Player Blog Category Archives: iRiver :: H10
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.
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.
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 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.