[Jerryberry]

Now this is much better. So james please can you PLEASE update to this design

 

[Circe]

 
Man, I cannot believe the criticism over the style. What exactly is it that offends so many people?

I own a FiiO X3, for me it's a bit ugly but I bought it because the sound quality is the most important matter for me. But ... if I spend hundreds of Euros, I want a player pleasant to look at. If X5 sounds very good I will buy it but will be always ugly.
FiiO makes good products and great value for money,but would be much appreciated a bit "special care" for design too.
I don't ask a masterpiece,obviously.If X5 sounds good I will buy it and I'll be happy,don't will look it frequently.

 

[Mython]

  Well another method is, keep on using the physical buttons, which is by far the best way of navigating for me. Accidental touches always drive me crazy. I even hate my phone (Galaxy S2) time to time but they don't make good phones with buttons anymore so yeah I gotta live with it but daps with buttons still alive

 
 
Funny thing is, I also use a GS2. Isn't it incredible that Samsung, the global leader in smartphones, has spent hundreds of millions (perhaps even billions, I'm not sure) and they still put the power button directly opposite the volume button on the GS2 - duh!!!   ...And then there's the microphone which has a stupidly tiny hole placed at the bottom of the phone, precisely where I often inadvertently put my little finger, at which moment the other caller ceases to be able to hear me! (same thing happens to my mate Steve, with his GS2).
 
I face-palmed when Cowon put the J3 volume control directly opposite the volume control (that has been an issue for me continually ever since I bought the J3). When the SG2 did the same thing, I just thought to myself "What is it with Korean ergonomists?!!"

 
But see if you can guess where iBasso put the DX100 volume control and power button...   yep... you guessed it.... directly opposite one another!! So the Chinese don't always think-through the ergonomics of their devices, either!
 

 
 
 
James, if you're listening, please don't make the same stupid mistake of putting the X7 power and volume buttons opposite each other!
 
(by the way, you are going to have physical buttons, in addition to the touchscreen, right...?  Taking the shortcut of having only touchscreen control buttons would be a huge mistake and impact sales substantially... The DX100 suffers terribly for missing proper hardware control buttons)
 
 
.

 

[ApplesRevenge]

From what I've read over previous pages I've gathered that a lot of people aren't particularly fond of the design.
I like the design and the fact it is similar to a stereo speaker and regardless that it looks like a gas stove. 

I would expect the firmware to be updated constantly and possibly propose a new user interface for those who aren't happy with the current.
Either way: Take my money James!

 

[TekeRugburn]

  USB Audio and USB DAC are useless features?
 

 
yeah thats my opinion that usb dac and usb otg are useless.  Good recognition there bud.
 
Simple and working....but needs otg and usb dac.  Real simple music player there.  lol
 
And as the for the power button opposite the volume button; how is that even a bad design?  cuz YOU happen to press it on accident.  Most people would just adjust and NOT press the button. 

 

[Cecala]

  From what I've read over previous pages I've gathered that a lot of people aren't particularly fond of the design.
I like the design and the fact it is similar to a stereo speaker and regardless that it looks like a gas stove. 

I would expect the firmware to be updated constantly and possibly propose a new user interface for those who aren't happy with the current.
Either way: Take my money James!

Good description there, personally I find it dog ugly, lazy engineering/design at it's best, play it safe and copy Apple. Those buttons look really cheap and loose.
A comparison with the Sony will I'm sure cause 99% of people to simply drop the fiio to the ground and grab the Sony.
It's a real pity because most of their other gear looks good and well made.

 

[Mython]

   
And as the for the power button opposite the volume button; how is that even a bad design?  cuz YOU happen to press it on accident.  Most people would just adjust and NOT press the button. 

 
 
Take is easy, mate. No need to vent at me.
 
My remarks about the power button and volume button were a very brief tangent, and not directed towards anything by Fiio, other than to request of James to ensure no similar errors creep into the design of the X7.
 
 
But just to briefly answer your question, it is problematic when manufacturers place the power button directly on the opposite side of the chassis to the volume button, because when one tries to press either of those buttons (especially if it's in a pocket), the human hand has to exert equal pressure in the opposite direction, by squeezing the button against the device. That often results in the hand squeezing the power button and the volume button at the same time. Many people are like me, in that they control their devices, one-handed, without removing them from their pocket each time. This invariably does not involve a full hand grip, but rather just a finger and one of those opposable thumbs us primates have been gifted with, by evolution.
 
It's not rocket science, and there's no excuse for it. The designers who made this schoolboy error on the J3, SG2, and DX100 should all be ashamed of themselves; they are employed to design things without such ergonomic shortcomings, and this particular shortcoming is obvious within seconds of holding a device. The only thing I will say about the issue in relation to the DX100 is that at least the thickness of the chassis makes it a bit more possible to grip it in such a way as to try to avoid double-pressing of the buttons like that, but there's still no excuse for the poor button placement, really.
 
