iRiver iFP-180T

CNET editors' rating: 3.5 stars Very good
Detailed editors' rating
Overall score: 7.3 (3.5 stars)
• Average user rating: 4.0 stars out of 187 reviews
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Product summary

CNET editors' review

• Reviewed by:
  Brian Bennett
• Reviewed on: 11/04/2002
• Updated on: 01/08/2003
• Released on: 01/09/2003

iRiver first made its mark in the portable-audio arena with its slim, affordable MP3 CD player. Now, the company is serving up the equally slick, flash-based iFP-180T. This fashionable, feature-rich, little guy comes with 128MB of built-in memory and offers excellent battery life. We just wish that iRiver included some sort of carrying case or belt clip instead of an impractical neck strap.

Editor's note: We have changed the rating in this review to reflect recent changes in our rating scale. Click here to find out more. iRiver first made its mark in the portable-audio arena with its slim, affordable MP3 CD player. Now, the company is serving up the equally slick, flash-based iFP-180T. This fashionable, feature-rich, little guy comes with 128MB of built-in memory and offers excellent battery life. We just wish that iRiver included some sort of carrying case or belt clip instead of an impractical neck strap.

Design
The triangular iFP-180T features a sleek, silver-and-gray, plastic casing that resembles a small, metallic prism. At 1.2 by 0.1 by 3.2 inches and a mere 1.6 ounces with a single AA battery installed, this iRiver is small and lightweight enough to easily slip into pants and shirt pockets. However, despite its diminutive weight, the device seems sturdily built--except for the chromelike ends, which feel a bit cheap. The 180T's three buttons--hold, A-B, and play/pause/power--and innovative joystick control feel solid to the touch.

This iRiver comes with its own neck strap, but we should warn that using it is awkward. Though it's not hard to reach the player's controls while wearing the 180T around the neck, the device bobbed and weaved like a prize-fighter when we took it on brisk city strolls. Fortunately, the 180T's bundled Sennheiser MX300 earbuds have a long enough cord to reach your ears from your pants pocket.

The only design flaw is somewhere between minor and major: the flip-open battery case unlatches if jostled too much, powering down the player and stopping playback.

Features and connectivity
iRiver has crammed the iFP-180T with more features than seem possible, considering its small size. With 128MB of integrated memory, the device can hold about four hours of music, depending on your favorite bit rate and audio-file type (the iFP-180T can handle MP3, WMA, and ASF formats). A built-in FM tuner provides auxiliary tunes when you're tired of listening to your own music, while a voice recorder takes dictation on the go. You can even use this function to record live FM radio, which you can later upload to your PC.

Continually demonstrating its proclivity for stylish interfaces, iRiver built the iFP-180T around an enticingly large, four-line, backlit LCD. Using this display, it's simple to browse through eight directory levels of music or zip through all songs when they're stored in the root directory. The joystick also functions as a forward, reverse, and volume control, making one-handed operation a breeze. The 180T can store data as well as digital music, so it's handy for porting small files between computers.

The iFP-180T connects to your PC via the included USB 1.1 cable, and the default firmware requires you to use the bundled iRiver Music Manager software to shuttle files onto the device. iRiver offers alternate firmware (search for "UMS") that allows you to transfer files without the program. Instead, you load the player directly from Windows Explorer or the Mac's Finder on recent operating systems.

Performance
The iFP-180T is a pleasure to use, from installation onward. We just popped in the battery, connected the player to our system, and installed iRiver's software and drivers as instructed by the manual. We were able to place 29.7MB of music onto the 180T in 77 seconds, for a transfer rate of 0.39MB per second--about average for this type of connection.

A signal-to-noise ratio of 90dB makes for hiss-free sound, and to our ear, audio sounded full and satisfying through our test headphones. The aforementioned earbuds are comfortable and deliver a decent amount of bass. We got almost 18 hours of playback on one AA cell--not quite in line with iRiver's claimed 20 hours of battery life but still impressive.

One small grievance: It's easy to accidentally activate FM recording when switching back to MP3 mode since both functions use the same button.

All in all, the iRiver iFP-180T makes a compelling package if you don't mind carrying it in a pocket or around your neck instead of on your hip. This player's 128MB of memory, large display, sweet sound, and extra features make it easy to recommend at $140.

User reviews

• Average user rating: 4.0 stars out of 187 reviews
• My rating: 0 stars Write review

• Showing 3 of 187 user reviewsSee all 187 user reviews

• 4.5 stars

  5 out of 5 people found this review helpful

  ""Best value for the sound and options""

  by fastback4 on March 29, 2005

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• 5.0 stars

  2 out of 2 people found this review helpful

  "The best thing since the ipod."

  on January 12, 2005

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• 4.5 stars

  1 out of 1 people found this review helpful

  "This player is so wonderful!"

  by jaambeauty on March 13, 2005

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• See all 187 user reviews Write review

Where to buy

iRiver iFP-180T: $129.99

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Amazon.com Marketplace	$129.99	See Site

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Where to buy iRiver iFP-180T

• store price in stock
• Amazon.com Marketplace $129.99 See Site
• See store