and how it compares to the iPod.
Omar is a Microsoft employee and his review reflects a more Microsoft-centric mindset. For example, he pays special attention to Microsoft's PlaysForSure and MTP. Not to say that this is a bad thing, but it is worth pointing out.
Unfortunately for the H320, Omar didn't like it:
Lame- fails in some areas. Do not hand over your money for this device.
Seriously, I did not enjoy debugging and trying to fit this device into my lifestyle. I figure the 2 or so hours I spent hacking TDT to support WMA DRM'ed files was well worth it as I learned something new, but if you are looking for a device to replace your iPod or you are on the market for a new device I would wait till iRiver works out the issues above (or some one else ships a comparable device).
Previously we reported that most Microsoft employees own iPods and here is Omar's review adding anecdotal evidence to the idea. [Via Digital Media Thoughts]
Mossberg on the iRiver H10
This week in his Wall Street Journal column Walt Mossberg trys out the iRiver H10. Unfortunately unless you're a WSJ online subscriber, you won't be able to read the column.
Like just about every review now, it's framed in terms of how the H10 stacks up against the iPod Mini. We'll try to excerpt some of the key points here:
We liked the iRiver H10 a lot, and consider it the best of the iPod mini competitors. It has some drawbacks, and on balance, isn't quite as easy to use as an iPod. And it costs more. But it is a plausible alternative.
...
Overall, we found the iRiver H10 fairly easy to use, and its interface was vastly improved in comparison with previous iRiver players. We liked its color screen.
But the photo, radio and recording features are clumsy, and navigation isn't up to the iPod's standard. The H10 is a good choice for somebody with a little extra cash who wants to use the Microsoft-based music formats, or Napster To Go's rented music. But, for everyone else, it doesn't top the iPod.
iRiver H10 Troubleshooting
Jeff, maintainer of iRiver community forum Mistic River, has posted threads dealing with two common issues that are plaguing new iRiver H10 owners.
The first problem is the H10 not being recognized when it is connected to the computer. If you're seeing this, there is a workaround but it requires two Windows computers.
The second pertains to severe distortion when using the "Custom EQ" setting. Unfortunately with this issue there is no workaround. The problem has been reported to iRiver and they've promised to address it. Unfortunately, though, iRiver doesn't have the best track record when it comes to delivering timely firmware fixes. [Via DAPReview]
iRiver H10 Review
Design Technica has published a review of the iRiver H10. The H10 gets mostly high marks, but Design Technica does have some useful feedback for iRiver [Via Digital Media Thoughts]:
The H10 digital audio player is definitely a step in the right direction, and is a very strong first offering of this kind from iRiver. We did not experience any real problems throughout the review process. The H10 did not lock up on us, battery life is above average and it works seamlessly with Windows Media Player 10. The overall usability of the H10 is second to none. That's also one of its shortfalls.
We love the color screen, but have to question its usefulness since it doesn't show album art and the player does not output stored images to a TV. We also love how it interfaces with Windows Media Player 10, but other than Napster To Go and maybe MSN Music, those are the only services iRiver actually acknowledges the player works with. And lastly, while the ear buds fit comfortably, they just do not sound as good as those that come with the Apple iPod or Creative Labs Zen Micro. We also wish the H10 had more power output per channel to help eliminate the massive distortion we encountered when playing anything with bass. As it stands though, the H10 is a great player that you should consider.
iRiver H320 Review
Dev Hardware has posted their review of the iRiver H320. While the 20GB color LCD device isn't the newest audio player on the street, it is currently one of the few Plays For Sure-compatible ways to listen to Napster on the Go tunes. Dev Hardware liked it a lot:
This is a great player, but it has a few problems. iRiver packed many features into the H320. The H320 can do more than just play music. It has built in radio, voice recorder, and text. While all these features work great, the overall software is lacking. Scrolling through an entire library of music becomes a tedious task. Getting to know how to access everything requires that the user thoroughly read the manual, and even then you will need to play around with it. My only other complaint is the current firmware. This lacks many of the great features offered in other countries, which would place the H320 in a category of its own. Overall I really liked this player; the positives overwhelm the few negatives of this player.
Napster iRiver H10 Deal: Over in the Blink of an Eye
For a very short period of time, Napster was offering a free iRiver H10 to the first 1000 people who subscribed for a year. Since a year of Napster to Go costs about $180 and an H10 retails for $280, this was pretty much a no-brainer. Needless to say it didn't last long and 1000 lucky people are getting an iRiver H10 on the cheap.
As with most other hot deals, keep an eye on eBay as people start to auction off their lucky catches.
