512M MP3 Player / USB disk / Recorder $62 shipped EDITED! NOW CHEAPER!

[discursives]

I bought one and it wouldn't load past 112 Mb. The headphone port only played out the left speaker, too. I haven't had time to RMA it, but when I do I'l let you know.

 

[suse920]

Originally posted by: vr6
i just shipped mine back today. i fail to understand why formatting it as a harddrive would have irreversable effect. i know i probably shouldn't have did it in the first place, but whenever i tried to load some files on it would complain.

I would drag a folder of mp3s in there, there were 12-15 mp3 files in the folder, in the middle of copying i would get a "parameter error" and aborts the copy. i tried with probably 5-10 different albums and it did the same thing. each folder is 1 complete album.

so i formatted it using disk mgmt. the player no longer recognized that it had 512mb, but shows up as 120mb. i tried reinstalling the firmware that they provide, but no effect. so i had a 120mb player on my hand. However, reformatting it did get ride of ALL errors.

i am getting my money back. or hopefully they refund my money.

good to know

 

[Zoomer]

Hmm perhaps there is just 128 megs of space physically and the fat is being modified to show 500 megs?

Something like this? http://www.theinquirer.net/?article=14597

 

[brucekatz]

Originally posted by: Zoomer
Hmm perhaps there is just 128 megs of space physically and the fat is being modified to show 500 megs?

Something like this? http://www.theinquirer.net/?article=14597

Have you check the manual page 31 here. It seems suggest the memory is divided into two partitions, one is encryted? (Sorry, I have not really read it, I am in a hurry.)
Good luck.

 

[Tiembo]

Originally posted by: Zoomer
Hmm perhaps there is just 128 megs of space physically and the fat is being modified to show 500 megs?

Something like this? http://www.theinquirer.net/?article=14597

Well, I've placed about 400 megs of data on this, and Windows can access all of it, along with being able to play all the mp3 files on it.

 

[Analog]

I filled mine to the brim, all 500+ megs no probs.

 

[SKC]

ditto for filling past the barrier some people have seen; I got this to listen to while skiing/snowboarding. Very light; feels inexpensive but it's functional. Hope it keeps working all right

 

[jman19]

Thinking about picking one of these up... anyone else care to share their experience with this product?

 

[imported_earthslash]

I posted earlier a lot of positive comments about this player. I don't know about the quality, i.e. how it will hold up in the long term though. Recently it stopped playing out of one ear of the headphone, and now it won't play any sound. Something happened to the mp3 player although I don't really know what. I'm rmaing it probably getting a replacement but just wanted everyone to know if you plan on using this, I don't know how much abuse it can take. By the way I didn't get around to testing recording sounds but maybe someone else will.

- Steve

 

[emeraldsky]

Just got mine today. I love it. Aerosmith and Van Halen sound great even with the stock ear buds.
With Sony MDR-V6 headphones the sound is a lot better, but they squish your ears after a while.
This player doesn't seem to have random play, and I haven't been able to quickly skip through the playlist. Edit: The manual doesn't say you can fast forward thru the list.
It sure beats the heck out of a tape player or a CD player.
It sips current from a AAA battery, which is convenient. I might get a couple of rechargeables if I end up going thru too many batteries.
I'm also thinking about upgrading the earbuds with some Sonys.

 

[Savage26]

I got mine yesterday. It definately feels light, but not necesarily cheap, just sort of delicate. It's slightly heavier than the keyless entry remote for my car. I am frustrated by the toggle thingy used to make selections as it moves rather freely and i would prefer to feel more resistance when switching options and looking for songs. But, with a bit of use it becomes much more manageable as you become used to the feel. I have only tried it with the headphones(earbuds) that came with it, while the sound is good and clear it is not the performance i am used to from my pc and my Koss headphones. The treble is solid and clear but the bass lacks slightly, this can be corrected with the built in synthesizer however turning up the bass seems to lead to mild distortion..although in fairness it could well be the earbuds rather than the player. When oppurtunity knocks i will try it with my Koss headphones and report back. Transfer is quick and easy via USB. This thing is small, about the size of your average screwdriver handle. The driver that comes with it installs an update firmware option however i cant seem to get it to work. I dont need it as everything works fine, just drag and drop like a regular drive. Well worth the money.

