RCA Lyra RD2315 512 MB Personal Digital Audio Player with Voice, Line-in and FM Recording

by RCA

Product Details

• Product Dimensions: 3.5 x 7.2 x 9 inches ; 3 pounds
• Shipping Weight: 1 pounds
• Shipping: This item is also available for shipping to select countries outside the U.S.
• ASIN: B00092M1SS
• Item model number: RD2315
• Batteries: 1 AAA batteries required. (included)
• Average Customer Review: 3.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (8 customer reviews)

Product Description

Amazon.com Product Description

Nicely lightweight and easily pocketable, the RCA Lyra RD2315 flash memory digital audio player goes with you wherever you roam and offers 512 MB of storage. And unlike many of today's palm-sized players, it features large, easily accessible and intuitive controls as well as a good-sized, dual orientation LCD (which also lets you choose between red, blue, or purple backlighting). It comes with both a neck strap and a belt clip for easy transport.

It has 512 MB of flash memory storage and playback capability for both MP3 and WMA, and it's also compatible with DRM-protected WMA files from online stores or subscription services (including Audible.com). The 512 MB memory will store approximately 8 hours of CD-quality MP3 tracks (encoded at 128 kbps) or 16 hours of WMA tracks (at 64 kbps). You can also expand the Lyra's memory with optional Secure Digital (SD) and MMC memory cards.

In addition to digital audio playback, the Lyra also has a built-in FM tuner (with 20 presets) featuring an FM record function, enabling you to capture your favorite songs and programs to MP3. It also has a voice recorder for short notes to yourself and line-in jack for direct recording capability from external sources such as a cassette deck or CD player. It connects to PCs via an ultra-fast USB 2.0 connection, and will easily connect with both Windows and Mac-based computers. It's powered by a single AAA battery, which provides up to 20 hours of continuous usage.

What's in the Box
512 MB RCA RD2315 digital audio player, USB cable, line-in cable, belt clip, neck strap, clip earphones, AAA battery, installation CD-ROM, printed operating instructions

Product Description

RCA LYRA 512MB Personal Digital Player, Model includes; Digital FM Tuner with FM Record. Full Dot Matrix backlit display for navigating through this product's different features and for navigating through your music selections. Dual orientaion LCD screen. Multiple recording option; Voice Record, Line in Record and FM Record

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

23 of 24 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Good basic player, September 29, 2005

By 

K. Braat (Portage, MI United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: RCA Lyra RD2315 512 MB Personal Digital Audio Player with Voice, Line-in and FM Recording (Electronics)

I decided to replace my iRiver 190T after a 3rd party cable adapter malfunctioned and fused the pin connection to the USB cable together. I wanted USB 2.0 for the faster connection and a larger capacity, but still desired standard user replaceable batteries on a flash based player so I picked this up on sale.

I may still search for a used iRiver 190T after playing with the Lyra RD2315. I like the ruggedness of the 190T a bit more than the RCA Lyra RD2315.

Pros:
User replaceable AAA batteries
Expandable SD slot up to 512 MB
Decent sound for biking and general yard work
Screen is able to be positioned at 0 or 180 degrees for easy reading from belt clip/lanyard
Line in recording and voice for short memos
3 different color backlights for user preference
Decent battery life

Cons:
Headphones are worthless. Placing them in ear prevents clips from holding them in place
Slow reaction on interface compared to older iRiver player "Please Wait..."
Belt clip is going to break after minimal usage (like ink pen cap clips do)
Doesn't seem like USB 2.0 speed, just normal USB 1.1
No armband or case available

I used firmware 3.11 for my testing after upgrading from version 1.11.

12 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Good MP3 Player for around $100, December 26, 2005

By 

Jeff Pruett "Jeff Pruett" (Denver, CO) - See all my reviews

This review is from: RCA Lyra RD2315 512 MB Personal Digital Audio Player with Voice, Line-in and FM Recording (Electronics)

Not ready to invest a lot of cash into an MP3 player yet, so I wanted something expandable and cheap. I am pretty happy with my purchase of the RD2315 Lyra. This one has 512megs embedded memory and is expandable via an SD Card slot (up to another 512 megs for 1 gig total).

