Customer Reviews

Rio 800 64MB Digital Audio Player

5 star:		(7)
4 star:		(19)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(6)
1 star:		(33)

 

 

Wow! That was all I could say when I first heard about the rio 800! It had all the features of the nomad 2 except for the fm radio feature, which wasn't such a big thing anyway. This has plenty of features. However, I only gave it 4 stars because it wasn't as great as I expected. Yes, it does have a recharger. On a 2.5 hour charge, it can last 11 hours without another recharge. I haven't confirmed this yet, but it sounds pretty decent. One warning about the rechargable battery - the first time charge program needs to be better implemented. It says "It will recharge for x more minutes." It starts at 300. But the first time I tried it, it stopped around 190 and said it was done. Then the battery ran out after 30 minutes. So I tried again. This time it was successful, except after about 150 it stopped displaying how much was left. It said "It will recharge for more minutes." Not too helpful. Well, enough about the batteries. The interface itself is pretty nice. It has a high-res backlit display. (I think the resolution is of that of a gameboy!) The menu system is pretty nice. Just keep in mind that it has a 10 second startup time once you turn it on. Also, from here you can record information. Although the record feature is usefull, it is not a unidirectional microphone, so it will only record what you say directly into it. Back to the interface, it contains about 10 eq presets, plus you can make a custom bass/treble setting if you prefer. It also supports multible playlists that are editable. (I use one for music, and another for comedy music.) The usb interface is simple, just plug it in to the rio and then to your computer. The rio software is slightly difficult, it takes a bit of getting used to. Finaly, the remote is a good feature, but not well implemented. The contacts on it are so that if you turn the headphones going into it a certain way, the sound gets messed up. (I don't know the reason for this.) It's a nice player for someone entering the portable mp3 market, but don't throw out your rio 500 just for the 800's extra features.

this is my first MP3 player; i wanted something that would work with itunes with little or no fuss.

i did the battery-charging calibration thing- yes it's damn annoying to have to wait 5 hours before you can play with your new toy!

but despite the calibration going ok i immediately ran into the same problems described in other reviews: the unit randomly shuts itself off or will "freeze" and only reboot if the memory-battery pack is removed and re-mounted. for a new piece of somewhat pricey electronics to do this out of the box is almost unforgivable.

i upgraded the firmware to v1.56 from riohome.com. this seems to make things better; itunes uploads quickly and with no fuss. and it looks like it's actually monitoring the battery level now, and has run all day without a random shutoff or freeze.

my classical audio files encoded at 160kbps sound very ok, with little hiss or distortion, and i can transfer about 60 minutes of music into it in under 2 minutes.

the headphones that come with it are almost instruments of torture; while they look cool, they hardly fit my overlarge head and spear the insides of your ears after a few minutes. very uncomfortable.

they made some odd ergonomic decisions, including a cute oval-shaped display window that actually cuts off part of what you can see.

It was between the Nomad II MG, the Nike PSA 120 or souped up PSA60, and the Rio 800.

I chose the Rio for the quality, the hipness, and the one time fee of having plenty of memory and a rechargeable battery.

The downside is the price seems steep for a high end Walkman, and the additional unique memory packs make me feel like a sucker - until the price comes down.

The battery charges very quickly and all the features work very well. The bass is strong and the sounds are crisp, especially with the best made MP3s off Napster. And the prices for used Rios on Ebay make me handle the longer term prospects of getting an upgrade.

Please note that Intel has a 128mb player coming out soon for 299. It seems like it has everything, but it doesn't look nearly as cool as the Rio 800. The headphones say "Intel" largely on the sides. And I like a little more rebellion and to be cooler when I listen to music.

The Rio 800 software has some bugs that make organizing MP3s a minor hassle. However, the USB transfer is fast. I do know that the software that Creative issues for the Nomad is far better.

And if you want the Rio for jogging, buying a Nike PSA 60, with an additional 64mb of memory(making it 96MBs), and getting a rechargeable battery and charger will lead you to an equal price to a Rio 800. It is just not as simple as the Rio 800.

For the newcomers like myself to MP3 players, I am very pleased with the Rio 800. It is a solid product that I know will have continual value for working out, jogging, and be a great companion for your music needs on the go.

THIS MP3 PLAYER IS ABOUT THE WORST PRODUCT I HAVE EVER OWNED. IT WORKS SPORADICALLY AND CUSTOMER SERIVCE FROM SONIC BLUE CHARGES YOU FROM DAY 91. THEY ARE AWFUL AND WILL NOT FOLLOW UP AS PROMISED. BY A COMPAQ NOMAD OR SAMSUNG MP3 PLAYER BUT TO BUY ANYTHING FROM RIO/SONIC BLUE YOU WILL BE SORRY. EXTREMELY SORRY.

I bought a Rio 800 in February and have used it seldom because it is junk. It has never worked well and the manufacturer couldn't care less. It discharges randomly then charges partially and at its best can't be used for more than an hour. The display is even more frustrating since it is impossible to see - it's sort of grey on blue and navigation is a trial. Please don't subject yourself to unwanted pain. Buy a different product.

Tech support,

I have owned my Rio 800 for one year before any problems developed.
And I think I have found the problems.
The problem IS NOT the battery as it is.
I tested my battery and it is fine after it is charged.

The problem is with the software in the Rio player's POWER SAVER MODE.
If the player is on long enough for the power saver time to shut it off, the player will not come back on at all- even if you remove the backpack and replace it.

When I turned the POWER SAVER off, the player played for 3 or 4 hours with no problems.
But when I powered the unit off, I could not just power it back on. I had to remove and replace the backpack for it to work, even though the POWER SAVER MODE was set to off.
Which means, the Rio unit is shorting out the battery.
(Before, I only had to charge the battery every other day and I would have the player on two and a half hours every day while working out.)

I hope this helped

Well lets just say this product is a joke. Two weeks after I bought the first player, it devolped an echo sound and seemed like only half of the audio was there. So I exchanged it for my 2nd player. Less than a week later, the same problem reappeared. Yesterday, I received my 3rd player and there is no backlight display. There won't be a fourth....

When you buy a product full of bugs and then face customer service that demands your credit card as after the first 90 days calls to support cost you [money]! Downloads through the RioPort software end up sounding horrible with squeals throughout. Don't download upgrades to the software as you will receive annoying requests to pay them even more money. ... The software is as buggy as the player. Plan on having to remove the backpack to shut it off as it freezes constantly. Regardless of what they tell you replace the Nickel Metal Hydride battery with one from [another store] as soon as possible. Whatever you do, buy a different MP3 player. Don't listen at your own risk.

Although the idea is great, the product is horrible. I wasted over 200 dollars on this product. It broke after one day (no user misuse) The same happened to my roommate with her unit. Then after 2 weeks of trying to get Rio to fix it they finally tell me where to send it and a month and a half later, I still have not heard anything about the progress even after emailing them. I'm looking at different companys now, I will never go back to Rio.

I ordered the player so that I could use it to listen to Audibles.com books. I received the first one and was impressed with what appeared to be a nice player. It worked for 2 hours before the sound went out. I tried to contact Sonic Blue for support and was told that they would talk to me for a $19.99 charge. Amazon's customer service was excellent and they sent me a replacement the next day,which lasted for about 1 hour before the battery died and will not hold a charge. I am going to suggest that Audible.com remove this from their list of suggested players and find a company with better quality control and a more reliable product.