Rio 800 (128 MB) MP3 Player

Pros: big lcd screen, great carrying case, usb, good menu, 128 MB
Cons: bad qualtiy sound, bad voice recorder, battery life, comes with RealPlayer, (reccomend RealOne)

The Rio 800 is a decent mp3 player. It was my first mp3 player and I loved it. But there we're also some things that it could improve on. It had many good things about it... - PROS - - First of all the Rio 800 looks sleek. ...

Pros: Loud; 85dB signal to noise ratio; 7 presets; playlists; good backlight; bookmarks; solid construction; layout
Cons: battery life; Ni-MH battery; charging adapter

First Impressions

The Rio 800 I purchased last year has served me well. I like looks of it, and the sound is good. This player has many features, some of which I do not use, but it is better to have them and not use them.

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Pros: Good Sound, MP3 and WMA, Build-in-mic
Cons: I dis-like the case, buttons and display Battery problems, Lousy Software.

I got the Rio 800 as a replacement for a defective Rio 500 (now obsolete). I use it for music, and audio books.

Case and Buttons
I suppose that everyone has their own preferences about case design, but I prefer the simplicity of...

Pros: Great sound. Compact and perfect for the gym.
Cons: Battery, Battery, and Battery. 384MB Model No Longer Offered

This MP3 player is the perfect sound machine for walking, jogging, or the gym. Easy to transfer songs from my laptop. The SonicBlue web site still describes this unit in different memory configurations including the 384MB (the one I really wanted)...

Pros: With mp3s recorded at 128 Kbps or higher, you may think this is a Cdplayer
Cons: The battery is an issue, but easily solved with a replacement, RealOne Software :(

The RIO 800 MP3 player is a solid MP3 player that offers all the options that a user could want.
It allows you to move and delete songs right on the player, so you don't need to connect to your computer to remove a song that you are tired of. This...

Pros: Good interface and outstanding sound quality
Cons: Battery needs a change,software is horrible, but there is a solution!

The Rio 800 with 128MB is a great product for those looking for a simple mp3 player. It stores up to 4 hours of music and has the ability to add aditional memory packs. The software included with the Rio 800 was unbeliveibly bad. It was very hard to put...

Pros: Very easy to use, good sound quality, 128 mb memory capacity, small size
Cons: Battery life is NOT 11 hours long, expensive ($250)

I wanted to get an MP3 player for use during exercise, plane flights, and as an all purpose music player for all the songs I've &*legally downloaded from the internet. When I was looking to buy, there were two products that had 128 mb memory capacity,...

Pros: Great sound quality.
Cons: Poor reliability, eats (and I mean EATS) batteries

I originally received this as a Christmas gift and I was excited. No more going to the gym w/ a bulky cd player and no more changing cd’s. Now I can make my own workout mix.

Yeah.

Opps, problem. As soon as I put the batteries...

Pros: Good sound. Easy loading with RealOne software.
Cons: Instructions are not well written.

I previously had the Nike psa120, and was familiar with what I wanted and didn't want. I use my tunes while working out, and need something small and light with a belt clip. Nike previously fit the bill, but only held 64M of music. I bought a Sandisk...

Pros: none
Cons: many, read on

This product is riddled with problems... some crop up initially (mine didn't power on at all after initial charging with a supposedly new, "safe" adapter)... and many problems seem to crop up later, as reported here and elsewhere. Don't wait for yours to...

Pros: Great sound. Attractive. Tough. Great user support groups. Audible support.
Cons: Battery cost and lifetime

The RIO 800 is an evolution of the strong line of MP3 players begun by Diamond. After the RIO line was purchased by Sonic Blue the firm inexplicably released several players that, arguably, were inferior to the old RIO 500. The RIO 800 offered a return...

Pros: When it works (not long), it works well.
Cons: No such thing as "support"

Here's why: Try calling their technical support line and see how far you get... 800-468-5846. Oh, wait, they don't offer technical support there, and when you call their toll number (for which you will pay $19.95 for support - if you ever get a human on...

Pros: Nice looking
Cons: battery, support

This now outdated product has never worked properly. There is a documented problem with the battery life and Rio support is tedious (at best). Worst, the support documents do not provide comprehensive information - there are software issues (windows...

Pros: Great unit while it works.
Cons: Awful customer service.

BEWARE when your warranty expires. You are COMPLETELY on your own as SonicBlue does not repair units or have an authorized repair service. I got screwed. Don't bother with anything from RIO/SonicBlue.

I now only hear audio from one side of...

Pros: Small, lightweight
Cons: Can't transfer songs to/from computer (what is the point then?)

I got this product to replace a creative nomad mg. This product so far has greatly disappointed me. First the install for the drivers is 16 bit and chokes on long path names, then when I move it to a different directory (C:\temp) it runs, but I still...