Customer Reviews

Samsung YP-X5Z NeXus 50 XM Ready Digital Audio Player with 50-hour Playback

5 star:		(14)
4 star:		(8)
3 star:		(4)
2 star:		(6)
1 star:		(4)

 

 

We used to have a MyFi and a friend purchased a Helix and neither unit is ready to be called "portable". If I have to hold the unit up in the air to get a signal - it's a waste. Since these units don't allow you to wear them and play them (unless you live in NY City), we opted to the Nexus. It's smaller and we don't have to "position" it in a attempt to get a signal. With 50 hours of music, we have lots of content for exercising, hanging at the beach and working.

I previously had the XM Roady and loved it, but I needed something portable that I was able to use at the gym also. This radio is perfect for use at home, the gym and in the car (note: a separate kit for the car may be required! Check the box. Mine only came with the home kit. More detail on this below.) This radio is small - about the size of most cell phones and is very lightweight. What I love most about this radio is the ability to record right from live radio. As soon as a song comes on that I want to record, it's 2 presses of a button and it's recording. Also, if you don't catch the song until 2 seconds after it's already into it, that's ok... it will record back about 2-3 seconds so chances are you'll get it right from the beginning. A few times I've tried to press the recording button right after the DJ stops talking, but I still end up getting it in anyway due to this feature. Also, you don't have to stop the recording when it's finished, the radio will do this automatically. So far I haven't had any problem with it cutting off too soon or too late. The sound of my recorded songs is crystal clear, just like CD quality. It's great to have the option to record from the radio rather than downloading from the internet and paying for it. If you have CD's you can also upload the songs to your radio using the software they provide.

My radio came with a home kit which includes a docking station, power cord, antenna and red/yellow/white plugs for use with any stereo or TV! I have a big screen TV and was able to plug the radio into it and listen at home. I do not have a regular home stereo, I have an older XM stereo that it wasn't compatible with. It also comes with a set of earbuds that are ~ok~ at best, but luckily any standard size plug for earbuds or other headphones will fit if you care to buy a better pair. For the gym it also has a rubber case with a belt clip that it slides easily into - but is a little harder to get back out! I have broken a few nails trying to get it out of the rubber case, so beware. I can't comment much on the battery life, as I usually use it for about an hour a day but it works great for that type of use. The battery recharges automatically while it's on the home or car docking station. The home antenna has an extra long cord, I'd estimate about 5' long. The antenna is also about the size of a cell phone and needs access to a window to receive a signal. I've been able to catch a signal from across a 15x15 room with no issue.

I live in a suburban area in the Midwest, so getting a signal in the car or at home is never an issue. I get a crystal clear, perfect signal every day. I have a South facing window at home also, so that probably helps. The car kit included a docking station, a continuous playing "tape" (for those who have a tape deck in the car) and a power cord that plugs into the lighter. If the tape is inserted, the radio will play through your car stereo speakers. The power cord also has a built-in "FM Modulator" that is supposed to work if you program the radio for a certain FM station (such as 88.1 for example) and tune into it. The idea is to use that method and play the stereo through the FM rather than using the tape, however it does not work with our stereo. We have a "Monsoon" stock radio with a tape and CD player in our 2002 Pontiac. This makes for many cords that can be annoying, but we have rolled them up and used some twist-ties to keep them together and out of the way. The antenna for the car is a very heavy magnet and is flat. I've taken it through the car wash without any problems. The magnet is so strong, you will have to pry it off the car! Works great. We ran the cord under the seats, around the side and through the trunk so the antenna is mounted on the trunk.

