Rating: 
Summary: Now, with Ogg Support!
Review: According to iRiver's website, the iMP-550 should have full Ogg support by the end of 2003. For those not familiar with Ogg, it's the best audio format around, free of DRM annoyances and patents. Unlike most similar players, the 550 can play both Ogg and MP3 formats, instead of having to choose which firmware to install.
Rating:
Summary: it's great
Review: to all
the loding time is now lower because of the new firmware (1.4).
the only thing I do not like abote the player is the playback time it's only 25 hours only iwht the gumsticks. sony has players that have 50
Rating: 
Summary: Excellent Customer Service
Review: I decided on the 550 over the $99 model because I heard that it has less "gap" in between mp3 tracks. I listen to a lot of mixes that are spilt into tracks and having a 2 second gap is annoying. When I got the player, the AC adatpter did not work, which meant I couldnt recharge the batteries. I called the Customer Support line and with no hassle or delay at all they sent out a replacement adapter that arrived in about 5 days. Awesome! This is a great player but be warned, the remote is smaller than you think and feels fragile. Unless you absolutely need the car kit, go for the $99 model. It's strange, in a package filled with high quality accessories, the earbuds are simply awful. But who ever uses the included ones anyways? Don't even consider any brand other than iRiver..
Rating:
Summary: The Best CD player money can buy
Review: If your looking for the best Mp3 cd player that money can buy, you have found it. Iriver has done a great job with the 550. The unit is extremely small and light. Some say that the remote is hard to use, but it really isnt. After playing around with it for 5 mins you will figure how to use it.
The sound is also great, I never thought music could sound so great. At first i was going to buy the iriver ihp-120, but then i thought again should i spent 400 or should i go with the 550 that is more than half the price. I decided to go with the 550 and im extremely happy with my decision
Rating:
Summary: good enough for the audio anal
Review: This unit is almost perfect. The sound is incredible and I really love the customizable equalizer feature. On most of these portable units, the base is too mushy and the treble is too piercing and there's no midrange. My guess is that's because the sound technicians at these companies have been to too many concerts and their high-frequency hearing range is damaged. Thanks to the built in user-settable equalizer though, you can adjust it so you can actually hear the mid-range. Listening to this unit, I could hear aspects of the music I'd never noticed before. This was using a pair of inexpensive Philips HS500s. The FM tuner is it's weak point. The reception is very poor and the sound quality is tinny and flat. You can't apply your equalizer settings to the radio sound quality so it basically sounds so bad as to be useless. It's hard to find one of these units with a built in radio receiver, and equalizer, so I was disappointed that they put no energy into ensuring the quality of the radio. The UI is very awkward to use and confusing. You will have to carry the manual with you for several days till you get it all straightened out. Curiosly it's the same exact UI as that of the RioVolt SP-250. Apparently these companies are outsourcing this logic to somewhere in China. Also, the thing about these slim designs which I don't like is you have to carry all this extra stuff around. If you want to get the 55 hours of battery life, you have to plug in the extra battery pack. If you want to use this for jogging, as I do, that means that somehow you have to carry that awkward thing around with the unit. Unfortunately the nice little velvety case they give you has no place to attach the battery pack. A significant oversight I think. So, you have to carry the unit, and the battery pack somehow, and the dangly remote control around. I'd prefer just to get it all packaged into a slightly fatter unit and just carry one thing. But the fatter units don't have all the good features. I'm not sure why. The unit comes with a pair of the impossible to use ear bud style headphones. The fact that they are Sennheisers is a nice touch, but who can get these to stay in their ears? I must have non-regulation ears. Maybe with a nice pair of real over the ear Sennheisers this would be the almost perfect portable unit. Aside from all those rants, I love this unit. I almost returned it but changed my mind because of the sound quality and most of all because it really doesn't skip. I took it jogging and it played every song all the way through with no skips for a solid hour. In fact, I haven't heard it skip yet.
Rating:
Summary: Nearly all you can expect from a serious MP3/CD player
Review: It's definitely a winner in its class. If you care about sexy looking, quality sound, fancy controls, light weight, car cassette and power compatiblitly, and long hours of playing, you will not even think about other brand and models. The price is reasonalbe compare to similar SONY and Panasonic players.
The multi-language ability of showing file names and tags is really marvelous and important for people who prefer other languages. The remote control is not a problem to me. It's not that hard to understand and remember how to use all the functions as some other guys said. The design and use of buttons are in same style, once you learnt one of them, you can easily apply it on another. I don't mind if there's buttons on the player itself. The sound quality is awesome, at least as good as a SONY can provide if not superior. It plays a CD nearly as good as a regular deck CD player. Had tried it wiht high bit rate MP3s in my car (6 nice speaker) and felt satisfied. The weak point is the ear bud, it's not that impressive as described in some reviewer. After checking the ear bud's tech detail on the internet, I ordered a SONY MDR-828 along with the player. The SONY ear bud delivers deep, solid, and powerful bass, sweet treble, and accurate middle range. If you are serious about music and you slimx 550, you need to consider about the earphone. As a summary, in my case I love its design and quality most. I recommend it to everyone and I believe you will not feel regret for your bucks, you will love it when you see it in you hand, it's so slim and smooth. Think what else can bring you more fun at about $160?
Rating:
Summary: Buy it. Now.
