Rio Carbon (5GB, Silver) (07/29/2004)

Excellent in almost every way.by kylepotato - July 22, 2011

Pros: Extremely long battery life. Good clear sound. Plays WMA. Intuitive controls. Clear screen. Good volume. Controls can be locked. In addition to the music player it has a voice recorder and oddly enough a stopwatch.

Cons: by today's standards the memory size is a bit small.

A Hidden Gemby ineil38 - November 1, 2007

Pros: Easy to use software and music downloading to the unit,Cheap, good design, Relitivly large storage capicty

Cons: sometimes slow, difficult play list maker, some menu problems, old

A lovely little playerby emoslayer6224 - October 7, 2007

Pros: Monsrous Battery life is ABOVE the estimate

Cons: Hard to find acesories, it freezes at times

Okay mp3 playerby mfillhart - December 14, 2006

Pros: Great battery life, nice with bookmarking

Cons: customer service lacking, scratches too easily

AFter 6 month review.....by oceanside_2003 - December 8, 2006

Pros: battery life

Cons: plastic pieces break

Very very fragileby three2camp - July 10, 2006

Pros: nice sound

Cons: breaks easily

This is a good mp3 player without a doubtby crazidude - June 21, 2006

Pros: GREAT battery life and sound

Cons: No external hold button

After 10 months of limited use it locked upby Joe Blitzfick - May 24, 2006

Pros: good memory and battery life

Cons: unit failed after only 10 months of use. the company wanted $99 to repair it.

i've had it for 9 months, and now i am going to smash it with a hammerby cbrenner - May 7, 2006

Pros: the thing is shiny (for 5 minutes)

Cons: everything else

Great for the priceby edutainment80 - January 27, 2006

Pros: Price, Sound, Case, Size, Looks

Cons: Poor Build quality on the controls, Cant be plugged into the computer and listened to at the same time

I STILL love my Rio Carbonby Beancounter7777777 - January 24, 2006

Pros: It has been an EXCELLENT player

Cons: Only the original problem with the miniplug w/ the earphones. No hold button.

Although the Carbon has many good features, the items with flaws are the ones that really count.by lkeyes01 - January 23, 2006

Pros: Quality sound, Quality voice recorder, Excellent size

Cons: Freezes, case doesn't have a clip, instructions not user friendly, not repairable, only a 3 month warranty

Great storage, battery life, size, etc. Don't look at it funny or it might break.by scoutii304 - January 1, 2006

Pros: Small size+great battery life&storage.

Cons: VERY FRAGILE!!! NOT PORTABLE!!!

NOt one, But Two Pieces of Junkby Sneezeburger - December 26, 2005

Pros: looks nice,,,nice Cnet Review

Cons: Two players now paperweights

So far, so goodby neilkatz - December 19, 2005

Pros: Sound, layout, navigation

Cons: Possible scroll wheel problem, no on the fly playlists

Waste of money and timeby garbro - December 16, 2005

Pros: Looks very appealing

Cons: It's breaks all the time

Good player but be aware of a flimsy volume wheelby Stevenandpat - December 14, 2005

Pros: Large capacity, ccol looking, good sound

Cons: Flimsy volume wheel, slow (very slow) start up time

Excellent playerby custisjm - December 8, 2005

Pros: just about everything

Cons: have to convert MP3 files to WMA to use bookmarks

I love my Rio!by SillyJee - October 31, 2005

Pros: Incredible battery life, easy selection, much cheaper than an iPod mini, even though it's smaller and has the same storage abilities

Cons: No acessories available, I don't like the earbuds it comes with, poor software

Great for the first monthby MKotnis - October 12, 2005

Pros: Awesome while it lasts

Cons: Breaks down right after warrenty ends

Solid choice for WMA usersby nonotme - October 6, 2005

Pros: Stong Battery life, Shiney, Easy to Use, Rio Music Manager is easy too, FM radio and Voice recorder,slim, Bright display, very inexpensive.

Cons: Weak scroll wheel, Hard to navigate with many Artists, easily scratched.

The best product out there for the price.by pbtippmanna_5 - September 15, 2005

Pros: Cool design, easy working, holds tons of songs.

Cons: No on the go playlists, the volume wheel starts to break a little.

The Rio Carbon and all of its siblings are junkby madmatter6500 - September 14, 2005

Pros: Ther cost is cheap

Cons: The unit is even cheaper

Great MP3 player, definitely competes with ipod miniby howieman5 - September 7, 2005

Pros: great sound, batterylife, features, and size is amazing.

Cons: carrying case included but does not attach to anything, you basically have to make your own.

Problems From the Beginningby 56rascal - August 26, 2005

Pros: Good Software, Small Player

Cons: Drive went bad in less than 9 months

Minor glitches that are very annoying!!!by Taraja - August 18, 2005

Pros: Large amount of space for price.

Cons: It randomly turns itself off, loosing the order of songs already played. It freezes and I have to hit the reset button, resulting in lost player settings. Not enough accesories available in stores.

Not for use with system with 1 or 2 USB Portsby jdjr84 - August 18, 2005

Pros: This device is very cute. Definitely worth the money. Ease of use.

Cons: This device does not work with computer system without "sufficient power" (for example, my 2-USB port HP laptop). Device packaging is tough - a hassle for returns.

Excellent Choiceby rjsword - August 18, 2005

Pros: Easy interface, compact, and great sound

Cons: headphones weak, and case not really ********* for on the go.

Not the best but it beats being an Apple Sell Out !by SuperReviewer - August 15, 2005

Pros: Good sound Quality, easy to use software, small form factor,

Cons: cheap design materials, no playlist on the fly, non removeable battery

didn't even last a monthby fred317 - August 8, 2005

Pros: small, good sound, fast loading

Cons: broke with in a month, no playlist on the go

Small, Attractive and Powerful MP3 player.by Pasukun - August 2, 2005

Pros: Size, Weight, Design, Sound quality and Battery Life

Cons: Complicated Menu, No On-the_fly playlist and Lack of folder navigation support.

Simple player that plays music and plays it well.by bkali4nia - August 2, 2005

Pros: Small, simple controls, smart design choices (love the rubber borders)

Cons: Slow DRM processing. Scroll wheel can be slow.

Best small handheldby bayden - July 31, 2005

Pros: Good audio quality, excellent design

Cons: Careful not to drop it!

8 Months and NO PROBLEMSby theusedfan - July 30, 2005

Pros: The Look, The Taste, The Software, EVERYTHING

Cons: ummmmm.....NOTHING!!!!

My all-time favorite music playerby jgariso - July 29, 2005

Pros: Size, weight, BATTERY LIFE, ease of use

Cons: no FM tuner- a minor gripe

Fantastic player, no major problems.by jamesflanagan - June 24, 2005

Pros: Exelent quality, massive storage

Cons: Difficult to get out of case, crashed twice while setting up.

