Entered CNET Catalog: 12/12/2003
SKU: DMPX20
Manufacturer: Gateway Inc.
Manufacturer description
The Gateway's DMP-X20 lets you carry an entire collection of great music wherever you go. Its 20GB storage capacity is capable of holding 500 CDs or up to 5, 000 .mp3 or 8, 000 .wma songs. The new Gateway's Digital Music Jukebox is so thin and light it can be taken virtually anywhere (weighs only 7.7 ounces). And, while the size is small, the sound quality is big. The Gateway's DMP-X20 delivers a clean, crisp high-fidelity sound that will impress the most discerning music aficionado. The built-in FM tuner and digital voice recorder features add versatility to the Gateway's DMP-X20. The FM tuner offers 12 user selectable pre-sets, so music lovers can quickly tune into their favorite radio stations on the go. The built-in digital voice recorder is a handy tool for recording meetings, lectures or making personal reminders. It's so versatile, it can also be used to transport photos, presentations or any kind of electronic data. The lightning-fast USB 2.0 interface allows transfers as fast as a song per second so the jukebox can be loaded with music in about an hour. Transferring downloaded music from 3rd party services is a snap, since the Gateway Jukebox is compatible with existing Windows Media DRM. It also supports MP3 files, Windows Media Audio and Audible content, so it can be used to listen to spoken word files. The Gateway's Digital Jukebox is simple to use, yet has several innovative features. It boasts one of the largest displays in its class with an easy-to-read 2.5" display that stylishly presents MP3 and other data with an indigo blue backlight. The intuitive scroll navigation makes accessing and managing content quick and easy. Music content can be browsed by album, artist, genre, track or play-list so the music can play on where ever you go.Product summary
The good: Ergonomic controls; rugged, attractive design; voice recording; FM radio; large, easy-to-navigate display; in-line remote.
The bad: Heavy; doesn't play albums in the correct order.
The bottom line: This solid, attractive update to the eDigital Odyssey fixes many of its ancestor's problems.
User opinions
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8/10
decent player
Pros: HUGE 20gb, large easy to navigate display, FM radio, good sound qaulity, many player settings
Cons: a little heavy at first but you get used to it.
User Rating:
1/10
Buyer Beware
Pros: Large Memory
Cons: Heavy; Poor Quality; Durability
My Gateway had a host of problems. First of all, I was annoyed at the fact that the player doesn't store songs in order. It's mighty annoying not being able to listen to an album in sequential order. Isn't that what "shuffle" is for??
Secondly, the player comes with a case that you HAVE to remove in order to do simple things such as charge the player, turn it on/off and to transfer music.
Third, the display screen started to fade on me.
Fourth, it's a pretty hefty player compared to say an iPod.
Fifth, the headphone jack had a short. I had to always fiddle with my headphones to get proper sound. Very, very annoying...
And finally, it froze CONSTANTLY. As a metter of fact, it froze on me a week ago and has never come back to life. I never dropped it, got it wet, or abused it any other way.
So please, stay far from this Gateway product!
User Rating:
2/10
Think twice before buying
Pros: makes a good paper weight
Cons: everything electronic
User Rating:
9/10
Better than iPod but cosmetically less
Pros: Good FM Tuner, Voice Recording, 20GB storage, eq.
Cons: a little bit boxy, lacks the sleekness of iPod
User Rating:
8/10
Best IPOD Alternative
Pros: Somewhat inexpensive FM Tuner Voice Recorder Great, bright display.
Cons: None really, some people complain about having to use WMP with this jukebox. All you have to do is reconcile the player, which takes about 10 seconds at the most. All files can be transferred with Windows Explorer.
User Rating:
3/10
huge mistake
Pros: it has a really great battery life
Cons: the screen broke shortly after i bought it, sometimes it freezes or turns off, it adds nonsense tracks to my music list and the controls are inconvenient
User Rating:
6/10
Kind of a lemon
Pros: Cheap, lots of memory, MP3, WMA, and a nice display.
Cons: It's made of really cheap parts, the ear buds didn't last a month before completely falling apart. When I re-charge the battery it lets off an O-zone smell and makes bizarre thumping noises. The case never really fit and all the stitches are coming loose.
User Rating:
3/10
Service Warning!
