HiFi Blog: digital audio goodness

Avid readers of the site should already know by now that iRiver’s U10 is a highly-coveted device here at HiFi Blog HQ. We were let-down a bit when we found out that it reproduces videos at a not-so-great 15FPS rate (human eyes interpret 30FPS+ sequences as a continuous, fluid movement), but when we watched that clip of the U10 reproducing a video decently, our craving rose again.

CNET Asia gave this flash-based device a thorough look, and in general they liked what they saw (rating: 8/10). It measures 69×47x16mm and it weighs 70g (the 512MB version). It’s got a great 2.2-inch QVGA display with a resolution of 320×240 pixels. It can be used to used to view pictures, read texts, and—as we’ve already mentioned—watch videos. The 15FPS rate shouldn’t dishearten you, since the reviewers second the opinion that videos are brilliantly rendered and the display is as sharp as it gets for its size. Unfortunately, it only reproduces AVI file of a certain profile (MPEG-4 SP) and the company doesn’t offer any software that converts a user’s existing videos into that format. What can we say, other than bummer.

The means of navigating the player is an innovative Direct-Click (d-click) system, in which you essentially the top/bottom/left/right parts of the screen act as buttons giving good tactile feedback, and leaving overall a fairly good impression (if you can count out those fingerprint smudges that are going to fill the screen in no time).

Sonically, it supports MP3/WMA/ASF/Ogg Vorbis and it’s the typical great sound we’ve come to expect from iRiver; the reviewers note a slight sibilance in the vocals of a Diana Krall track they’ve tested it with, and a not-so-adequate articulation of bassy undertones in a Massive Attack track, but we’re going into audiophile details here that are easily missed by most. You can browse through your tunes on the device either via their ID3 tags, or using an included file-browser (think tree directory structure here). Providing both options of browsing is a nice plus. As one can guess, if you load tracks to the device without using iRiver’s bundled management software, you can only find them with the file-browser option (since they’re not indexed so as to be available via their ID3 tags).

Features-wise, there’s FM radio, voice/FM recording, and Flash Lite 1.1 support (there’s even a software developer kit available at Macromedia’s website), which means you can view your *.swf files (though, you have to restart the player after watching them since there’s currently no way of returning back to the menu, oy!) and you should also expect some fun little Flash games (some are already included).

The battery life leaves no-one complaining with its 28 hours but the slow file transfers cripple the device: 1.98MB/s via drag&drop, and even slower with the iRiver plus 2 software. UPDATE:According to our reader Niklas (thanks!): “I got some information from iRiver recently, the battery life for watching videos on the highest quality with the factory settings gives almost 5 hours. ”

On the accessories front, it comes with a small pouch that comes with a handy display wiper attached (useful to remove the fingerprint smudges). There’s also this very interesting television-shaped dock which costs a bit too much (~$71) but offers a lot in exchange: a pair of built-in stereo speakers, line-in/line-out functionality for the U10, infrared remote, and a snooze button that practically renders the device into a handy alarm clock.

Overall, this is a great and (relatively) powerful device but what kills it is the high price tag. 1GB costs $249, this is what a 4GB Nano costs (never mind the fact that it doesn’t play videos). Maybe they should start working on a micro-HDD based device? I could see myself paying the same amount for 4 gigs of storage, even if it meant slightly larger dimensions and a possibly smaller battery life (28 hours are high enough so that a small reduction wouldn’t hurt anyone); both of which are to be expected when going from Flash memory chips to hard drives.

If you’re in Europe, Amazon.co.uk says it expects the 1GB version on September 26 and the 2GB version on October 14. Prices are £149.99/$276/€220 and £189.99/$350/€279 respectively. Amazon.de says they’ll ship the 1GB version for €229 ($13 cheaper than its UK counterpart—totalling $287) in 1-2 weeks (which is suspicious, since they claimed the same three weeks ago!), and they’re still waiting for the 2GB version which’ll go for €279 (that’s $350—same price as in the UK).