All things come to an end...by Player 11 - June 22, 2005

Pros: Very small, lightweight, easy navigation, cool features, toll free support, slick design

Cons: breakable/loose parts, very ******

Review: This was the very first mp3 player i got. It was a very cool player with all of its features and cool look, but i have run into problems owning this mp3 player.

The first one was, after about 2 weeks of receiving it, it would froze on me in recovery mode, after i upgraded the firmware and reset the player, even after the tech support told me what to do, and since they couldnt help i had to send it back and have them send me a new one (very nice addition unless its physical damage, then you have to pay).

The second problem was the volume/scroll/enter wheel fell off from using that as enter instead of the center button on the keypad thing. then the power botton fell out of place and thats what happened about 1 week again. After trying to fix it myself, rather than pay 150 bucks for Rio Audio to repair it, i have taken the backcover off and now it will turn on and the volume thing works, but i cant return it anymore because i have fooled around with it.

Overall i think this product is a good product for new buyers on the market for mp3 players. I gave this a 6 for all the problems i have had with the player, some not above, and for all the nice comments my friends have made on it. (mostly how small it was and yet still a 5gb).

Excellent player with severe engineering weakness. Probably the best hard drive Audible player.by Feister Meister - June 22, 2005

Pros: Very good sound quality with better headphones. Nice form factor. Great battery life. Easy and fast uploading. Bookmarking. Hold function available through menus.

Cons: Playlist creation not possible. Scroll wheel delicacy. Lousy support.

Love it - blows away the iPod miniby cselland - June 21, 2005

Pros: Battery life, portability, ease of use

Cons: Cheap case & earbuds

Simply the best.by bschultzx - June 20, 2005

Pros: Great sound. Small as hell, and durable.

Cons: None, it's perfect.

Very great for my first mp3 player!by xtuser - June 19, 2005

Pros: Good sound quality, powerful bass. Cool backlighting. Easy to use. Great battery. Fast file transfers. Scrollwheel. Looks cool. High build quality. No problems whatsoever.

Cons: In quiet places, you can hear the hard drive spinning. That is the most pathetic con ever, but the only one I can think of.

Works with a Mac. Kind of.by beckyw44 - June 15, 2005

Pros: Awesome battery life, easy transfer of songs with itunes, great size, easy to use with Audible content, Voice recorder

Cons: You can't make playlists from a Mac, No sleep timer, No FM tuner

Good Player, Bad companyby johngault02 - June 10, 2005

Pros: good player but don't trust RIo

Cons: Don't trust Rio, They would not honor the rebate

Slim, fit and handsome with a few shortcomingsby avaker - June 10, 2005

Pros: Unobtrusive look, simple connection to PC, lightening uploads, cool smooth dimming

Cons: Three main cons: 1. No physical hold switch, 2. No playlist creation on the device, 3. Special adapter needed for car cassette adapters or other 1/8" jacks which make static.

Excellent for the Priceby teddybadami - June 10, 2005

Pros: Small, slim, and sleek; excellent battery life; strong sound quality; solid value; nimble navigation.

Cons: No FM tuner; no physical Hold switch; no on-the-fly playlists; weak carrying case.

6 Months of Flawless Performanceby mdbynum - June 9, 2005

Pros: Shows up as an external hard drive. Excellent battery life. Slim design

Cons: Can only view one track at a time.

A player that finally does exactly what I wantby Mindtitan - June 8, 2005

Pros: Drag and drop, the thing is tiny and light, battery power, great price

Cons: No FM Tuner

Very good, but If you drop thing buy a extra warrantyby ebucemag - June 7, 2005

Pros: very good battery life, cheap, and looks very new and flashy

Cons: dont drop it, no auto play list and it take time to get used to controll if lefty

shut up about casesby jakebeef - June 5, 2005

Pros: small, good battery

Cons: absolutely none whatsoever

best on the marketby ThatGuyOverThere - May 29, 2005

Pros: read the review

Cons: read the review

Cheep but functionalby dawiese - May 28, 2005

Pros: sexy, long battery life, easy 2 navigate once u get used 2 it,leather carrying case

Cons: any fingerprints on it are pretty much perminant, fragile peice of ****, No fm tuner, stopwatch can't do splits or lap times.

This is a worthless playerby jeffcathy - May 23, 2005

Pros: None that I can think of

Cons: Less than a month of use - not recoverable

good but not greatby ddawg923 - May 22, 2005

Pros: light, stylish, red lights, good battery life

Cons: cant select specific music under artist, static, and back brings you to main menu

STATIC PROBLEMS!! Rio doesn't help fix!by Cheez5000 - May 19, 2005

Pros: small size, ergonomics, battery life

Cons: static noises, weak audio output

Nice, even with the low Price,by SPD - May 17, 2005

Pros: Almost Perfect, Cool Sleek Design, long battery life

Cons: No FM tuner,

IPOD mini is ok, but this blows it away, at $50 less.by mrcrazybread - May 14, 2005

Pros: 1GB more memory.maller design(fits comfortably into my wallet) than ipod mini, WMA compatibility(if you rip cd's using windows media player, I think you want this). Voice recorder(not in ipod).

Cons: back gets scratched up easily, slightly smaller screen. no hold button.useless case ----NONE OF THOSE THINGS MAKE A DIFFERENCE

Small size, good sound, no good case, no folder navigationby ekmainaur - May 9, 2005

Pros: The size is very compact , easily fits even in jeans pockets. The sound quality is excellent. The headphones are great

Cons: The supplied leather case hides the main navigation controls, and you have to pull it out of the leather case if you want to navigate. It is not possible to navigate by folders

Great Value, Competent Playerby btups - May 9, 2005

Pros: Excellent Sound, Outstanding battery life, Diminutive size, Lightweight, Customizable EQ

Cons: No PC iTunes support, no accelerated scrolling, questionable build quality?, earphone shortout problem not really resolved, no selection of cases, ones that exist are expensive

Solid value playerby bwewang - May 6, 2005

Pros: Easy navigation; excellent sound; great battery; plug-n-play

Cons: Can't make playlists on the fly; software clunky

Good Player with a few minor problemsby Zen660 - May 2, 2005

Pros: Small, clean sound, great battery life, stylish look, easy to use, red luminescent buttons, great included software

Cons: not so good earbuds, only plays selected song, no accelerated scrolling, no on the fly playlists

Easy of use, and smallby chrisscarazzo - April 29, 2005

Pros: Rio music manager is a breeze, excellent package, fantastic sound, simply the best value for the buck

