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Latest "iPod Killer" Takes Aim at the Mini
blamanj writes "ReignCom, has just released the iRiver H10, a 5GB MP3 player with 1.5" color screen and FM tuner. Currently available in Korea, the company plans a US release in January. The price is higher than Apple's iPod mini, but it does have extra features. iRiver has generally gotten good reviews for quality, as well." Update by J : We typoed that as "5MB" earlier, sorry.
That's 5GB, not 5 MB.
You'd think they could have at least read the article title, if not the entire article.
Why not get the real ultimate power?
Everyone claims that the next ipod killer is around the corner, but they forget that most people who buy an ipod aren't doing so for feature sets. I know 10 year olds who want an ipod. Why? Because everyone else has one. They won't buy another brand because it holds 2000 more songs or has an FM tuner.(note: ogg support is one of thes non-mainstream features) Until apple makes a mistake (ugly design, WAY overpriced, crippling features) the demand for anything else will never come close. Truth is, the ipod isn't all that expensive for what you get, most other companies are right around the same price point, it just works for anyone no matter how technically challenged, and it fits the needs of almost everyone in the target demographics.
check out the zen micro. 5GB, FM Tuner, better looking, cheaper.
Differences:
H10 - 12 hours batt.
iPodMini - 8 hours
H10 - 5GB
iPodMini - 4GB
H10 - 1.5" TFT colour display. Gorgeous.
iPodMini - 1.67" grayscale LCD w/LED backlight
H10 - 95.5mm x 54.6mm x 15mm (96 grams)
iPodMini - 91mm x 51mm x 13mm (103 grams)
Except for size, the H10 wins. Plus it plays WMA, which is an advantage for a lot of people.
"A photo of this had already leaked out about a week ago, but iRiver's new H10 MP3 player just got all official on us. Right now there's only mention of a Korean release (it goes on sale there December 22nd with a list price of about US$344, which is way too high for over here), but everything is about like we'd expected: 5GB hard drive, 1.5-inch color screen (for looking at digital photos), built-in FM radio, 12 hour battery life, and a vertical touch pad that's "reminiscent" of the one found on Creative's Zen Touch (and let's just leave it at that, ok?)." ;)
it says 5gb.. so quit your bitching
besides isn't the smallest ipod 10 gb?
this is not a big deal nor a contender for the ipod spot
Exactly why I passed on the iPod and got an iRiver H120 instead.
Having FM radio is important to me, as I listen to CBC radio every day on the bus. I gladly paid more for the Iriver than I would have for the iPod, just to get the FM radio.
And I must say, the H120 is the best MP3 player I've ever used. Great sound and battery life, along with a wonderful inline remote control.
And outfitted with a black iSkin, it looks way cooler than that shiny white brick everyone else is carrying around..
I think this is far better than the iPod mini.
i tem_main_Rio.asp?model=267&cat=72/
http://www.digitalnetworksna.com/shop/_templates/
5GB
20 hours battery!
under $200
just as small as ipod mini
looks ok aswell
optional software, you can drag and drop if you want.
seems like a better deal to me...
...the "other half" of the portable music equation.
Synching between the computer and the device.
The iTunes+iPod combination is so effortless, it's barely even noticeable: one instant the music's on your computer, the next it's in your hand.
When these devices' FireWire/USB 2.0 synching gets to this effortless state, then maybe we'll start talking "killer." Until then, keep posting the driver links.
You are wrong for many reasons:m e/) I've found that the m4a container is also compatible with the MPEG-4 file format, which is also an open standard and is derived from Apple's QuickTime format.
1: AAC is an open standard and there are open-source encoders/decoders. (http://faac.sourceforge.net/)
2: The m4a format Apple stores its AAC stream in is an extension of their QuickTime container which is an open standard (http://developer.apple.com/documentation/QuickTi
3: Apple has granted Fairplay licences to Motorola and Macrovision (or so I've heard).
4: Apple probably couldn't sue or demand money if a competitor implemented AAC, or as you're probably referring to, Fairplay. To date they have neither sued nor demanded money from anyone who has implemented Fairplay, AAC, or any of the other audio formats or encryption schemes that the iPod supports (though they have demanded that several sites hosting PlayFair/Hymn cease and desist).
karma: ouch!
'best of breed' LOL. You have been to too many conference shows, my monkey friend.
eTrade SUCKS
iRiver already has 20 GB and 40GB units, the H320 and H340 are the latest ones.
They play MP3, vorbis and a few other formats, have a built in FM radio, can record, can display photos and can play the part of a usb host with any device that's mass storage compatible.
I know I'm quite happy with my H320.
May contain traces of nut.
Made from the freshest electrons.
I've been unsuccesfully searching for a replacement MP3 player for a while now. What I want and can't find is an MP3 player that uses CF cards (not SD/MMC) and has minimal/nonexistant internal storage (as I've got lots of CFs already and don't way to pay for unneeded internal storage capacity) and uses regular batteries (AA/AAA) rather than a sealed internal one.
My 2 year old Nex meets those specs but it's getting pretty long in the tooth. Wish I hadn't dropped it so many times...
Does anyone know of any other players out there that meet my criteria?