One thing about the radio that was hard to get used to was how to navigate around and find the menus. Since the front of the radio only has 4 arrow buttons and 1 "XM" button, it takes a little getting used to. I was able to figure it out after a few tries and didn't have to consult the manual (thankfully!) Some common complaints I've heard are in regards to the channels and how to change them. I have found the best way to handle it is to set channels as your favorites. Then, when you press the arrow to the right you'll always get your favorites list. All you need to do then is scroll through and select the channel. If you don't set the favorites, there is a "manual" input screen if you know the channel number by pressing the arrow to the left. Or, you can press the arrow up/down to get the entire channel list and scroll through. The biggest complaint that I have (and it's pretty minor, all things considered) is about the vent mount for the car. It slides onto the back of the car docking station and has plastic pieces that resemble clips. I say they "resemble" clips because if they WERE clips, it would stay on better! There's 2 long plastic pieces that slide onto the vent. I went over a railroad crossing and out it came, the radio flew out - the docking station on the floor - quite a pain while driving. I had to rig it up a little to get it to be secure and stay put (I don't recommend this, but I added some thin cardboard in between the "clips" and the vent to tighten it up a little. However, I nearly lost it inside the vent on the first attempt which is why I don't recommend it!) There is another type of dashboard mount that swivels slightly, but it wasn't easy to see the display while the radio was on it. Also, it mounts on the dashboard with 2-way stick tape. Not the best option if you ever plan to remove it. I learned this the hard way when we had the Roady mounted in our car - the docking station is still there because we can't pry it off.

When you first get your XM subscription, I'd suggest going online to activate your radio rather than calling the 800 number; at times there is a long wait for a customer service rep and it's just as easy to do it yourself. I have activated all of my radios online and they've been ready to go within 10 minutes. The first subscription will cost $12.99 and each additional is $6.99. However, if you already have an XM radio and want to de-activate that one and re-activate a new one in it's place, call customer service and don't do it online! You'll save yourself the $9.99 activation fee if you call and tell them you want to "swap" radios.

If you've stayed with this review all the way through, I hope it was helpful!

I have had a SKYFI2 and my husband has had the Myfi XM2GO. This radio is by far the best of all!!!! I record songs that I love just by a couple of touches of the buttons. So very easy. I thought I would miss the preset buttons greatly, but there is a favorites list that does the same thing. I am thrilled. It is incredibly small yet very easy to navigate. If you are worried about being able to navigate this thing while driving, don't. Just be sure you mount it up high. I made the mistake of having my SKYFI2 too low and it was very difficult to drive while using it. I have not used this out of my car yet, so I can not say how it does. I have listened to the recorded songs and they are several clicks away, but still easy to get to. All in all, I highly recommend and my husband is going to get one too.

I decided to get a portable XM that could record. I love to listen to Coast to Coast AM, but I can not stay up and hear it at 1am. I decided on the Inno for myself and went to get it. Last minute at the store my husband wanted an XM, but was hesitant to spend the extra money for the Inno. That was about a month ago. Last night he went ahead and bought an Inno for himself.

The NeXus, while cheaper, did not function as well. He had a hard time finding his recordings and they did not seem to play in order. Overall he felt that instead of an upgrade from an old Roady, this was a step back. It did not work well, he had lots of problems with playing music he loaded onto the unit. The screen was not in color. It would lock up a lot. It was a pain to carry the passport everywhere with the NeXus.

I would recommend getting the Inno. In the long run you will be much happier.

This device meets all of my needs as both an XM radio and a MP3/WMA player. Just keep in mind, that unless you have an input jack on your head mount in your car that you need the Car Kit (YACP200) to listen to this device in your car. In comparison to the Inno/Helix the only thing that makes this device less than perfect is that it does not have Tune Select (in other words it can't detect other artists or songs on another channel). However, this is okay because if you switch to the other song you cannot record it because of the delay it takes for the radio to detect other streams. In addition, if you live in an area where there are no XM terrestrial modulators the fact that this radio does not have an antenna built in does not really matter because you cannot pick up a signal on the go anyway.

The Nexus 50 is an intriguing device that fills a desire that I've had for years. In my office, you can't listent ot radio (Satelite or FM) because of interference and a lack of windows. My musical tastes are eclectic, and I am very annoyed by the song repetition found on most popular music stations. I've long wanted to record interesting radio programs for playback at the office. The Nexus fills this desire admirably. I can record content at home, then play it back at the office. I can add some or all of the tracks from a recording session to playlists, and can skip tracks that I'm not interested in.