Pros: Cheap, lots of disk space. Audible-compatible.
Cons: Gateway has been unable to fix my DMP-X20 within the time frame it gave me. After applying a firmware patch Gateway provided, the problem I had was solved (Audible content could NOT be deleted properly from the player -- the wrong content was deleted abou
User Rating:
6/10
An MP3 player that has more features and is cheaper than the iPod.
Pros: This is a pretty good mp3 player. Plays all kinds of files-MP3,WMA,WAV,and Audible content. Comes with a lot of free stuff like a carrying case, USB cable, charger, in-line remote, A/V jacks to hook up to the tv, headphones and more. Also comes with a lot
Cons: Freezes a lot! Technical support is bad. Sound quality is not crisp or clear, but still pretty good. On/Off switch in an unconvient location.
User Rating:
2/10
Buggy Firmware, unreliable product
Pros: Plays WMA DRM, Audible. Does an acceptable job with Audible (not great). Sound is good. Controls easy to use. Rugged case.
Cons: You never know if your Audible file will pick up where it left off or not (supposed to, but many things can throw this off). My Hard drive crashed after their August 2004 firmware update-Gateway said there was no way to re-flash it back (they "no longer h
User Rating:
2/10
Crashed after 4 months!
Pros: Good sound, attractive design,FM radio.
Cons: Where do I start? I have been a loyal Gateway customer for years but no longer! I ordered my Jukebox in April. When I got it the carrying case was defective. I had to talk to 7 different people and wait almost a month before they would replace my case. On
User Rating:
3/10
Firmware terrible
Pros: well-built. Good battery life. Good integration with Audible books.
Cons: Plays albums in alphapetical order (ignores track tag). Can't be fixed by Gateway. Zero customer support.
User Rating:
9/10
GREAT IF PATIENT
Pros: Sounds Great w/ better head phones. Radio sounds great depending on location. Small, and rugged. I read that people are having trouble putting songs in order and I have a solution (Get ready to type). When I make mp3s I name them like this: Band Name - Ye
Cons: Too bad there isn't an option to delete albums or songs on the player, it would have been easier. Also I noticed that when you have the light on for a long time or LCD contrast high or when you are making your playlists, it drains your battery pretty fas
User Rating:
1/10
absolutely terrible
Pros: heavy, so carrying it around built up my arm muscles. Re-booting it every 10 minutes built up my finger muscles...
Cons: DO YOURSELF A FAVOR AND DO NOT BUY THIS PRODUCT!!! I purchased this player in March and it has been terrible since day 1. It completely died yesterday, and gateway has said there is nothing they can do about it. It skipped, it froze, and it crashed, I r
User Rating:
6/10
A good work horse.
Pros: The best for the money. Good capacity, seems reliable, good tie-in to Media Player. I use it as much with Audio Books as I do music. I actually have started using the voice record option at work for meetings, and save the audio as documentation! I am con
Cons: The interface is not entirely intuitive, but once you learn it, it does all that is needed. Audio book support sometimes flakey, in that it occasionally forgets the point last left. But easy to find again. But I understand it is no longer avaialble from
User Rating:
8/10
Awesome player with great style
Pros: I think the Gateway DMP Jukebox mp3 player is among the most attractive one out on the market. I have read alot of reviews of this player here and cannot understand why many do not recommend. You get great style. It comes with all the accessories needed i
Cons: Doesn't play albums in correct order.
User Rating:
1/10
Broke--Poor Support
Pros: Was okay while it worked, which wasn't very long--busted two days out of warranty and they refused to service it.
Cons: Worked for only 92 days. I own and iPod now.
User Rating:
8/10
I love the look and ease of use!
Pros: Easy to navigate, Portability, and Transfers
Cons: I dont get good reception with my radio. There should be an antenna that you can add on to it. Kind of like the one you put on a cell phone to boost it up.
User Rating:
5/10
there are much better MP3's ou there!
Pros: backlight, radio, cheap for its compacity
Cons: heavy, crashed in less than a month!, slowww start up and shut down, doesn't play albums in right order, copies name of album, song, and artist wrong. Wouldn't buy! (but i did) I am actually about to buy the irver 20 gb
User Rating:
6/10
Get it cheap, it won't let you down!