Cons: carrying case stinks, head buds are useless

A very good playerby jefftittor - April 24, 2005

Pros: Ease of use, good sound, inexpensive, durable

Cons: Lousy case, not so great earbuds included, no on the fly playlists

Nice, but a little hard to controlby Kev50027 - April 22, 2005

Pros: small, looks good, fancy backlight, very thin, scroll wheel

Cons: scroll wheel hard to depress, menu button sometimes a pain, doesnt fit the hand well, metal makes interference with many headphones

pretty sweetby bobthepizzaman - April 19, 2005

Pros: size, capacity, style, scroll wheel

Cons: no onthefly playlists, stops playing after choosing individual song (Which i think is a bummer)

Good product for the right priceby paukana - April 16, 2005

Pros: Slick, well-designed, 5 GB, menu button lights, quick and easy charging

Cons: earphones - mediocre, need a better case, menus are somewhat difficult to navigate

Good player, lacks accessoriesby butlers91 - April 15, 2005

Pros: Large display, small, easy to figure out

Cons: incovenient to use, no armband, no beltclip

Great player but not perfectby joelcory74 - April 12, 2005

Pros: easy to work, tiny, plays WMAs

Cons: very slow on start up, no cases available

Review: This player hasn't geeven me but one major problem in the first month. If you you buy this player don't EVER pull the cable out of the computer without taking it from the player first. If you do it will result in having to reformat the drive. Most people know not to do that but my brother didn't So as long as you don't abuse the player it should be fine

BEST PLAYER ON THE MARKET!by Artemishki - April 11, 2005

Pros: Exactly enough space, small, light, GORGEOUS, fast, functional, AWESOME sound, sturdy, great tech support, etc.

Cons: Clickwheel went inside the player twice. Keep reading about that in this review...

Great playerby Chenjesu - April 11, 2005

Pros: Cheap, Sounds good

Cons: the case sucks

Great MP3 and WMP Player with top quality audioby ptamike - April 9, 2005

Pros: Audio Quality, Looks, Capacity (5Gb), Navigation

Cons: no lossless formats

Too hot to handleby sdsssdss - April 7, 2005

Pros: Fresh Style, Good Build Quality, Great Sound, Cheap Price

Cons: Poor Customer Service, VERY BAD CARRYING CASE

highley not recomendedby GoldFOX - April 2, 2005

Pros: sleak style and high quality playback

Cons: 3 month warranty the power button broke

Screw those ipodsby broxhouse - April 2, 2005

Pros: It is smaller than an ipod mini or regular ipod, offers 5 GB of memory, has really cool backlights on the buttons, screen and even on the rio logo, and it has silver on the front and back!

Cons: You won't put it down,

Good value in a small packageby mikijames - April 2, 2005

Pros: Small size, high capacity, long battery life, smart design.

Cons: Useless carrying case

The Rio Carbon is like a work of art!by leonardshelby--2008 - March 29, 2005

Pros: Awsome interface, Great size, easy downloads

Cons: Needs a lock button, good case but could use some holes for the other buttons.

Stoped working in less than a week!!!by chuppster - March 28, 2005

Pros: Small, looks great

Cons: Stops working before I use the first charge!

Great versatile player!by Duvil_010 - March 28, 2005

Pros: Simple and beautiful

Cons: bad customer service

If you get one that works, youre luckyby doodoo4 - March 27, 2005

Pros: it does have a few firmwares out

Cons: it still is quirky

BEST Player EvEr BOO YEAHby blogbograd - March 24, 2005

Pros: sleek, small, cool lights, super quality lots of memory compared to mini ipod

Cons: none the will kill an ipod except for poor customer support

Just one or two downsidesby enazni - March 24, 2005

Pros: Ecellent sleek design, cool backlight and red lights, overall good player.

Cons: Some menu problems, takes awhile to start up.

Very poor quality and even worse customer support!by pabx11 - March 23, 2005

Pros: Price and when it works it sounds great

Cons: Very Poor quality

Ugly, stupid, mp3 trashby Monkeypox - March 22, 2005

Pros: It looks like a suppository

Cons: Junkiest interface ever - tinny sound, like mice farting - It looks like a suppository

Probems with player from the startby Rich4 - March 21, 2005

Pros: Nice design, lightweight and small

Cons: Battery life was disappointing, defective out of the box

A Good Player, But Some Problemsby RockMancuso - March 20, 2005

Pros: Small, sleek design, cool screen, good software, very cheap

Cons: Hard to navigate, bad UI, bad carrying case, sometimes slow and sluggish

Loved it till it died (defective)after 5 months - rio wouldn't replaceby njmustang - March 16, 2005

Pros: Small, easy to use

Cons: let battery run out - wouldn't start after recharge

AWSOME!!!!!!!!!!! IPOD MINI Killer!!!! even 6GB Version!!by smoothrider_10 - March 16, 2005

Pros: small; very large battery life; good price if you look for it

Cons: back is made of metal that holds every fingerprint and smudge

Fine player - great size, solid constructionby tcranenj - March 13, 2005

Pros: Player easily fits into one hand. Backlit display is bright. Menus easy to navigate. Battery life is excellent

Cons: Must use right hand to fully operate all buttons with one hand...I'm a lefty. Phone jack produces static with higher end plugs. Must use tape or pull plug slightly out to prevent. Case is cheap

Gr8 playerby - March 13, 2005

Pros: Almost everything is excellent about it

Cons: Just the Case

Ugly design , poor navigation , no accessories , not Appleby R P - March 13, 2005

Pros: Shows us how great the Apple iPod really is

Cons: The Rio Carbon itself , overpriced, cheap and ugly design

Great little player!!!by mrspar - March 10, 2005

Pros: Small, light, good sound quality, excellent battery life

Cons: carrying case needs work

rio carbonby riot1002 - March 10, 2005

Pros: you are able to recharge this thru your usb.

Cons: having this in black would rule

What a piece of junk. I would give it a 0 if I couldby yo soy zurdo - March 9, 2005

Pros: battery life

Cons: Everything.

Meh...Unless your looking to buy for target practiceby icfireball - March 9, 2005

Pros: It's Not Hideous

Cons: Horrible user interface, bad support from rio, lack of features, lack of compatablity, lack of supporting software

it is crapby cv4321 - March 9, 2005

Pros: at least its not an ipod

Cons: no fm radio, no wav files, no voice recorder

IT DOES HAVE HOLD!!!by Thizz - March 6, 2005

Pros: Many a lot more than ipods

Cons: Few to none

Smartest Choice For A Microdrive Playerby music4themasses - March 5, 2005

Pros: 5 gigs, easy navigation, looks nice, sounds amazing

Cons: Headphone jack causes static for gold plated headphone plugs (fixable), on-the-fly playlists would be nice

This is the nearly perfect player from Rio. Apple can go to bed.by charlesbelisle - March 4, 2005

Pros: Small, good sound quality and battery life, easy to use and strong built quality, perfect navigation

Cons: Sometimes, the navigation is slow, So-so origin earbuds, no FM Tuner

A small, sleek and attractive 5GB MP3 player ready for the typical music enthusiastby eye_dea - March 3, 2005

Pros: small, easy to use software, exceptional sound quality, unparalleled battery life

Cons: Terrible protective case, below average earbuds, no hold switch

Nearly perfect productby grahamisded - March 2, 2005

Pros: great battery life, absolutely tiny, simple controls, fast

Cons: a line-in would be nice....that's about it

At $199, how could you resist?by threeball - March 1, 2005

Pros: Best design, very thin, cool backlights, easiest navigation, 5gb hard drive, voice record, 5 band customizable equalizer, easy to use software, better sound quality than iPod mini, 20 hours battery

Cons: Battery meter can be inaccurate sometimes, voice recording isn't too great, no on the fly playlists, back gets scratched/fingerprints

This thing has been a great study buddy!by dontbotherme - February 28, 2005

Pros: sounds awesome, highly portable, great looks.

