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Sony MPD-AP20U Portable USB 2.0 CD-RW/DVD-ROM Drive

Sony MPD-AP20U Portable USB 2.0 CD-RW/DVD-ROM Drive

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Rating: 1 stars
Summary: good at making CD costers
Review: I bought this for my thinkpad X31 to be used as CDRW/DVD player, not so much for music listening. I got iriver cd MP3/WMA player for that. I do not think there are too many MP3/WMA player that could beat iriver's feature. anyways, going back to Sony... it seems to be working fine as CD/DVD reader but I haven't yet had success with recording/writing to CD yet (except for making 4 CD costers for my desk). I have had 5 different kind of CDRW that I have used and never had problem until this one (never read manual to operate). I used there provided software and windows explorer but neither one seem to complete the writing successfully. I am following the manual (I actually read the maual) correctly. I'll try couple more time with different setting and if still doesn't work than I'll have to return them.

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: Oh, it's ready to rock.
Review: I don't understand what JK-47 is complaining about. If you have 1200 songs, you should have them arranged in folders. Divide by genre, artist, album, etc. Then you can find your song without this 1200 clicking. What's up with that? :d

The thing has a lithium ion battery built in. On top of that, one gives you the option to power it with batteries. I am confused about this complaint. They are giving you a bonus. You don't want to use the cradle? Don't use it.

I think what JK-47s problem might have been is that maybe he was just looking for a super streamlined MP3 player. If all you are looking for is an MP3 player, this should obviously not be your first choice. Look into an iPod or something.

This device is basically for someone who's looking for an external DVD, CD-RW drive who happens to be in the market for an MP3 player also. I am one of those people and I have to say I am incredibly happy with it. It does everything it's prescribed to do very well.

One thing you should consider: iTunes only seels MP4s, and Napster only sells WMA files, neither of which this device supports. It's a pain to try to buy music online and put it in this thing. You need to burn it into a CD and rip it back. Blech. Oh well.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Excellent Player - Extremely Useful
Review: I have a Toshiba tablet and needed a portable all-purpose drive for it; this one is perfect. It is extremely useful, with the ability to write CDs and read DVDs. In addition, you can disconnect it from the computer, and it functions as a portable MP3 cd/dvd player. It plays MP3 DVDs, which can hold about 1,000 songs (4.7 GB). It also has a memory stick slot, which acts like a USB mass storage device when you attach it to a computer. You can transfer MP3s to the memory stick and play them with the portable drive. I haven't had the opportunity to test this yet, though. Another useful aspect of this drive is the battery capacity. In addition to the internal rechargeable battery (10 hrs MP3 playback, 1.5 hrs DVD video playback on computer) it comes with a portable battery powered docking station (rechargeable batteries not included for station). With the CD player connected to the station, battery life is extended to 30 hrs MP3 playback or 5 hrs DVD video - enough to watch at least a couple of movies. The station is small and very easy to transport. Finally, when using the drive as a portable player, it has an 8 MB buffer, so playback is very shock resistant. The only problem I have had with the drive is that it doesn't come with a clip or case for attaching it at the waist. I plan to just buy a case of some kind, so this shouldn't be a problem. Overall, I got even more than I bargained for with this drive.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Excellent Player - Extremely Useful
Review: I have a Toshiba tablet and needed a portable all-purpose drive for it; this one is perfect. It is extremely useful, with the ability to write CDs and read DVDs. In addition, you can disconnect it from the computer, and it functions as a portable MP3 cd/dvd player. It plays MP3 DVDs, which can hold about 1,000 songs (4.7 GB). It also has a memory stick slot, which acts like a USB mass storage device when you attach it to a computer. You can transfer MP3s to the memory stick and play them with the portable drive. I haven't had the opportunity to test this yet, though. Another useful aspect of this drive is the battery capacity. In addition to the internal rechargeable battery (10 hrs MP3 playback, 1.5 hrs DVD video playback on computer) it comes with a portable battery powered docking station (rechargeable batteries not included for station). With the CD player connected to the station, battery life is extended to 30 hrs MP3 playback or 5 hrs DVD video - enough to watch at least a couple of movies. The station is small and very easy to transport. Finally, when using the drive as a portable player, it has an 8 MB buffer, so playback is very shock resistant. The only problem I have had with the drive is that it doesn't come with a clip or case for attaching it at the waist. I plan to just buy a case of some kind, so this shouldn't be a problem. Overall, I got even more than I bargained for with this drive.

Rating: 1 stars
Summary: Not ready to rock.
Review: Nice Idea; Poor Execution; Not Ready. Sub-1.0 release.

1 example:
Plays MP3-DVDs containing upwards of 1200 songs (files). But device has only a single-line lcd readout & NO FILE BROWSE MODE.

What does this mean? Say you want to listen to song #1172...
1. obtain carpal tunnel wrist brace.
2. hit up/forward on remote's jog-diall <<<1171>>> TIMES!
(of course if you are a gambling man you could always just put it on random and take side-bets with your friends.)
3. enjoy?

No file browse mode, no plus 10 or plus 100 buttons, no easily accessible battery (sure, feel free to care around the external harness dock thing and EIGHT AA's (that's 8).

Not ready for primetime.

Wanna buy mine? I am selling it cheap and it's as LEMONy-fresh.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Sony's new player/recorder does it all.
Review: This player/recorder was the answer to my long search for an mp3 player that would be compatible with recordable cd and dvd technology. A side issue was the ability to rip cd's to my computer without scratching them in the traditional cd-drive tray (the Sony has a pin drive). One of the main benefits of this drive is the ability to play recordable dvd's, although I have not taken advantage of this yet. The corded remote is nicely backlit, but it would be an improvement to lose the cord. The burner is relatively fast, but I don't see using it too much as the new computer I have (as most now) have the faster 24x cd-rw drive. I use the headphone jack to run the sound to my stereo, and the sound is decent, but it would probably have been better to have a line-out jack on the back of the unit. Be warned, this is not a dvd player as such; it has no video decoder (which would probably make it considerably heavier). The only other product which would have such a decoder is the forthcoming Philips Jackrabbit (v.3), but it looks heavier and appears not to have the excellent text display of the Sony. Overall I am pleased with this player/recorder, and glad that I waited instead of buying the cd-only Rio brand. I also got it for $...on that popular auction site (with a return privilege, in fact). Right now I am listening to my Oasis b-sides and rarities disc, some 85 mp3's of the best band in the world.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Sony's new player/recorder does it all.
Review: This player/recorder was the answer to my long search for an mp3 player that would be compatible with recordable cd and dvd technology. A side issue was the ability to rip cd's to my computer without scratching them in the traditional cd-drive tray (the Sony has a pin drive). One of the main benefits of this drive is the ability to play recordable dvd's, although I have not taken advantage of this yet. The corded remote is nicely backlit, but it would be an improvement to lose the cord. The burner is relatively fast, but I don't see using it too much as the new computer I have (as most now) have the faster 24x cd-rw drive. I use the headphone jack to run the sound to my stereo, and the sound is decent, but it would probably have been better to have a line-out jack on the back of the unit. Be warned, this is not a dvd player as such; it has no video decoder (which would probably make it considerably heavier). The only other product which would have such a decoder is the forthcoming Philips Jackrabbit (v.3), but it looks heavier and appears not to have the excellent text display of the Sony. Overall I am pleased with this player/recorder, and glad that I waited instead of buying the cd-only Rio brand. I also got it for $...on that popular auction site (with a return privilege, in fact). Right now I am listening to my Oasis b-sides and rarities disc, some 85 mp3's of the best band in the world.


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