Even if you missed it, Napster does have a few specials for new Napster to Go subscribers. If you subscribe for 3 months, you get $45 off the retail price of the iRiver H10 or the Creative Zen Micro. Of course, this isn't much of a deal unless you were going to subscribe to Napster to Go in the first place.
In Depth iRiver H10 Review
Jeff, the maintainer of iRiver community forum Mistic River, has written a lengthy in depth review of the new iRiver H10. As a bonus, he's also got video (7MB WMV file) of using the device.
Not surprisingly, Jeff liked the H10 a lot:
The iRiver H10 is a great player. Easy to use, great sound quality, easy to navigate, 5gb of storage, on the fly playlisting, photo viewing, slideshow, color screen, great styling. Both power users and everyday consumers will enjoy using it's many features. It stacks up very well against the competition and if viewed side by side should come out on top.
Justifiably though, Jeff dings iRiver for a pretty significant bug in the H10 firmware. In a folder it plays tracks alphabetically by filename instead of using the track number tag stored in each file. Even if your songs start with their track number ("01 - Song A", "02 - Next Song", "03 - More", etc.) it STILL sorts them alphabetically so that "03 - More" would play first! Ouch iRiver.
Also, there's been some question about using the H10 as a portable harddrive. Apparently our original supposition was correct. The H10 will not be compatible with non-Windows computers (Macs, Linux, etc.). To many this may not be an issue, but it's good to be aware of this and the fact that previous iRiver devices were compatible.
iRiver H10 Review
Pocket Lint is one of the first sites to get their first impressions of the new iRiver H10 up on the web. Certainly more detailed reviews will be coming along shortly, but in the meantime the color 5GB device left a favorable impression:
Overall this player is easy to use and performs well producing a good sound that coped well with everything we played (Crystal Method to Bob Dylan) in our tests. If you weren't happy of course, you could change the phones.
The addition of a good quality screen to view images puts it above the iPod Photo even though it doesn't have the storage capacity to match.
Related Links:
Bad News on the iRiver H10
More on the iRiver H10
iRiver H10 Officially Official
Bad News on the iRiver H10
According to information gathered by DAPReview from iRiver staffers at CES, the upcoming iRiver H10 has a number of negative points that may add up to making the H10 a less-than-compelling choice for buyers.
Specifically iRiver said that the H10 will only support Microsoft's new Media Transfer Protocol (MTP) instead of the more common Mass Storage Class (MSC). While the acronyms and geek-speak may not mean much to you, it may make the H10 less useful to you. Older iRiver devices like the H120 and H320 are MSCs. This means that you can connect them to almost any computer (a Windows PC, a Mac, even a Linux box) and access the files on the device without extra software. Essentially they're universal, portable harddrives.
However, moving to MSC may eliminate some of those features. Likely you won't be able to connect to Macs or Linux boxes anymore. Also, older Windows systems not running the latest version of Microsoft Media Player might be out in the cold as well.
Also, even though the H10 supports line-in recording and line-out, you have to buy the $40 dock to use them.
Unlike previous iRiver models, the H10 uses a custom USB cable rather than an industry standard cable. With a standard cable, picking up a spare to connect with a second computer was easy and inexpensive. Now you'll have to buy one from iRiver.
Still no gapless MP3 playback.
Finally, iRiver removed the volume up and down buttons. According to DAPReview, "you must be in the Now Playing screen to adjust volume". Presumably you use the touch pad to raise and lower volume from the Now Playing screen.
Even More on the iRiver H10
iRiver has updated their website to include the new iRiver H10 line. According to the official iRiver press release, the basic specs of the H10 are as expected: 5GB capacity, color LCD and a touch navigation strip.
The actual size and weight of the device are a little different from what we initially reported: 3.8"x2.2"x 0.6" and 3.4 oz.
Also, the US retail price will be $280.
More on the iRiver H10
More information on the new iRiver H10 is starting to trickle in. It's listed on iRiver Japan's website and they have lots of photos. Akhibara Geeks also have a few photos.
In terms of what the H10 can do , a couple of new points are that it PlaysForSure, supports USB charging and that the battery is removable. This info is from the folks at Mistic River who are translating this Korean first look.
Related Links:
iRiver H10 Officially Official
The iRiver H10: iRiver Gets Its Mini On?
iRiver H300 Remote Available
We just noticed that the iRiver H300 remote is now available from iRiver's web store. While the older iRiver H100s included a spiffy LCD remote, the current iRiver H300s have no remote at all. Furthermore, this remote doesn't even have the LCD. But it's only $19.99, so adding one won't break the bank.
There is, however, an LCD remote for the H300s (photos here) available in Korea. As of yet, though, it is not available in the US.
iRiver H10 Officially Official
Today iRiver officially announced its newest harddrive-based MP3 player, the H10. As expected, the H10 has a 5GB capacity, a 1.5" color LCD for viewing photos, an FM radio, digital audio recording and a reported 12 hour battery life.
