Rating: 
Summary: Falls short for a XXGB player...
Review: For a 5, 10, 15, 20, or 50 GB player, you're basically getting the bulk -- if not all -- of your collection onto your device.So your needs will be different than if you are buying a 64MB or 256MB player. In short: This device should have better than a RCA line out. A Digital Audio out or optical out would make it perfect for connecting to your home theatre or master audio system. Lithium (internal) batteries are a built-in disaster. Basically, you can't ever replace them and their built with a maximum number of charges. So this device will last about 3-5 years tops. Rio is counting on that, as anyone can tell they develop a new device seemingly every 2 weeks. The earbuds are totally crud. This is not a knock on Rio though...every single player out there includes your dime-store ear buds, so just replace them with a Jackson-spent set and you'll be fine. Ethernet port: This is a plus, as you can basically treat this as another PC. If you have a router, just cable this and your PC should interface with it no problem. Of course you might have a router that's wireless and then you might be stuck with only cabled devices seeing each other....separate issue completely. Not bad...but not too wonderful. I'm sure they could have put in an optical or digital out instead of RCA, and could have had this take AAA batteries (even NiMh). Other than that, the sound quality does rock..and don't worry about file transfers: At 20GB...just put everything on it and update it every month or so.
Rating: 
Summary: Ugh
Review: Its great for well...looking good. It isn't reliable, and it only serves as an MP3 player, and at that it falls well short of anything noteworthy. The Karma makes it quite hard to transfer MP3 files, and when you do, they are corrupted. The device has poor navigation, with some sort of red dot that you are supposed to use. It does not offer any additions to it, such as a radio tuner or even a remote. This thing is going back tomorrow, and I am getting an iPod like I should have to begin with. I am not normally an Apple consumer, but after this experience, I am beginning to understand their ease of use in their products.
Rating:
Summary: Almost Kicks butt.....
Review: I previously owned the Rio Riot. I was not happy with that product. It was not built well and I owned 3 of them after i finally asked to get this as a replacement. The Karma has so many features I only wish I had with the Riot. 1. Tiny and fits in my breast pocket. Light
2. Crossfade
3. Better Software. Unfortunately does not include a Ripper.
4. Docking Station. (Walk in with headphones and drop this puppy into the station while playing and it just continues our of your home sterio system! Man this kicks (booty)!
5. 15 hours of Battery life.
6. Big Display with a blue backlight. Sweet.
7. Software detects if you already have a song loaded on the player.
8. The Equalizer has more channels and you immediately hear the EQ changes if you are playing a song while changing the EQ settings. I can go on and on. There is just so much this player has that I wish I had in my previous players. Looks like they are near to getting it right. I only hope that this one has sturdier buttons that will stand up to normal use and that it does not have the same issue with the rechargable battery where if you let it run totally out you would mess up the calibation and you could either no longer use the player or it would not hold a full charge. ................................. After 1 month Review It's been a month. and I really do like this little player. It's small and light. The bad things so far:
It did not come with a good protective case. Only a small draw string bag. Better than nothing.
Unfortunately Rio has not got it right with the Buttons. The scroll wheel is easier to use now than on the Rio Riot but the little bugger slipped out of my pocket when I bent down to tie my show. I only fell a few inches from my jacket pocket to the floor. Landed on it's wheele and broke the wheele off. Rio has a really bad problem with using Microscopic plastic that could not hold up to a sneeze. If you do not treat this like it was a china doll you will not see it last long. Opening the cover I found all the rest of the buttons. were of the same cheaply made garbage. I have seen sturdier toys, made in Hong Kong, come out of the bubble gum machine at the market. The Power Button. Held on with a plastic piece. The Scroll wheel held on by Microscopic plastic pieces. The Hold Button. Actually broke because of the same Micro Plastic they use. So opening it I eneded up with two broket buttons. But managed to to glue the wheele back on. Why did I do this. Because I still love the little bugger. Everything else was absolutely great!. The trasfer of music is fast with the new 2.0 USB the Display settings rock. Finding music and editing mucic info directly on the player is easy now. I have only seen one corrupted mp3 since I started loading the thing full. Unlike the old player. To be honest I am looking for a player that can stand up to a bit more normal use. A player should be able to drop out of your pocket and survive. I may be leaning to the Ipod next time.
