Rating: 
Summary: Commuter Dream
Review: I had a small iRiver unit, a 256 MB one that taught me how to play with MP3 files and such. I totally fell in love with it but my frequent commutes to NYC and subsequent subway trips also taught me that ~4 CD's worth of music gets old, especially on a two week trip. I did a ton of research and bought this unit. I am extremely glad I did!First off, I have only put about 20 CD's in it and it's not even 1/16th used up as far as space is concerned. And let me tell you, loading them couldn't have been easier. You plug it into a USB port and bingo, Windows XP recognized it as an external hard drive so placing files is simply a drag and drop exercise. Of note is that fold and file name information is copied over exactly as you have it on your PC hard drive. Also of note is that this unit sorts alphabetically via the first word in the title so if you're used to sorting by the last name of an artist, you'll have to rename the files accordingly as I've not found a way to correct this once you have copied the files over in their original form. Another bonus, since its seen as a hard drive by your PC, you can copy to it whatever your PC can hold. That is amazingly handy if you want to take work with you from one PC to another, such as Word documents and the like. Edit them to your hearts content and simply copy them back to the unit for transport to your other PC. As for the size, I held it up against the bigger iPod as well as the 15GB Dell, they're all about the same. It's not extremely sexy or anything and the brown leather case that comes with it is a bit more bulky than I'd like, especially the seams around the edges - but overall, that's a minor complaint. For usability, this thing flat out rocks. The way I use it is I put the main unit in my jacket pocket or on a belt loop and the hook the remote to a lapel, shirt pocket or even fold a piece of the shirt material over to grip it and put the remote in about the same spot every time. That way I can easily find the buttions and thumb wheels (they don't fully turn so I guess they're technically a rocker switch) without looking. I also like how it eases you into the last song you were playing be starting at a lower volume and then working up to the last volume setting you used. This keeps you from being blown out by a sudden hit of sound. It works that way when you pause it too, I sometimes have to listen to subway information being relayed and simply hit the giant play button once on the remote and the song is paused right where I was and starts back at the same point. Again, with that neat low to normal volume increase. One thing I can't seem to master from the remote yet is how to browse up and down folder levels. I know it can be done because I did it by following along with the instructions and it works fine, I just can't seem to easily remember how to do it when I'm on the train and want to switch to a different CD. The remote play, stop and volume controls are nice and work well for almost everything. The book says you can do everything with the remote that you can from the unit but I'm using the joystick-like device on the main unit every time I want to change to a different album. When it's freezing cold out and I have to go under the jacket to do it, it's a pain. I guess when I get back home I'll pull the book out and learn how to do all the functions from the remote. I did notice it picks up a minor amount of electrical interference when the subway train accelerates, probably because of the electric motors used to run it. It's low and not a problem as you only hear it when the song volume is very low or you're inbetween songs. Lastly, I've read that folks believe the learning curve to be a bit long. I had no problems whatsoeve so I guess I think like an iRiver engineer! My wife got my older unit loves it so much, it has me believing I'll be buying her a larger unit soon. Let me tell you, if the iPod or Dell are better, I'd be surprised. This unit feels solid, has been totally skip proof for me even though it uses a Toshiba microdrive, and has even been dropped without a problem. I like iRiver's web site too, go check the product out there and you'll see what I mean. It is really cool and the standard ear buds don't even sound too bad. I bought more expensive Sony ones based on review I've read online but I find the original ones so light and comfortable, I could literally use them all day without a problem. If you're looking at the Dell or iPod, you may want to consider this one on price alone. It also supports more song file types than the competition and seems like a unit I'll have around a long, long time. Now, I've got to go rip some more CD's from my collection so I can begin utilizing some of the massive drive space I now have! If you're on the fence, don't be...buy it! Steve
Rating: 
Summary: A very good but not prefect player
Review: I first bought Dell 15 GB Jukebox ($199) then this one (419.99). I returned Dell mainly because my laptop at work did not accept the hard drive and I can not use it as a portable hard drive to transfer files. Dell Jukebox is very easy to use although loading music on it is quite a pain, I really mean it!! The sound volume is lower than i river. I river has excellent sound: I compared it using my SONY CD player using the the same CD and mp3 I ripped on iriver. I cann't tell the difference. The menu is confusing at first but you will learn it on the way. I like the in line recording as I can use it to put a lot of my cassettes on it. Also I can record any type of DRM.