Like the Creative Zen Touch, the H10 has a vertical touch pad for navigation, which is itself a straightened out version of the iPod's circular touch pad. Four color choices will be available: "deep red, midnight blue, neo silver and slate gray".
As for size, the H10 is 3.8"x2.15"x0.6" which is a little larger than the iPod mini at 3.6" x 2.0" x 0.5".
More photos of the H10 and its debut party are here.
The H10 will be available in South Korea on the 22nd for 363,000 won, which is about US$344, nearly $100 more than the iPod Mini and other comparable mini players.
Related Links:
The iRiver H10: iRiver Gets Its Mini On?
The iRiver H10: iRiver Gets Its Mini On?
iRiver community site Mistic River has gotten its hands on pics of new iRiver products coming in 2005. The most interesting one is shown below, which is supposed to be the iRiver H10. Possibly its the prize that iRiver will be giving away soon.
The details that Mistic River gathered are that the H10 will have a 5GB capacity, a 1.5" color LCD, touch-sensitive navigation (a la the Creative Zen Touch) and an FM radio. If iRiver can bring the price on the H10 around the iPod Mini's $250, they may give Apple and Creative a run for their money.
Related Links:
iRiver Gets Its Mini On?
iRiver Gets It Mini On?
iRiver recently redesigned its international website. A site redesign isn't big news, but to get some free testing iRiver is giving away an as-of-yet unannounced device to the person who reports the most bugs.
To get people motivated, iRiver has offered a peek at what the new device is supposed to look like. Even though most of the photo is blurred, it's pretty clear that it has a color screen.
Also it's reasonable to speculate that it's going to be a mini size device since Apple, Creative, Dell and Rio have all recently introduced smaller, lower capacity models. The lack of a mini model has been a pretty big hole in iRiver's product line since the introduction of the iPod Mini.
If it does turn out this way, iRiver might have a winner with the first color, mini audio player. More details when they turn up.
iRiver H320 Review
PC Magazine has published their review of the iRiver H320:
The color screen and photo support are more convenience features than reasons for buying the H320. But its sonic abilities and advanced audiophile features are. If you don't mind a larger player, the H320 is a fine choice.
We'd like to call out once again that the US version of the iRiver H320 and H340 do not have USB On to Go (USB OTG) support. European and Asian versions, on the other hand, do have USB OTG, meaning owners can move photos directly from a digital camera to the H320. Needless to say, not having this feature in the domestic version is a big let down.
However, the iPod Photo doesn't have USB OTG either and the iRivers (around $285 and $380) cost about the same as a comparable regular iPods (around $275 and $370), compared with the 40GB iPod Photo at $499.
25% Off iRiver Accessories
From now until December 13th, iRiver is offering a 25% discount on iRiver accessories. Just use code ATC25Y4M a checkout.
iRiver Predicts It Will Generate Lotsa Revenue
More on the business front from iRiver today. Their CEO, Marilyn Chen, predicted that iRiver will take in $450 million in 2004 and nearly double revenue in 2005 to the tune of $890 million.
Also announced was a new production plant in China that will greatly expanded iRiver's supply volume and allow it to go after OEM contracts with other vendors.
And speaking of chipsets, according to the DigiTimes article, iRiver mostly uses chipsets from Philips.
Leather Cases for iRiver, Dell, Creative and Rio Devices
Although, we've mentioned them recently, we'd like to note that Vaja Cases has leather cases for just about every popular audio player on the market. iRiver H1s and H3s, 1G Dells, Creative Zen Touch and older Nomads and Rio Karma, Carbons and Nitrus' (Nitri?). Beware of the price, though. Cases run about $50 or $60 depending on the model they fit.
Related Links:
Rio Carbon Cases
iRiver H320 Review
Gutter Vomit has written a review of iRiver's H320 which, up until today, was one of the only choices for an audio player with a color LCD. Still, even with Apple in the game now the 20GB H320 goes for about $100 less than the iPod Photo and is still a viable option.
Overall, I'm very happy with the H320; I know I sound like I'm not, but I am. Honest. The one thing it needed to do -- i.e., encourage my latent autism by letting me shut out the external world for 12 hours each day -- it does very well, and ultimately, that's what matters.
Although I admittedly have little experience with other players, I'd say that this device addresses all of my music needs pretty handily, and manages to throw in enough extras to warrant its higher price tag: US-based vendors have been pegging it somewhere between US$300 and US$350, although obviously, YMMV, here more than anywhere else. Other interesting non-iPod choices include Creative's Zen Touch (the one with the touchpad instead of a click-wheel) and the tiny Rio Karma, although neither have color screens.