Rating: 
Summary: All the possibillities and 1 huge drawback
Review: I purchased this player in Jan. of 2004, i thought i had read all the reviews and made an educated decision. When i took the player out of the box everythind i needed as a new mp3 enthusiast was there: docking station, small player with seemingly easy controls, and great organization software (and all this at a great price). That this player promises a lot at first look and feel (even try) is true, I was ripping and down-loading music with ease. Then i went to use it in activity and there the thrill stopped. The player skips and locks up VERY easily. It is my contention that this player locks up so easily that it is useless in action; even when i was just walking the palyer have large skips. If you are merely a walker and have a very secure place to keep the player on you or just want to move your music with you from place to place then this is the player for you. If you want to have your music on the go look elsewhere this is not what you want (which is a shame with how light and small this player is.
Rating: 
Summary: Great product
Review: I have owned now for three weeks, and this is great. First, this is a hard-disk based player and so I take care of it - I don't take it to the gym or try dropping it - if you want to do that buy a flash-based player. The software is good. I had some concerns that I would not be able to drag-and-drop or transfer files from machines without installing the software, but the "taxi" service works well. Taxi is a java program, so runs on many platforms, and can be installed from the player itself, so using the Ethernet socket and a Linux machine, transferring files or music is fast and easy. The software is regularly updated and well maintained, with new functionality still being added - the hardware seems to handle fairly major upgrades. There is good support from other users, though I find the official site slightly lacking in useful information. Why did I buy this and not an I-pod? The main reason is that this plays ogg vorbis and flac files as well as mp3. You can sync with any java-capable networked machine (Windows, Mac, Linux etc.) thanks to its built-in Ethernet socket. I can't comment on how USB2 compares to firewire as I don't have any firewire devices, but I can't see any firewire PCI cards for $15 out there! The device itself is also cheaper of course, and you can sit there and edit playlists on the fly - I have heard (but can't confirm) that is not possible on the ipod. Sound is excellent, both through headphones and dock. I would definitely recommend.
Rating:
Summary: Lock ups and USB problems. Going with iRiver instead.
Review: I bought this player 4 hours ago and it's going back tomorrow. I had read all the reviews and decided that the pro's out weighed the con's. I installed and updated the software. It took 3 tries for the software to see the player. I transferred music and disconnected. The menu system is nice, although after dealing with the software and the menu system I have decided I much prefer a folder based system. I found the sound quality unimpressive. I had used an IRiver ihp-140 for several weeks and found it to sound much better. When I attempted to reconnect, the software wouldn't see the Karma. I rebooted, tried different ports etc. Twice I had to reset the Karma because I couldn't shut it off (the hourglass never went away). Finally I was able to see the KArma and wipe out my music. I shut down and repeated the same steps, and it was not seen. I build computers, so I know my system. I run CF and microdrives from my USB ports every day, there is nothing wrong with them. I was unimpressed enough with the Karma that I don't want to exchange it. I am going to buy a ihp-120.
Yes it is more expensive, but I think the quality is worth it.
I think the sound was better, the optical out sounded great on my speakers and the FM radio got a strong signal within my workplace.
Rating: 
Summary: 2 months of use, then used an iPOD, happy I have a Karma
Review: I've had Karma now for about 2 months. A friend of mine with iPod traded players with me for a week. Here are the pros and cons as I see them (I own a Mac, a Windows, and a Linux box, so no OS bias here): iPod pros (over Karma): Prettier, can be used as a portable firewire storage device (i.e. mounts as a drive), if you want to use an online music service then iTunes it the best, excellent integration on Mac, better for lefties, can charge battery with a firewire cable, slim design fits nicely in a jacket pocket. Karma pros (over iPod): Better menus, better display, better navigation controls, supports more file formats (vorbis), better organization of files for an existing library, much more responsive, more playback options, excellent technical support site, at least double the battery life, better suspend->resume, costs less per GB, fits nicely in front pocket of jeans. Both had good sound quality. I wouldn't call the Karma ugly by any means, but I found the iPod more visually appealing. The build quality on both felt solid. I would give the iPod 3 stars, mainly because I found the short battery life and sluggish response annoying. Also, after using the Karma, the iPod's software seemed primitive.
I gave the Karma 4 instead of 5 stars because it's PC sync software UI isn't that great, it can't be mounted as a drive, and its random playback has problems with randomness. I created 256kbit VBR vorbis ogg files from my existing CD collection and had no interest in any online music stores (until some start offering higher quality files). My 20GB Karma is about 75% full with 2200 songs. If you like technology and gadgetry, you'll like the Karma (ogg support, the cradle has a 10/100, open-source USB communication library). If you want simplicity and don't mind giving up options, the iPod is a nice choice (easy sync with the Mac, not a lot of buttons or options). I love fiddling with my linux kernel and take every electronic thing I buy apart... I'm very happy with the Karma.