 

[magnumty]

dont buy from the first link in this thread, cellular showroom, i have ordered this player from them and, paid with pay pal, and cant get any response from them whatsoever, they wont return my emails, I'm getting ready to file a complaint, cause they stole my money.. buyer beware!!!!

 

[rolx24]

magnumty, did you ever hear from this company? I purchased one from them just before you post your dilemma and I am having the same problem. I have sent them three emails to 4 different addresses, yet no response. I think they stole my money too. I paid with paypal also, so I am gonna file a dispute. They do get some good feedback on ebay with a few negative ones.
I am giving them a couple more days to reply to me. Hopefully, they'll come thru.

 

[Savage26]

I bought mine from cellular showroom. While it took seven days for it to arrive it did arrive in a new package exactly as desribed. So if you havent given it seven biz days yet (not the 2-3 days it states on their site) dont panic and give it a few more....you should be fine. They had me worried until it showed up at my door. I don't know if it helps or not but that was my experience.

 

[moonsite]

I stopped hearing from oneside too. I want to RMA this, but seems like I might have to RMA through the manufacturer. Anyone has any luck RMA'ing this? Otherwise it is a good player.

 

[Analog]

Originally posted by: moonsite
I stopped hearing from oneside too. I want to RMA this, but seems like I might have to RMA through the manufacturer. Anyone has any luck RMA'ing this? Otherwise it is a good player.

I think I may have found the answer to this problem. I opened the case of the one I got (which was quite easy). The spot where the headphone jack plugs in is simply a connector that is soldered into a notch in the PC board. The connector is held to the PC board only by the four solder spots on each corner. When I examined mine, it was evident that this is a weak spot, from plugging and unplugging the headphones. I re-soldered mine, and then filled the gap with epoxy so that the connector could not possibly move.

I have a drawing of what I am referring to here:

http://pics.bbzzdd.com/users/yellowfiero/connector.jpg

If anyone else sees this problem, it is a relatively easy fix.

 

[intogamer]

The price went up 75.99. You sould change the title

 

[SKC]

thanks fiero, I have the same problem. Now, to find someone with a soldering iron..

 

[Analog]

Originally posted by: intogamer
The price went up 75.99. You sould change the title

price is back down again.

 

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[denmalley]

Originally posted by: rolx24
magnumty, did you ever hear from this company? I purchased one from them just before you post your dilemma and I am having the same problem. I have sent them three emails to 4 different addresses, yet no response. I think they stole my money too. I paid with paypal also, so I am gonna file a dispute. They do get some good feedback on ebay with a few negative ones.
I am giving them a couple more days to reply to me. Hopefully, they'll come thru.

I'm in the same boat. Ordered from them on the 18th. They sent me an email on the 21st with a usps tracking id. When you track it, it says:

'The U.S. Postal Service was electronically notified by the shipper or shipping partner on March 21, 2005 to expect your package for mailing. Information, if available, is updated every evening. Please check again later."

It still says this today. Basically, this means that the shipper has generated a shipping label (they used stamps.com) and have transmitted to the post office that they have a package ready to ship. But they haven't put it in the mail yet - a week later.

Does anyone else think this qualifies as mail fraud?

 

[denmalley]

Alright, so I guess the USPS tracking system is entirely unreliable, since I received my player today in the mail. Glad I decided to hld off onsending a nastygram.

Not that I get the impression that anyone cares, since no one here at AT has ever answered a single GD one of my posts.

I saw a few posts back that some people were looking for feedback on the recording reliability of this thing. Can't see why no one could just say a few GD words into one to help us out, but I'll report on mine as soon as I get a chance to hook it up...

 

[emeraldsky]

USPS delivery confirmations only get updated after the package is delivered.
Thanks for reminding me that this thing can actually record. I haven't tried it yet.

 

[denmalley]

dumb me -duplicate post