Wednesday, June 21, 2006

iRiver alliance to take on iPod

Reigncom Ltd, the makers of iRiver, are teaming up with software giant Microsoft and MTV to give Apple's cult music player iPod a run for its money.

In an interview, Frank Lim, Reigncom's director in charge of marketing and planning for its iRiver players, said: "No hardware company can survive alone. We have shifted our strategy focus from music players to entertainment devices."

According to the Reuters report, Reigncom's newest player, Clix, which is winning rave reviews, integrates Windows Media Player 11 and URGE, MTV's subscription-based music service.

Will Clix click with MP3 afficionados? Will it turn out to be a winning combination for iRiver? We'll have to wait and watch. For those of us in India that wait may be very long indeed.

Officially, it appears that iRiver sells only a handful of its products in India, including the H10, N Series and some flash players (notably N Series).

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MP3 Player | iPod | iRiver

What to look for in an MP3 player-5: Display

Though MP3 players are primarily used for playing music, the quality of the display is an important part of the experience.

At the most basic level, the display helps you to navigate your music collection easily. First, make sure that your player has a display in the first place since some of the smaller models come without them.

Check out how easy it is to read the display particularly in bright sunlight. In addition to the song being played, a typical display will give you information about the battery life left or the audio-format and bit-rate in which the song is encoded.

Some players can also display the time. Today’s MP3 players are multimedia devices for playing video and showing photos and obviously these features depend on the quality of the screen.

Ideally you would want a relatively big screen with many colours. A good example is the Creative Zen 30 GB player with a 2.5-inch screen and over 260,000 colours at a resolution of 320 x 240.

If you intend to use photo or video capabilities a lot, do not forget that they consume a lot of power so make sure your player comes with adequate battery life.

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MP3 Player | iPod | Creative Zen

What to look for in an MP3 player-4: Features

The main purpose of your MP3 player may be to play your music collection but radio reception is a great feature to have as well: allowing you to check the cricket scores or tune into your favourite music show while on the move.

Many models have FM reception built in though only a very few, like a player called Radio Your Way, have AM reception. If radio is important to you, make sure the player has a large number of pre-sets to conveniently navigate your favourite stations.

If possible try out the radio before buying since the quality of the reception varies from model to model.

Several MP3 players come with a variety of audio recording options as well. The most basic and common is voice recording which is great for recording lectures and meetings or creating voice memos.

Another useful feature is in-line recording which allows you to connect your player to another audio device like a CD player and record its output. Finally some players allow you to record audio from the FM tuner.

A good player with all three options is the Creative Muvo TX FM 512 MB.

Next Post: MP3 Player Display

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MP3 Player | iPod | Creative

What to look for in an MP3 player-3: Controls

Your MP3 player might be able to store thousands of songs and photos and to enjoy it all conveniently it’s important to be able to navigate this content efficiently.

The first level of interface is the physical controls on the player; for instance the iPod’s scroll wheel which is famous for its responsiveness and versatility.

If the player uses buttons make sure they are conveniently placed and easy to press. A hold button, which stops you accidentally pressing buttons when you are on the move, is also useful.

The second level is the internal software of the player which allows you to use the various features. Make sure that options like the graphic equalizer and radio pre-sets are easy to access and control.

Last but not least most of your MP3 collection will be transferred from your PC to your player so the PC software which connects the two is important. Usually there will be some software that comes with your player and there is plenty of free software like iTunes or Windows Media Player as well.

If you like to use a particular program like iTunes make sure your player is compatible.

Next Post: Radio and Recording

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MP3 Player | iPod |

What to look for in an MP3 player-2: Design

As with any portable gadget, the physical design of an MP3 player is important since you will be carrying it with you everywhere. In recent years players have also become fashion accessories as much as electronic devices.

Size and weight are perhaps the basic design features of any portable device and MP3 players span a wide range. At the smaller end, Mobiblu flash players like the DAH 1500i, perhaps the smallest in the world, are extremely light at less than 20 grams and less than an inch wide.

At the heavier end, hard-drive based players like the 30 GB iPod might weigh around 130 grams but will still be small enough to fit in your shirt pocket. MP3 players come in a variety of shapes and colours as well.

The Mobiblu flash players are distinctive for their cube-shaped design and bright, blue OLED display. The iPod is famous for the elegance and simplicity of its design and its players come in several colours.

If you are especially interested in owning a beautiful MP3 player check out the hundreds of iPod skins; separately sold covers which provide innumerable design options as well as protecting your player.

Next Post: Interface and Controls


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MP3 Player | iPod | Mobiblu | iPod Skin

What to look for in an MP3 Player-1: Memory

Welcome lovers of music and gadgets. MP3 players have revolutionized the way to we listen to and store music. But which is the MP3 player for you. That's the million dollar question. I am over the next few days going to give you the lowdown on what to look for when you are buying an MP3 player. Then we can get into specifics of which player is right for you. So read on…

The size of the memory is perhaps the single most important feature of an MP3 player because it determines how much music you can store and how much it weighs and costs.

MP3 players come in two basic varieties: those with flash memory and those with hard drives. Flash players like the Mobiblu DAH 1500i might have around 1 GB of memory while hard-drive players like some of the iPod models might have 30 or 60 GB. Each GB can store about 15 hours of music which means that a flash player can store a reasonable selection of your collection whereas your hard-drive player might easily store all of it.

Today’s MP3 players have become multi-media devices and there are more uses for a large memory; like storing your photo and video collection or backing up your PC. Of course all the extra memory comes for a price. A flash player may come for around Rs 5000 whereas a 30 GB player might cost three times as much.

Hard drives are heavier as well whereas flash players are sometimes so light that you can hardly feel them in your shirt pocket; they are ideal during exercise or sports.

Next Post: Design

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MP3 Player | iPod | Mobiblu
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