Pricelist of MP3 Player 2008

great multi use
I love my MP3 player and being able to store pics and documents on it.

The audiophile's media player
After lots of research, I bought this specifically to listen to in bed waiting to fall asleep at night. So, since I'd be hearing my music with my eyes closed in a dark room with nothing else to concentrate on but the sound in my ears, I knew it had to have the best possible sound quality. I was happy to find that it did! I've directly compared the same songs on an iPod, a Creative Zen, and this iAudio, and the quality was in that order - iPod the worst, then Zen, then iAudio. The same goes for the included headphones when comparing those three. Cowon's earbuds definitely sounded the best no matter which device they were plugged into.

The other reason this player rocks is its support for a wide range of formats like FLAC and OGG, as well as all VBR encoded MP3s. Since more and more of my collection is made up of these formats, I didn't want to be annoyed by not being able to play some of my music because the player didn't support it. And I love the ability to simply plug it into my PC and copy files back and forth via USB, like any other flash drive, without the need to install ANY special software (e.g. iTunes, etc.). This kind of crapware just clutters things up and slows down your computer.

The only gripe I'd have is the touch-based controls. I'd prefer real buttons with tactile feedback, but you get used to it I guess... It's just sometimes hard to hit the right control when you aren't looking and just "feeling" around.

Oh, and the screen is only 1" but it looks great! Since I have no interest in watching video or looking at pix, I am glad to have a small screen since it makes the batteries last longer. And these batteries do last a LONG time. (And it keeps the overall size tiny too.)

Also, the radio gets surprisingly good reception.

So I'd definitely recommend it! I wish more people would look into players beyond the ubiquitous iPod line! Just because they're the most popular does NOT make them the best! Don't be a sheep - get what works best and fits YOUR life best - not what everybody else is getting!

COWAN 7
The only problem i have is that the in-line hole is vuneralble to moisture. i had fatal results before from this overlook from the manufacture. With the U2, they had a case that would cover the hole. My solution was to by a cheap pair of head phones and use the connection to insert into the hole while i bike or run. Other than that it skips and freaks out once in a while.
i use a vinyl restorer to rub on the product that helps with the finger prints.

great little player
Cowon iAUDIO 7 Portable 8 GB MP3 Player (Red)
Bought this to listen to at work and I am glad I bought this player. Sound is great as is battery life. I usually listen to it 10 plus hours a day and can go all week before charging. Well worth the money in my opinion unless you like playlists which this player doesn't do well. Not a big deal for me , the sound and battery life were what sold me on this player.

Exactly what I was looking for
This device is exactly what I was looking for. I wanted something that required no software to load and use and had excellent sound quality. I like the flexibility of choosing which format to use (mp3, ogg, flac, wav). This is truly drag and drop for file transfer. I can't comment on the included software, as I have not installed it yet. I am only using this for music, so I also can't comment on the video or bookmarking capabilities. My only problem so far has been that the included ear buds were slightly too large for my small ears. I ended up replacing them. Sound quality is excellent. I can hear all of the detail on the various types of music that I have listened to. The screen is very small, but very sharp and clear. The slide touch controls were simple to learn. The hold button is critical, though, as the buttons are pretty sensitive. overall, I am extremely pleased with my purchase.