Rating: 
Summary: Terrible Machine. Not user friendly and battery only average
Review: Stupidly, I gave in to all the hype and went out and bought an iRiver 40GB mp3 player a couple of weeks ago. Big mistake. Here's my list of the biggest problems: 1) Keep getting file transfer error messages from my Windows Music Library. Only about about 1/4 of the songs transferred and it took almost 40 minutes, only 60 or 70 songs, and some of them end halfway through - aarrgh! When I contacted IRiver they said I must have a computer problem, so I tried again by burning a couple of CDs on my other work computer (different model) and had the same trouble. In effect it seems I'll have to burn 300 plus CDs all over again to get them in the right format, whatever that means. I had thought the IRiver handled all formats 'effortlessly'. What a joke. Aarrgh again! No thanks. 2) The much touted battery life is waaay off the mark. Mine gave out after 6-7 hours of normal play without any extra power hogging settings, etc. Yet iRiver advertises a 16 hour battery life. What do they base that on? I feel misled because that was one of the main reasons I looked at this 'thing' in the first place. 3) The sound is really terrible. My Sony Discman even sounds much better compared to this. No depth or bass. I tried fooling around with it, even switched earphones to no avail. Maybe the problem is in the iRiver software or hardware. Not much else it could be :). 4) Well, those are my three big gripes but on the less technical side of things it feels like a toy from a Cracker Jack box, with buttons that you really have to mess with to get to work. I can't believe they have the nerve to ask $450 for...this?! If it was only a $100 machine I'd have trouble giving it 2 stars. When the buttons did respond the navigation menus were ok if you want to take a long time to figure them out. In general this is not a user friendly machine. I think the iRiver is bigger and heavier than some of the other players I've since seen, too. For the money I feel totally ripped off so I'm going to send this thing back and hope I get no hassle. Maybe I'll try the Zen or the iPOD. Most people tell me those are still by far the best out there. I heard Archer (French?) has a new player out, too. Never again, this has been a constant headache. Lesson learned.
Rating:
Summary: a question on file transferring
Review: Hello all, I bought this ihp-140 two weeks ago, and very happy to have it. I am asking this quesion for my friend, who has a Mac (OS 10.3) and want to transfer files to this ihp. I have a Windows 2k laptop and had no problem when tranfer files, even for big size > 2 GB. But when my friend tried to transfer a folder from his Mac, the transfer wizard always stop in the middle, saying that there's some error in some file, and couldn't finish this transfer. But really there's no errors at all! and every time the message appears, it gives a different file name, saying that some errors appear in this file. It just doesn't make sense.
I am wondering is this because the driver in Mac is not properly desinged for ihp? but the manual said it's fine with OS>10.2. then what's the problem? thanks in advance.
Rating:
Summary: Top mp3/hard drive recorder on the market
Review: I bought the iRiver iHP-140 after extensive research involving ALL of the iPods and their competitors. In actuality, I was drooling over the iHP-120 (which was the 20GB version), but felt that 20GB wouldn't be enough. When iRiver announced the 40GB version, it was like a dream come true. On paper, the iRiver iHP-140 blows the iPod away as far as features. It's one of the only units available that allow for recording directly to .wav. For real audiophiles, this is big news because it gives them the ability to record without having to use lossy (and crappy) .mp3 compression. Like the competitors, .mp3 recording is available as well. Aside from .wav recording, audiophiles will also like the digital input AND output (via optical). 15-16 hours of battery life, fully-functional remote, FM tuner, USB2.0 support, and massive 40GB hard drive make the iHP-140 just that much better. For something this powerful, you'd think it would be the size of a computer monitor, but it's only slightly bigger than the newest generation iPod. In the end, the iHP-140 is the new milestone as far as mp3 players/hard drive recorders go. It'll be hard pressed for any company to produce a competing product with as many features.