Rating:
Summary: My Karma Please read before you buy
Review: I purchased my Rio Karma MP3 player on Dec. 23rd from a local Circuit City. I was rather pleased on the ease of set up and how the product felt (as opposed to the IPOD that felt flimsy). I bought the unit to coincide with my new gym membership. After 2 months and thirty pounds less I'm feeling great, until today. As I began my workout, the first song played correctly, then suddenly, it stopped. The screen flashed something about being locked and an hourglass appeared on the display. I attempted to shut it off, but after pressing any of the buttons, the Karma wouldn't respond. Nothing I attempted would make the unit work again, so I finished my workout and hoped that when I arrived home that replacing the unit its docking stations would reset it in some way. Upon my arrival at home the real problems I have with Rio started. Replacing the unit in the docking station did nothing to change the unit's display of the hourglass. I proceeded to www.rioaudio.com for some technical support. As the website has a "knowledge base" I input that my Karma locked up. Not one response available in the knowledge base was for the Karma. I then proceeded to call the non toll free, long distance support number. After a few go rounds through their support menu system (read by someone that definitely uses English as a second language) the Karma is not one of the products available as one of their support categories. So I picked one. It turned out to be the wrong choice as the one I chose is no longer is supported, and the call ended abruptly with an email address that I could submit my request through, and no option to return to the main menu. I guess in the modern world we call this "voicemail hell" I had more luck the next time I called, guessed yet another option, and spoke with a girl who was hard to understand, due to the fact that English was not her first language. She walked me through a few steps, as I realized that my Karma had run out of battery power and would need to be charged before we could reset the unit. So after a couple of hours of recharging, the unit was displaying the start up screen and the word "starting" at the bottom. I called back, guessed again waited about five minutes and was connected once again to different girl that didn't quite have English mastered. I happened to ask where I was calling to and the young lady told me she was a call center somewhere in India., which explained the language barrier I had encountered. After trying and failing to reset the system. Rebecca (the name she gave me) told me that my Hard drive had crashed and that I would need to return the unit to them. I then asked how I should send it and was told to use UPS at my cost. I have had this unit 58 days and had spent $300+ dollars for it and didn't think it should be at my cost. I asked to be transferred to a supervisor to discuss this problem. A man named Jason who I was happy to find spoke English quite well, came on the line. He explained to me that after thirty days of the warranty it was my responsibility to pay for shipping. He said "Not to be rude, but this is like a computer part and that they do go bad". You can imagine my astonishment to his response. "In less than 2 months?" I asked. "It happens" he replied. "So this could happen to the next unit you send me?" I asked
"Yes" he said." So when I get my unit back, what will the warranty be?" I questioned.
"As your (90day) warranty will expire we will extend the units warranty for and 30 days after you get the replacement unit" He said
"So if it lasts 58 days and goes bad again it's my problem?" I replied
"Yes" he said. Bam like a baseball bat hitting me square in the nose I began to get the feeling that I had been stung. This turn of events leaves me feeling less than wise about not paying for the extended warranty through Circuit City. Jason gave me my case number and Rma number and even agreed to pay for shipping after some convincing. This only slightly alleviates my frustration with this company. I am still left with an uneasy feeling about the rebuilt unit they are going to send me. Why would a unit that cost so much have only a 90 day warranty? How can a company not stand behind their product for more than 90 days? I have purchased ten dollar alarm clocks that have a one year warranty. I may just have had a three hundred dollar lesson. Something that I may have been prepared for if I had spent more time researching or had this review. Good luck to you in your search. I will resubmit when they send me the replacement
Rating:
Summary: Hard drive will die on you.
Review: Bottom line the hard drives Rio used are defective. Check out a few forums and you will find out that most of the Karma hard drives die within 3 months. Mine lasted almost 4 months. I liked the size and the controls. I didn't like the short warranty period. I didn't like that it took going through 5 windows to make a playlist. Took way too long. You should be able to select music you want to listen to, decide you like it then call it a playlist. All in all I should have got an IPOD.
Rating:
Summary: Broke after one week.
Review: I loved my Rio the first week I had it. Unfortunately the hard drive crashed and I had to send it back. I should have read more of these reviews before purchasing. The manufacturer must have very poor quality control to produce a product this bad.
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