Pros: Can be found cheap ($180 at gateway liquidation sale) since it appears to have been discontinued, sounds great, plays MP3s WMAs and WAV/Audiable files
Cons: Plays albums in alpha order not by track, must use windows media player 9
User Rating:
5/10
Blunderous decision to not support track order!
Pros: Can hold and play lots of mp3 files.
Cons: This is not the music lover's mp3 jukebox by any stretch of the imagination. It is a completely BLUNDEROUS mistake to not play albums in album order ESPECIALLY when the information is available in the mp3 tag! How this can be overlooked in both the orig
User Rating:
10/10
Decent iPod alternative
Pros: Looks cool. Feels solid. Scroll wheel works and feels well. Large screen with attractive, EASY interface. No problems with audible.com content so far. Havent needed to call gateway support yet. Battery life seems to be abut 10-12 hours, which is dec
Cons: Heavy. Kinda paranoid about scratching it. It's case sensitive when it comes to artists, but from what I've heard thats common of nearly all players. If this were a little cheaper, I would call it a better deal than the iPod.
User Rating:
7/10
I think it's great...
Pros: -Sound quality -Ease of use -Ability to download and play Audible files
Cons: -Little bulky -Can't seem to load files using WMP
User Rating:
7/10
Fits my needs perfectly!
Pros: Being able to play Audible audio books is a lifesaver. I drive 3 hours a day between home and school and would have fallen asleep in my car without this. It plays the books perfectly (if you use bookmarks). The mp3 and wma support works fine. Even the
Cons: A few firmware bugs including problems mixing up which audio tracks belong to which album. Player occasionally gets confused if you don't use bookmarks for Audible content. The polarized display should be a plus, but when I'm driving with polarized sung
User Rating:
3/10
unstable technology; poor service
Pros: when it works it works great
Cons: Since getting it in December, it has been back to the service center THREE times (and is currently there right now). At this point, the player has been at the repair shop for longer than I've owned it. It's possible that the mini hard disk technology ju
User Rating:
5/10
If you want books this is the one!!
Pros: Plays books from audible.com Loads fast and easy
Cons: Poor customer service. no instruction on how to delete items
User Rating:
6/10
Inventory Blow-out
Pros: A lot of features.
Cons: Already stated by many others. I wonder if Gateway is going to keep making it. They blew out the inventory of DMP-X20s for a little over $100 during the store closures in my area. I expected that they would send them back to the warehouse to supply onlin
User Rating:
5/10
Super dood
Pros: im a kid but the new generation nows that mp3 are the thing of the future now. if your going to get one get a good on a least. very good sound but use windows explorer to get the music.
Cons: skips a little but not often
User Rating:
3/10
I would look for a different model
Pros: shiny, sleek, music quality is good, long battery life, easy menu and controls
Cons: returned and got a full refund since a few weeks after the purchase, the screen display would only come on sometimes then went completely out. Besides that, the FM tuner doesn't work and I live in a major city, can't search for albums but must scroll thru
User Rating:
8/10
Not bad for the monney
Pros: Plays audible format one of only 2 hard drive player on market (ipod is outher) Feb firmware update on gateway.com seems to have fixed alot of the issue brough up here in the negitive section.
Cons: still lose place in book if shutdown while playing for safety i recommned bookmarking before stoping playback to shutdown.
User Rating:
2/10
3rd post, still not happy
Pros: It doesn't have bullets, so it can't shoot me.
Cons: Mine skips audible tracks...tonight for the 3rd time it just locked up when I turned it on, won't shut off, no response on any buttons. based on previous experience, I have to leave it on overnight so the battery runs down, then reformat and reload. DO NO
User Rating:
10/10
Amazing player- Wow!
Pros: nice bass adjustable equalizer fm tuner in line remote large screen comes with case This player is awesome, I did alot of research and found for the money this was the best deal with the most features. It is very eye pleasing and full of features. I am so
Cons: none found yet
User Rating:
8/10
Expensive, but exactly the features I was looking for
Pros: Size, weight, storage capacity, battery life, sound quality, all are excellent. Easy to use as a hard drive, easy to make playlists while using. Whatever problem the cNet editors had with albums not playing in order seems to have disappeared.