This is my first MP3 player, so I am not sure how the sound compares, but it sounds good to me. No equalizer mode...but it does come with 5 presets (Rock, Jazz, Pop, Bass, ect...) Transferring files from the PC is easy via a mini-USB Cord (included). It supported USB 2.0 but 1.1 mode is plenty fast. No special software needed (I'm using Windows XP...it auto-detected the Lyra as soon as I connected it)...just drag and drop files and folders once it is connected. The latest firmware update allows up to 50 folders and 8 folder levels. It supports WMA (including DRM) and Mp3 formats up to 320kps.

The display has 3 backlight colors (red, blue and purple) and you can adjust the contrast on it. It has a cool flip mode which flips the screen 180 degrees so you can hold it in either direction. Fliped mode was easier for me to use (pressing the joystick downward is awkward in default mode). Flip mode looks just like the image of the Player on this web page, but the round part would be at the top instead of the bottom.

LCD response time is what you would expect for a passive matrix display. Processing speed could be better ("please wait" messages, ect..). The tiny joystick control could be better, but isnt awful. The 4 buttons surrounding it could also be better, but are useable. It feels sturdy considering it's weight (just under 1 and a half ounces). Controls arnt real intuitive...you will need to either read the manual or experiment a lot to figure out how to do stuff like jump to different radio presets.

Although I havnt tested it yet, it comes with a line-in jack (cable included) that lets you rip CDs directly to it's memory...no PC required. You connect it directly to a CD player and just start ripping.

It comes with an FM tuner that allows for 10 station pre-sets. Reception seemed pretty good to me. A built in recorder allows you to record either voice or radio directly to MP3 (limited only by the amount of memory you have). The one I bought also came with an FM transmitter, which allows you to hook it up to your car stereo (plugs into your cigarette lighter...transmits your music over a very short range radio channel, which you have your car stereo tuned to...so your MP3 player plays over your car radio).

It runs on a single AAA battery (included). Docs say it will run 50 hours or so. Comes with a neck strap and a replacement cover for the battery that doubles as a belt clip. The included earbuds are ok, but you will probably want to replace them with better ones. The firmware can and has been upgraded...the version as of this writing is 3.11. Firmware updates are handled from RCA's website (their site is actually pretty easy to use). You will need to download and install a small utility.

I paid just under $130 for the 512 meg version as of Dec 2005, after tax (there is a 256 meg version as well, the RD2312). Overall I am happy with it...I looked at a couple dozen other MP3 players the same price and cheaper and didnt see any I would rather have purchased. It comes with a free copy of Music Match Jukebox (which I dont use, because I dont like it). It would have been nice to have had a manual included, but a PDF version is available free on RCA's website. If you're looking for a good medium/low-end MP3 player, this one seems pretty good to me.

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars A below-average mp3. No resume function., April 30, 2006

By 

Bully (Allentown, PA United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: RCA Lyra RD2315 512 MB Personal Digital Audio Player with Voice, Line-in and FM Recording (Electronics)

I got this mp3 from Target, mainly because of the 1). good review in amazon.com; 2). good price; 3). SD expansion ability.
However, after I tried it for 1 hour, I got disappointed.

Altough RCA tried to make his customers happy, this machine is poorly designed beacuse of 2 important thing 1). there is no resume function, which means if I listen to a 1 hour file and stopped at 20 minutes place, the machine can not remember the point I stopped and will play from the begining next time I turned on the machine. 2). when you put a SD card into the expansion slot, part of the card extrude out the machine, and not completely protected.

Nowadays, mp3 player is not only for songs and music. the designer of a mp3 player must consider the possibility that a customer will possibly use it for long audio book tracks.

These 2 shortcoings are enough to kill all the other endeavours RCA tried to upgrade their mp3.