Rating: 
Summary: If Time is Money, This One Will Cost You
Review: Although this may have been an easy to use product in the past, the company has not kept up with the fast-paced changes of the electronics world. This product was very difficult to install onto my computer. Installing a cd burner into my computer tower was much easier than setting up this little mp3 nightmare. DAY 1:
The package of the Classic MP6410 said that the software CD would allow you to download files in either MP3 or WMA (Windows Media Player) format. The problem with this statement is that the necessary software did not install from the cd. In fact, when I looked at the list of files on the CD, the program (called Music Match) only had a plug-in, no actual program was listed. I tried to call tech support, but it was past their business hours. Day 2:
When I reached tech support, the representative said the problem might be my computer (strange since the program wasn't even listed on the CD) but did not try to help me locate the program to download it from the CD. Since Music Match did not install onto my computer with the other installed software, the plug-ins that were supposed to be work with the Music Match programs could not function. This completely voided the claim WMA files could be used by the MP3 player. Before reaching the tech support (see below for tech support details,) I also downloaded upgrade software from the EMI Global (the parent company of Classic)website, and still there was no Music Match listed in the download. When i did speak with tech support I was told that I could download the Music Match 8.0 software from the Music Match website, but that EMI Global is no longer affiliated with Music Match so the new software would not work with the old plug-ins. At that point the representative began the 15 minute series of detailed instructions for the program I hadn't even seen yet. I spent about an hour or so working with the Music Match 8.0 and found that if I used it to convert music from a CD into mp3 format, I could save the music into a file and then drag and drop directly into the MP3 drive. Day 3:
After filling the 64MB memory with 15 songs of my choice, I found that only the first 4 1/2 would play. Half way through the 5th song the music would stop and the controls would freeze. The only way to turn it off was to remove the battery. I have left a message with tech support and am waiting to see if he will have anything helpful to say. About Tech Support:
I called 3 times. Each time I was asked to hold for " " (apparently a name was supposed to have been recorded, but all that I heard was background noise). I sat listening to several Rod Stewart lounge tunes and then heard what I thought was someone fumbling as the picked up the phone. However, no one was there, just an automated menu telling me to leave a message. Finally, several hours later my call was returned. The reason for the delay? EMI Global, which produces 13 different product lines (ie TVs, Karaoke machines,digital cameras etc.), only employs ONE tech support person for ALL of their electronic products. The representative on the line was not much help. He was (understandably) rushed and rattled off a list of reasons things might not be working and then rattled off a lengthy explanation of what I should download and what I should do once it is downloaded. I am above average in my computer skills but there was no way I could remember 15 minutes of instructions for a program I hadn't even downloaded yet. I tried to get him to slow down, but he specifically said that EMI Global support does not coach customers through the process step by step. You get what you pay for.
Rating: 
Summary: Excellent Product if you're looking for a small MP3 player
Review: I do a lot of running and this product is excellent for doing that. It fits very well in your hand as you run, it's light weight and stores about 14-16 average sized songs. I had one technical issue already and called the helpdesk and they walked me through it in about 15 minutes, and it was no hassle. I would highly recommend this product to anyone who is looking for an alternative to working out with a CD player. This MP3 does that job gives you the flexability to change songs daily if you'd like too!
Rating:
Summary: Excellent Product if you're looking for a small MP3 player
Review: I do a lot of running and this product is excellent for doing that. It fits very well in your hand as you run, it's light weight and stores about 14-16 average sized songs. I had one technical issue already and called the helpdesk and they walked me through it in about 15 minutes, and it was no hassle. I would highly recommend this product to anyone who is looking for an alternative to working out with a CD player. This MP3 does that job gives you the flexability to change songs daily if you'd like too!
Rating: 
Summary: Starting fresh
Review: I found that I had a problem with the headphone jack also. I was able to use it for a few days and was happy. I have never owned an MP3 player befor. It installed into my windows machine in XP with no problems. I haven't been able to figure out the mac software yet. I need to spend more time with it. I exchanged it and I am going to see if the headphone problem is fixed on the new one.
Rating:
Summary: works swell with a Mac
Review: I had no issues whatsoever with getting my MP3s off of my Mac OS9 and onto this player -- it was harder finding a conversion software from CD to MP3. (I eventually settled on an OS9 version of Apple's iTunes, which is fine.) This player does tend to turn itself on and stay on, so watch your battery.
