Rating: 
Summary: Great product, puzzling controls
Review: If the RipfFlash Plus wasn't such a good electronic device, its unfathomable controls would have compelled me to toss it off a bridge long ago. I use it for voice recording. There its virtues shine. It is as small and light as a compact cell phone. It records flawlessly in nearly any situation I've tried: one-on-one interviews, lectures, speeches, Internet conferences et al. Even without the accessory flash card, it has the capacity to records hours and hours of good quality voice. Its batteries are readily available and long lasting. Downloads to my home computer take a matter of seconds for an hour-long interview. Those are the virtues.
Here are the detriments: Multi-use controls completely lacking any sense of user friendliness. Every time I have to erase a file, I'm forced to return to the manual and struggle for 20 minutes to follow its unclear instructions. That process of erasing files involves cycling through a menu to an appropriate selection. While that selection remains on the screen, then you must depress another button labeled only with an icon and then press yet a third button precisely the right amount of time to initiate the erasure process. If you lag too long, the menu selection disappears and you must begin anew. If you press the button too long, the whole device shuts down. The RipFlash Plus was clearly designed by the same people who gave drivers the IDrive on the BMW 745 where it takes scrolling through six menus while driving to change a radio station selection. One other gripe. There is no Mac software to use to download digital information. I'm in publishing. We use Macs at work. That means I must first download the digital information from my RipFlash Plus on my home PC, burn a CD and carry it to work.
Rating: 
Summary: Awesome MP3 player!
Review: First off, this is my first MP3 player, so I have nothing to compare it to. Although, I did spend a lot of time researching MP3 players on the web. I chose the RipFlashPlus for several reasons. They were(not in any order):
- backlit display.
- upgrade ability (memory, firmware).
- ability to record MP3s directly to the unit.
- external speaker (although it's very weak, but what do you expect?)
- plays MP3s and WMAs (although WMAs do not sound as loud or as good as MP3s in my opinion)I like this MP3 player a lot. The unit is very small at just under the size of a deck of cards.
As of 4/03, I'm using Win98 and had no issues with software installation. The player came with firmware V1.19 and I immediately upgraded to V2.0 through the PogoProducts web site. Also, with no issues or problems. So far, these are my only complaints.
I have hit the record button once by accident and it started to record through the enclosed mic. They should have programmed this button to activate only if held down for 3-4 seconds.
The software should have come with an MP3 tag editor so that you could edit MP3 ID tags before downloading to the unit. I just found a free utility on the web that allows me to do this, but having this feature included would have been nice.
The ear-bud head phones that are included are not very good. I tried them once and will not use them again. Although you can hear the music, it doesn't sound near as good as larger head phones that can produce a little bit of bass. But that's just my taste. I have not used all of it's features yet, but I wanted to review the unit because I am very happy with it thus far. One of the features allows you to record MP3s directly to the unit without the need of a PC. The appropriate cable is provided. Very nice feature that is not found on other MP3 players.
Also, I have not had a chance to add an additional smart media card to the unit. Overall, for the price, this solid state MP3 player is hard to beat. I chose not to buy a hard drive MP3 player just for the fact those contain moving parts, consume batteries and are very expensive. I personally don't need to carry around my entire MP3 collection either. So far I've been able to download roughly 30 or so MP3s @ 128Kbps. And with being able to add an additional 128mb smart media card, that would make ~60 or so MP3s @ 128Kbps.
Rating: 
Summary: Bleargh!!!!!!
Review: ok, heres the deal. as previously mentioned, the manual was written by a chinese orangutan. the software was a little tricky to get up and running, but i did it without that much difficulty.
it worked great. for a few months anyway. something came up, causing it to shut itself off arter a few minutes. then, after i tried to download the firmware update, it died. Died! it has absolutely stopped turning on. i emailed the techsupport, but got an automated message telling me that THOUSANDS of other peolpe are also emailing them with problems. so, it says it could take around 72 hours for a reply.
and who's going to reply? a baboon with mental retardation!? so, if it works, its good. if it doesnt, then it sucks.
oh, yeah, i forgot. dont lose ANYTHING that comes with the product. you'll get charged for missing stuff, and you cant get a refund without a receipt.
Rating: 
Summary: Fantastic Gadget, Sound Volume little low but not that bad!
Review: I just received my Ripflash 256 mb. I like it very much.
Opened the box. It had a small mini disc with the drivers, a usb cable, a blue case, a carry cord, an arm band, ear-phones, 2 AAA batteries, a stereo 3.5 mm to 3.5 mm cable for line-in recordings. Immediately installed it on my XP system. Loaded a couple of MP3 files and started playing it. Found the Volume a little low from the speakers but still tolerable, as i was searching for a model with a built-in speaker. For the price what i paid i did not expect the greatest volume..and it is still better than not having a built-in speaker. Other than that everything was great. Also ordered the 128 mb smart-media card for expansion. On some Mp3 files, the sound volume was awsome...i am not sure why. I am guessing it could be the recording. Bottom line, I am very happy with it no matter what other people have said about it. And yes, thanks to all the reviewers out there, it helped me in making my decision to buy it. I bought this after researching almost more than 40 - 60 mp3 players. In case you want to research them, a good place to go to is cnet.com...search for music and click mp3 players. A huge list of all the latest models shows up. Have fun.
