Toshiba Gigabeat MEG-F10L 10 GB Digital Audio Player Blue

by Toshiba

Product Details

• Shipping Weight: 6 pounds
• Shipping: Currently, item can be shipped only within the U.S.
• ASIN: B0007U0IFK
• Item model number: MEGF10L
• Average Customer Review: 4.1 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (15 customer reviews)

Product Description

Amazon.com Product Description

Images and music combine in this easy-to-use portable digital audio player. Toshiba's snazzy, aqua-blue Gigabeat MEG-F10L packs a 1.8-inch Toshiba hard drive capable of holding 10 GB of digital media: MP3 and WMA compressed audio and even uncompressed, full-resolution WAV files. That's about 2,500 songs (more than 150 complete albums) at 128 kbps MP3, 5,000 songs at 64 kbps WMA, and a still-impressive 275 or so songs (or 19 hours) of CD-resolution WAV files.

A major feature of the player is its bright, crystal-clear, 2.2-inch LCD with 240 x 320 resolution and the ability to render over 65,000 colors. It's there so you can experience the visual as well as the aural component of your entertainment. The Gigabeat lets you download and view album covers, search for your favorite tracks by scrolling through those album covers, or even set a favorite album cover as your background image. You can download any digital still picture from your PC and create custom slideshows, too--and set them to music.

Gigabeat may be versatile, but it's also easy to operate. Its PlusTouch sensor control lets you scroll through its intuitive menus using only a soft touch or pass of your fingertip.

The PC-only Gigabeat is "Plays for Sure"-certified by Microsoft, which means that it will operate with any "Plays for Sure" download site or management software when connected to your PC. Gigabeat is automatically recognized by Windows Media Player 10, so there's no need to install new drivers of any kind. Toshiba has also partnered with Napster to provide Napster's "Napster To Go" software, giving you the option of using Napster To Go, Windows Media Player, and/or the supplied Gigabeat Room management software (Gigabeat Room is required for transfer of photo images).

So what about your CD collection? After all, you'll likely be able to stash the entire thing in here, one way or another. Thanks to a unique feature called CD RipRec, all you have to do is place a CD in your PC and press the CD RipRec button while the Gigabeat is docked in its cradle. CD RipRec will launch the software and transfer compressed audio to your Gigabeat quickly and with no further effort on your part. Using a USB 2.0 connection (cable supplied), CD RipRec can transfer the contents of an entire CD to the Gigabeat in as little as 5 minutes.

If Gigabeat's battery life (up to 16 hours) isn't enough to satisfy your entertainment needs, fret not. Rather than carrying your AC adapter everywhere, simply connect the Gigabeat to any PC with a USB cable and the battery will charge itself again.

Other features include a choice of 10- or 60-second intro scan to help you find a desired song, multilingual support (Japanese, English, French, Chinese, Spanish, and German), and 28 user selectable equalizer settings, and SRS WOW, which simulates surround sound from any two speakers (including headphones).

What's in the Box
Digital music player, an AC power adapter, a power-supply, a docking cradle, a USB cable, headphones, a software CD-ROM (Gigabeat Room management software, CD RipRec, Napster To Go), a user's manual, and warranty information.

Product Description

The first thing you'll notice on every gigabeat is the big, bright, crystal clear 2.2-inch LCD screen. It's there so you can experience the visual as well as the audio. Gigabeat lets you download album covers and set them as your background image, or create slideshows using your digital still pictures from your PC. 240x320 resolution and over 65,000 colors mean that you'll get all of those images as clear, sharp and crisp as they appear on your PC screen. Gigabeat is flexible, but easy. The PlusTouch sensor control lets you scroll through all of the easy to understand menu systems using only a soft touch or pass with your fingertip. Microsoft's Windows "Plays for Sure" certified, simply connect your Gigabeat to your PC to operate with any "Play for Sure" download site or management software. Easily rip your favorite CDs to your Gigabeat with the touch of a button thanks to the new and unique CD RipRec feature. 2.2-inch QVGA LCD screen PlusTouch -Touch Sensitive control Flexible Download Compatibility Options CD RipRec feature for ripping of entire CD by the push of one button SRS wow surround 28 Equalizer Settings Multiple Language Support USB 2.0 and 1.1 capable USB charging capable Built-in lithium ion battery PC operating environment - Windows 2000/XP, Pentium 300MHz or above (1GHz recommended), 128MB RAM, 100MB free HD space, USB port, CD-ROM drive, Internet Explorer 5.01 or later, Windows Media Player 9 or later Windows Plays for Sure and Napster to Go Compatible Accessories included - AC adapter, Power supply, Cradle, USB cable, Headphones, software CD-ROM with Napster to Go and gigabeat room software Dimensions - 2.48 x 0.62 x 4.17 Approximate weight (body only) - 5.64 oz Blue

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

23 of 23 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Solid MP3 player for those who don't want an IPOD., March 7, 2006

By 

Jeremy Johnson (Nebr) - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Toshiba Gigabeat MEG-F10L 10 GB Digital Audio Player Blue (Electronics)

The Toshiba Gigabeat MEG-F10L 10 GB is a great choice for an MP3 player, with a few caveots.