Rating:
Summary: Fun little player
Review: Reason it's not getting 5 stars: ugly brown leather cover, cheap earbuds, navigation not the most user friendly and inability to download directly to player from Windows Media player. Price drove me to give this a try: $419.99 with a $50 rebate. For this price, I can deal with the quirks. It does what I need it to and it's enough to satisfy me. I am able to download music by first saving it to the media library then sending the file to the player. Inconvenient but I'll live. In all, it's a decent player with an impressive battery life and memory.
Rating: 
Summary: Not Bad, But Not iPOD
Review: I borrowed one of these for a week and was hoping it woulld be a little better than this for the price, especially as this is a company from Korea. But the navigation was quite difficult and it seemed a bit slow for a hard drive device. It also doesn't recognize Windows files. While the battery life was quite good it still seems more like an iPOD imitation - without the easy navigation - than a device which will break its own new ground. Combine this with sound quality that is average at best and it's safe to say I'll stick with Apple for the next while. You just can't beat that scroll wheel. I'd suggest iRiver (imitation even of the iPOD name?) stick with what it does best, flash memory machines.
Rating:
Summary: My Wishlist for my iHP-140
Review: I've had my iHP-140 for about a week, 1450 songs, not even a quarter a way through my CD's, and still have > 30 GB left. I own a Sony MiniDisk MZ-R50, over 5 years old, but this is my first portable MP3 so my opinions are based soley on how this works, other or all other players may behave simarliy, I don't know. All the praises that have been heaped upon this are well deserved, but (hoping iRiver is reading this) I do have a few wishes: - Transition options between songs, there is a slight delay, about .250 second, between songs, but it would be nice to fade out the current and simultaneously fade in the queued song.
- Queue up more than one song, or even better, edit a play list from the player
- Edit song info, maybe not rename songs, but, how about flag the file or move it elsewhere for those songs you realize have a problem, easier than remembering which of the 10,000 songs had a problem
- Record from the Tuner, I read there were technical limitations with this but it would be nice to record a radio show and play it back later (how about an auto timer to start recording?)
- Emergency Broadcast Reception, option to have emergency broadcast messages overide the player even if not on the tuner. I would expect this would wear down the batteries, but if there is a big storm in the area, I would hate to stop listening to my player
- Receive and display additional radio information, similar to the car radios that show artists, title, or Genre
- Better quality headphones, because of the size of the plug on the remote it is hard to find good headphones that fit without using the included adapter. Headphones provided would be fine if they just had a rubber surround on the ear buds, for comfort.
- Auto volume leveling, I know I should have checked the levels prior to being put on the player, but, it would be nice if you can have a built in limiter/compressor/gate
- External control by PC, I would like to queue, select, play songs from the computer yet use the playback circuitry of the iHP 140, not my computer. When you connect the computer the player controls go bye-bye
- Rubber tip on the joystick, metal is a bit slippery so a non-slip pad would help when navigating. I've inadvertenly started a new song while just 'browsing' more than once.
- Pouch for all of the additional cables, complaints have already been made about the included case but I would still like a matching case/pouch for the cables and headphone. I am very glad I bought this (...), I forgot how many great CD's I own, it is nice to listen to whatever, whenever I want. Now there is not only a fight for 'shotgun' when the family goes out but now 'I control the player' is heard as well. Nice job iRiver.
Rating:
Summary: Play iHp-140 using AC power
Review: I have a question to ask i river expert: If the battery is running out, can you play using AC power before 3 h full recharge? When the battery is dead, can you use AC instead of change the battery? Thanks in advance. I river fun
Rating:
Summary: If you want to play DRM files...
Review: If you want to play DRM files just burn an audio cd and then rip it back into an mp3 or wma file.
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