Digital Media Thoughts Chats With iRiver
Suhit from Digital Media Thoughts has written up his experience at the Digital Focus trade show with some iRiver folks. It's an interesting read if you (like us and Suhit himself) wonder why iRiver gets so little market traction with their products:
So clearly this is not a new problem for the PR section of the company. Here is what it seems to boil down to - apparently the entire iRiver marketing department consists of just one person who is understandably overworked (running after Jenna Jameson must be hard work Wink). But even more importantly, it seems that all of their sales problems seem to stem from a severe lack of a real marketing budget. So if any iRiver execs (or people that can whisper something into the ears of the iRiver execs) are reading this, please re-think your marketing strategy. I cannot stress more that I absolutely love your products, and tons more people out there would too, if they only knew about them.
Update: the Jenna Jameson/iRiver reference
USB On The Go Pulled from US iRiver H300s?
According to officially "verified" information, Mistic River, the iRiver community forum, has stated that the US version of iRiver's new H300 audio players will not have USB On the Go (USB OTG), a feature available on the European and Asian versions of the same device. If true, we can only call this development inexplicable. Along with a higher price tag and a color LCD screen, USB OTG was one the main differentiators of the H300s over iRiver's older, less expensive H100s and competitors from Apple, Rio, Creative and others.
It has been speculated that there may be US patent issues that have driven iRiver to this step, but no evidence has been offered thus far.
iSkin for iRiver Preview
Mistic River has an early preview image gallery for the upcoming iSkin case for iRiver H100s. This should be a welcome addition as the case included with iRiver's is, though sturdy, kind of bulky. It looks as if the iSkin will give adequate protection without unnecessarily increasing total size. Also, the belt clip is a plus since the original case has a nearly useless belt loop only.
iRiver H320 and H340 Officially Official
While we've known about it for a while, the iRiver H320 and H340 have been officially announced and are available for pre-order on iRiver's online store. Comparable to the Archos Gmini 400, the H3's are the big (as in slightly thicker) brothers of iRiver's older H1 line.
They have all the features of the old models such as Ogg music format support, FM radio, digital recording and USB mass storage device capability, but have a couple of nice, new features. First is the color LCD for viewing photos. Second is USB On the Go (USB OTG) which allows you to download pictures from a USB digital camera onto the larger harddrive of the iRiver.
Also, if you get your hands on one, the firmware has already been updated to v1.06.
More bits at Engadget and Slashdot.
Related Links:
iRiver H340 Review
Rockbox to Take On iRiver Firmware!
The crew at Rockbox, a venerable open source replacement firmware project for Archos audio players, is putting together an effort to port their firmware to the iRiver H1xx-series of devices. In the wake of iRiver's much-maligned (and delayed) attempts to add desirable features to their proprietary firmware, this is excellent news.
Related Links:
Neuros Firmware Goes Open Source
iRiver H1xx Firmware Finally Out?
New iRiver Firmware Dates
New Firmware Schedule in English
iRiver Forums NSFW
Upcoming Updates for iRiver iHP Players
iRiver US and EU Firmware Released
iRiver has released updated US and EU firmware and a new version of its song database manager to complement yesterday's release of a Korean update. The feature set seems to be the same as the Korean version as well:
- File Delete
- Re-format the device harddrive
- Adjust playback speed
- Delete gaps between songs (NOT true gapless playback however)
- Text support for sub-folders
Download them here:
iRiver H340 Review
Mistic River, the iRiver community site, has published a nice review of the iRiver H340, their top-of-the-line color LCD audio player with a 40GB capacity. As could be expected of those who really know the ins and outs of iRiver products, the review is very thorough. We're especially pleased with real-world battery life testing rather than relying on vendor specs.
If you're in the market for the latest technology which iRiver has to offer then this should be your next purchase. It has the features, build quality and looks to impress the most die hard of fans. On the downside, USBOTG could have been better implemented with USB2.0 support as well as native support for a larger percentage of cameras and devices. In addition, the ability to copy subdirectories should have been a slam dunk. On the firmware side, the unit supports on-the-fly deleting of files throught the browser function but I'm wondering if iRiver should have waited a bit and tried to implement the more basic and user requested functions such as on-the-fly playlists, gapless play back, WAV support and unlimited WAV recording prior to releasing the unit to market. All in all a solid player with some outstanding features including the best color TFT screen to be found on any portable device.
Under the Hood of the iRiver PMP-140
Never mind that they're scarce, Chinese-language site imp3.net has put their screwdrivers to the new iRiver PMP-140 and given us a pile of photos and even a few functional diagrams of the personal video player.
iRiver H300 Firmware Updated
iRiver has just released a small update for the firmware for its new H300 devices today. It looks as if only a couple of bugs have been fixed in this version, but what's notable is that iRiver still hasn't released the long-promised major firmware updates for both the H3xx and H1xx devices. iRiver has already missed the deadlines they set for themselves twice and the iRiver community forums are filled with antsy users demanding satisfaction.
