Guys,
I'm not too good at the picture thing, and couldn't produce anything that hasn't been posted in the DAPREVIEW or IAUDIOPHILE sites anyway.
However, I will give my very immediate impressions:
The build seems to be of excellent quality - as posted by others here who own it. Also, when they say it's smaller than they expected, believe them. It's smaller than the iPods I'm used to seeing.......and what can I say, it's BLACK!! (yeah, I have the E4's on order too).
Sound Quality: I don't have a lot to compare it to, but I can't imagine it really being much better. It sounds to me like I'm listening to the CD (actually better, but that's just the joy of actually listening to this player talking)
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So far, I've listened to some of the following (through Radio Shack Pro 35A's):
Andre Rieu (classical) - Excellent.
FatBoy Slim - Excellent
Green Day - Excellenet
Harry Belafonte - older recording. wanted to hear something older that wasn't digitally recorded. As expected, lacking a bit, but because of the original recording, not the player.
Tragically Hip - Outstanding, but of course, this is one of my favorite albums ("Up to Here").
Controls (UI): As with most new electronics I get, I usually pitch the manual for a couple of days so I can just guess my way through things. So far, the user interface on this is no big mystery. As with anything, there are some things to get used to, but with such a feature intensive device, there's going to be a learning curve. It's not completely intuitive, but it's certainly not befuddling either. The controls are solid and don't seem to be prone to misfires (accidentally pressing). The display is nice, bright and clear. I haven't tried out any video yet, but I will. Besides, I bought this for music. The display will suit that purpose just fine.
Misc: The dongle for USB connection, AC, etc. is small. Will I lose it?....probably not. Will I be careful where I put it....YEP! Upload speed from my notebook PC to the X5 is very fast - compliments of the USB 2.0, I guess. I'm no expert on the software, and again I don't have a lot to complare it to, but it is intuitive and works well. I'll try to review this further when I have more time to play with it.
So far, so good! I will tell you this. I like the no plastic look of this DAP. It looks and feels like a high-quality piece of equipment.....and it should for the price. I will complare it to the iPod only because that seems to be the yardstick that people use. With regard to build-quality, my opinion is that the X5 has it all over iPod. I've only compared it to my co-workers, so not an exhaustive test by any stretch, but those are my first impressions.
I'll certainly comment more as I have more time to play with it.