D555
500+ Head-Fier
- Joined
- Aug 3, 2003
- Posts
- 817
- Likes
- 13
Hello,
I have the U10 1GB with MTP 1.23 firmware (outside of USA UMS 1.61 is available).
Overall -- This is one fine product.
Sound: Good sound, strong output. Some problem noted with bass distortion with the 50Hz control but apparently that is worked out with the 1.60/1.61 version of the firmware (not available yet for USA MTP players -- two weeks maybe according to iRiver CSR). SRS doesn't have the distortion but the overall effect seems to affect the vocals too much. The SRS 2.0 (again available with 1.60/1.61) has gotten some rave reviews and, reportedly, corrects some issues heard with the vocals. The U10 player supports MP3, OGG, WMA. Each has its fans but both MP3 and OGG sound fine at 250k-ish using FreeRip (I set the volume at 200% to match the FM volume) and CDEX. WMA using WMP10 seemed to have too many artifacts at 192K. The player is geared to integrate with MP3 - playlists etc. OGG is supported but is relegated to a "Browse" function -- simple playing, nothing more. Used PX100 (white) and Sony EX70 for listening. No hiss problems noted. The 50Hz bass aside, the sound is musical and very enjoyable.
Video: Let's get this out of the way: 15fps. If you can live with 15fps then the U10 does not disappoint. Using the third party iriverter (version 0.15) program produced .avi files that looked amazing. I used the max settings for video and audio (382k vid 128k sound) 200k for video produced unacceptable "blockiness" way too often. 382k was quite stable and watchable (The volume on the iriverter was set at +23.0db to match the FM volume). The color is outstanding. The sharpness and detail are quite amazing for such a small screen. The LCD viewing angles are pretty good. Some drop off of color staturation at extreme angles but not bad at all. NO BAD PIXELS! The accompanying sound is good fidelity, stereo. I have noted some picture/sound sync issues with one transfer (it may be related to the fast forward/reverse control and the scan speed). Haven't tried enough transfers to tell if this is an isolated incident. At 382k and 128k sound count on using 100MB for each 25 minutes of video. For 1GB I can load two 100 minute movies and have about 160MB left for music. At 15fps there is some jerkiness to the picture during pans and fast motion and the movement can look a bit unnatural. At other times it looks quite nice. Overall I'm impressed and the end result is very satisfying in my view.
Transfers: Pretty quick. I can load a 400MB movie in about 5 minutes. The connection is USB 2.0 with a proprietary connector at the player end (to fit the optional cradle, no doubt).
Radio: Excellent for this small size. Local stations received cleanly in nice stereo sound. Sensitivity quite good and the overloading and images are minimal. Changing the stations via the preset is lightning fast.
Usage: I love it, clever design, minimum of buttons, the clear cover over the LCD while providing control also protect the LCD. It can show fingerprints but the protection tradeoff is worth it to me. There is so much this player can do there can be a lot of navigation. It's easy to do and the onscreen displays help in that. The interface is quite intuitive to me. The player can be configured to display a different background color for each day of the week -- a nice touch.
Games: Tried a few. These are Flash games and simple. "Launch Fighters" --a "Space Invaders", "Galega" type game -- is emerging as a favorite of mine.
Pictures: Haven't really explored this yet though the player comes with samples that look nice.
Accessories: WMP10 update and a picture CD. OK earbuds. Nice neoprene case.
I really, really like this iRiver U10 player. Hopefully iRiver releases the 1.61 firmware for the USA MTP players soon and it fixes the sound issue. The U10 should be a long-term portable player solution. I hear a 2GB version is coming out. If this concept could be mated with a 8GB micro drive -- whew!
Paul
I have the U10 1GB with MTP 1.23 firmware (outside of USA UMS 1.61 is available).
Overall -- This is one fine product.
Sound: Good sound, strong output. Some problem noted with bass distortion with the 50Hz control but apparently that is worked out with the 1.60/1.61 version of the firmware (not available yet for USA MTP players -- two weeks maybe according to iRiver CSR). SRS doesn't have the distortion but the overall effect seems to affect the vocals too much. The SRS 2.0 (again available with 1.60/1.61) has gotten some rave reviews and, reportedly, corrects some issues heard with the vocals. The U10 player supports MP3, OGG, WMA. Each has its fans but both MP3 and OGG sound fine at 250k-ish using FreeRip (I set the volume at 200% to match the FM volume) and CDEX. WMA using WMP10 seemed to have too many artifacts at 192K. The player is geared to integrate with MP3 - playlists etc. OGG is supported but is relegated to a "Browse" function -- simple playing, nothing more. Used PX100 (white) and Sony EX70 for listening. No hiss problems noted. The 50Hz bass aside, the sound is musical and very enjoyable.
Video: Let's get this out of the way: 15fps. If you can live with 15fps then the U10 does not disappoint. Using the third party iriverter (version 0.15) program produced .avi files that looked amazing. I used the max settings for video and audio (382k vid 128k sound) 200k for video produced unacceptable "blockiness" way too often. 382k was quite stable and watchable (The volume on the iriverter was set at +23.0db to match the FM volume). The color is outstanding. The sharpness and detail are quite amazing for such a small screen. The LCD viewing angles are pretty good. Some drop off of color staturation at extreme angles but not bad at all. NO BAD PIXELS! The accompanying sound is good fidelity, stereo. I have noted some picture/sound sync issues with one transfer (it may be related to the fast forward/reverse control and the scan speed). Haven't tried enough transfers to tell if this is an isolated incident. At 382k and 128k sound count on using 100MB for each 25 minutes of video. For 1GB I can load two 100 minute movies and have about 160MB left for music. At 15fps there is some jerkiness to the picture during pans and fast motion and the movement can look a bit unnatural. At other times it looks quite nice. Overall I'm impressed and the end result is very satisfying in my view.
Transfers: Pretty quick. I can load a 400MB movie in about 5 minutes. The connection is USB 2.0 with a proprietary connector at the player end (to fit the optional cradle, no doubt).
Radio: Excellent for this small size. Local stations received cleanly in nice stereo sound. Sensitivity quite good and the overloading and images are minimal. Changing the stations via the preset is lightning fast.
Usage: I love it, clever design, minimum of buttons, the clear cover over the LCD while providing control also protect the LCD. It can show fingerprints but the protection tradeoff is worth it to me. There is so much this player can do there can be a lot of navigation. It's easy to do and the onscreen displays help in that. The interface is quite intuitive to me. The player can be configured to display a different background color for each day of the week -- a nice touch.
Games: Tried a few. These are Flash games and simple. "Launch Fighters" --a "Space Invaders", "Galega" type game -- is emerging as a favorite of mine.
Pictures: Haven't really explored this yet though the player comes with samples that look nice.
Accessories: WMP10 update and a picture CD. OK earbuds. Nice neoprene case.
I really, really like this iRiver U10 player. Hopefully iRiver releases the 1.61 firmware for the USA MTP players soon and it fixes the sound issue. The U10 should be a long-term portable player solution. I hear a 2GB version is coming out. If this concept could be mated with a 8GB micro drive -- whew!
Paul
