PoGo! RipDrive 20 GB MP3 Player

by PoGo!

Product Details

Product Manual [740kb PDF]

• Item Weight: 9.9 ounces
• Shipping Weight: 3 pounds
• Shipping: This item is also available for shipping to select countries outside the U.S.
• ASIN: B0000DK4LF
• Item model number: RipDrive 20GB
• Batteries: 1 Lithium ion batteries required. (included)
• Average Customer Review: 3.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (10 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #276,313 in Electronics (See Top 100 in Electronics)
• Discontinued by manufacturer: Yes

Product Description

RipDrive 20GB features a MP3/WMA player, MP3 recorder and digital FM radio. Stores over 8,000 songs. RipDrive technology allows direct recording without being hooked up to a computer by using direct recording cable (supplied) from any audio analog output headphone jack. Built-in microphone allows direct voice recording. Includes FM Radio with digital tuner. Fast downloading using USB 2.0 (compatible with USB 1.1). Can also be used as an external hard drive to back up files and images. Drag and drop files from Windows or MAC computers. 7-line display with high quality EL backlight shows ID3 tag and supports 7 languages (English/Spanish/Portuguese/French/German/Chinese/Japanese). Search by alphabet (song) or folder (album) names. Bookmark feature allows saving favorite songs in special folders. EQ system offers 5 modes (pop/jazz/rock/classical/flat). Self charging Li-Ion battery and AC adapter included. Runs up to 12 hours on 3.7 V , 1800mAh battery. PC Interface: Windows 98/SE/ME/2000/XP, MAC OS 8.6 or later.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

26 of 29 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Best deal for the money, April 14, 2004

By A Customer

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: PoGo! RipDrive 20 GB MP3 Player (Electronics)

I purchased my Ripdrive from J&R Music World through Amazon at a 10% saving. Why is J&R gone now?

Well, let's review.

This is an outstanding player and certainly beats any memory card player. I downloaded ~ 7GB of music (2145 songs) to it in less than 10 minutes, so you won't have to wait an hour or more to load the player (USB 2.0). It is extremely simple to operate and has only ten buttons. For those seriously interested, I recommend downloading the manual and reading it. It has superb playback and volume. I'm currently trying to run the battery down, but it's been playing 8 hrs. and 17 minutes and the battery indicator still shows full (> 70%). However, it took 6 hours to charge from 40%. I purchased a backup battery just in case from Pogo Products for $20.00. If you play it in random (shuffle) mode, it remembers the order it played the songs in, and you can backtrack. Also, if you turn off id3 tags, it will show the previous and next songs even in random mode. The time display can run in either elapsed or remaining mode. The picture of the player is still wrong unless you get to it from ThinkGeek. (See the manual or preferably pogoproducts.com.)

It has a number of repeat options: All, directory, subdirectory, and single. It also has an A-B repeat feature. Transferring files couldn't be easier. Simply drag and drop or select and then move or copy. I simply mirrored my main music directory on it. You can browse through the files or search for a particular file. You can create playlists on the fly. Updating the firmware (mine came with the latest version) is also extremely simple. Download the latest version from pogoproducts.com and copy it into the FIRMWARE folder.

The display is fairly large (160X105) and shows just about everything that you could want. It comes with a belt clip case that allows complete access to all buttons and ports, so you never have to remove it from the case. All cables are provided, along with earbud earphones which I didn't bother to open. I also purchased an FM transmitter (Belkin - seems quite satisfactory) which plugs into the earphone jack so that I can play my music collection through car radios. It has the capability to record voice on its built-in mike or any audio source on the line in jack which can be analog or digital. It can also record from its FM receiver which allows for 20 presets. This player has a number of other features which I won't go into here but which will no doubt pleasantly surprise you. The warranty is for one year, unlike Zen. I did considerable shopping on Amazon and also physically at Best Buy, CompUSA and Circuit City. Whatever you get, be sure and check out the warranty. An Archos that I was considering had one year parts, 90 days labor, which means that after 90 days you'd probably do better to can it.

Usually when I purchase a piece of gear like this, I find a number of points that I disagree on with the designer(s), but I have to say that I really can't find any nits to pick with this player. The price is low, it has more than ordinary functionality, and the performance is great. 5 STARS! Apple eat your heart out. Addendum: I was interrupted while writing this review, and the battery now has 12 hrs. 41 min.and still shows 2 bars (40-70%).

25 of 28 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars This is a great Product, February 13, 2004

By A Customer

This review is from: PoGo! RipDrive 20 GB MP3 Player (Electronics)

Unlike some I have had the product for more then 5 minutes and it is USB 2.0 compatible and you can transfer a song a second!!!!

It is funny how people who write negative reviews always promote another product.

Anyways here is an unbiased one. Do I have an IPOD or ZEN or another product???

NO

But I do have the RipDrive and the picture AMAZON has is incorrect.

What can I say about it,I love it.

The unit has one great feature no OTHER PLAYER has. The ability to upgrade your hard drive in the future up to 137GB.

I added an 80GB HDD and it works great!!!

1.You can set your own EQ levels, make on the fly playlists and store anytype of digital files in it.

That is just for starters.

I love the fact you need no drivers to use the product and the quality of playback is awesome (especially setting your own EQ levels)

The unit also can record (it is built in) from any audio source.

It has a line in and built in internal mic. I was able to record meetings/conversations and upload those fast using my USB 2.0 system.

It also has an FM tuner and that gets good reception in my area.

The unit weighs 10oz and comes with a cool case that you can attach to your belt or side (much like a cell phone)

It is not heavy at all and feels and looks very durable.

The user manual instructions are easy to follow and written in good english.

So far I love the unit and use it to transfer all my data files.

Look around and you will see a 1GB SD card costs 300+ dollars.

This is an all in one backup solution and portable MP3 player and recorder with an FM tuner built in.

I love it. GOOD JOB POGO!

13 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Fits my needs and wants very well, February 12, 2004

By 

Michael McCuiston "Codaflex" (The Colony, TX USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: PoGo! RipDrive 20 GB MP3 Player (Electronics)

First of all, the picture at the top of this page is not the product (as of 2/12/04). If you click on the link to see the manual, you will see what it looks like.
My overall impression of this product is very good. Getting around with the controls is pretty easy. It has a good display that shows a lot of info. I assume that the battery life is predicated on only listening as the hard drive only spins occasionally then. I have run it for 6 hours max but I have always loaded more songs which makes the drive spin continously.
The FM radio works well, storing stations is easy. Getting around in the menus is also easy. I have used the built-in mic to record my voice and while it was noisy, it was listenable. I have not yet used the line in to encode anything.
It works with USB 1.1. I am upgrading to USB 2 soon as 1.1 is slow. After connecting the unit to my Windows XP machine, it shows up as a drive. So you can drag and drop items easily. You can create folders and put any kind of file you want to transport to another PC. It has several folders built-in. The Text one allows you to put a text file in it and read it on the display. There is a folder to put updates to the unit into which I have used with no problem. There is also a folder for playlists that I have not used yet.
I have noticed that when there are new files on the unit when you power it on, it takes longer to be ready, but if there are not, it takes about 15 seconds or less before you can play music. The volume is the loudest of all the portables I have encountered. It has preset EQ settings or you customize them and that works pretty good.
All in all, if you want lots of capacity (20GB) and you don't mind it being larger and heavier than flash players, I think that it is a good value for the price. I've had it for about a month and am very satisfied with it.