Review: Okay. I am not usually one to write reviews but this product deserves one. The iRiver 550 CD player is simply an amazing device. This is everything that you would ever need in a combo CD/MP3 player. I have had CD/MP3 combo players in the past (Panasonic (sub par), and Sony (broke after a few months)) and this is far and away the best of the bunch. The way that it handles play lists and the endless tweaking options make this the only player that you will ever need. If you are thinking of buying a dedicated MP3 player (no CD capability) consider these factors; 1. A CD can be filled with over 600 MP3 files (10 hours of music)
2. CD-R's are pennies apiece compared to pricey flash memory cards
3. If you have a regular CD you can play it without the hassle of conversion.
4. CD recorders are very prevalent and you could usually find one at a friends house or if you were away (try doing that with the proprietary syncing cables on the other devices)
5. This is simply the most versatile device on the market So there you have it. This is the way to go for all of your MP3 playing needs. The built in radio is also a bonus for when you are finished listening to 600 hours of music and you need a change of pace. Buy this device. IRiver has done their homework and they have created the best of the breed. It costs a little more, but the payback in the long run will be more than worth the extra cash.
Rating:
Summary: Technically marvelous; a little unwieldy
Review: I wanted something to play MP3 CDs of old-time radio, both on long walks and in my car. The iRiver model was recommended by one of the Web sites from which I buy this type of CD. (A single five- or ten-dollar prerecorded CD, incidentally, may hold as many as 30 or 40 hours of radio shows in the MP3 format -- a technological wonder I still haven't quite gotten over.) Since I've been using the iRiver SlimX for barely more than a month, I can't speak to its endurance or longevity; but so far, at least, it's performed excellently. As other reviews have pointed out, all the controls, as well as the screen, are located in the rather tiny plastic remote control unit which attaches by wire to the player; once the CD itself is inside the player, you may as well stick the player in a bag (as I do, for walking around with it), as you needn't deal with the player until you want to switch CDs. It's astonishing how many functions and controls are packed into the little remote control unit -- and it's true, as others have observed, that you may have to sit down with the instruction book and experiment for half an hour or so before you get comfortable with using it (depending on how many things you want the player to do). My problems are exclusively with this little unit. It weighs about as much as a postage stamp, feels rather flimsy, and has three strange little plastic buttons sticking up, two along the top and one at the bottom, that you use to perform most of the operations. If you press one button down, you'll get, say, a new screen on the unit that allows all sorts of customizing. If you press that same button forward quickly, you'll move on to the next song (or in my case radio program) on the CD. If you press it forward and hold it for a few seconds, it fast-forwards on the song you're playing. It also works in reverse. Another button moves forward or backward for ten songs at a time, and also switches on the FM radio. The unit is so small, light, and delicate that it's hard not to accidentally push one of these buttons inadvertently when one picks it up; and the fact that there are buttons both on the top and the bottom makes it all the harder not to accidentally do something you didn't mean to. Holding and programming the remote control in one hand is difficult. You often end up holding your thumb over the little glass screen, which means it quickly gets smeared. And -- no doubt with the best of intentions -- the manufacturers have added a sort of plastic alligator clip on the back of the remote so that, presumably, you can clip it to a shirt pocket or some such (I clip it to the edge of the bag in which I'm toting the CD player), but the clip itself is facing precisely the wrong way, so that it's hard to use. If you attach a small two-battery unit (included) to the CD player for additional power, it hangs from the unit on a short wire like a heavy black pendant... unless, again, you carry the unit in a bag. (I've tried attaching it to my belt, but it's a rather large disk to have pressed against one's body... and one has to stick that extra battery pack in one's back pocket.) In short, the iRiver is awkward to walk around with. But it's still two or three times cheaper than an iPod, the sound is very good, and so far it's done all that it promised. It certainly makes my 50-minute walks home from work a lot more pleasant.
Rating:
Summary: Great Player
Review: This was my first MP3/CD player. I found it very satisfying. I had a little trouble in the beginning trying to figure out all the features it had, but that was a good thing. The only trouble I had with this player was the "no disc" problem. I called customer support and they told me to burn cds straight from Windows XP (recommend: CDR at 4x). Nero has problems with their product. Customer Service was great and the product works like a charm. I highly recommend it. The look of the player is pretty nice too. Great LCD remote and design all around. Another good thing about this is if by some chance your remote breaks, you can easily replace it with a easy order off their website. Once again, Great prodcut, Highly recommended.
Rating:
Summary: The best cd player you can get
Review: I got this CD player to replace a Sony one (returned for refund), and I am really satisified with this player. Pros:
1. Super slim body design;
2. FM tunner;
3. Crystal clear sound output (even has an optical output);
4. Can play both mp3 and wma files;
5. CD player also act as a battery charger;
6. Can be functional when charging battery;
7. Big LCD (4 lines) can display a lot of information;
8. Multiple language support (38 languages);
9. Metal cover;
10.A bunch of custom settings;
11.Firmware upgradable. Cons:
1. Loading CD will cost a little longer time than average CD players;
2. No AM Tunner (I love to listen to AM as well as FM);
3. Can not display artist and album info when playing CD (mp3 is ok);
4. Sometimes can not detect CD change and still display old CD's song title;
5. Sometimes can heard laster head seeking sound;
6. ET mode can not work properly (stop playing CD);
7. Got a AC adapter pluged will cause battery charging everytime you start the CD player (should has a high-low threshold). Most of these cons (or called bugs) seems can be fixed by future firmware upgrade. The firmware version is 1.03 when I got the player and I got it updated to 1.10 the next day. The player has a lot of custom features and you can almost control everything (e.g. LCD contrast, back light turn off time, seek speed ....). And seems more featues will be added in future firmware release. I really like this player, so I give it a 5.
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