PS: we apologize for the recent lack of updates. We've been buried in a lot of RL work, but we're working to catch up now.
Related Links:
New iRiver Firmware Dates
New Firmware Schedule in English
iRiver Forums NSFW
Upcoming Updates for iRiver iHP Players
iRiver H3xx in Action
Jeff over at the Mistic River forum has posted some videos of the new iRiver H340 in action and has been answering questions on the device. Thanks Bill!
iRiver Image Hacking
We had previously mentioned some firmware hacks for Asian versions of iRiver's H-series devices, but we weren't sure if it worked on US or European versions. It turns out that you can change any of the graphics with these tools. They even have some nice, downloadable startup images to get you going.
Mo iRiver PMP Photos (On Sale Soon?)
Chinese site iMP3 has another photo-packed review of the upcoming iRiver PMP-100 portable video player. Also, we've heard the device will be available from the iRiver online store in the very near future.
iRiver Trifecta: New Firmware Schedule in English
Completing the trifecta of iRiver news, the company has posted a rough schedule and a list of features that will be implemented in its upcoming firmware updates. Previously this was only available in Korean.
If you aren't an iRiver H-series you may not have been aware of the furor over these updates. Originally promised in May, they still haven't been released and iRiver's community forums have been bombarded with complaints and even attacks that, for a while, rendered them NSFW.
Updated iRiver PMC Design
Portable Media Center Player has just posted a set of photos of the upcoming iRiver PMC. It does look as if iRiver re-tooled the design since we last saw the PMC.
Tweak Your iRiver Firmware
If you just can't wait for the major, forthcoming (no really) iRiver firmware update for it H-series of audio players, here's something to play with. Some intrepid Japanese hackers have created the iriver H Series Firmware Customizer (machine translation here). The application lets you tweak some of the look and feel, such as the boot display image. As far as we can tell, it only works on Japanese devices, so YMMV. [Via DAP Review]
iRiver PMP-140 Preview
Portable Media World has got its hand on pre-release version of the upcoming iRiver PMP-120 portable video player and they've done a photo-filled preview (in both English and French). Unfortunately, the software isn't quite baked yet:
As explained before, I'm not able to provide you with a final judgement on this product because of the version of Beta version of the firmware. But beware, this beast is already very very sexy as it is now. The occasional bugs and crashes did in no way spoil the pleasure I had by playing around with this little device! We predict that the final version will totally blow you away!
Also to be noted is that fact that this PMP will be able to act as a small game console, as 6 games are included in this whole package.
Archos (even with their 500 version) has a serious competitor with this PMP-140, and as end-users, we can only be happy with this, because it will push the manufacturers to keep amazing us with new devices.
New iRiver Firmware Dates
The deadlines iRiver gave a couple of months ago for major firmware updates have long passed, causing much wailing and gnashing of teeth in iRiver's community forums. Today, however, iRiver announced new schedules and proposed changes for their whole product line. While the announcement is in Korean, Mistic River has kindly translated the important parts.
There will be a series of updates for the H-series players, but must of the new features will be delivered in late July or early August. Some enterprising soul should start a pool on whether iRiver delivers on time.
More bits at DAP Review.
Related Links:
Upcoming Updates for iRiver iHP Players
iRiver PMP Photos
DAP Review has mirrored a large set of photos of the iRiver PMP-140 from a slow-loading Chinese site. The upcoming PMP line, with both 20GB and 40GB flavors, are one of iRiver's two attempts at portable video player. The other branch, the PMCs, are based on Microsoft's Portable Media Center technology while the PMPs are based on Linux.
Warning: iRiver Forums NSFW
For quite some time the iRiver user forums have been filled with people complaining about iRiver not delivering new firmware in the time promised, but things have taken a turn for the wose. Dozens of forum threads immediately redirect you to other websites that are, at best, annoying or, at worst, well you don't want to know about at worst. As far as we can tell, someone is posting comments that contain HTML that immediately "refreshes" your browser to another page.
BTW, thanks to the readers who noticed the price guide is completely out of whack. We're redoing it now and will post a new, improved version.
Piles of Pics of the iRiver H320
A handful of iRiver H300s are starting to escape into the wild (in Asia at least) and the photos are starting to hit the web. DAP Review found a couple of reviews with tons on photos. First is a Chinese review at imp3.net (machine translation). Second is a Korean iRiver forum user review (machine translation).