Cons: no gapless playback annoying. had to buy better headphones ( a given, i know)

Great few problems at beginningby Lyssalou3 - February 26, 2005

Pros: small, easy to use, cheap,small, cute, nice sound, holds a lot of song, good battery life

Cons: at first i noticed the Rio skipped a lot. After changing the headphones this problem ended. The headphones arent that great and i think they caused the skipping

The Sexiest Microdrive player aroundby Chinsen - February 26, 2005

Pros: Sexy, Batt Life, Audio quality, Intuitive controls, good price

Cons: former static problem, BUT IT HAS BEEN SORTED!

Skips like crazyby - February 24, 2005

Pros: tiny, realatively easy to use

Cons: The thing lasted for about 15 minutes and then started skipping like crazy. It also started playing in only the right ear(might be headphones).

Great little MP3 player - deserves more respectby - February 23, 2005

Pros: This is an absolutely beautiful MP3 player with great sound quality and feature set. Terrific battery life. My wife has an iPod Mini and the Rio blows it away in EVERY respect. Only reason to buy the iPod is if you're not technical (keep reading)

Cons: Some features are buried in the menus (not intuitive) and the case they supply stinks. (get a Vaja case!)

Cool! Nice Price, But you have to look for itby - February 23, 2005

Pros: Nice look,good storage (for the money)Better buy than the IPOD mini(the ipod is more expensive) cool red lighting

Cons: NONE!!!!!!!!

carbon = great ipod competitorby - February 22, 2005

Pros: watch out for a lot of fake anti-anything-but-ipod comments. there's like 20 or so negative ones posted on january 15 and september 1 that all seem like some apple employees got bored. and really, a lot of ipod lovers seem to post replies without even try

Cons: i would really love more features. just an FM tuner maybe, physical hold switch, dedicated volume buttons (like my nitrus), and on-the-fly playlists. then, it's perfect =). but i am asking a bit too much i guess, since it's already a great value.

only one problemby - February 20, 2005

Pros: small, good battery life. Easy to load with music.

Cons: Excessive lag time to boot up, as well as responding to user commands.

Carbon dominates ipod mini. THE best small hardrive mp3 player to my knowledgeby - February 18, 2005

Pros: Incredibly small for 5 gigs,GREAT SOUND QUALITY, amazingly sleek and awesome looking design, easy to use menu, and the battery life is simply fantastic(comparing to the miniscule 8 hours of an ipod mini)

Cons: I onnly wish it had a radio, not a big deal at all,but hey an fm radio would be a pretty cool extra. But, I seem to have no complaints about this player.

The best 5gb player at allby - February 18, 2005

Pros: Small and with the best features... who needs so many additions when I get a 20 hour battery? I want to listen to music with it!!!

Cons: Nothing!

Never got it workby - February 16, 2005

Pros: Would not know it never worked

Cons: I could never get it to work with XP. Costumer service sucks big time. Called and they could not get it to work. Call is not toll-free and I got hung up on 3 times

Better than an ipodby - February 16, 2005

Pros: Very cheap (got mine on buyeretail.com for 185 plus a 20$ mail in rebate) great looking, voice recorder, pretty good headphones, awsome battery life, really slim, fast song transfer

Cons: nothing to big of a deal...I guess they could've made the case so you could see the screen while the player is in it but like I said not a big deal

Froze up, never worked correct from the startby - February 16, 2005

Pros: Love the design and capacity.

Cons: The player never lasted more than an hour, finally it froze up. This after a month of use, I am so dissapointed. Rio Customer service was clueless, led me down many wrong pathes before agreeing to replace. We will see if the 2nd one works!

cute...but priceyby - February 12, 2005

Pros: ease of use, Rio Carbon software, scroll wheel, compact size

Cons: could use an extra GB or two, single back light for both buttons & screen

I'm Retuning My Rio Carbonby - February 10, 2005

Pros: a cute device, it's tiny, light weight, tons of play time

Cons: STATIC! This audible ready device has minute pauses or quiet clicks very consistently when listening to audible, using their cheap head phones. Using 3rd party headphones you won't hear much through the noise. Rio ready admits this problem when you call t

Don't drop it, Rio refuses to fix it!by - February 9, 2005

Pros: Very nice features, it lives up to the reviews. however...

Cons: Rio offers no service. My son dropped the unit after 2 months & broke the volume control. Rio doesn't offer non-warranty service! they suggested that maybe I can call around for a local repair shop! They did however thank me for contacting Rio. I wi

ARGGH.. not the best yetby - February 4, 2005

Pros: SMALL SIZE, very LIGHT!! Best looking player out there!

Cons: Much slower interface than Ipod, not as user friendly... slow start up... drag and drop is not as great as cracked up to be...

Friggin Awesome carbon is the oneby - February 4, 2005

Pros: very long battery, i love the sound, best quality, and fastest music download usb port 2.00. super sleak design.

Cons: it took me a while to figure out how to delete music. i reccomend getting new headphones.

BETTER THAN THE RESTby - February 3, 2005

Pros: Excellent ease of use, great battery life, sleek looking, slim line so people don't notice it in the pockets, good controls, hold function accessed by holding menu button and front button, light, exellent software, v quick.

Cons: Headphones supplied aren't great - i recommend the sony top of the line in-ear ones, no fm radio, but who needs it with 5gb of music!!!

Great player in attractive packageby - February 1, 2005

Pros: small, light, cool look; 5GB more than enough for most people; good battery life (I've gotten 15 hrs); easy to use software with drag/drop alternative; great sound

Cons: can get a 20GB player for not much more (if the extra capacity means something) but then have to put up with larger form factor

customer support is not goodby - January 31, 2005

Pros: cheap, battery life is long.

Cons: the volume wheel fell off after two months. sent back to factor, heard nothing after a week. I'm still waiting for an e-mail from RIO. Might not come back. $220 is gone.

