Every Music lovers dream!. Review on iRiver iHP 120

Iriver IHP 120 is a hard disk based MP3 player / jukebox.Similar to Ipod but with better

features and sound quality.Hardcore music fans know this.The player uses a Toshiba's Hard Disk, is the size of a pack of cards and is unbelievably well designed. It comes with a wired remote with display and is something that always grabs peoples attention. Its afterall a wonderful feeling, showing off.

Technical Specs

Storage Space           20 GB

Digital formats supported ASF, MP3, WAV, WMA, Ogg Vorbis

Mfr estimated battery life 16 hour(s)

Remote with LCD display

Built-in FM tuner Radio tuner

Built-in Voice recorder

Can be used as a USB device / regular hard disk

Upgradeable Firmware (free to download from their website)

Weight 159 grams

The review

I bought the player when I was in Jersey mid last year, for 330 $. The price has come down now and there are advanced versions now with Video display and Windows Media Centre etc. Ever since I bought the player, it has become my dream gadget, I can't imagine a day without it.The battery lasts for well over 16 hours, it takes a couple of hours to charge. Being in the software field, I listen to music all the time when I work. This player is like a boon for me and is my best companion.

Firmware

The firmware(interface in simple terms) is easy to use, very easy to learn to use as well.The Firmware is sort of the OS of devices like this, and the good thing about this player is that it is upgradeable, I do it everytime the company comes with an upgrade, I just have to download the upgrade onto my PC, copy it to the IHP 120 and chose Upgrade from the Menus.

Sound Quality

The sound quality is just unbelievable, everybody who tried it, just had one word to say 'AWESOME'. The device has a 5 preset equalizers (Jazz, Rock, Normal, Classic and one more), apart from this it has user defined presets. It also has SRS (Surround Sound System I guess) and couple of other sound technologies. The sound quality from this device is a cut above the rest.

Storage

The device has 20 GB storage space and the best thing about it is, unlike the Apple IPod (which u have to tweak to use as a storage device) it can be used as a USB storage device, connect it via a USB cable and u can just use it as if it were a hard disk. I use it all the time to transfer DVD movies, data files etc between my PC and my friends.

FM Tuner and Voice recorder

These are features you don't get in an Ipod. The tuner is very good and so is the voice

recorder. The recording function is easy to use and the clips can be stored in a variety of formats and bitrates. The only limit to the recording time is the amount of space in the gadget, which is always more than one could use.

Battery life

As I said before, 16 hours or more, couple of hours to charge. Its like a dream. I charge it once in 3 days.I use it like for 4 hrs everyday.

Design and aesthetics

The gadget is beautifully designed, all black and sleek.The wired remote is just awesome, you can do almost everything that u can do with the player in the remote itself.

I have dropped (10 feet into the floor once) it two times (gosh, it sure is a wonderful feeling, dropping a 15000 Rs worth gadget) but nothing happened, it is sturdy and works just fine.

Verdict

This is one hell of a device, it is every music lovers dream. If ever you consider buying a portable Mp3 player, this should be it. No second thoughts on it.

the enigma

For more information check out

https://reviews.cnet.com/iRiver_H120__20GB_/4505-6490_7-30571493-2.html?tag=tab