Also, we found someone brave enough to tear the cover off and peek at what's under the hood. EasyDigi (machine translation) hacked up their H320 and got photos of the circuit boards and highlighted the chips that power the device.
iRiver Acquires MPMan for Their Patents
JoongAng Daily has reported that Korea-based iRiver has acquired MPMan, which is also based in Korea. Apparently the reason for the acquisition was that MPMan held one or more player patents in Korea, China and the US. According to a news item from 2001, MPMan was collecting a 3% royalty from other Korean MP3 player manufacturers. This could potentially put iRiver into a unique position of power over its rivals if it choses not to license patent rights to its competitors. It's unclear what impact this has in the US, however. We've been unable to establish what US patents iRiver now has ownership of.
Another Early Review of the iRiver H320
The Akihabara gang has a new photo-filled review of the upcoming iRiver H320 color MP3 player. Most of the review is in French, but some (towards the end) is in English. A machine translation into English of the whole review is here. Also, here are more bits on the review at Gizmodo.
As Gizmodo notes, the USB Host capability is a Really Big Deal. Consequently, I really hope that this functionality makes it into the less-expensive (ie non-color LCD) players and doesn't only appear in the high-end, battery-eating color devices.
Bunch O' Pics of the iRiver H320
AV Watch of Japan of has a bunch of pictures of the new iRiver H320. A Babelfish translation into English is here. From the screenshots, it appears that the user interface is a lot like the its predecessors (except that it's in color now).
Also, note that the LCD on the remote is gone. For me personally, this is a big deal. I've gotten very used to being able to operate my iRiver player completely from the remote while keeping the body snug in its case. I do hope that iRiver at least offers a LCD remote option.
iRiver PMP-100 Available for Pre-Order
New product season is in full swing now as J&R has the new iRiver PMP-100 A/V player available for pre-sale. The price is a not-inconsequential $500 for a 3.5" color LCD screen and a 20GB capacity.
iRiver PMP-120 Preview
Infosync World has a new preview of the upcoming iRiver PMP-120, previously reported here. What sticks out in our minds about the PMP line is that it shows iRiver playing both sides of the fence. The upcoming PMC line runs on Microsoft technology while the PMP shown here runs on Linux, the open-source operating system that is very much a competitor to MS.
Having opted for Linux to power its first product, the PMP-120 offers support for the vast majority of popular audio and video formats, except for Microsoft's Windows Media Video (WMV). This, however, will be supported in the company's Windows CE powered PMC-100, to be introduced later this year.
Microsoft is known as an intensively competitive company so it would seem reasonable that they would want their hardware partners such as iRiver and Creative to use MS technology exclusively. However the PMP-120 shows pretty clearly that right now MS just doesn't have the market-share versus iPod/iTunes and Linux to set those terms.
iRiver Accessories: DIY and Commercial
One thing that concerns me about my iRiver H-series player is how long the remote will survive. Not that this is necessarily iRiver's fault. The player itself is snug in its case, but the remote takes a beating through daily use. Fortunately, if and when I manage to crush it, it's comforting to know that at least I can buy a replacement (in the UK at least).
On the other hand, one thing you can't buy in a store is a cradle docking station for your H-series. Of course, you could just make one yourself. I predict brushed aluminum project cases will be the new black.
First Look at iRiver PMP-120
Gear @ IGN has a preview of iRiver's upcoming PMP-120. At the very least it confirms that it (a) exists, (b) has all the features that we thought it had and (c) will come out in the next few months (and long before the Windows Media Center-based PMC line).
Rest assured that the PMC is still on track for a 2004 release, but the PMP will be out a good deal earlier. iRiver wouldn't give a specific date, but we might see units shipping as early as this summer.
Notably though, this will be the first iRiver model with an interchangeable battery, rather than the sealed case of previous generations. Also the Gear article has size and weight stats for the PMP: 5.4"x3.3"x1.2" at 9.8oz.
Business for iRiver Booming
Forbes has a brief Reuters article on iRiver's business outlook. They estimate that they'll book $450 million this year. Not too shabby.
Also, the article notes in passing that the Personal Media Players (PMPs) will be launched in the US and South Korea in August.
Speaking of New Models from iRiver
It looks as if more details on iRiver's upcoming models are starting to come out. We had covered this a couple of months ago and it looks like we were largely on target.
First up, are the H340 and H320 players, weighing in at 40GB and 20GB respectively. With similar functionality to the older H-series players, they add a color LCD for displaying photos and modified controls. Notably, the H340 also includes a "Ladestation" which (not being Swiss-German speakers) we believe is a docking station, a first for iRiver.
Next are the Personal Media Players, the PMP-140 and PMP-120. These are color LCD portable video players in either 20GB or 40GB configurations. They support AVI, MP4, MPG / DivX 3.x, 4.x, 5.x, XviD, MPEG 4 SP, Advanced SP, MPEG1 and WMV video formats in addition to music playing and photo display.