Great product, terrible caseby - January 29, 2005

Pros: Slim and sleek. Great sound quality, easy interface.

Cons: Carrying case - not thought was put into this; it doesn't even have a belt clip??

Nice case and not an iPod killerby - January 24, 2005

Pros: Great looking case. Fm Tuner and voice recorder.

Cons: Horrible Horrible warranty at only 90 days. Samir J says its better than the iPod because "you can put anything on your Rio and enjoy" Is he comparing the fact that the Rio supports MP3 WMA and Audible and the iPod supports MP3, MP3 VBR, Audible, AAC, AAC

This is Mp3 player I was waiting for.by - January 20, 2005

Pros: Great look, fantastic battery life, easy to use, equalizer rocks, charger with USB cable is ingenious, no need for proprietary software.

Cons: Carrying case need improvement (belt clip, windows for display and control pod), random pay is not very smart- has its preferences.

No FM Tuner, What A Joke!by - January 19, 2005

Pros: Great player, 5 gigs, good battery life,smaller than other competitors

Cons: No Fm Tuner what was wrong with the product designers.

Reboots all the time. Still better than IPodby - January 18, 2005

Pros: Very portable: slim, slick, long battery live.

Cons: Slow responding controls. It reboots itself all the time if not laying in the flat surface. Not a lot of accessories.

Best of the mini'sby - January 16, 2005

Pros: looks great, custom equalizer, doesn't have the touch pad!

Cons: kind of slow sometimes and it has a buzzing sound

Overall excellent value for non-iPod usersby - January 16, 2005

Pros: Extra gig of space & better battery life than iPod mini. Slick silver casing & red backlighting makes the Carbon's visuals as cool as iPod. USB 2.0 cable make transfers lightening quick.

Cons: Included case is worthless: no access to buttons & no belt clip. The ear-bud headphones are weak & easily fall out.

Lookingby - January 16, 2005

Pros: Spec looks good, supposed to be good sound qulaity etc. BUT...

Cons: ...wouldn't buy anything (especially electronics) new with a only "3 MONTH" warranty. I would expect it to pack up pretty quickly

lesser of many evilsby - January 14, 2005

Pros: Battery life, compact, cheap, file system is that of a jumpdrive, lights

Cons: Hard drive noise, display size, no onboard playlist creation, no FM tuner (they suck anyways)

Looks fabulous, sounds good tooby - January 13, 2005

Pros: Once I reformatted drive (10 seconds) its been running beautifully. love the look, feel and sound but need a better case, soon! Better than any AMP player, more attractive than ipod.

Cons: froze up on me when I forgot to eject properly from pc/USB. Had to reformat drive and re-copy music onto it. Poorly designed case!

apple' one-upped!!!by - January 12, 2005

Pros: small, capacity, voice recorder, price(199 at many places)

Cons: case sucks,,,no good accessories yet,,,not pyhsical hold switch

Another great player from Rio!by - January 12, 2005

Pros: Convenient size, readable graphics, super fast USB drag and drop

Cons: Needs more support for reading folders copied to hard drive without using music playing software

Not great qualityby - January 12, 2005

Pros:

Cons: We purchaed two rios for our kids. One worked fie. The other had the volume button stuck on loud. So we returned it and the second one wouldn't turn on, even after resetting it. We tried everything to get it to work but it just wouldn't so we had to re

Killer Battery Lifeby - January 12, 2005

Pros: Awesome battery life, mulitple file support, great controls.

Cons: Must create playlists via software, no dedicated repeat, suffle buttons

I just got this for Christmas. I asked for the iPod but I got the Carbon and it ROCKS!by - January 12, 2005

Pros: Easy to manage your music.

Cons: Can't stop using it.

not good qualityby - January 12, 2005

Pros: i bought this and it was very easy to use,sleek and small, lots of song capacity

Cons: afterabout 2 hours this mp3 froze and once it began working it after 2 hours froze again and this happened throughout 2 days itkept freezing so i returned it

excellent player!by - January 12, 2005

Pros: Compact, attractive design. Great battery life.

Cons: Control pad feels "cheap", – could do with a better range of accessories (cases in particular!) but I am sure they will come.

Skip-free perfection - better than iPod!by - January 12, 2005

Pros: Great look and feel, great sound with stock earbuds (so who cares about the headphone "issue") and unlike my 40 Gb iPod, it doesn't skip or lock up when I go jogging (must be the new Seagate 5Gb hard drive). The Carbon is now my on-th-go player, while th

Cons: If you're a song surfer, like my girlfriend's daughter, you won't like the lack of on-the-go playlists and the lack of menu memory (it exits the menu after making a selection and doesn't remember where you were the next time you go in). If you're like me

Nice at first...broke after 2 hours of useby - January 12, 2005

Pros: Nice mp3 player, good function, easy software.

Cons: Piece of junk, broke on 2nd day. Mp3 player is useless if it doesnt work. Rio needs to get a quality player together and stop selling junk that breaks in 2 seconds. Im returning mine ASAP.

Great gift from wifeby - January 12, 2005

Pros: Sleek design and cool red backlight. Functionality and ripping works well. Apple's mini ipod doesn't hold a candle to this unit. Plus I'm not limited to iTunes.

Cons: Longer cord for headset.

Better than iPODby - January 12, 2005

Pros: I had a choice of the iPod or the Rio Carbon. They were sold out of the iPod so my hubby went with the Carbon and I am so glad he did! Easy to DL music, easy to transfer music compared to the other three different brands we bought out kids. Quality of

Cons: I can't see anything to complain aobut at this time. I put over 400 songs already on the device and was able to easily locate everything.

The quality is very good. I'm gla di didn't get an iPod. Rio Carbons are the new "it"!by - January 12, 2005

Pros: 1Gb mor ethan iPOd, ease of use, good controls, easy menu, nice sound, voice recorder, easy downloading... Everything!

Cons: None yet.... I don't expect any.

Useful, Cost-Efficient Deviceby - January 12, 2005

Pros: I am really pleased with this product so far. Great design, good price, and a clear competitor with the Ipod (and competition is always good). I look forward to using it for a long time.

Cons: Doesn't have the HD size of others, no FM tuner, not much else

Super Sleek and Sexy!by - January 12, 2005

Pros: has a recorder the program it comes with is easy to use looks really hott small and cant see it i your pocket it also comes with a cover so you can protect it from the beginnging.

Cons: really hard to open packaging prolonging your hyperness only crashed on me once but that was my fualt i used the wrong cord. didnt loose my music though thats all i ca think of

Good, but fragile and poor supportby - January 12, 2005

Pros: Cool looks, small size, and clean, simple interface. Fully plug and play which makes it great as a 5gb flash drive and as a player.

Cons: Last week my headphones got caught on my jacket as I was walking away and my carbon was pulled off of my coffee table (about 1.5' high above carpet). It is now completely non-functional. Rio support has not responded to multiple emails.

