Rio 800 128 MB Digital Audio Player (MP3/WMA)

by Rio

Product Details

Product Manual [1.03mb PDF]

• Item Weight: 2.4 ounces
• Shipping Weight: 2 pounds
• Shipping: Currently, item can be shipped only within the U.S.
• ASIN: B00005AW1F
• Item model number: 90260243
• Average Customer Review: 2.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (183 customer reviews)
• Discontinued by manufacturer: Yes

Product Description

Amazon.com Review

The ruckus over MP3s and the Napster-focused copyright battle has overshadowed the huge portability advantages of digital music. Only a few years ago, "portable music" meant carrying around a bulky CD player and either a CD wallet or a load of plastic jewel cases. The Rio (now part of SONICblue) line of digital-audio players pioneered portable MP3 devices, and the new Rio 800 flagship model has the potential to redefine what portable audio should be--if it can overcome a few shortcomings.

This version of the Rio 800 comes with 128 MB of memory, enough for about 2 hours of near-CD quality MP3 music. (Another version comes with 64 MB of built-in memory.) It can also accommodate Windows Media Audio (WMA) files, which can double the playing time, thanks to the format's high compression. If 128 MB isn't quite enough for you, SONICblue sells proprietary Memory Backpacks (instead of standard memory cards, like SmartMedia or CompactFlash) that can boost your Rio by an additional 32 or 64 MB. Unfortunately, prices are still fairly high for these Backpacks; hopefully they'll come down as Rio's popularity increases.

Another great feature is the built-in microphone feature that lets you record meetings and notes to yourself, then play them back later. And if your tastes run more to spoken-word recordings, Audible.com media files take up even less memory.

The Rio 800 is powered by a rechargeable battery, which we found to be perfectly acceptable. It averaged around 6 to 8 hours of continuous use per charge and required only a few hours to recharge. A red light let us know when the battery was being recharged, turning off when the battery was ready. The 800's carrying case is also much improved from earlier Rio models--smartly designed, form fitting, and providing easy access to all the controls.

The control buttons are centrally located, and with some practice we were able to operate the Rio's various functions without looking at it. On the unit we tested, we had to be sure to push toward the top of the volume rocker to increase the sound level, rather than where the volume icon was located, but that barely registered as a minor irritation.

A boon for frequent exercisers is the (misnamed) Hold switch, which locks the controls in case of accidental bumps. The Rio also comes with a pair of folding headphones that look cool but were uncomfortable to wear for more than about 20 minutes.

The LCD screen is a bit larger than most and has plenty of room for information like the current song title, sample rate, time, track number, and volume. However, to display that much info means using a small font, so at times it was hard to read. And the circular display window put form over function; it looked nice but it was sometimes difficult to see objects around the edges due to the shadow projected by the circular frame. We had to tilt the unit nearly every time to see the play indicator to find out if the music was stopped or just paused.

Overall, though, these criticisms are minor quibbles compared to what the Rio 800 offers: a portable repository for all your digital audio needs, from tunes to voice recording, with high-quality playback. --Jeff Carlson

Pros:

• Great memory storage for MP3s--even better if using the WMA format
• Voice-recording function
• Rechargeable battery

Cons:

• Display can be hard to read at times

Amazon.com Product Description

With added features and even more memory (128 MB), the Rio 800 will let you capture and play back up to two hours of near CD-quality digital audio from the Internet or your CDs. Diamond adds customizable features and high-end audio you can't get from other players. It includes a built-in rechargeable NiMH battery pack and a voice-record function.

The Rio 800 supports the most popular audio formats--MP3 and WMA--and can be upgraded to support emerging digital standards so your Rio is always up to date. SDMI compliance means you can download secure tracks from all the major recording labels. Also upgrade your Rio 800 with separate snap-on Memory Backpacks up to 340 MB to give you up to nine hours of music playback. The USB interface allows you to download songs from your PC or Mac to your Rio faster than with any other interface type.

The Rio comes with a one-year warranty.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

40 of 43 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Reading this! And you'll know why this is a good player!, June 23, 2001

By 

M. Kwong (CA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Rio 800 128 MB Digital Audio Player (MP3/WMA) (Electronics)

First off, I'd like to correct the battery issue with many of the reviewers below. The problem you are getting is a might as well be calibration error of the battery. I say this because in the fine prints of the manual, if anyone has read it, says that you must go in the preference and choose the calibrate option when you are charging it for the FIRST TIME!! It says if you don't do this procedure, your readings will be off each time you use it.

Now, I'll just make this short on why this is such a good player. I'll prove this by comparing it's only competitor the Intel Pocket Concert. I've recently brought the Intel Pocket Player 128mb, after it crashed, I went and brought this. I found out that this player has everything the Intel has but with higher quality. First thing was the sound quality, in the Intel, there was this annoying hissing that drives you mad, in RIO there was absolutly none.

Next, this player comes with a charger! A NiMH charger! Intel...2 AAA akline batteries. haha. Next, this player comes with a soft casing which protects it from falls and scratches. Intel, none.

Next, this player has all the play list functions that you can dream of..ie making multiple playlists, repeat playlists, moving songs to different order on the fly. Intels...no play list function except the order that it came in.

