Customer Reviews

RipFlash DX 128MB Digital Voice Recorder and MP3/WMA Player

5 star:		(6)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

I could not believe it... what a wonderful sleek little thing, very sporty, cool-looking device. That is, on the outside. What I guess they forgot to tell you that wma files (Windows audio media format) created with Windows Media 7 is not supported by PoGo! I get the message:

"The file is not supported in RipFlash-DX.
We do not service WMA files applied with DRM"

Gosh, wouldn't that have been nice to know before shelling out over $ That presents a bit of a problem since most of my files are created in this format.

Also, the engineers behind the music manager software that came with the device should go back to the drawing board. Never have I seen such an uninspired layout and poor use of screen real estate. It has barely any features. Finally, who wrote the manual...? I cannot believe the poor quality of the English in there. I hope to God that the person who wrote that manual doesn't rely on English as his first language.

Honestly, if PoGo want to charge $ for a device of like this, fine. But they need to tend to the details/compatibility/documentation issues a little better.

Disappointed!

I listen to it everyday.
I had few problem installing because there is a problem with ripflash usb cable but if you replace with any other usb cable it works fine.
Do not forget to update the software available at pogo internet site otherwise you will not be able to download audio with long titles.
Another problem is that it get scrached very easily
The battery does not last for 10hours it is more likely it will last for about 5 hours just like any other mp3 playes. I got a recharger.
In sum the sound is great ,the price is cheap, and it does what is supposed to do.

RATING CHANGED FROM TWO STARS -- SEE UPDATE AT BOTTOM

November 2002

Well I like the little [thing]. You can operate it blindfolded and half-asleep. Once you get familiar with it, it is fault free. (Until then there are plenty of ways to screw up.)

Why two stars? Because here it is four months or so since release and they still haven't ironed out the file format issue. Those WMA files that it records, stereo or mono, are incompatible with my A/V editor, which shall remain innocent until proven guilty because it runs every other WMA source I can find. The problem is with the last three seconds of the file. There's apparently something not copacetic with it, and it slows to a stop. I'm about to test the suspect files against other editors to see who's to blame. It also bombs in the same company's format converter, so we'll see.

20030316 UPDATE:
Still useful after all these months. I have learned to navigate the limitations and am using it and getting the job done like a champ, and that's what counts.

I found a utility that will fix these WMA files. The issue is with the song data info, which is absent on this model. A lot of aps find that disturbing. Audio Conversion Wizard is a shareware batch processor that will produce acceptable WMA's MP3's and of course WAV's and a few others, all with very little pain, and very easy to learn.

Also with all that handling it hasn't got a scratch -- no case needed. Love the lanyard. There's more sophisticated handling I can't really tell you about without presuming a great deal. But I can definitely tell you that ULTRA alkalines are a BIG plus. You can get 6 hours of audio, versus something over ONE.

So I am very pleased to up my rating on the bird to 5 big stars.

Hey you CAN'T have everything, especially in such a small package. Simple to use, just always use recharged batteries, use Ripflash DX mgr to upload to PC, Cakewalk Pyro 2003 to convert, and watch your memory available (or put in another SD card), and you shouldn't have any problems. I use mine EVERY WEEK, and I can't express how WONDERFUL this recorder is to carry around and use to record music lessons and live jams. REMARKABLE SOUND FOR SUCH A SMALL DEVICE!

Before I rave on about how great this product, let me just say up front that it is not the best mp3/wma player, nor is it the best recorder... but it is the best for doing both. I purchased the player because I wanted to listen to my digital music away from home. I purchased the Ripflash DX because I wanted to make digital recordings of the high school choirs that I teach. Because the DX records in WMA format, it is able to compress near-CD quality sound and transfer it to my computer without sending it through my sound card using a LINE IN or MIC port. With the ability to change the recording bitrate and the option for another 128MB, the recording options are near limitless.

Using wma as a native format is excellent, for those of us who remember to turn off digital rights managment (DRM) and for those who don't then as they say RTFM! ...The ability for expansion makes this player a far better choice than [others] which plays wma and mp3 but records voice in a proprietary format.

I was looking at digital voice recorders w/ 5+ hrs recording time and they were all $150+, so I decided why not get an MP3 and have some extra bang for my buck? Not only is the quality on this better than my cheapy old recorder, but it was only $120 (not bad considering the dual function!), has 8 hrs recording time, the file types convert and then there is the whole MP3 thing so I can plug this into the CD player in my car. DRAWBACKS: Scratches easily/buttons activate easily (TIP-TRAVEL SOAP DISHES ARE PERFECT SIZE FOR A CASE!!), the software BITES (you'll have to restart your computer, reattach cables, yikes!), and it is kinda fussy about the batteries. I am forever opening and closing the battery door to get it to work for some reason. All in all I definitely got what I paid for and certainly am happy with it.

Major stuff: BIG ole sound, even at 64 WMA
SMALL little box, expensive feel.
Really good battery life.
Expandable. Although I have already put
a lot of songs on it and still have memory
left.
Buttons nice and easy to click.

Minor stuff: Earphones about 2 inches too short for
walking with player in jacket waist pocket,
although not jacket vest pocket

Arm band not made for bigger biceps. Could not
get used to wearing player on my wrist.

Bottom line: Small mp3/wma player, wma recorder from voice or
line-in CD player input. VERY few players will copy
your collection of CD's right from your CD player.
Really good sound quality at 64 bit rate WMA. Go
to 128 if you want to.

This player is superbad!! I ordered another for my
son.

This is one of the nicest gadgets I've ever bought. I had a MPIO FL-100 and it sucked compared to the RipFlash DX. This does everything you would want it to do. The FL-100 had an FM radio built in that you could record from, but it recorded in wav format at only one bitrate of like 32kps, which is about telephone quality! So you got these huge files that would fill the memory up in like one or two songs, and the sound quality was like listening to a friend play the radio over the phone, LOL! I sold it in a heartbeat.

The RipFlash DX was 50% less, and it is really nice! It's very light, you don't even know you have it in your pocket, it has great sound, and the buttons are well thought out. One of the nicest features is that you can record from any line out source, like a cd player or radio in wma format. It sounds cd quality! So if I'm listening to the radio I can just hit the record when I want to record a song. No more getting music from Kazaa (it's starting to worry me now that they're busting individuals)!

The batteries last forever, it seems, which is really great because my pda's don't last long at all. And the nice thing about not having a rechargeable battery is that you can always take a few batteries with you. I've had rechargeables go dead right when I was into an audiobook, and I had no choice but wait til the next day.

Another important feature is the expandable memory. Pop in a 256mb mm card and you have plenty of space. Many mp3 players aren't expandable these days, which I can't figure out. Anyway, buy this mp3 player, you will not be disappointed!

I bought this product in June 2003. It stopped working 3 months later.
First it turned itself off abruptly with NO REASONS. - 1st month
Then strange characters start showing up. - 2nd month
Then nothing showed up on LED and no key works. - 3rd month
I don't think a 128MB MP3 player is supposed only to work for 3 months.
Be cautious of this product.