It's a good player out in the marketby - January 12, 2005

Pros: Cool lighting effect, simple and nice to look at, simple features (which could be a con..), GOOD SOUND (bass is suprising on this little baby)

Cons: Despite it's few tiny flaws,it's great. mine screwed up after a month, but it's a HD so careful with it! DO NOT DROP IT!!! you wouldn't drop your computer...not enough features but bah, just make playlists, and lots of them

Fragile as an eggby - January 12, 2005

Pros: Like the design, sound is good, size is great, bettery life is terrific and it's not hard to use

Cons: Reliability and durability. Am on my 3rd Carbon in under 4 months and this one is going back. First 2 just quit on me in less than a month. This one lasted longer but fell off a chair the other day and even tho it was in a padded case and hit carpet de

it froze within 3 hours of owning itby - January 12, 2005

Pros: dont get me wrong i had fun sitting at the computer for 2 and a half hours putting music on but it needed to be charged so i was listing to it and i plugged the charger in and it froze so we will see in about an hour or so see if my music is still on it d

Cons: cant listen to it while charging no reset but and the headphone stactic is not really noticable if its cranked up other than that o by the way the ipod sux so bad i was going to get one but i went to play with the display model and it was frozen hahaha

Used it for 3 days & it DIEDby - January 12, 2005

Pros: Looks; simple, easy to use interface; software is simple and intuitive

Cons: It Died after short while; no on the fly play lists; can't delete tracks from player itself, firmware update function didn't work

Beats iPOD miniby - January 12, 2005

Pros: Extremely lighweight Easy to use interface I have about 900 songs on it and still have memory left over

Cons: None, its great

I have it and i love it!by - January 12, 2005

Pros: TINY!!you know that little jeans pocket on the right front side that is to small for anything? well this fits there!!! great desing, great screen and interface, great sound, the front part will never scrach(even agaisnt rocks), very shiny,good value, ha

Cons: The back part scraches with anithing and allways seems greasy(kind of), the static thing is bad if u want some better headfones, no FM tuner, Very addictive (i even hear it when i wacth sports). dont like the software(a little confusing, but its my first

Great-looking and long lasting batteryby - January 12, 2005

Pros: Nice sleek look. Light is great.

Cons: Worst customer service I've ever encountered. Leather case uncomfortable because you cant press the buttons while the player is in it.

Piece of junk broke within 1 min of useby - January 12, 2005

Pros: slim and sleek

Cons: button functionalty broke within the first 1 min of use while configuring it. Tech support was helpful, but breaking after gently touching a button twice is unacceptable.

Really really good.by - January 12, 2005

Pros: Don't be fooled by the 75% positive rating... it should be much higher (it's the Apple fanatics). Incredible battery life, 25% more memory than the mini, no software required (tho it is provided if you'd like) and really cool design.

Cons: There is that problem with the static if you use those kinds of headphones.

It is Awsome!by - January 12, 2005

Pros: I really like the amount of memory and battery life which is more than the iPod mini. Also I liked the fact that it was for windows. For my iPod I needed to get another cable to use it with a USB.

Cons: No color displays. But hey, not that bad.

great if it didn't dieby - January 12, 2005

Pros: small, looks cool, holds alot of music for it's size

Cons: randomly turned off and would not come on again 29 days after purchase, couple more days and i'd be very... unhappy. I got a good deal on mine, and i loved it while it worked, but looks like I'm back in the market for an MP3 player, and guess who's not

I LOVE THIS THING!by - January 12, 2005

Pros: Sleek, compact but holds a lot. Great battery life, Great sound. EASY EASY software. Transfers so quick! THE CAR ADAPTER IS AWESOME! ONE PLUG FOR TRANSFER AND RECHARGE!

Cons: I DON'T CARE FOR THE EARPHONE CONNECTION. IT IS A LITTLE STATIC AT TIMES. THIS ALSO HAPPENS IN THE CAR.

Great Player & Storage Deviceby - January 12, 2005

Pros: Very portable. Excellent Battery Life. Connects to PC w/o software for transferring files. Easy to use with one hand. Record meetings or notes to self.

Cons: Earphones & carrying case are worthless. Need to use clear nail polish on metal base of earphone jacks (Not always the case).

Bravo, Rio, Bravo.by - January 12, 2005

Pros: Wow, this player is amazing. Pros: not part of the ipod ongoing fad, its smaller, MUCH better battery life, its lighter, its not chunky like the ipod, easy navigation, the lights make it look very cool, nice to hold in your hand, it slides into your pocke

Cons: The headphones are very bad, so its best you buy new ones or use some other ones you have at home. The back is the same metal as on the old old ipods on the back and you knkow it scratches and gathers fingerprints, but its still better than the ipod. I ha

Great sound,cool look and function.by - January 12, 2005

Pros: 5gigs of storage is an amazing amount of music. Quality is Sound quality is great.I can only tell the difference from CD when I play it on my high end system.

Cons: none

I like the amount of songs I can carryby - January 12, 2005

Pros: size, space, ease of use

Cons: I have not found a way to randomize the songs without preparing a playlist manally

Better value than the Ipodby - January 12, 2005

Pros: Great battery life, excellent sound, nice looking and very portable and lightweight. Interface is very user friendly. More gigs than comparable products

Cons: static when using some headphones, case is useless

Rio Carbon or mini ipodby - January 12, 2005

Pros: I have a Rio Carbon 5 Gig I purchased 19/10/04, and another family member has an ipod mini, the Rio is aimed for all ages, and wins hands down overall end of story.

Cons: My daughter uses my Rio more than the ipod we purchased for her, mainly the size of the unit and the battery life; it puts the ipod mini to shame

Okay......by - January 12, 2005

Pros: Great Memory and battery life, cool lights,nice screen

Cons: had problems out of the box would notconnect to computer, finally got it to work but the scroll backbutton did not work and when you select record for voice recordings it froze up 50% of the time.... so i took it apart and sold the compact flash card on e

Great looks, sound and ease of use - Shame it can't be said for the software which is crap and laggyby - January 12, 2005

Pros:

Cons:

A very nice productby - January 12, 2005

Pros: I am very new to this technology and was just dazzled to see the ease with which I moved all of my music over from my pc to a small well made and easy to use device. This is durable! And I am impressed with each new feature I discover!

Cons: None so far!

Awesome Sound! Great Looking! Light!by - January 12, 2005

Pros: Simply the BEST MP3 player I've ever owned. Superb stereo sound capability, easy intuitive software and GREAT LOOKING little product!

