Customer Reviews

iriver SV-i700 Waterproof Case for iFP-700 Series MP3 Players

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

 

 

I made a review of this and the iRiver 799T 1gb MP3 player on the iRiver product page, giving the combination 5 stars.

I had been looking for a way to combine my enjoyment of pool aerobics and tunes ever since the new generation of small, portable audio flash-style players came into existence. It seemed like a natural to me. To my shock, every store I went into said no one made players that could be mixed with water.

I was thrilled when an Amazon investigation FINALLY revealed that H2O Audio understood my plight and combined with the iRiver 799T, my exercise program could become more fun and invigorating. (Pity the poor neighbors who might overhear as I sing-along.)

The case comes with everything you could need for storing, listening and carrying, and it's sturdy. During out-of-pool times you can swap the waterproof earphones with ordinary headphones, leaving the player in the case, if you choose.

Used with the IFP780 this product works as promised. It works for swimming laps in a pool at least. I have not tried it at a beach. I found the arm band to be kind of cumbersome but it still works if you put the device on a neck strap and hang it around your neck while swimming. I will say also that the volume has to be turned quite high on the mp3 player for the sound to come in good in the water. No problem but don't forget to turn the volume down again for land use or it will blast your ears out.

Now for some background. I bought what was supposed to be an underwater fm player long ago from Service Merchandise. That thing never worked at all but this proves that technology has come a long way. I guess I never thought about buying an underwater walkman like tape player way back then but now that technology is all mp3/wma H20Audio seems to have designed a good product to keep swimmers in a stream of music.

I received this with the 1gb player and after having read mixed reviews I was a little skeptical about it working. I recently took it down to my local pool and was amazed at how well it worked. Now I did lose hearing about 5% of the time in my right ear (the side I breath out of) but it was never more than 10 seconds at a time and a simple shake of the head (while swimming) allowed it to come back.
The case worked beautifully holding the water out. The headphones can adjust to almost every axis and stayed on my head the entire time. Most importantly, I didn't feel inconvenienced swimming laps with it on.
As far as people saying they lost sound completely or it became so soft they couldnt hear , I believe I figured out why. I don't think it is the water because when water did get behind the headphones I almost had to stop and turn the volume down on the player (after all sound does travel through water better than air.) I found that the "funnel" that inserts into your ear can easily collapse and prevent sound from coming out. It seems very long to me and if I pushed it in too far (even being out of water) I lost sound. By simply adjusting it (for me having it higher at a downward angle) almost completely prevented any sound loss. With proper placement and adjustment you shouldn't have any problem using this product. They included an armband to use with the neoprene sleeve but I used the belt clip and clipped the unit on the back of my suit. Email me if you have any questions.
Also check the manufacturers website because they have a packaged deal that is much cheaper than Amazon (I basically got my waterproof case for free)

In concept, this is a great product. Swimming laps offers excellent exercise, but it can get mighty boring. For me, the chance to listen to something while I swim makes the experience nearly perfect.

But I had a series of problems with the earphones for my H2OAudio case. When I bought it from Amazon in December, 2004, it worked very well for a week, and then one channel went out. After another week, it quit working altogether. I returned it, and the same thing happened with the second set. It worked well for a week, then one channel went out, and then after a while I couldn't hear it anymore.

Finally, I called H2OAudio and learned that they had recognized this problem, and devised a fix for it. They sent me out a new set of earphones, and a small vial of lubricant. It seems that the suction created by removing the earphones from the housing wrecked the wiring. Lubricating the housing, they said, would solve the problem.

Since I got my second replacement earphones and the lubricant, all has worked well, and I have returned to my very pleasant lap-swimming routine. The H2OAudio service people were friendly, and, once they knew of my distress, they acted quickly to remedy it. I wish that they had worked out this problem before they sold the product to others, but I appreciate the way they have acted to fix it.

My experiences may explain the situation of the reviewer who says he can't hear his mp3 player when he is using the case. I would also say that, unlike another reviewer, I find that the armband is comfortable and works just fine; indeed, I find it unworkable to hang the case around my neck.

This was an expensive mistake. It's a good mp3 player and the case works fine... But the earphones don't work underwater. They are cones made of hard plastic with a short flange, too narrow to form a seal within the ear. As soon as water comes in, the sound is not audible.

i love this waterproof case (and my iriver mp3!). i swim laps w/ it every day, and yes my head underwater. the sound is muffled for a few minutes until your head/sound adjusts, but you just put the volume up and all is well. one way to get the earphones to stay in w/o moving and get a waterproof seal is to wear your swim cap (not the rubber silicone one but the fabric one) over the headset so that it covers your ears and really keeps the earphones set tightly. works like a dream.

As a long lap swimmer (1 and half hour), this is almost a must to have. I have used this device for almost two years. All I can say is it served my purposes. Before I bought this device I read the reviews on the Amazon and I was well prepared for the weakness of the device. Namely I followed the suggestion how to protect the weak earphone wire. I used tape to strength the wire at the T joint. I also prepared for the lousy sound it came out of the earphone. It sounds really bad. I really hope they will come up with some improvement and I will be the first one to jump on it. But, overall the device doesn't leak and provides me hours of music when I swim. I also hope that the battery on my IRiver MP3 player would last a little bit longer. It last about 3 weeks after I swim almost every day.

I did the research on Amazon and read all the review I could get and ended up buying this one. I never regret the decision I make.

I purchased this case along with an i-river mp3 player as I am cuurently recovering from an injury and am unable to run. The unit performed well enough but the headphones proveded average to below average quality sound. Maybe its the shape of my funny ears but I found them hard to adjust. I am only using these for aqua running where my head is basically staying in the same position and it has performed well enough, but I found it hard to believe that anyone was able to comfortably swim laps and keep the player AND headphones in place. Overall though I am satisfied with the purchase

I have had my sv-i700 since April 2005, which I use to lap swim everyday, I use the belt clip to a loop in the back of my swim suit and run the cord down my back. First thing to know about the earphone is to trim the earplug to fit your ear, I cut mine back two sections. When I have them in place I put the band of my goggles over the headband to keep pressure on them. After the first month, one channel went out, the wire breaks in the rubber boot. H2O audio sent me a new set of earphones (ipod white). This new set lasted another month and yes I do use the silcone as instructed. Then I decided to come up with a tie wrap solution to take the stress off the wire going into the boot. This seems to get at least two months out of the earphones before the wire breaks and I call in for a new set, I have gone thru 4 sets now. Not really sure what I will do when the one year warranty runs out, because I have become very dependent on having music to swim with.

I love my iRiver player, it's sounds great and easy to use. Dollar for dollar I don't think it can be beat. I live in Oregon and yard work involves being in the rain most of the year. I saw this case and headphone combo and had to get it. I thought of all of the hours I could spend in the yard and never run out of music and not worry about water damaging my player. I got my case and headphones and the headphones sound terrible. They are terribly uncomfortable to wear. There is nothing good about them. I've gone back to using my regular earbuds with a hat to protect them from rain. The case itself is great. I don't worry about bumping the player in the case and it WON'T get wet. Case 5 stars, Headphones 0 stars.