First off the highlights:

- The color screen is lovely and displays pictures wonderfully.

- The capacity to price is great - better than an IPOD

- Physical size is good - and fits in to my pockets without a problem.

- Fast forward button to scan a song

- Great choices for equalizers

- The '+' nav button makes things simple to navigate through your collection

- Great battery life - 16 hours! (oh, and recharge time is quick)

- Recharge via USB!

- quick transfers w/ USB 2.0

- The docking station is great, and if you don't want to use it all the plugs (AC adapter and USB) have connectors on the player.

- Super user community (www.mygigabeat.com)

- Can function as a quasi external drive - windows xp pro recognizes it as an additional drive and you can store generic files on it.

A few detractors (with the product):

- The software (gigaroom) in it's current version 2.x is pretty crappy on face. I understand there is a new version coming out to the USA shortly so imporvements should be great. Navigating through this is not that intuitive, but it could be worse. Additionally this supports Windows Media player 10, and I have tried to deal with that, but that's even worse. Also I think Naptser's software allows access to this device, but I havn't installed it yet.

- Propritary data encoding - so you can just drop things on the player via windows, or pull them off once they are on the player (with out going through the software).

- The ear buds that come with this player are fairly large and for me, quite painful. Thankfully I wandered over to a local store and picked up the $8.00 Sony Ear buds - works like a charm now!

A few detractors (in general):

- The lack of store presence is really irritating. After getting my Gigabeat in the mail I went to the local stores looking for cases, accessories, and so forth. The stores vaugely claimed they carried the stuff 'a few months back', but don't any more. Pretty much everything is dominated by the IPOD. So if you are a person that wants their product specific accessoriesnow, in hand, and not having to go through the 'net to get it, I would suggest not getting this product - get an IPOD. I fortuantly don't mind that much, and all I had to get through the mail was the 'crystal clear case/skin' for it.

Over all I am quite please by my purchase, and somewhat regret not shelling out the extra dollars for a 20 gig. This things going to get a heavey use, and once I get the software down pat I will leave the other MP3 companies in the dust.

I would highly recommend the following accessories at the time of purchasing your gigabeat:

- The crystal ice case (Toshiba GBZ1 ICE Clear Case)

- Sony's $8.00 ear buds (Sony MDR-E818LP Fontopia Ear-Bud Headphones)

- Belkin's FM tuner (Belkin Portable Music TuneCast II FM Transmitter (F8V3080))

- Mini Sterio out cable (if your car's sterio allows for it or your friend's sterio).

21 of 22 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Dazzles; then fails like you knew it would., July 25, 2005

By 

Michael Toth "Resisting Macintosh" (Pittsburgh, PA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Toshiba Gigabeat MEG-F10L 10 GB Digital Audio Player Blue (Electronics)

This was my first impression:

While there have been been numerous MP3 players put out within recent years, one has finally come along that has some style. Gigabeat offers a relieving alternative to the boring white of the iPod and the stale colors of the overpriced minis (no mention for that silly U2 theme). The high-res screen lets you display images and the touch-plus sensor is easy to control. The device itself is great for sound quality, equalizer variations, image-viewing and ease of navigation. The problem is with the software.

Admittedly, I'm an iTunes user, and anyone else who's selected "keep my crap organized" knows that it will categorize music into an insane amount of folders. With this kind of library, it makes interfacing with 'gigabeat room', Gigabeat's library manager, really irritating. The one-touch CD-to-device option would be nice if I didn't already have all my CDs on my drive, but I can see the plus side (haha, pun). On the up-side, if you have everything localized (like you should), it only takes one button to transfer everything.

I don't want to bother with specs because they're already available. The 16 hour battery life is a big draw, though, and so is that 65,000 color screen. For the price, I'd say go for the 20 -- that is, unless you want this hot blue color.

This is new and and accurate review:

Inferior product in its assembly. My *first* gigabeat had a hardware problem, where the audio jack separated from the mother board. It was replaced, thankfully.

However, not a month after getting the new one, I've been encountering and endless string of software problems -- one crashed it whenever I tried to bookmark a track (I had to reformat it). Then, about a week later, the thing just shut down by itself and wouldn't reboot due to a "system error" (which are impossible to find online, by the way). I managed to get it back in order by: Turning off the battery switch. Putting it in its cradle, starting it up, shutting it down regularly, and then turning the switch back on. It was very irritating.

I want so much to love this product, but it doesn't really give me the opportunity. I hate to say it: consider an iPod. God damn you, iPod.

13 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Good, but some flaws, December 28, 2005

By 

achilles - See all my reviews

This review is from: Toshiba Gigabeat MEG-F10L 10 GB Digital Audio Player Blue (Electronics)

I just got this MP3 player recently and found it to be quite good. The most noticeably feature is the screen, the colors and graphics are amazing. You can also rearrange the display of the screen from portait to landscape and upload pictures and music easily. I am currently using the software they provide you with. Although it takes some getting used to, once you understand it, it is quite easy. The Gigabeat misses in its buttons. The cursor is easy to manage, but because it doesn't light up, in the dark it can be hard to manage. Besides the software problems (getting used to it) the only other problem that I have with it, is that there is no radio built in. But this is just a personal preference. This product deserves a 4.5/5.