Cons: Lousy shuffler, but then I've never met one I liked.
User Rating:
2/10
Clunky and cumbersome
Pros: A bit cheaper than the iPod
Cons: Cheap, heavy design. Difficult to interface with computer. Poor integration.
User Rating:
10/10
looks great.. sounds great.. is great
Pros: love it. and i've seen all of them.. this is just the best.. plain and simple
Cons: personally, i don't like the case it comes with so i think i'll buy a 1st or 2nd gen ipod case which'll fit just about right
User Rating:
3/10
Not worth the cost - even if it is cheaper
Pros: Sounds good. Shiny. NOTHING ELSE.
Cons: Bad FM tuner. You would have to be in the lobby of the transmitter to get a station clearly. Very bad problem with Playlist feature. Once you create a playlist - then go back again to listen to it, it will add a track (one you didnt want in there) 20, 30
User Rating:
10/10
loved everywhere i go
Pros: i truly think this is the number one 20gig player out there. So much more than the ipod and for less. I take it everywhere.. school, shopping.. car.. and so far so many people decided to get one. i love it and now so do they
Cons: comes wit good accessories to start, but needs more eventually
User Rating:
8/10
Turn's heads everywhere I go
Pros: Before buying this unit I looked into the competition and saw it was the best value. It has more features than the Dell or Creative and costs less than the Ipod. The screen in the biggest on the market and its look, simply put-gorgeous. My classmates are
Cons: Larger than the Ipod- The buldge in my pocket is cool... but square. The case, though very effective, is unattractive. Radio isn't all you would hope for, but with a 7500 song rotation, who needs radio.
User Rating:
9/10
Excelent Value!!!
Pros: Beautiful violet screen. Controls are easy to manipulate for the most part. Amazing value... Easy to find 'em for less than $299. Easy to read on-screen guides. Gateway tech support among the best if not THE best.
Cons: On/Hold/Off switch way too small and cramped. Unit is a bit heavy but, hey, you're holding 20GB! Stock headphones are lousy, can't wear with sunglasses.
User Rating:
10/10
Best Jukebox on the market
Pros: Everything, Sound Quality, Ease of use, you can drag and drop files in explorer as your computer sees it as a hard drive, The unit is built like a tank.
Cons: Need to use Media Player to reconcile files after dragging and dropping.
User Rating:
10/10
not a bad thing about it
Pros: cool design and all my little extras. pocket-sized and sleek, radio, recorder, and fun menus. Super easy for the average PC user
Cons: ...
User Rating:
4/10
i just got it and....
Pros: well one of the only reason i got the dmp-x20 is b.c of the radio and i guess the recorder was a plus. sound is great, easy to use but...
Cons: now that i have the dmp-x20 i am reconsidering if i should have really gotten it. yes i'm happy with what i have for the price but since i have a lot of tracks with no name it will not take all of them and just takes only one set of tracks (ie 1-22 and no
User Rating:
10/10
no player like it!
Pros: don't listen to the ipod maniacs, they are obsessed with the shiny white plastic. Gateway's player is the best in every aspect from sound to ease of use to accessories to design. Flawlessly hooked up to my PC in seconds. just love it!
Cons: none..
User Rating:
10/10
tons of stuff and awesome sound
Pros: just go through the great menu system and see what i mean. I always use the remote in school and the USB2 save lots of time. nice metal design. this one's better than iPod, by far and for less
Cons: Windows Media Player mixes up my names and albums. use explorer and reconcile, much better
User Rating:
10/10
best player, most for $
Pros: One of the greatest players I've seen and by far the best sound and display. Has lots of extras like remote, and fast USB 2. really cool design, love the chrome and clear blue backlight
Cons: i don't really like the case, I'll just by another one.
User Rating:
10/10
get the gateway.. you'll be happy.
Pros: sound is unbelievable, especially with a nice pair of headphones. nice sleek design, considering gateway squeezed in a radio, recorder, and 20gig HD. fast USB2, tiny remote
Cons: dont like the case or WMP, i just opened the player like an external hard drive on my PC and dragged the music on, then reconciled
User Rating:
10/10
Best player out there, but don't use Windows Media Player
Pros: best player i've seen and i've seen them all-ipod, dell, rio, creative.. has the most features without adding on all kinds of stuff on top like u would wit the ipod. love the menu system, much like the ipod's or dell's. really nice design
Cons: don't use Windows Media Player for file transfers, it mixes up the names and stuff. Just use Windows Explorer and then reconcile. This way, there's no pauses between transfers for multiple songs.
