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CNET editors' review
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CNET editors' rating:
stars
Good
Detailed editors' rating
- Reviewed on: 12/04/2002
- Updated on: 02/10/2003
- Released on: 11/01/2002
Nike has again made the mistake--and we say Nike because it specifies the design requirements--of providing a set of headphones with a short cord, which means that you'll be forced into using the in-line remote if you go with the supplied headphones. On the earlier, Rio-branded model, the remote actually drained your battery more quickly. The good news here is that this remote has no battery-guzzling LCD and is lightweight, facts that will appeal to runners who prefer not to have extra devices dangling from the headphone cord.
The most innovative--and at the same time debatable--design elements are the magnets that adorn both the remote and the headphone cord. Instead of using the standard clips found on most in-line remotes, Philips has gone with a magnet system for wire management. The idea is to place a piece of clothing between two magnets, one of which is embedded in the remote.
It's a pretty cool system but comes with a few caveats: First, you risk losing the two stackable magnets. Second, the magnets will stick to anything metal by their very nature. It's also worth mentioning that the wraparound, neck-style headphones, while of good quality, don't fit as snugly as the headband-style phones that came with the original PSA Play. This is a matter of taste, but for running, we prefer the latter style of phones.
In a similar vein, some users will be partial to toting the PSA 128 via the improved armband--the device actually slips into the armband rather than screwing into it. Other users, however, will wish that Nike and Philips had included a carrying case with a belt clip, the way Sonicblue did with its fitness-oriented Rio S35S.
Since the PSA Play 64 lacks an LCD, there is no interface; if you want to see song info, you'll have to drop the extra cash for the aforementioned PSA 128 Max. This player does have a three-color, rubber-covered LED on its front that lights up when the unit is playing, a button is pressed, or it's connected to your computer.The PSA Play 64 offers all the standard features, including repeat and random modes and a hold feature that locks the player's buttons You also get four EQ presets--Hip Hop, Funk, Techno, and Rock--to choose from, as well as a custom setting.
The included MusicMatch Jukebox software organizes your tunes and turns your CDs into MP3 or WMA files. With only 64MB of built-in memory, this PSA Play gives you a limited amount of storage space. Therefore, it's a good idea to mix in some WMA files encoded at 64Kbps--WMAs sound better at smaller file sizes than MP3s--to maximize storage capacity. Currently, the MP3Pro format is not supported but may be in the future with a firmware upgrade.
Files are transferred via USB 1.1, which is the standard connection for the current crop of flash-based MP3 players. Mac support is offered via MusicMatch as well, but the unit is not yet compatible with iTunes or OS X.As noted, the included headphones are pretty decent, with reasonable bass response and fairly dynamic sound. But the buds at the end of the phones may be too large for some ears, and runners may opt for more secure headband-style phones.
You have to hold the play/pause button to power the unit on and off; it turns on fairly quickly, though not instantaneously. The PSA 128 has an 80dB signal-to-noise ratio, which is decent but not great. That said, we were satisfied with the audio once we made a few adjustments to the equalizer.
Impressively, we transferred The Beatles' Abbey Road--45MB worth of files--to the device in just less than two minutes. That translates to a transfer rate of 0.28MB per second, which is good for USB 1.1. There have been some reports of the device freezing while moving certain tracks. We didn't experience this problem during our testing, although you may want to check our User Opinions page before you make a final purchase.
Along with a high failure rate, one of the drawbacks of the original Nike PSA Play was its subpar battery life. We're happy to report that the PSA 64 has improved in that department, with a rated life of 10 hours. However, that is still only average for flash-based MP3 players.
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