Rating: 
Summary: nice, but be cautious
Review: When I got this puppy I was pleasently surprised by its functionality and performance, especially the sound quality. The remote is almost perfect and makes navigation quite simple. This could be a great alternative to the iPod if the batteries didn't die on me after 1.5 hours of constant listening. That's right. The first day I had no problem with batteries, I think I listened to that thing for 5 or 6 hours straight. But once you recharge them, or discharge and recharge, forget about listening to it longer than 1.5 hours. There is an external battery charger, but then the whole idea of 'slim' goes away. So unless you're eager to carry all that additional weight in an unattractive carrying case, don't bother buying this player. Save your money and get an iPod. I got no problem fitting 190 mp3's on one cd and that was plenty for me, but so what if I can listen to half of them on the go? Think twice before you buy this player. I'm returning mine.
Rating: 
Summary: Amazing substitute for an mp3 player
Review: We all know how much mp3 players cost- espectally ones with 700 mb of memory. This little gem not only surpasses ANY MP3 player, but it plays cds, cd-rs, cd-rws filled with MP3s or WMAs. Now, I dont know what these people are talking about when they say "its flimsy", but ive droppped it quite a few times.. works fine and it never stopped playing. Yes, I agree, the headphones included with it are horrible.. but what do you expect for earbuds? Overall this product is a joy to own, the digital backlit display is wonderful. The feature I like the most, is the extra battery pack, because I need those extra hours. I recommend buying Lithium Ion batteries for the tube. Rechargable batteries seem to last longer than even the new titanium batteries. If your looking for an all around excelent cd/mp3 player, this is it.
Rating:
Summary: Best one out there
Review: This is the best MP3 CD player available in the market. I have had it for more than a couple of months and I have had absolutely no problem with it. No errors or bugs. It plays great both MP3 and WMA files. I am not too sure about the battery life time, but it is still very decent. Start up time is a little slow. Other than that, this player surpasses any other in size, style, upgradability. You may still wish to consider buying better headphones.
Rating:
Summary: forget about an iPod
Review: All those music listening units with built in memory are worthless when you stack them up against this player. You can listen to more music with this one. You can burn re-writeable CDs and listen to them in your SlimX. I can carry my entire 200+ CD collection with me on 15 burned CDs. The remote control is easy to use, the unit's size is about as small as you could make it. The battery life is awesome! It comes with a built-in "drain and recharge" function which keeps the rechargeable batteries in tip-top shape. Attach the external battery pack and you could easily listen to your music for 24 hours straight! Just buy it!
Rating:
Summary: A pleasure to use!
Review: This is my fourth portable mp3 player, and it's by far the best so far. I have almost no complaints about this device. The user interface is very well done. Mechanically, it's beautiful -- very slim CD player part that you can stick in your backpack, with a nice graphical UI on a cord near the headphones. Internal rechargable batteries, plus the option to use AA's. Backlit.My only complaint is that it doesn't buffer anything it's already played. So rewinding is very likely to cause the CD to spin up and re-read, even if you're listening to the same bit over and over again. Not common at all, but I listen to foreign-language material a lot. It's a pretty minor concern really.
Rating:
Summary: The best CD player anywhere!
Review: Even if you're not wowed by the unique design of the SlimX, it will impress you with its music playing prowess. It will easily handle any compressed audio format you're using, and as it's upgradeable, that's a promise it will be able to keep. For myself, I've migrated over to WMA format, enabling me to stuff twice as many tunes onto a disc. I cannot hear even a hint of signal degradation, even when concentrating on more extraneous, backround instrumentals. The SlimX itself is fairly intuitive, thank God, because you won't get a lot of info from the 'manual' (using the word loosely). The best part of the deal for me is the indiglo-like remote control, with good read-out and access to all the key functions of the player, without having to actually dig the player out from where you've stowed it (backpack, etc.). The biggest minus are the cheap earbuds included. I would save them for an emergency and use your favorite headphones whenever possible.
Rating: 
Summary: Durable, Versatile, and Human Engineered
Review: If you're looking for a lightweight, portable CD player that really knows how to play MP3 files, this is it. This is the only one that I've found (and I've tried several) that can handle the combination of MP3s and CD-RW media without hiccuping. As I'd already converted most of my music collection to MP3, and really wanted to able to hear it in my car without changing discs every 10 songs or so, this one filled the bill. Although the provided earbuds are pretty hopeless, the audio quality is superb when you use it with a decent set of headphones or hook it into a good stereo system, whether listening to classical or heavy metal, with distinctive bass and clear highs that don't drown out the middle frequencies. The audio equalizer does provide a fairly wide range of presets appropriate for widely varying types of music. The in-line remote control takes a little bit of getting used to (and the manual is not a great help in figuring out how to get to all the various menus), but once you get the hang of it, it's not only simple, but someone did a little thinking and made the most commonly used commands of Pause, Stop, Forward/Backward one track, Forward/Back 10 tracks, and Repeat Mode all available via no-sight touch control, great when I'm in the car and can't take my eyes off the road. Full navigation by directory or by search of MP3 ID is also very useful on a CD with 200 tracks, and though the print size on the unit is very small, it is quite clear and readable. Battery consumption, however, does not live up to its advertised value of 23 hours. I find that using both the built in rechargeables and my own external rechargeable AAs I get about 8-10 hours of playing time in-between recharges. This is not really a problem, as this amount of time is more than adequate, but indicates the marketing department got a little carried away (or the engineering department didn't test it under real world conditions). The unit itself is very rugged. I've inadvertently dropped it several times - it not only has merrily kept on playing (without skipping), it didn't even show any dents. The only operational glitch I've observed is that it sometimes can't recognize a CD_RW disc (whether burned as an audio or MP3 disc) if the disc is cold (say at about 50 degrees). Although a little on the expensive side versus other players, this unit definitely delivers value for the price.