Rating:
Summary: Good player for the price
Review: I had some trouble installing the software under Win XP, it wasn't recognized at first. After an uninstall and reinstall it worked fine. I think part of the problem many people are having with this player is that the manual for it is horribly written, and very sparse. Screen shots of an install telling you to click NEXT and OK are not an instruction manual! The manual gets 1 star tops. On the flipside, I don't think many of the people having problems with the memory card actually bothered reading the manual at all. No problems hear adding memory cards. The thing is, you have to format them with the provided software. If you don't do that, then they won't work. Plain and simple. It's a reasonable player, but does not put out the best sound quality. That's acceptable to me, because contrary to popular opinions, MP3 is one of the worst audio formats around for digital music, at any bitrate. Seeking to increase space/time on my player I experimented by adding the same song encoded at different bitrates between 96k and 320k. I couldn't tell much of a difference between any of them. That's good news, as you can lower the bitrate to save space and add more music. Again, if you're an audiophile like myself, you already know that whatever bitrate you use is going to be poor compared to what you are used to, so at least you can take advantage of that fact. The interface and controls are very simple. Like many others I bought this just for working out. It serves that purpose very well and at an affordable price. The small display shows you volume level, track #, and time played among other things like built in EQ settings and playback mode. No, it doesn't show you the title of the MP3 playing, but think about it... You encoded the MP3, you put it on there because you wanted to listen to it... I'm assuming you can tell what song it is when you hear it. I don't see any need for a more complex display on this player. On price alone I'd have been willing to give this player 5 stars, but I can't because there are definitely some downsides. The first being the manual as I stated above. The second thing are the headphones, their incessant hissing and their inability to reproduce a wide frequency of sound. Throw them in the trash immediately and put on a pair cost at least $30 and you'll hear a night/day difference (this can be said for just about any free pair of headphones you get with a device, though.) The third thing is the Random playback mode isn't random at all. It plays back the tracks in the exact 'random' order time after time. I've experimented with this, taking the battery out, loading new music on it, etc.. and it continually will just play the same track #'s out of sequence. Lastly, the buttons are fairly cheap and the Play/Pause Off/On button is schizophrenic at best. It's either hypersensitive or it's completely stiff and non-responsive. Of course it happens at whatever situation would be worst. It turns itself on in a bag very easily, and when you go to turn it off it chooses to be obstinate. In short, if you're looking for a player without much investment, and something you don't want to worry about breaking or having to replace, this is the perfect player. Ample memory and low price make it a winner for workouts and casual listening.
Rating:
Summary: Good player for the price
Review: I had some trouble installing the software under Win XP, it wasn't recognized at first. After an uninstall and reinstall it worked fine. I think part of the problem many people are having with this player is that the manual for it is horribly written, and very sparse. Screen shots of an install telling you to click NEXT and OK are not an instruction manual! The manual gets 1 star tops. On the flipside, I don't think many of the people having problems with the memory card actually bothered reading the manual at all. No problems hear adding memory cards. The thing is, you have to format them with the provided software. If you don't do that, then they won't work. Plain and simple. It's a reasonable player, but does not put out the best sound quality. That's acceptable to me, because contrary to popular opinions, MP3 is one of the worst audio formats around for digital music, at any bitrate. Seeking to increase space/time on my player I experimented by adding the same song encoded at different bitrates between 96k and 320k. I couldn't tell much of a difference between any of them. That's good news, as you can lower the bitrate to save space and add more music. Again, if you're an audiophile like myself, you already know that whatever bitrate you use is going to be poor compared to what you are used to, so at least you can take advantage of that fact. The interface and controls are very simple. Like many others I bought this just for working out. It serves that purpose very well and at an affordable price. The small display shows you volume level, track #, and time played among other things like built in EQ settings and playback mode. No, it doesn't show you the title of the MP3 playing, but think about it... You encoded the MP3, you put it on there because you wanted to listen to it... I'm assuming you can tell what song it is when you hear it. I don't see any need for a more complex display on this player. On price alone I'd have been willing to give this player 5 stars, but I can't because there are definitely some downsides. The first being the manual as I stated above. The second thing are the headphones, their incessant hissing and their inability to reproduce a wide frequency of sound. Throw them in the trash immediately and put on a pair cost at least $30 and you'll hear a night/day difference (this can be said for just about any free pair of headphones you get with a device, though.) The third thing is the Random playback mode isn't random at all. It plays back the tracks in the exact 'random' order time after time. I've experimented with this, taking the battery out, loading new music on it, etc.. and it continually will just play the same track #'s out of sequence. Lastly, the buttons are fairly cheap and the Play/Pause Off/On button is schizophrenic at best. It's either hypersensitive or it's completely stiff and non-responsive. Of course it happens at whatever situation would be worst. It turns itself on in a bag very easily, and when you go to turn it off it chooses to be obstinate. In short, if you're looking for a player without much investment, and something you don't want to worry about breaking or having to replace, this is the perfect player. Ample memory and low price make it a winner for workouts and casual listening.
Rating:
Summary: Stops working after a while
Review: I have returned to the store 2 of these that just wont start anymore after about 1 month of usage.
Rating:
Summary: Very good, nice interface, reliable, cheap
Review: I have this for more than 6 months now and have been extremely satisfied. It has easy to use USB interface and everyone knowing something about computers and MP3 files will be able to use it in a few seconds. Very light, very small. Memory can be expanded to 128MB which shoudl be plenty for a typical listener. I like it very much. It even keeps the music for a few seconds in memory while you are changing the battery (one AA !). The only small disadvantage is that it seems to consume the battery while "OFF" and if you do not use it for a week, then you may find that you need to replace the battery still. But, hey - what product doesn't need batteries ? :)
Rating:
Summary: excellent low priced player
Review: I just bought this (...). It was easy to install the firmware using the supplied CD. It sounds great. My only complaint is that I want to add more memory but the instructions do not show the orientation of the card to insert.
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