Rating: 
Summary: Great Value
Review: this was my first mp3 player and as such I did extensive research and compared other flash memory players (like the Nomad II) and harddrive playes (such as the Zen). I settled on the S50 b/c of it's price, portability, and overall good looks. In addition to the player, I got a 256 MB Secure Digital card, although I should have gotten a 512 MB one. This gave me around 380 MB of space, about 100 songs at 96 kbps. The protective case that comes with the player is excellent as are the earbuds, which are normally of sub-par quality. I looked at the Nomad II but disliked the limit to 256 MB cards for extra storage. I also considered the hefty (in price and weight) harddrive players. Although the Zen boasts of the ability to hold 8000 songs, I have no need for that space and I would be terrified of dropping such an expensive piece of equipment. all in all, if you're looking for an attractive mp3 player that can hold a ton of songs at a reasonable price, look into buying a Rio S50 MP3 player.
Rating: 
Summary: Not fun.
Review: I purchased the RS50 for my 12-year old son. He uses a IMac with a OS 9.1 operating system. I thought I was being careful in my attempt to find a unit that was Mac-compatible. Normally, anything that is made for Mac is easy to install -- but my experience with this was far from it. When I began to have installation problems, I called the SonicBlue help line -- after all they claim they are proud of their customer service. After 45 minutes on hold, I talked to someone who was: 1: not versed in problem-soving with this particular unit and 2. had trouble with the English language. The language barrier was very trying as we both struggled to understand each other. I'm not a computer wiz by any means but I knew I was getting wrong advice in this instance (really too absurd and lengthy to go into here.) I waited a few days and call again. Another 45 minute wait ensued, only this time I was disconnected twice. And again I connected with another indivdual with a thick foreign accent. I suspect that Sonic Blue uses an off-shore call center. Again, we struggled to understand each other. He gave some advice; I took it; and it didn't work. I'd love to tell you I was having the time of my life with my brand new S50 -- I love to but I can't. I suppose customer service is still a couple of disingenuous words in a dictionary according to this company. That's fine -- I'm sending it back.
Rating:
Summary: Pront to lockups. Won't support many cards.
Review: I'm lucky if I can get it to download 50 meg without locking up. Only supporte 128 meg cards - NOT 256. Will NOT support Secure digital cards. Built like a plastic toy.Not happy. Am returning this piece of junk.
Rating: 
Summary: The best inexpensive Mp3 Player 2002!
Review: It is small cute and quite adorable. Backlit blue screen, it comes in colors! FM tuner works (depending where you live!) and your headphones have a long cord, like mine. Mp3 uploading is quick, but the headphones ...., just buy some digital ones (sony has one for mp3 players).... How cool is that!
You just have to edit your play list when your taste changes for all the non ipod people out there.
Rating:
Summary: great
Review: this player works great amazing sound quality so far radio works great no problems a great product
Rating:
Summary: Excellent Player
Review: I received a Rio S50 just yesterday, and in only one hour I had all of my mp3 files and ripped songs from CD's loaded onto it. Although others have complained about the radio, I will admit that it is shaky. I downloaded a new patch, and the reception on most stations is fine however. On some, the reception can be shaky, but I didn't buy this for the radio alone. The music is excellent, and with the 128 MB SD Memory upgrade, this can hold 8 hourse of music, which is more than enough for me. It is light, and small, and very easy to use, the software being very well writen. This player is a great buy, and I strongly recomend it for someone who doesn't need the huge capacities of the RioRiot or an iPod
Rating:
Summary: Great player
Review: I just got it and it already had the latest firmware (1.60)loaded. Software is easy to use and sounds great. After reading some of the reviews I was concerned about the radio reception but I bought it anyway because of it's size and because you can use 256MB SD cards. It picked up 5 of the 6 radio stations I listen to most often. Good enough for me since the tuner is just a plus, this is an MP3 player after all. I considered the Nomad IIc and the iRiver but I like the size and expandability of the RIO. Cost a little more but worth it.
Rating: 
Summary: FM reception a problem
Review: After 4 days, I have returned my unit. It is fine in every way except the FM reception is horrible. I can only hear the station I want about half the time. I'm using the latest firmware (1.6). Otherwise, I have no complaints, but the lousy FM reception is a deal breaker for me.
Rating:
Summary: OK MP3/WMA Player, Bad FM Radio
Review: After looking at various MP3 players, I decided on the Rio S50. I liked how it was expandable, upgradeable (firmware), and had a FM radio built in. After much anticipation, I received it yesterday. So far, I'm a bit disappointed. After opening the package, the first thing I noticed was that there was a large speck of something behind the clear plastic but on top of the LCD. There's no way I can get to it without taking the player apart. It's quite visible and it's going to stare at me for the life of the product. So immediately, I wondered about the quality of the player. After recharging the included NiMH AA battery, I immediately upgraded the firmware to the latest (1.6). I had read in previous reviews about the bad FM reception and how the firmware upgrade made it better. The FM reception is still terrible! So much for listening to the radio when/if I get tired of listening to the MP3s I loaded on it. I loaded as many MP3 files onto it as I could last night. The software to transfer files to the player worked fine (Rio Music Manager). The player didn't have any problems playing the files I loaded on to it. It seemed a little lacking in the bass, but I don't know if that's an attribute of the player or the earphones that came with it. The 5-band equalizer (with presets) helped a bit. I also noticed that the buttons sometimes don't work and you have to push them more than once to work. The volume buttons, on the other hand, make the volume go up or down quite drastically instead of 1 increment at a time. Overall, I think it's an ok MP3/WMA player with some nice features. However, it's an awful FM receiver and the firmware hasn't made it much better. I expected more from this player, especially considering the price, and I'm a bit disappointed. PROs:
small, compact, very lightweight
expandable, upgradeable
built in 5-band EQ with presets
easy to use software (Rio Music Manager) CONs:
horrendous FM reception
questionable quality or QA
slow or overactive buttons
pricey
Rating:
Summary: Lousy FM reception
Review: I Live real close to a lot of radio stations on a small island and couldn't tune any of them without a lot of static, also the tuning steps are too large.
My advice buy it with out the tuner and spend the extra $50 bucks on the memory upgrade!
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