Searching for that elusive (non ipod) perfect mp3 player
Well, I found it. Sort of. I had this obssession with the Iriver-H120 a while back. It wasn’t an ipod, it was black, it had the look of a good old JVC all metal cassette walkman (my first portable music device) and it was just…my thing. It was also discontinued.
My hunt for another Iriver led me to the H-10. The next version from the old H-120. It’s the same storage capacity, an updated firmware system, and it no longer plays OGG. Poo. But it retained the look, so I thought, what the heck. The price tag, at every local retailer I’ve searched, has been around $370. Tigerdirect had it for $279 for months, but I was waiting for a lower price to pounce.
So I checked this morning, and the price was $224 + $20 rebate. $204 + tax + shipping. About $250 when all’s said and done. Compared to $370+tax = $425 at TheSourceCC. That means…I save a whopping $175. So if anybody wants to nab one before they’re gone (the rebate will be honored until the end of the month), here’s a link. By the way, that’s Canadian dollars. It’s even cheaper on the US site.
Warning: this is a geek mp3 player. It’s probably one of the least user-friendly players out there. You can learn to use it, then hand it to your friends, who will promptly hand it back. Since that’s exactly how I’ve set up my computer (Aston shell, anyone? No desktop icons? All shortcut menus binded to F-keys? Confused yet?) I LOVE it.
Firmware upgrade link (There’s MAJOR problems with the built in 1.01 firmware. latest as of this posting: 2.51.)
Fixya page
March 23rd, 2006 at 11:40 pm
I’ve been thinking of playing with Aston for a while now. Maybe I’ll give it a shot this weekend with the trial version. I’m especially interested in seeing how it handles Adobe Photoshop.
As for the H10, it’s pretty nice. I’m actually in love with my iPods, but I’ve recommended the H10 to friends (as they just had to have FM receiver). and at US$180, that is a VERY nice deal. But, too bad it does not come in black (but there is a very nice dark gray one). I hope it works out well for you!
March 23rd, 2006 at 11:43 pm
Oh, I also wanted to mention I’ve no idea why they discontinued the H120…that thing was way cool.
March 27th, 2006 at 10:29 am
That thing WAS way cool. I think they discontinued it because the GUI was unintruitive.
So they brought in the more tactile touch-strip instead (which, in a way, is more intuitive than ipod’s clickwheel). And if they’re going to introduce a 5GB model at the same price, they have to discontinue the older model that offers 20GB.
November 1st, 2008 at 9:12 pm
Thank you for your site
I made on photoshop backgrounds for youtube, myspace and more
my backgrounds:http://tinyurl.com/6ptkxd
take care and thank you again!