Rating:
Summary: As good a portable MP3/CD player as is available right now
Review: Let's face it: there is today a dizzying array of cd players, MP3 players, and combination cd/MP3 players available on the market, and most of these are a lot cheaper than the SlimX. So why spend the money for this comparatively pricey unit? First of all, the bottom line when evaluating any music player should be sound quality, and this machine is first-rate in this respect. A tragedy in recent years (in my opinion)has been that manufacturers have diminished the output levels of portable units for the sake of being able to boast of longer playback time per set of batteries. They have figured (rightly, I guess) that most users are not all that concerned about sound quality.
By contrast, the Slim X provides stronger output than just about all other current players available, and this does translate to improved sound. Furthermore, one of its best features is a customizable equalizer that allows users to set their spectrum of bass/treble boost. This also includes a series of preset EQ settings that are optimized for classical, jazz, rock, dance, metal, etc. (there is, of course, also a "neutral" setting). One of the principal annoyances of portable disc players generally is that they invariably skip when users engage in vigorous body movements (e.g., running). The SlimX includes different antiskip settings, including one for *eight minute* antiskip. This is sufficient to ensure that the machine virtually never skips, period. Operation of the SlimX is handled through a small and well-designed remote control. The many (!) various functions available to users are mediated through "firmware" that is upgradable through iRiver's web site (upgrading requires a small bit of knowledge about downloading files and burning-to-cdr or cd-rw disc). This firmware feature is important, since the people at iRiver have shown an admirable willingness to respond to user feedback/complaints in the form of regularly improved firmware. For example, up until the most recent firmware upgrades, the SlimX was not capable of providing "gapless" playback for cd's that feature nonstop music (for example, dj mixes). Version 2.10 of the firmware solved this problem. The SlimX actually has many features related to MP3 tracklisting/sequencing, track ID text/tags, etc., that many owners will never bother to use. Those options are available, however, to those for whom such features are important. The design of the SlimX unit itself is slender and elegant. It's not as tiny, obviously, as some current MP3 players, but for a disc-based unit it's about as "slim" and light as is possible. Are there flaws? Yes, a few. For example, the small size of the remote makes it difficult to read the display in some cases (especially for those of us who are over forty :-) ). The power supply options, while good, are not ideal. The unit comes with a set of two rechargable batteries that don't really last all that long (I find that they last about 3-4 hours and that they require more time than this to recharge). I suppose this is the "dark side" of the unit's strong musical output, so I shouldn't complain. Thankfully, there is a small attachment in which users can load two AA batteries, and this extends playback time considerably. This is useful, but ergonomically a bit clumsy. The provided FM tuner is good, but some of us (in the older generation?) still would like to listen to AM radio for sports, news, etc., and this option is not available. Making the tuner feature both AM and FM would have seemed a fairly simple addition. As is ALWAYS the case with portable players, the tiny headphones provided are not very good. To make use of the excellent sound quality available through the SlimX users are advised to invest in a good quality headset. My own earbuds of choice are the pricey but absolutely incredible Etymotic-4P's. These buds come at a steep price, but provide years of fantastic sound quality. Given the complexity of the many functions available and the potential confusion involved in navigating through the many user menus (this involves distinguishing "long button pushes" from short ones, etc., and for me required a certain learning curve), it's important to add that there is a pretty good user manual included with the SlimX. It's a good idea NOT to lose this booklet! Overall, this is the best cd/mp3 disc player I've encountered, and I've been very happy with it. It was/is not the cheapest machine out there, but for me, the user flexibility, long antishock time, and (especially) the high sonic quality have rendered the price issue unimportant.
Rating:
Summary: Great investment. The best CD player i have ever owned
Review: Simply the best MP3 or CD player i have ever used [probably my 5th or 6th]! I bought it in March of 2002 and it has worked perfectly since. sound is great. it is easy to use. and the features are extensive. I love that i can have a waveform monitor on the remote. I use this almost everyday when i work out. I can work out for over 60 minutes and never have a skip. It reads multi-session disk, cd-r, cd-rw. i am really happy with this purchase. i spent about a month researching all of the differnt players out there, this was supposed to be the best and it is. one small note, if it overheats [a problem if you leave it in your trunk in Arizona in the summer] it has problems readding multiple sessions until it cools down. enjoy!
Rating:
Summary: THE MP3 CD PLAYER
Review: I don't see why anyone would not like this cd player. If you're having problems with it, that means you're doing something wrong. This cd player absolutely skip-free, maybe a little when you change between songs on a MP3 CD but thats pretty much it. I don't think there's any other cd/mp3 player with more functions than this little baby here. Upgrading is easy. All you have to to do is download from the site, extract the zip file, extract it again to a hex file, then burn it to a cd, and there you have it an upgrade disc. Since it is cd-rw compatable you don't ever have to waste a cd-r when you want to burn a new mix or upgrade. I only recommend this only to those people who have cd burners on their computers and have a lot of compressed music (MP3,WMA, ASF). Why else would you buy an MP3 CD player.
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