User Rating:
9/10
ITS NOT HEAVY...HAVE U FELT THE DELL?? ITS BIGGER AND HEAVIER WITH LESS FEATURES. THIS ONES AWESOME
Pros: love everything about it.. great design, smart menu system. I like the remote its ultra small. recorder comes in handy more times than u think. don't even think of wasting ur money on ipod or dell.
Cons: needs more cases
User Rating:
10/10
Who cares if it's heavy?
Pros: It works perfectly and sounds great! Plus,it looks very, very cool.I like the fact that it has some heft to it.It's not like you are dragging around a cement block! I am not a techno-freak,but getting this product installed to my new Media computer(Gatewa
Cons: I do not like any ear-bud earphones,so I bought a nice pair of Sennheisers and the sound is great.I have yet to buy an MP3 player/Jukebox that came with a decent pair of earbuds!
User Rating:
2/10
returned after 2 hours
Pros: it's not an apple product, extras built in
Cons: bad interface, locks up and freezes, large blocky design, poor support from Gateway....poor product
User Rating:
5/10
Malfunctions
Pros: I bought this mp3 player because it included a radio as well a hard-drive. The device generally did what it was supposed to - play music.
Cons: The player always showed the incorrect album name when playing a track. Also, it has no cross fade, and certain operations are incredibly slow (sometimes the device hangs, and the power switch doesn't even work). Finally, using Windows Media player to cop
User Rating:
3/10
Won't play/transfer Musicmatch content
Pros: Great sound and good features
Cons: Gateway "support" personnel say they do not have the experience to help with this issue. I can not get songs purchased from Musicmatch to play on my Gateway DMP-X20. I have tried reinstalls of all software and on 2 other of my computers. If I transfer son
User Rating:
8/10
CNET has a Dell Bias
Pros: Always thought everyone was being too critical of CNET when they suggested a Dell bias - their review of the Digital Jukeboxes proves it. CNET Gateway Cons - too heavy at 7.7 ounces? Boy, if it only weighed .1 oz less it wouldn't have been a problem be
Cons: Was disappointed with the speaker malfuntion so early, but they handled it like champs.
User Rating:
10/10
obviously #1 for value and quality
Pros: hey jim.. not everyone feels like spending $300 on some fragile white piece of plastic that comes with nothing
Cons: none
User Rating:
10/10
Has anyone hear of the iPod's dirty little secret?
Pros: thank god its not an ipod. Super long batt life, fast transfers, cool design, lots of stuff... #1!! ...By the way..go to ipodsdirtysecret.com to see what I'm talking about....
Cons: needs some new cases available
User Rating:
5/10
Can't touch the iPod or iTunes
Pros:
Cons: Too heavy! Theres a reason why I havent used my Nomad Jukebox in the 2 years Ive owned it... and this weighs in pretty close. Value: You get what you pay for... maybe for some people who want a radio attached to their portable "jukebox" this is a good th
User Rating:
7/10
Heavy, but very good sound quality
Pros: The DMP-X20 had all the qualities I wanted: MP3's, large capacity, Audible.com support, USB 2.0 support and the ability to record. It worked great for about a week, then froze up. I spoke to Gateway tech support, they asked me to reformat the hard drive
Cons: It transfer much faster than my previous USB 1.1 MP3 player, but pauses after every song transfer, which slows down the total transfer time. It also made me realize that I need to do a better job of tagging the media, as it differentiates between capital
User Rating:
10/10
SOUND IS THE BES !
Pros: love the sound, perfect size SUPER LARGE SCREEN Highly recommend this hard Drive MP3 player My friend have an I pod and after he use my new Gateway Jukebox Player DMP-X20 he noticed the big different In the awesome & clarity sound from my DMP-X20 N
Cons: none
User Rating:
9/10
This is one of the sharpest looking players I've seen, and 20gigs/FM for much less than the ipod
Pros: esthetics,sound,feel and the big screen makes it a pleasure to use
Cons: none at this point in time
User Rating:
3/10
Bad for audible.com content...