Last are the Personal Media Centers, the PMC-140 and PMC-120, shown at right. These will also be portable video players with either 20GB or 40GB, but are based on Microsoft's Portable Media Center technology.
There aren't a lot of details on the PMCs, but the iRiver Switzerland site says to expect them in Q3 of this year. However, the PMPs will almost certainly hit the streets before the PMCs. What, exactly, the real differences between the two lines will be remains to be seen.
Then Again Maybe There is Something About the H140
In our previous entry we called out the name change for iRiver H140 and noted that nothing else was different. Well, Gear @ IGN says iRiver may have a few changes in store:
Initially the H140 was supposed to be simply a thicker version of the extant 20GB model. The individual product shots show it to be just that, but the banner is something new. Notice the control stick? Its low profile places it almost flush with the surface of the body, much different than the iHP originals. In fact, the entire façade is much flatter than anything else from iRiver.
Of course, it is entirely possible that iRiver did some creative Photoshopping on the product shot, but time will tell. With the way iRiver prices have been dropping, the new models may not be that far away.
iRiver Announces New Player with 43% Fewer Letters
iRiver has officially changed the brand names of their 20GB and 40GB players from iHP-120 and iHP-140 to H120 and H140, respectively. H140 is certainly much less of a mouthful than iHP-140, but as far as we can tell only the name has changed.
Also of note, prices have dropped a bit since last Friday's price guide. Amazon now has the H120 for $299 and the H140 for $399.
Tag Database Tool for iRiver iHPs
The Tag Database Tool (TDT) is a replacement utility for the standard iRiver tool that builds a tag database from your music collection. The TDT should be significantly faster than iRiver's original and also adds support for OGG and WMA files. Best of all, it's an open-source project. This means that (a) it's free and (b) if you want to change it or add your own features, you can.
CNet Reviews the iRiver iHP-140
CNet has a positive review of iRiver's flagship player, the 40GB iHP-140. At least it's the flagship until the new models come out in the not-too-distant future. In any case, here's what CNet has to say:
The good: Analog and digital optical inputs/outputs; 40GB hard drive; line-in and voice recording; in-line remote with LCD; long battery life; FM tuner; high-resolution display.
The bad: Display text is small; slow scrolling; slight learning curve; limited Mac compatibility.
New iRiver Community: DIY Battery Replacement and Open-Source Firmware
We just noticed a new community forum for iRiver's MP3 players, iRiver@Lounge. There aren't a whole lot of posts there yet, but two items really caught our interest.
First was a discusison of DIY battery replacement. The iRiver iHP series already gets around 16 hours of life from its battery, which puts at the top of the class for harddrive players. But apparently it is possible to install an even higher capacity battery. One test got nearly 26 hours of life from one charge.
Second was the beginnings of an attempt to make open-source firmware for the iHP series. It's an ambitious undertaking, to say the least, but best of luck to them.
Upcoming Updates for iRiver iHP Players
iRiver announced a little while back a few significant, oft-requested features that it would be adding to its iHP series. Tentatively scheduled for a May firmware update are On-the-fly File Delete and Real Shuffle Mode. On-the-Fly Delete lets you delete files using the player's interface rather than having to connect it to a PC first. Real Shuffle Mode changes the random shuffle algorithm, something users had complained about in the past.
Next up for a June firmware update are On-the-fly Playlist and Gapless Playback. On-the-fly Playlist lets you queue files to play, just as you could by pre-making a playlist on your PC. Gapless Playback is explained in a previous entry.
Full announcement on the iRiver User Forum
iRiver on Creating the iPod Killer
iRiver President Jonathan Sasse recently sat down with Tech World News for an interview. There wasn't much said that we didn't already know, including the products iRiver will be launching this year. But it's an interesting read nonetheless. [Via DAP Review]
What's the most exciting technology happening in the development lab at iRiver right now?
Keeping in line with the previous comment about the Portable Media Center, I believe that bringing a complete multimedia experience to a portable device is a very compelling opportunity for consumers. As we will launch several variations of a portable multimedia player this year, our customers will now be able to take all of their music with them as they have previously, but in addition they will be able to take photos and videos with them as well. Whether it is a portable TiVo-like experience, a digital photo collection or a supercharged audio experience, these devices will change the face of portable entertainment completely.
Gear: The Future of iRiver
Gear @ IGN.com has a nice overview of what are thought to be iRiver's upcoming products.