So, what's not to like? Well, there's the UI, which requires at least 8 button presses to add a track to a playlist, and 10 button presses to delete a track and doesn't provide fast-forward or rewind within a track. It also doesn't let you schedule a recording session while listening to recorded content -- only while listening to live streams, which can only be done while the device is sitting in a powered base unit and has active reception through its antenna. Lastly, if you repartition the memory (partitioned between recorded XM and your MP3 or WMA files), you lose all of your recorded content. And if you want to have even one MP3 or WMA track on the device, you have to give up 25 hours (or 50%) of the device's XM recording capacity.

The DRM restrictions on this device are onerous, if not entirely surprising. You cannot extract recorded tracks from the device. And you have to connect to live XM frequently (more than the 8 hours/month listed in the users guide might lead you to believe) in order to have access to your recorded XM content. Then again, this is not entirely surprising, as you technically are paying XM for radio-like usage of the tracks -- you are buying a service from XM, not buying content. If you plug the Nexus into a PC running the provided software, it will help you find and purchase your favorite tracks from Napster.

So, what we have here is a device that fills my requirements better than any other on the market, but is marred by several restrictions and an annoying user interface. I'll keep using mine, and won't grumble too loudly about its weaknesses. I would give it 5 stars if the UI weren't so clumsy. As it is, I give it 4.

I've had my Samsung Nexus 50 for a few weeks. I am impressed
with its ability to record each song or each XM satellite channel.

With each song recording, you manually press the record button within
the songs first 45 seconds of play, the Nexus50 records the entire
song, then stops the recording process.

If you want to record a designated channel for a long period,
the Nexus50 gives you 50 hours of recording time and saves
each individual song on its own track, just like a compact disc.

The Nexus50 also allows you to schedule the recording of your
favorite shows/channels in advance with its built in calendar.

Switching from channel to channel could be a little easier if the
Nexus50 was built with a radio dial like I've seen on other
satellite radio's.

In addition to receiving XM, it also works as an mp3 player.
Provided is a USB cable and software to help manage your content
via your computer.

Overall, I enjoy the user friendly functionality of the Nexus50
and would highly recommend it. Too cool!

First XM offers superior music to Sirius, sounding better, stronger stereo signal. Unless you absolutely must hear Howard Stern, XM is the better choice for music fans.

Second, this package from Samsung is well-designed with all the features you need to get on XM from your home. Remember the unit cannot tune in live XM while you walk around, only when it is docked. This is fine, as efforts so far to provide true mobile access from XM and Sirius have both been pretty miserable, with portable shoulder mounted antennas and large uncomfortable oversize headphones that sound rotten, and barely functional signal tuning even with the stupid devices. Live personal non-car based mobile access is neither feasible nor desirable with current tech. Instead the Samsung records up to 25 or 50 hours of XM broadcasts and then plays them back later as you walk around. A good compromise, and you can get live tuning when the unit is docked. You can connect the dock to your home stereo, but the kit does not include an FM transmitter so you must use a wire connection. This kit is all you need to get up and running, and is a lot cheaper than other options from XM or Sirius. If you want cheap satellite radio, this is it.

The Samsung Nexus is a decent player. Controls are easy to figure out, and the screen though tiny has all you may need on it. The player feels a bit lightweight and plastic, and the MP3 function is an afterthought as the memory is small and devotes half of the space to XM files, even if you don't need or want that much space. As a result, you can only have half a gig of your own MP3s on the Nexus. (512 MB of MP3 files? Why bother?).

The real issues with the Nexus are really issues with XM. I think it's fair to link XM service to this product in the review, as the Nexus is pretty much useless without an XM subscription. XM service to me is a big "maybe" as there are three major issues with the existing service.

