Rating: 
Summary: Great MP3 player!!
Review: I searched around for an awful long time trying to find the best MP3 player to buy, for the best price. The Rio 500 is hands down the best MP3 player I've ever seen. Sure, you can get a Nomad Jukebox if you want to listen to a lotta music at once, but this MP3 player can hold a lot. I thought 64 MB wouldn't be enough for the songs I wanted to take with me. I was wrong. I have 13 songs PLUS an Audible.com audio book store on just 64 MB of space. Considering the low price of this player, getting a 64 MB SmartMedia card is not so expensive. The size is perfect, the shape is perfect. I am kinda tired of these MP3 players that are silly shapes. I know that an MP3 player does not require a specific case shape, unlike a CD player or cassette player, but they could stick to a simple rectangle shape for once. If you are new to MP3 players and want a simple, effective player, get the Rio 500, it is da bomb!
Rating:
Summary: Very Satisfied!
Review: Overall, I'm extremely pleased with this device. I can keep about 15 very good quality songs on the player (64MB). This gives me about one hour of playing time. The "2 hours" of time as advertised would be close to achievable if I went through most audio files and re-recorded them at lower quality bitrates; that won't happen any time soon.I use the Rio to work out, jog, and when my wife makes me wash dishes and clean house - definitely helps things go faster! It never skips, the sound quality is excellent, and the features on the player offer enough playback options. I bought some Sony miniature headphones (MDR-W08) instead of using the included ones. The Rio software is relatively easy to use, although it could be more user friendly. USB transfers are fast and the software makes it easy to convert existing CDs to MP3 format. I used Rio's rebate to buy my Rio 500 and received the check about three months later - I had heard rumors of problems with this process.
Rating:
Summary: Great machine. Easy to use. Great sound.
Review: Very well made unit. Great sound. Connects via USB cable to PC. Battery life is so-so. Good support from manufacturer. You can get firmware updates easily at their website. Comes with a "card", not a manual. But there is a good manual, and a printable version, at the RIO website. Provided headphones stink. You can get a NICE leather case from the Sonicblue website store. 64mb stores a lot of music. I added 64mb card, which are coming down nicely in price. I have two RIO500's, one for music, and one for my audio books. Decent headphone volume. Display with latest firmware is sometimes hard to read. If you pull the USB plug during download, or if download is interrupted, the RIO will lock up, good. BUT, Sonicblue tech support website does have program you can download for free that will fix it (usually). This happened to me, and the program worked fine! Right now, I think it is good buy. The other RIO MP3 players use expensive memory "backpacks", or rechargable batteries (RIO800). I prefer alkalines. Regular rechargable AA batteries are not recommended for the 500. I think it's a great unit. 5 stars easily!!
Rating:
Summary: Great Product
Review: This is a great product. When I first bought it, it was lacking several features I felt it needed to have in order to be a good product. Recently, I went to their website and upgraded both my software and my firmware. This update provided me with all the features I felt were lacking. The only thing it needs now is a better software interface to transfer songs to the device.
Rating: 
Summary: Save your money (and your time)
Review: After spending several days tracking one of these down, I finally got it installed on my laptop. That's when the problems started. (1) My laptop routinely fails to recognize the USB connection. No better results on either of the two desktops I tried as well. (2) Customer service is a joke. You can stay on hold for hours while the company conducts departmental meetings or trains the morons that work there. (3) e-mail support results in an immediate automated response, but then it'll be 3-4 days before you get an actual response (I guess the "e" in e-mail stands for "eventually" --- have fun not using the thing while you wait for someone to help you. (4) The software is not very user-friendly, but then neither is the company. While I enjoy hearing the initial music I loaded onto the unit, no one can seem to figure out how to obtain a relaible connection so I can change the tunes around. It works fine --- when it works. All in all you'd be better off spending your time and money elsewhere.
