Should come with Aspirin
Written: Nov 08 '04
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Pros: Small, lightweight, plays very clearly
Cons: Confusing manual, hard to use/hard to transfer files
The Bottom Line: This is great for active people with great tech knowledge. If you can deal with something bigger and need a manual, go for a more mainstream company.
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| sharibrooks's Full Review: Mpio FL100 (256 MB) MP3 Player |
After reading many reviews on MP3's, I finally decided to get this model. It has many pluses, like expandability, a built-in radio player, and small lightweight size. But it is the furthest thing from intuitive and even with the instruction manual and website support I have no idea how to transfer files.
Here's the breakdown:
LOOKS
Mirrored front, sleek design, very small so it fits in a pocket easily. It also comes with a wrist strap for running, but it's not a velcro type thing. It's a rubber band that attaches through a hole in the top allowing you to hold on to the player with a tiny bit more protection. You cannot let go of it or it will swing from your arm like a bracelet.
It comes with a leather case that has a belt clip, too. This is the attachment I use. If I don't want to put it in my pocket, I attach it to my waist band and it never moves. It's lightweight, so it will never pull your pants down while jogging.
FUNCTION
The internal MEMORY is 128MB, but can be expanded through a memory slot to 384MB. I have never had to expand my memory, 128 is actually quite enough to have variety while working out at least.
The BUTTONS serve more than one function, which I think is a huge problem. I find it very difficult to navigate through the menu. When I click on one thing, it will move to another, then I have to scroll all the way back through the menu to get back to what I was looking for. In fairness, I obviously don't fully comprehend how to use the player, but the multi-use buttons will be annoying for any user.
The EARPHONES are great. I bought much better (supposedly) earphones, but they ended up not playing nearly as well with the player so I returned them. These go in your ear, not over it. Some people may find that uncomfortable. It doesn't bother me. The VOLUME also works well.
The RADIO player is pretty weak. I cannot get most radio signals inside the gym. In fact, I find that I have to search for the right position to get a signal like you sometimes do with a cell phone. Then I have to hold the player right there in order to continue hearing the station. UGH! It does work for some stations and in some areas, though, so this may be user specific.
BATTERY LIFE could not be shorter. I feel like I'm replacing the battery every week. I just keep a few extras in a little case that I bring with me to the gym in case of emergencies, but longer play time would certainly be nice.
FILE TRANSFER
This is my biggest complaint about the player. It is really hard to use their software that came with it. Supposedly, you can also use real player, but this hasn't worked smoothly for me either. I'm not hugely tech savvy, so don't take my word on this to be gospel. But if you are not a real techie kind of person, this may not be the player for you. At the least, they're software is clearly not intuitive. Additionally, once I have transfered files, I have never been able to create play lists. It's always all in one huge clump.
MANUAL/SUPPORT
MPIO is a Korean company and they did a great job of translating the manual into English. Unfortunately, some key info seems to be missing. As I mentioned earlier, transferring files is a nightmare for me. The manual does not explain clearly how to do this. I have tried to glean further information from the website, but to no avail, it's written by the same folks.
I purchased my player over the web at a discount, so I can't bring it into a store to ask for help.
OVERALL
The FL100 is priced well, plays well, definitely has a clear sound for MP3's, and is expandable. It's small size is a huge plus for active people. The downside of its difficult use may not be a problem for techies. I might buy an IPOD or something intuitive like that for the gym and use this just for running outside.
Recommended:
No
Amount Paid (US$): 180
Recommended for: Athletes - Lightweight and Portable, Perfect for the Gym
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Epinions.com ID:
sharibrooks
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Reviews written: 12
Trusted by: 0 members
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