Rating:
Summary: Amazon reviewers like Fritz Moser are IDIOTS
Review: The product works great and I have upgraded the firmware on mine.
The latest version on the POGO site (2.38) gives you a new feature designed to be used with a pre-amplified mic (POGO SELLS) That set up is great and I get great quality recordings. The PLUS is a cool MP3 player with many features. The manual is not well written but common sence will get you buy because the product is so easy to use. You really don't need the manual. If you are on a budget and would like an MP3 player that can record the RIPFLASH is the way to go. PoGo also has great support and respond to emails usually the same day.
Rating:
Summary: Great little gadget
Review: This is a great versatile little tool. We initially ordered this as a voice recorder. In contrast to the experience of some other users, the software installed easily on two laptops, plus later a replacement laptop (one laptops ran Windows 2000 and two others run Windows XP Professional). The USB interface worked fine. Occasionally the software stops recognizing the recorder when it's slotted in but simply rebooting the computer has solved that problem. I recently upgraded the device's firmware as well as the software, which are classic computer moments when things can go wrong, and it all went smoothly. As a voice recorder the device has worked very well, recording and storing hours of good quality voice recording (field interviews during international travel) in MP3 format that is easily transferred to the computer or other media. It is also a great little MP3 player. I installed the extra 128MB memory card and it went smoothly though as it turns out we have not yet needed to tap the extra memory. I've also experimented with its line-in music recording capacity and it seems to have potential though I've been a bit frustrated with the lack of clarity or options about how to handle stereo vs. mono input: that is my one real complaint that holds me back from giving a 5 star rating, and it is an irrelevant concern for users who just want an MP3 player and/or voice recorder. The documentation is like a parody of bad non-native computer tech English, but that's not a big problem since the device is pretty simple as long as you have some basic knowledge of how computers and audio devices function.
Rating:
Summary: Great sounding, stable, AAA battery-driven gem.
Review: I loved my player/recorder. It sounded great, recorded well, and had good expandable memory with the SM slot. It even looked slick. A friend bought one, seeing mine.
Only downsides: First, no recording level, so you have to experiment with the external source for line-in and use the built-in (very capable) mic for voice. (and you can adjust the recording quality setting beforehand. Second, the order of the songs are unchangeable, playing in the order that they were downloaded using the software designed to use with the player. Third, relating to the second, it cannot be used for an external flashdrive as it does not have a drag-and-drop feature.
Those faults were minor for the price and quality I experienced while I had mine. Alas, after many months of happy use, mine was stolen. I've tried two other players from other companies since (one a flash-drive, one a hard-drive, both with the external drive feature and fm radio, but both exhibiting poor quality). I should have just bought this one again.
So, consider buying the Ripflash Plus for its AAA battery freedom and $100 price (IPODs are a problem for both these reasons). Once you buy it, enjoy its rich feature set and good sound. And now Pogo! has added a a theft protection service. That doesn't mean you'd get it back if it got stolen, but nice thought anyway, Pogo!
Rating:
Summary: Great item with great sound!!!!!
Review: I spent countless hours searching online for an ideal mp3 player. Let me tell you this one has it all. The pogo rip flash plus has great sound. Even songs that i have to crank up on my CD player come out loud and clear. The outternal speaker is rather powerfull. The battary life is very long. It even has a smart card slot for memotry expansion. Did i mention the fact that is records both voice and directly from a CD player(but i don't use that feature too often because i like WMA files better they are much smaller). I love my rip flush plus its great and I don't ever regreat buying it. PS u can get it cheaper if u go to www.pricegrabber.com :)
Rating:
Summary: Love It!
Review: This little MP3 player is about the size of a business card and about 1/2" thick. It is my first MP3 player. I bought it to voice-record books I'm studying...making my own "Books on MP3" as it were. The software was no problem to load, and the file manager software is simple and effective using the USB to download, upload and delete files from the player effortlessly. I also bought the Coby MP3 to Cassette car adapter and this works well to play my MP3 books while driving. Compared to the cassette tapes I have made of my books, the quality of the built-in microphone and digital recording is crisp and clean. I expecially like the several "repeat" functions as well as the A-B repeat function to replay certain book sections or chapters again and again until it finally sinks in! :)
The manual is a bit amusing due to the poor English, but it's not difficult to "translate" or understand and so far as covered all my questions and use of the player.
The dual ear phones are a bit uncomfortable in my L ear, but transparently comfortable in the R ear. However, I have gotten used to them and can listen in a quiet room to my book chapters with the volume turned all the way down to 1.
It works perfectly for what I bought it for. I'm thrilled with the MP3 technology to manage voice files, a qauntum improvement over cassette tapes!!
Rating:
Summary: PoGo's RipFlash is good!
Review: I purchased PoGo's RipFlash on January 3, 2004. I had no problem downloading the software into my computer. The directions were easy to follow. The manuel has apparently been updated and is now easy to read.
The RipFlash works well. I recorded on it and was satisfied with the results. I tested all its functions and found it to do what it is advertised to be able to do. No problems!
My only complaint is it classified everything as voice001, then voice002, next voice003 instead of giving you the privelege of naming what you record yourself. You have to keep a record of everything on a separate list because you my not remember what you recorded as voice001 etc.
If they improve that problem, the RipFlash would be great! I give it FOUR STARS!
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