First, you may not be able to tune anything in. Land based transmitters are only available in several big cities, and the satellite system is dependent on your location to the southwest sky and the signal interference in your area. I work in downtown Manhattan and have a clear view of the Southern sky but despite this I could not tune in a usable signal from either terrestrial or satellite based broadcasts. I could tune XM in fine from home, but as I explain below, I have no real need for XM at home. Before you activate your account, make sure you can tune in the XM Sample channel One, which you should be able to do without subscribing. If you can't tune in the sample channel, don't bother activating the unit, send it back and spare yourself the heartache of dealing with XM subscription service.

Second point, XMs efforts to keep subscribers at any cost make AOL look like amateurs. It is literally impossible to unsubscribe from XM. I tried for three months in a row on a prior subscription, and could not get the account closed. I was promised they would close the account, credit my card back etc, and even after half a dozen phone calls to different agents and even supervisors, the account was never closed and no credits were issued. XM Staff gave me a few months for free when I tried to close the first time, and I got the impression they would have given me some more free time when I tried to close the account again, so if you like calling up and threatening to cancel periodically and getting some free extra months out of the deal, this may be for you. But if you think you may ever want to close the account and walk away, you are in for an ordeal. I finally called my credit card company, and they cancelled future payments to XM and refunded me my last month of unwanted charges. The credit card customer service dept said this was a common problem with XM Radio accounts. Unless you are certain you know you want XM service indefinitely or forever, think carefully before subscribing.

Final point: who needs XM? If you have a computer with internet access, you can get dozens of free internet radio stations with similar quality and variety to what XM offers. If you drive and want XM, this may be a good fit if you don't mind choppy reception and sudden drop-outs on occasion. But if you are at home, you can do as good or better than XM for free on your PC, and by using various wires or wireless gadgets you can broadcast the signal from your PC to your home stereo. Yes, the gadgets cost a bit, but this is a one time charge, not the endless $13 a month that XM charges you till the end of time. My employer blocks streaming internet radio on our corporate firewall so I thought I would get XM so I could listen to the service at work, but as I said above, I could not tune it in. I don't need XM at home, and don't want it in my car, so I sent the Samsung back to Amazon for a full refund.

Moral of the story: if you are sure you like XM and want to subscribe for the indefinite future, if you can tune the broadcast in, and if you are really sure you can't meet your radio diversity needs in any other way than XM, the Samsung Nexus is an excellent and inexpensive way to experience the medium.

So going from the Delphi Skyfi to a Nexus here are my thoughts.

I don't mind the passport idea, I like it. I used to have two accounts, one for the car and one for the house. Now I only have one and take the passport and unit with me. The ability to record XM is great, I setup a session to record Air81 on BPM. Worked great, small drop out in volume after each 1-hour set but I can live with it.

Did not try loading mp3's, I don't really have any mp3's as I like XM to much.

Now the problems. 7 days into using it, the unit died. All static if any output. I bought a 2nd unit, tested and found that the Passport chip is okay, but the Nexus unit itself went bad. I'm also finding that the passport chip gets VERY hot... almost unsure if it should be this warm but can't find anything online about it.

I'd say, all in all. If you can find the new INNO on sale. Go for it instead.

I just love this player! It is much more compact than my MyFi XM radio. If you like recording XM radio broadcasts, this is the radio for you. With the click of a few buttons you can organize your recordings in a variety of different manners (artist, song, recording session, category). This also makes it easy to select one of the organizing folders and delete those recordings. I like to record a certain talk show every day, then I organize it by "artist" and delete all the commercials in a matter of seconds.

You can also fast forward through a recorded selection, (useful when they get on a boring topic)which is another thing the MyFi couldn't do. With 50 hours of recording space you can have a large selection - all recorded effortlessly from XM radio.

One thing I wish they would add is a few additional choices for scheduling recordings. They are the same as the MyFi - one time, daily, or every day. It would be very nice to have "every week day" and "once a week" (like every Saturday).

The tuner card is so tiny - I look forward to the release of car and home stereos that have a slot built in for that tiny little tuner. That will make your one XM radio subscription portable to multiple radios - cool!