| BUSINESSWEEK ONLINE : JUNE 5, 2000 ISSUE | ||||||||
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| BUSINESSWEEK LIFESTYLE
The Best Pocket Players One of the best things about downloading music from the Internet is the ability to store it on a gadget no bigger than a playing card and listen to songs anywhere without a hassle. But portable MP3 players are more than just CD players minus the moving parts. Their usefulness depends just as much on the software that transfers, organizes, and stores the music files as on the actual mechanism that makes the sound. Going by these criteria, two MP3 players stand out: Creative Labs' Nomad II and Diamond Multimedia's Rio 500. Both second-generation players improve on their predecessors. They are the best among the current crop in sound quality, file-transfer time, and ease of use. HEAD TURNER. MP3 aficionados will appreciate the Diamond Rio because it can hold the most files and provide the best sound. The Diamond Rio comes with 64 megabytes of memory, and you can easily double that with a $160 SmartMedia memory card. Its RioPort Audio Manager software automatically organizes all the MP3 files on your computer and seamlessly converts new ones from CDs. The Diamond Rio, like the Nomad II, boasts a universal serial bus (USB) port that lets you transfer songs from your hard drive in a jiffy. It also has great sound, thanks to technology that reduces extra static that may creep into the near CD-quality MP3 tracks. The Nomad II is more user-friendly and offers extra features, such as a nifty clip-on remote control. The 64 MB version, at $329, is so well designed that the machine can be operated without instructions. The Nomad II's other features--a glowing green liquid-crystal display and headphones that wrap around the back of your skull--confer a high-tech cachet that will turn heads. The Nomad comes with MusicMatch Jukebox software, which does not offer a lot of bells and whistles but is extremely simple to use. Well-identified buttons help you categorize and label all your MP3 tracks, as well as other audio formats. You can also use the software to ''rip,'' or copy, and then manage tracks from your existing CD collection. Unlike the Rio 500, the Nomad II's memory maxes out at 64 MB. SHORT MEMORY. For those workaholics who want music on the go, a pocket PC may be the answer. Hewlett-Packard's Jornada 540 features both the Microsoft Windows Media Player and MusicMatch Jukebox software to convert audio files. You can easily transfer files via the Jornada's USB cradle, but only a few MP3s fill up the Jornada's memory. You'll need the included CompactFlash memory card, which adds 128 MB, to make it really work as a music player. Even with the added memory, the Jornada's sound quality isn't great over its included headphones. Still, the Jornada is an all-in-one device that should provide road warriors with music in a pinch. By STEFANI EADS AND DENNIS K. BERMAN _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ BACK TO TOP |
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RELATED ITEMS Ultimate Jukebox: The ABC's of MP3 TABLE: Getting into the Rhythm The Best Pocket Players TABLE: Portable Music Devices INTERACT E-Mail to Business Week Online | |||
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