There is a race to see who will release the first portable jukebox with a color LCD. Rio has already declared that the next-generation Karma will have one. Neither Apple nor Creative has given any hints, but once someone releases a color model everyone else will fall in line. It's not so much that a color screen will do anything for audio performance, but it allows companies to start adding image and video support. Drives are getting to be large enough that folks don't have to use all the space for audio. Why not throw your video or images on and be able to view them on the go?
$50 Rebate on iRiver iHP-140 Ends Tomorrow
As noted in this week's price guide, the iRiver iHP-140 40GB MP3 player has a $50 rebate from Amazon. The rebate brings the price down to an astonishing $370, $100 less than the iPod 40GB model. And what makes it even sweeter is that the iRiver comes with a case and a LCD remote, all extras with the iPod.
The catch is that you have to order it by tomorrow (Saturday, 3/19) before the rebate expires.
iRiver iHP-140 Review
Tim Anderson has written a new review of iRiver's (current) flagship MP3 player, the 40GB iHP-140.
One of the things I like about the iHP-140 is that it does more to exploit the advantages of a pocketable mass storage device. When you connect up to a PC using a fast USB 2.0 connection, it appears as just another hard drive. You can copy anything you like to it: your accounts, your documents, your Exchange Server backup, whatever. Don't forget to encrypt anything confidential. So then you can get on the plane and enjoy your music knowing your off-site backup is right there with you. Then when you get to your meeting you don't need to take notes: just pull out the iRiver, press record, and let the internal microphone and auto level-control do the rest.
New Stuff from iRiver
iRiverNordic has a lineup of iRiver's upcoming products for 2004. The biggest deals are (suprise, surprise) two portable video/audio players with 3.5" color LCDs, the PMC-100 and the PMP-100. Not suprisingly, these are based on Microsoft's Portable Media Center software. It's not yet clear what the differences are between the two models, but the PMP-100 does support USB On The Go (OTG) that lets you connect USB devices (such as a digital camera) to the player to move photos off the camera.
The next big thing is the iHP-300 which looks like an iHP-1xx with the addition of a 2" color LCD for displaying photos. Does this sound familiar? It will also support USB On The Go, but it isn't clear whether the iHP-300 will also offer the same video output that the rumored 4th generation iPod will.
Finally, it looks as if the odd shaped iGP-100 will be phased out. The iGP-100 was iRiver's smaller capacity, mini portable (like the iPod Mini or Rio Nitrus). Maybe they have a new Mini-like player on the drawing board, but who knows.
Introducing iRiver Community Forums
Community forums are a highly underrated "feature" of MP3 players (and all sort of products, in general). An active, knowledagable group of people who'll answer your questions or push manufacturers for improvements is unquestionably useful. Sometimes manufacturers participate in the forums, sometimes not. Sometimes manufacturers maintain forums for their own products, sometimes devoted users have to do it. In any case, it's good to know you have someone to turn to if you're having problems.
To connect more owners with their forums I'm going to be listing the various forums and resources available for various players. I'm going to kick this of with iRiver.
iRiver has their own at the iRiver User Forums.
Also, there is also Mistic River, a user-maintained site.
iRiver iHP-140 Price Drops
Prices are already starting to fall on iRiver's newest player. Compuplus now has the 40GB iHP-140 for $440, from a retail price of $499. Compuplus and Amazon also have the 20GB iHP-120 for $302, after a $30 rebate.
Comparable in size to the 40GB iPod, the iRiver iHP-140 has a 16 hour battery life, is 4.1"x2.4"x.9", weighs 6.5oz and has USB 2.0 connectivity, an LCD remote, an FM radio and digital recording included.
iRiver iGP-100 Mini Review
The good folks at Gear @ IGN have a new mini review of the iRiver iGP-100. It's a quirky design with a 1.5GB hard drive, but it has some nice features including drag-and-drop hard drive access without additional software.
iRiver iHP-120 Now Only $299!
Amazon has lowered their price on the iRiver 20GB player. The iHP-120 is now $299.99 after a $30 rebate. This is the lowest price I've ever seen on this player.
Great Deals on iRiver 20GB and 40GB Players
Amazon has iRiver's high-capacity players at some of the lowest prices I've seen. The 20GB iHP-120 is $336 and the new 40GB iHP-140 is $430. Best of all, both are eligible for free shipping.
If you haven't heard of the iRivers, they're quite nice: LCD remote, FM radio, digital recorder, USB mass storage device and OGG support in a package only slightly larger than an iPod. Gear.IGN.com has a good comparison between them and the iPod and Zen.
Catching Up: iRiver iHP-140
iRiver has announced the iHP-140, the 40GB successor to the iHP-100 and iHP-120. Like, its predecessors the iHP-140 should be only slightly larger than the 3rd generation iPod, but include an LCD remote, FM radio, digital recording to MP3 or WAV and a carrying case with the retail package.