Cons: would be cool if other colors were available

Love it! Prefer it over my iPod mini.by - January 12, 2005

Pros: It has a dedicated volume control wheel on the top corner, which makes it my choice over the iPod mini (I have both devices). Most of the time, I just set the device to "random play" and I never take it out of its case. In the gym, or on a plane (I trav

Cons: Doesn't support AAC.

mini iPod killer - hands downby - January 12, 2005

Pros: battery life, battery life, battery life!!! & size - due to it's tapered edges, it's even more compact than the dimensions indicate

Cons: none

Iffy Performance - Random Shutdownby - January 12, 2005

Pros: small, light, feels great in your hand

Cons: For me, random shutting off. When re-boots, date goes back to 1970 - ah that was great year but it's time to move on. I returned the Carbon for a full refund today. I would not recommend it. You have to ask yourself why does this product only have a 3

Rio customer service and warranty is worst in class!by - January 12, 2005

Pros: Size, Capacity, Appearance

Cons: Rio Cust. Service is very poor. Never could get my Carbon to fully function w/ Win 98SE. Spent 15 hours debugging Rio software and 3 hours on the phone w/ Rio "customer service" ...They don't have a clue! I'm very disappointed w/ Rio and I'm not sure I wa

Mini? iPod? Whatsit?by - January 12, 2005

Pros: the (superlative) best compact mp3 player you will find! A better value, larger capacity, and longer battery life will make you forget the iPod Mini ever existed. Easy software. Beautiful design.

Cons: If removable li- batteries are more you'r jam, check out the Creative Nomad Jukebox Zen Xtra (30 gb). A year later, it's at a great price.

RIO - the name says it allby - January 12, 2005

Pros: Size, battery life, capacity.

Cons: Having used a RIO since the days of the 500, I kept hoping that maybe the software would get better, the interface between player and device would improve. I kept hoping quality would improve. I was always hopeful when I was on hold to "support", those

knob broke after 5 days of useby - January 12, 2005

Pros: small form factor, pleasing display. easy integration into XP. good sound quality.

Cons: knob broke after 5 days of use. i took it out of my pocket after comming back from class and the knob was completely pushed in. this shows poor craftsmanship. i am returning my rio carbon for good.

Why only an 8.3 rating?by - January 12, 2005

Pros: Storage, size, ease of use, battery life, shows up as a drive in Windows (no device drivers needed) so you can drag and drop, don't have to use itunes and aac.

Cons: So why does the ipod mini get an 8.7, and the rio carbon gets an 8.3? Carbon has more storage, battery, better design IMO, cool red lights, smaller size, and it works with mp3, wma, and audible. I don't why cnet clearly reflects partisan views when it com

Great iPod Mini alternativeby - January 12, 2005

Pros: High quality, great sound, stylish design, BATTERY LIFE, small and lightweight, actually DOES comfortably fit in your pocket, and 5GB capacity compared to iPod Mini's 4GB Price...

Cons: -Volume at highest level could get louder -Playlists on-the-go would be nice -If it had a radio, it'd be perfect

Awesome sound, looks sharp! Buy it!by - January 11, 2005

Pros: First of all, I actually own one. Great battery life, great storage. One thing to mention is the review said there is no way to put it in hold unless you go through the menu but there is a shortcut. Just hit the Menu button and the center button on the pa

Cons: Hmm...well it scratches easy, the case it comes with is total crap and no other alternatives at the moment (thanks alot Rio!), and no remote. It needs some 3rd party support.

No more Dell DJ -- Love my Carbon!by - January 10, 2005

Pros: So sleek and sexy... so easy and fun to use... love the software it comes with... can play "Audible" audio books... great battery life....

Cons: haven't had any troubles yet...would have preferred a better case (one which showed the front of the Carbon)

I'm very happy with it.by - January 9, 2005

Pros: Nice and small, excellent fidelity, long battery life, easy software. This was a good purchase. I bought a tiny camera case for the unit.

Cons: Static when manipulating the stock earbuds. I'll search for a better ear piece.

Death to the Apple Monkeys!by - January 5, 2005

Pros: USB Mass Storage Driver!!! Very Long Battery Life Excellent Sound Quality Compact but Rugged Build Stylish Shape and Lighting

Cons: No Ogg Vorbis Support!!! No Physical Hold Key Shocking Case No Ogg Vorbis Support!!!

Crushes ipod miniby - January 4, 2005

Pros: very sexy design; much slimmer than any ipod. one extra Gb than ipod mini. i wanted an mp3 player and i wanted an ipod, but after getting this rio carbon i realized that ipods and rios rele arent tht different. scroll wheel can also be used as a button, w

Cons: i cant find any stores that carry a case for it =/ .says 20 hrs bat life, but thts if its level 15 volume (goes up to 30, witch ive found tht uses twice as much batt life).... other than that i still recomend this over the ipod mini, dont be an ipod loser

Excellent small sized player for the moneyby - January 3, 2005

Pros: Good drive capacity, feels very solid, holds very well in your hand, sound quality is good, real plug & play with Win XP Pro no CD needed! Take it out of pack, plug it and start uploading your music. The others say they do so but simply don't, believe

Cons: Would sometimes be nice to have FM tuner built in, should be supplied with 2 USB cables so you don't have to reach out behind your PC when you want to recharge using the wall wart. Could sometimes use a physical lock button.

Great Sound and Easy to Useby - January 3, 2005

Pros: Design, ease of use, larger capacity than the iPod mini, great sound, voice recorder, pretty red lights

Cons: It lacks the cultural cachet of the iPod. (no biggy) The headphone problem is silly.

kick A&*by - January 2, 2005

Pros: Small, light, shinny and not a Mac product! Very easy one hand use, Great storage and battery life.

Cons: The caring case looks good but is non-functional. Can’t access the buttons and its hard to get the unit out of the case. I am sure the aftermarket should produce a case with out these problems

better than a mini i-podby - December 30, 2004

Pros: small sleak design battery life amount of gigs, great storage space

Cons: only one color

Poor installationby - December 29, 2004

Pros: Beautiful design, small size.

Cons: Despite many tries, won't install on my XP laptop. Works fine on my old W98 (not SE) desktop. Unknown USB device error, system won't recognize it or install drivers. Sent two emails to Rio, with absolutely no response.

Great with a few needed upgradesby - December 28, 2004

Pros: 5GB hard drive!! Awesome look, pretty loud volume!

Cons: Case needs to be upgraded to one with at least a belt clip, and personally i'd rather have sportclip earphones instead of just ear buds. Last but not least, the USB charger is kind of annoying, no way to charge and change playlists simultaneously :(

Nice compact MP3 Playerby - December 27, 2004

Pros: Size Battery Life Ease of use Great sound

Cons: Size (easy to drop) Included case is pathetic

Great Player, check it out! Ipod is the only playerby - December 26, 2004

Pros: 5GB of space, 20 hr battery life, easy to use, sleek design. This is all you can ask for in an mp3 player. I've noticed IPOD fans give this product bad reviews JUST BECAUSE IT IS NOT AN IPOD! grow up.

