Cowon F2-4096BL 4GB Multimedia Player (Black)

by Cowon

Product Details

• Product Dimensions: 2.9 x 1.4 x 0.7 inches ; 1.4 ounces
• Shipping Weight: 1 pounds
• Shipping: This item is also available for shipping to select countries outside the U.S.
• ASIN: B000ODXD8E
• Item model number: F2-4096BL
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (7 customer reviews)

Product Description

Portable MP3 Player with recorder and FM radio

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Cowon F2, February 11, 2008

By 

Paula (California, USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Cowon F2-4096BL 4GB Multimedia Player (Black) (Electronics)

This player provides very good sound and convenience. For some reason, Amazon doesn't include the carrying case and A/C charger, which you will receive by ordering from Cowon's store (Jetmall).

Positives: The sound quality is great. The audio enhancement features work very well, and give the sound richness and fullness. Unlike Ipod and almost all other mp3 players, there's no need to install any software on your computer in order to transfer songs to the F2. The F2 acts as a USB drive, so you can copy files to it just like to any other disk drive. Battery life is also very good. The F2 can be charged either by connecting it to the computer or by plugging it into the A/C charger.

Negatives: The only real problem I've encountered with the F2 is that at medium to high volume the sound becomes totally distorted unless you set the bass very low. Even though that's the only problem I have with the F2, sound quality is one of the main factors I consider which is the reason for only giving the F2 four stars. I listen to music, but if you plan on listening to books on tape you probably wouldn't need much bass. I would rather give up some battery life in order for the battery to supply more power for bass.

The buttons are a little small. If the player is inside the carrying case, you have to press the buttons through the clear plastic case. That's fine unless you need to be able to operate the device by feel without looking at it. I strap the F2 to my waist and listen to it when I run and I've gotten used to operating it.

I don't use the F2 to watch videos so I can't comment on that feature, except to say that before you can watch a video it must be converted to the F2's format using supplied software. The screen isn't large enough to be useful for videos in my opinion.

Update: Recently I purchased a pair of V-moda Vibe earbuds to replace the high-end Sonys I was using. The V-modas are excellent and solved the bass problem mentioned above.

6 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Definitely an iPOD killer, July 8, 2007

By 

M (Somewhere in U.S.A.) - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Cowon F2-4096BL 4GB Multimedia Player (Black) (Electronics)

This a very nice mp3 player. I have the 4gb one. This definitey tops iPOD for a number of reasons which most consumers dont really care much of but I do. Here are my favorites; The sound processor on this player is much brighter and more powerful than ipod. 60mw of power (because I love listening at high levels which I usually set the max 25 out of the 40 volume levels, it's pretty damn loud) and it has a max. of 95db vs. 90db for ipod. The reason why is I use Shure's e2 sound isolated earphones. If you remove all the ambient background sounds ie, cars driving by, or fire trucks testing their sirens or just people bitching and complainging you just hear your music. And the louder you go the more lively it sounds. Drag and drop files may be considered an old thing but who wants to use a software just to transfer files. The problem I really dont like about ipods is that your music has to be perfectly tagged in order to view it right in ipod. In addition, you have to browse it in a sequence. This one actually views your music exactly like Windows Explorer. Simple and right to the point. Your music can be read by the file name or by it's tagged which is really nice. Another cool thing about it is that it uses the universal usb mini-b cable. The really nice thing is it charges as well. The battery life is 5 stars. The rated is 20 hours I get alot more. When it's tested by consumer companies like cnet, they use standard levels of use. I use the sound processors alot which equals more battery power. So trust me the battery lasts really long. Since it's only 4gb I love to change my music every often. This way it keeps the music fresh and doesnt get boring. Most people who own an ipod keep their music their permanantley like it's their sanctuary. Okay, most people dont lose their ipods but because they have moving parts, care is top of the list ie. dropping it for example. I can drop mine or throw it at someone who really piss me off and it's totally fine. I've noticed most players today are favored in flash based. Quick, simple and not fragile. The player is very very stable. It doesnt crash and the startup is very fast. Well I said enough. If you buy this through Amazon, you'll most likely buy it directly from Cowon's Jet Audio store. Great place to buy it and the customer service is really quick and responsive. Contact by email or live chat! Dig that. I hope Cowon keeps these features in the future but with much larger size memory and adding features that other mp3 players dont have :)

1.0 out of 5 stars Terrible sound, February 1, 2009

By 

J. J. Garcia (houston, tx usa) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Cowon F2-4096BL 4GB Multimedia Player (Black) (Electronics)

I have cheaper and better sounding mp3 players. No matter how I set the sound enhancements or which earphones I used, it still gave mediocre sound with average bass. Same earphones with other players gave better results. This unit is a nice size but has a terrible main menu system and small painful rock hard buttons. Best way to push buttons is using your fingernails. It is pretty loud but distorts at higher volume making it useless to turn up. The video function yields 12fps which is not useful. Album art during playback is a nice touch although heavily pixelated. I got this cause so many people say cowon sounds so good. Wll I beg to differ. The only good thing was battery life and memory size. So the treble is okay. The midrange is so so. Bass sucks!