Rating: 
Summary: Nice player, bad everything else
Review: No qualms about the player itself, but the Audio Manager program is very shaky depending on your system setup. Though I had the minimum requirements for running the prog, it flickered repetitively after clicking on the "Devices" button, and the Rio would stop responding after spending so much time fighting with the prog. Here's my basic setup for interested buyers: HP Pavillion 8500 series Pentium 3 666 MHz proc. 64 meg RAM You may wish to consult others who have similar computers and see how well the device runs on their system. My biggest problem with the Diamond RIO, and perhaps a problem that will ultimately lead me to averting all further products by this company, is their lack of technical support. I initially emailed them about the problem, and they replied with advice that I had already tried. Immediately after, I responded, explaining everything I had tried as well as the behaviour of the equipment. Two weeks later, I have still not recieved a response.
Rating: 
Summary: Great MP3 player; needs to support more memory
Review: I got my player a few weeks ago and have had a great time with it. The sound quality is terrific and the controls are easy enough to use without referencing a manual. My only complaint is that I want the ability to use more memory. The unit ships with 64 meg (which is nice), but you can only add an additional 32 meg (using smartmedia card). While I am up to 96 meg, it's still not enough! I also downloaded a ROM patch to give the unit more usability and features. Now, waiting for ROM patch to allow access of greater memory levels. My suggestion to all who are thinking about the unit -- get one! You will not be disappointed.
Rating:
Summary: MP3 is nice, but audible books make this a must-have!
Review: What really sets this device apart is its support of the Audible file format, allowing you to download books. While I will occasionally listen to music on my Rio, I won't travel without it because of the ability to listen to books. The standard 64 megs of RAM will accommodate more than 28 hours of books - meaning that you'll find the Rio a terrific companion on long trips. It has a slot for an additional compact flash card (the newer firmware upgrade will let you double your memory to 128 megs), but if you're using the Rio primarily for books you probably won't need the additional memory. The device itself has a sturdy feel to it. It's light, about the dimensions of a credit card, and has a "lock" feature that lets you freeze out the controls (so an errant button push won't disrupt playback). Sound quality is excellent - on MP3s, you'll think you're listening to a CD. Other reviewers rightly complain about the earphones - they're awful. I've already thrown mine out after less than a week of owning the unit. The connection would often produce static, and the foam covers over the earpieces fell off every time I took them out of my ears. Once I replaced the earphones, I haven't had a problem. If you do get the Rio, I would recommend checking out Audible - their subscription deals give you a great way to regularly download books at a reasonable cost.
Rating:
Summary: Great Product but Crappy Software
Review: The RIO 500 is great for gym workouts, train listening, etc. It's small, light and sounds good enough for listening in an environment with ambient noise. My biggest complaint is the RIOPort software. There is NO SIMPLE WAY to download songs directly to the device from a folder or CD ROM. Instead, you have to import the songs into a database and then create playlists. If you move songs from one subdirectory to another, you have to manually edit database entries for every song that you moved--a tedious and time-consuming process. If you re-add the songs to the database after the move, you get duplicate entries, only one of which is valid. However, you can't tell which entry is the valid one. Another gripe--after paying this much money for an audio player, it seems wrong to have to shell out another $9.95 to unlock the software. In short--great product once you get the songs loaded, but reaching that point is frustrating at times.
Rating:
Summary: The Best Mp3 Player By Far
Review: The Diamond Rio 500 has far surpassed my expectations in Mp3 players. Having only dealt with a lower-end 32MB player before (I will not mention it's name, it was that horrible) the 500 was a amazing upgrade. It's speed with downloading files is surprising. Giving it the biggest task I could, I filled it's memory will some well-sized songs, and it finished within 10 minutes. The sound is quite impressive, staying clear and beautiful. And, the volume control goes up to a loud setting without skyrocketing to ridiculous volumes that will blast your ears out. Hell, even as an extra plus it comes with in-your-ear headphones with ear-clips so they'll STAY IN PLACE. Go out, get the Diamond Rio 500, and be happy.
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