Next, Voice recording, nuff said. Intel? None, but it does have a FM player which is pratically useless because the reception is horrendous.

Next, this player is extremely customizible, ie adjustable auto sleep mode, backlit display time limit(adjustable from 1 to 10 second to Always On), equalizer(also includes around 8 presets!).Intel? they have only a simple bass treble equalizer and, with sleep mode. But their backlit can only be adjusted to On or Off. The on setting will light for like 3 seconds, which is annoying if you want to see some scrolling you have to press some buttons to relit the screen.

Next, memory expandable? This player Yes. Intel...no.

Next, special unexpected features. There is a little undocumented feature that I found that can let you save the location of your last playing song. All you do is hold on the stop button for around 3 seconds while playing, and the player will turn it self off even tho the power switch is at "ON". And when you press play again, it will be at the last song you were playing.

Finally, last time I checked, the RIO was actually cheaper than the Intel's by like 10 bucks. I strongly recommand this RIO as I always try to get the best product possible for my buck.

If I were you, go for this player. The only thing that maybe killing this player is for its bad review due to the battery problem that I've explained how to fix/prevent. That was short, wasn't it? haha.

24 of 25 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Bad Rios knowingly shipped for Christmas, December 12, 2001

By 

Morimoto "Morimoto" (Greenwich, CT, United States) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

This review is from: Rio 800 128 MB Digital Audio Player (MP3/WMA) (Electronics)

I just had a bad experience with a brand new Rio 800, went back to the store in 24 hours. (...)It seems there is a reason Rio is trying to move them. Their tech support lines seem to be jammed too. Seems they have been knowingly shipping units with bad chargers that may permanently damage the unit, and even my 'new' charger doesnt work.

Here's my disgruntled letter to Rio support:

---

I am returning my Rio 800 player I bought yesterday for many reasons.

When I took it out of the case and read the charging directions, there was a slip of paper saying that if the charger didn't look like the charger in the picture, not to use the device until Rio ships a new one.

First, if there is someone taking the time to put the slip of paper in the case, that person should instead be checking the power supplies and exchanging them in the box before shipping the product. If the new power supplies are not ready, then you shouldn't be shipping units for Christmas that cannot work without them until they are. I would have been infuriated if I had given this as a Christmas gift and the recipient had to wait a week for a charger to play with it. Why not just ship stockings with coal? Quality-control is a job your employees do at packing time, not your customers.

Luckily I *had* a charger that looked like one in the picture, as best as I could figure. You don't specifically mention on the sheet what to look for to tell if you have a new charger, and you don't provide a picture of the old charger for comparison. I assumed that since the small nub jutting out beside the jack was unique, that that was what I was looking for, so I went ahead and conditioned the unit, per instructions, because I had such a charger.

Well, within 30 minutes the charge light went out and the condition screen went off. You mention in the instructions to make sure the charge light stays on, but provide no instructions on what to do if it goes off. Since I could not get back into the menu, I unplugged and re-plugged in the charger, and went back into the conditioning menu and continued charging. In the morning the light was off, and the unit had only 3% charge.

So I called the technical support number on the package, and this is where I ceased to become a Rio customer. I had to navigate a long and borish IVR system, riddled with tales of online customer support (I think I have 3 completely different email addresses for your support, including riohome.com, diamondmm.com, and sonicblue.com), other products, and even specific mentions of solutions for problems and products I did not have. When I finally got to the end, I was told not only were the customer support reps busy, but I would not even be put on hold. No queue times, no hold music, no nothing - just 'go away'.

Companies have an obligation to customers to have a concise IVR system, appropriately staffed lines, and to allow a caller to remain on hold and be kept advised automatically of their place in queue and expected hold times. These IVR features have been around for a while. You sell a hardware product - if you arent going to help me fix a problem quickly over the phone, back to the store it goes. I am not going to sit around and wait for email support.

Anyways, back to the store, one more lost Christmas sale.

17 of 18 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Buyers remorse....should of stuck to my old Rio 500., May 29, 2001

By 

"sammytoad" (Belding, Mi United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Rio 800 128 MB Digital Audio Player (MP3/WMA) (Electronics)

First of all, in all fairness to Amazon, they have tried very hard to help correct my Sonicblue problem. I'm glad that I purchased this unit from them. However, it was a huge mistake going to the Sonicblue site and purchasing their 128mb backpack memory for [price]. From the moment after I calibrated the battery (which is required before using) the unit began a low humming and the battery would not go for more than an hour. I recharged overnight. Next morning the unit would not work at all...with any memory backpack. I called Amazon and without arguement replaced the unit for me. Next, I called Sonicblue, waited on hold for 1/2 hour. When I finally got to talk to customer service, I was told that I would have to send the backpack back at my expense. I argued that I had it for all of a day or two and that I felt it was defective... I will NOT go with Sonicblue again...I am just glad that I purchased the unit itself from Amazon. I have 2 RIO 500s that were by Diamond. I haven't had any problems with either. I have had other products that were by Diamond and when there were problems, I was treated with respect. There is one other thing to be aware of...if you have any technical problems with your unit after 90 days you will have to pay 19.00 for phone support. Sonicblue has turned out to be very petty and not customer orientated...