 
The new Sony NW-ZX1 is a master class in careful ergonomic design. The control buttons are even sized differently, so that you can feel which ones are which, without having to look at the device &/or remove it from your pocket.
 
 
.

 

[Kendoji]

I like the design.  It has a quirky kind of 'retro-futuristic' look, like something that was meant to be cutting-edge in 1982.  

 

[Cecala]

  I like the design.  It has a quirky kind of 'retro-futuristic' look, like something that was meant to be cutting-edge in 1982.  

I agree with you there, this would have looked great in 1982, not now.

 

[Mython]

  I like the design.  It has a quirky kind of 'retro-futuristic' look, like something that was meant to be cutting-edge in 1982.  

 
Do you mean like this?
 

 

[Mimouille]

I like the design.  It has a quirky kind of 'retro-futuristic' look, like something that was meant to be cutting-edge in 1982.  

The 901 looks 1982...the X5 looks just fine and quite functional IMO. Not as good looking as the ZX1, but still ok.

 

[AmberOzL]

   
 
Funny thing is, I also use a GS2. Isn't it incredible that Samsung, the global leader in smartphones, has spent hundreds of millions (perhaps even billions, I'm not sure) and they still put the power button directly opposite the volume button on the GS2 - duh!!!   ...And then there's the microphone which has a stupidly tiny hole placed at the bottom of the phone, precisely where I often inadvertently put my little finger, at which moment the other caller ceases to be able to hear me! (same thing happens to my mate Steve, with his GS2).
 
I face-palmed when Cowon put the J3 volume control directly opposite the volume control (that has been an issue for me continually ever since I bought the J3). When the SG2 did the same thing, I just thought to myself "What is it with Korean ergonomists?!!"

 
But see if you can guess where iBasso put the DX100 volume control and power button...   yep... you guessed it.... directly opposite one another!! So the Chinese don't always think-through the ergonomics of their devices, either!
 
 
 
James, if you're listening, please don't make the same stupid mistake of putting the X7 power and volume buttons opposite each other!
 
(by the way, you are going to have physical buttons, in addition to the touchscreen, right...?  Taking the shortcut of having only touchscreen control buttons would be a huge mistake and impact sales substantially... The DX100 suffers terribly for missing proper hardware control buttons)
 
 
.

lol, I hear you mate, I hate that volume rocker - power button issue. Microphone didn't bother me but I can guess it depends on user, some people might have that problem depending on the holding style.
 
Anyway, no worries, James and Joe sure read these things and they won't make that mistake

 

[good sound]

The ZX1 is definitely a looker but the storage limitation (128GB) is absolutely a non-starter for me. The price is not far behind either. What is it with companies like Sony and Apple who absolutely refuse to add external storage capabilities to their products? I don't understand the logic, or more correctly the lack of logic of these decisions. Add external storage via SD card slot and drop the price of the ZX1 by about two hundred bucks and i am all over it. Sorry for the off topic post.

 

[Mython]

  The ZX1 is definitely a looker but the storage limitation (128GB) is absolutely a non-starter for me. The price is not far behind either. What is it with companies like Sony and Apple who absolutely refuse to add external storage capabilities to their products? I don't understand the logic, or more correctly the lack of logic of these decisions. Add external storage via SD card slot and drop the price of the ZX1 by about two hundred bucks and i am all over it. Sorry for the off topic post.

I totally agree: http://www.head-fi.org/t/680853/sony-nwz-zx1-35th-walkman-anniversary-model/90#post_9800677
 
and I'd like to see Sony at least double the power output, too.
 
 
But yeah, best not to discuss that in the X5 thread (and a word of warning:  you'll need to be thick-skinned if you choose to discuss it in the NW-ZX1 thread)
 
 
 
I take heart from the fact that the audiophile DAP market is starting to heat up, at long last, so the DAPs are going to keep evolving into better and better products, and there will be more choice for all of us.
 
 
.

 

[razorblader]

  The ZX1 is definitely a looker but the storage limitation (128GB) is absolutely a non-starter for me. The price is not far behind either. What is it with companies like Sony and Apple who absolutely refuse to add external storage capabilities to their products? I don't understand the logic, or more correctly the lack of logic of these decisions. Add external storage via SD card slot and drop the price of the ZX1 by about two hundred bucks and i am all over it. Sorry for the off topic post.

For these companies there's good logic in that, making sure that you will upgrade in the very forseeable future because of storage constraints and in the case of Iphone, Ipod touch and Ipad limited RAM to make sure that your otherwise nicely spec'd device will have increasingly worse multi-tasking performance with every subsequent FW iteration so you'll get the 'upgrade-itch' soon enough.
 
They want to make sure that devices like the older HDD-players that could be upgraded, modded, rockboxed and keeping users happy for many years can't happen again!

 
 
In light of that the X5 with its two micro-sd slots looks actually pretty good, me thinks.