Pros: Lots of hard drive for the money, decent user interface.
Cons: At random times, the unit "skipped ahead" on audible.com content (audio books). Gateway support was terrible - they weren't even aware the unit was supposed to support the Audible format. Eventually returned the unit.
User Rating:
10/10
flawless!!!
Pros: best player out there especially with all the stuff it has. my cousin got an ipod and he returned it as soon as he saw the gateway. Sounds best and comes with everything i want.
Cons: none
User Rating:
10/10
unbelievably awesome!!
Pros: only $300 and i got the most and the best. Leaves others like ipod in the dust considering that you get absolutely nothing with the ipod. someone finally killed the ipod!!
Cons: Not 1
User Rating:
10/10
simply #1!!
Pros: I love the design, the storage space (I already have 7124 songs with plenty of space left.) Way better sound quality than ipod or lots of others out there. Comes with lots of stuff you need and want like a case, remote, recorder, and radio. Love the menu
Cons: Case could be less bulky and have more plug holes.
User Rating:
9/10
Forget Apple!!
Pros: Not an iPod.(major pro) +SOOO much stuff!! 7500 songs! radio, mic, great screen, timer, equalizer, great menu system and sleek design. I love the remote, the super-fast USB and the scroll wheel. Long battery life, great sound! Small, easy hook up to PCs,
Cons: More cases and accessories like docks and speakers, hopefully will be out soon. Windows Media Player may mix up the songs and titles so i would just drag the files on.
User Rating:
9/10
Finally an iPod Killer!!
Pros: Futuristic design, large, detailed screen, great features like radio, recorder, timer, auto-off, and really small remote- way more than other HD players, and has a great menu system. Small and great sound make it my favorite out there.
Cons: A little heavy, but still lightweight compared to most. I guess a little extra can be expected with a radio and microphone built in. Case needs more outlet holes.
User Rating:
2/10
Buy with some trepidation
Pros: Works well, when it works. Seamlessly integrates to Windows media player, downloads are very fast.
Cons: Iv'e had the unit 30 days. Then it toally locked up while playing. After leaving it set overnight, I was then able to turn it off and on. I am going to recharge , reformat and reload(whoppee!) and if it fails again, get my $$ back. Gateway web page suppor
User Rating:
8/10
Excellent sound, classy looking
Pros: Excellent sound quality (once you plug in a decent set of headphones); very good high frequency response and tons of bass. 5 EQ presets + custom settings with 5 band EQ. I love the menu system; very, very intuitive. Scroll wheel is a great feature. FM Tun
Cons: The headphones that ship with the unit are terrible. Doesn't want to play album tracks in order they appear on CD or in WMP library.
User Rating:
5/10
crashed instantly
Pros: For some time I was looking for a product that might fit my needs - portability, flexibility and budget- and fit the best of my CD collection. I found that for the price, the DMP-X20 has a variety of amenities that made it quite competitive. However, my e
Cons: On the first day, I used the radio function and found that it was almost acceptable, but many of the radio stations I hear were not picked by this device and the reception of those that were picked were lost if I moved around the house. Let me tell you th
User Rating:
8/10
Most for Your Money!!
Pros: The Gateway DMP-X20 has a large, detailed screen, contemporary design, numerous features including an FM Tuner, Voice Recorder, and customizable equalizer. It comes with plenty of accessories like a remote, a case, and the very fast USB 2. This is one of
Cons: Design is slightly bulky, but not large. Case would be better if it had more openings for the outlets.
User Rating:
9/10
This is the ?Jukebox King.? It takes the stage & steals the MP3 SCENE!
Pros: In my school the Gateway DMP-X20 is the valedictorian of this year?s class of MP3 players. Sound, size and supple. Digital. Supports WMA, WAV, MP3 & Audible formats. FM tuner with 12 presets. Delivers Loud, Clear and True Fidelity. Peerless displ
Cons: Minor design flaws: ON/OFF Switch not convenient. Case should have a opening for power supply and the USB connection. Neither the Windows Media Player nor the Audible Manager support playing a song/book from a Player. This is a deficiency that should be