Cons: Static when third party headphones are used. Can be solved by placing a piece of tape over the earphone plug. I haven't dealt with CUSTOMER SERVICE yet, but I hear it is no good.

GET THIS...NOT THE ZEN MICRO!!by - December 26, 2004

Pros: I just got the zen micro for christmas yesterday, and after fighting with it till 3am, I decided to return it and try the Carbon....best move I've ever made. Now the zen is loaded with all the features I wanted, mainly the battery feature and radio...but

Cons:

A Welcome Alternative - Solid as a Rock and Tinyby - December 26, 2004

Pros: Bought this about a week ago. Size is amazing- I can close my hand around this tiny device. It's thinner than my wallet (which is thicker than it would be had I purchased an iPod - these are available for under $200 delivered.) Audible support is possibl

Cons:

Worked great for a weekby - December 26, 2004

Pros: Well, it worked great for about a week. Good sound quality and great size. Then it shut off and would not start back up again.

Cons: Absolutely the worst customer service I have ever had to deal with. I had to call them a minimum of ten times to get them to give me an RMA number so I could send the thing back. They kept telling me they would have a higher level support person call me

iPod's closest rival has just passed into first place with Rio's wonder-player!by - December 25, 2004

Pros: Great Sleek body style, very customizable, with a 5-band custom EQ, easy to navigate, one handed operation, unbeatable battery life!

Cons: Slow indexing of drive makes skipping tracks a little slow, but not a con, rather an observation.

a real companienby - December 25, 2004

Pros: exelent product without any conning. it does what it was made for. small,powerfull and without any gimmik

Cons: none

You [generally] got what you paid for - EXCEPT A MANUALby - December 25, 2004

Pros: Great sound quality, even with the cheapo earbuds; jog wheel (may the good lord bless the dude's soul who invented the jog wheel); very nice design and look.

Cons: Okay... I didn't get a manual. Maybe it was just me...? NO MANUAL MAN. And it was not compatible with my favorite Koss headphones -_-. I thought that the static was coming from the microphone being on, and you can imagine the hours of frustration I had t

Cheaper and better then the ipod miniby - December 24, 2004

Pros: Works perfectly, I've dropped it a few times and it never even skipped. Holds more then the iPod mini, costs less and is smaller. I've had mine for a while and it works perfectly, not a single problem. And the software is great. I never even opened th

Cons: Nothing really... The headphones it comes with could be a bit bitter, maybe a larger screen. But it's pretty close to flawless.

Unit wont rebootby - December 18, 2004

Pros: Great Size and Memory

Cons: Problem: Unit will not reboot. I think the earpiece might have caused a shortage problem. An armband or a belt clip would have been nice

Absolutley Great!by - December 16, 2004

Pros: Physical size, battery life, storage size, ease of use, sound quality

Cons: Unable to make on the fly playlists.

Good player - Could use some refining, though...by - December 12, 2004

Pros: - Sleek and very fashionable. - Fits into pocket very nicely. - Good amount of disk space. - Good "wow" factor. - Superb sound quality. - Very easy to find songs in the menu. - Can be used as an removable hard-drive to transfer files. - Comes with very go

Cons: - Can't tolerate much shock. - Screen fogs up and become unreadable in cold weather. - Access speed is pretty slow, and becomes incredibly sluggish in cold weather (due to the hard drive that has to warm up). - Startup time is long. - Occasionally crashes

Weeell..by - December 12, 2004

Pros: It is very small and thin and 'glides' into your pocket. This is especially good if you are a student as teachers can't see you listening to it in class. Great memory. The battery life is excellent. My friend gave up on her ipod after a month due to its l

Cons: If you press it against your ear you can hear a buzzing sound, which isnt really a con, just something to point out. Also it doesn't have a removable battery, so when in rare cases like when you press a million buttons at a time and it freezes (happened o

Still needs some tweakingby - December 10, 2004

Pros: Sleak design and very small. Decent earbuds. Very easy to upgrade software although the website for the download is somewhat confusing.

Cons: Poor Customer Support for any product by Rio. No 800 number and I spent more than an hour getting a case number so I could order another USB cable only to find out it was not available. The carrying case found on page 7 of the manual does not exist. Lack

better than ipodby - December 9, 2004

Pros: even a stupid ***** like me can steal 1 of these. its better then the ipod i stole a couple of months ago

Cons: no differen colors but i dont give a ****, i stole it so it was free

Great features but with one glaring design glitchby - December 6, 2004

Pros: Compact, light, sleek-looking chrome exterior. User-friendly interface. Good sound quality.

Cons: STATIC ELECTRICITY: I owned this product a total of 4 hours when the MP3 tracks either skipped badly or froze altogether. After doing a little investigation, I found that the problem was that of static electricity. Rio's suggested fix was for the consu

Great Player while not supporing the Apple consortiumby - December 5, 2004

Pros: Unlike a lot of the internet/Apple loosers that post all negative reviews with out even owning this unit, I actually own one. Everything. Small, sleak, no stupid circular touch pad. Battery life alone would put this item 50 steps above the mini iPod.

Cons: Cons, no FM tuner.

The carbon is a must have for people who appreciate substance over styleby - November 18, 2004

Pros: Amazing battery life, nice feel in your hand, so small it fits anywhere, 5-Gb HD let's you put your whole CD collection on, doesn't freeze up as much as ipod, WMA capability.

Cons: Back scratches easily, and I am still waiting to find a good case.

The rio is really awsome. Get it over an Ipodby - November 16, 2004

Pros: way more battery life than my ipod mini *I returned it after getting a carbon* it even works with itunes (for all u ppl ragging on it for not being able to. The rio also has 1GB more than the ipod mini. My old mini was the same price as i got my rio for,

Cons: crappy earphone and carrying case. The package was so hard to open. no worries though. It was worth it.

Plug and play it doesby - November 15, 2004

Pros: Ease of use with music services. Long battery life.

Cons: The buttons are a little hard to get used to, but well worth the rest

nice player with a few quirksby - November 14, 2004

Pros: Long battery life that last intercontinental flights; small and slim package; easy interface; decent sound quality.

Cons: Hear static when twisting headphones plug, it locked up (has to hard reset) when charging thru usb especially if the laptop went to sleep mode. The supplied case is useful as a permanent storage when you are not using it. Some bugs in displaying internati

Beats the mini in all respectsby - November 10, 2004

Pros: Size, shape (very nice shape fits in a pocket like no other MP3 player--so slim and sleek--you forget it's there), battery life (as claimed), capacity, value (you can find them far under retail if you know where to look)

Cons: navigation not as cool as the click wheel, but does function like it should and is designed the way it is for it's unobtrusive shape/profile

best mp3 player i have ever hadby - November 9, 2004

Pros: great sound, tiny and light, looks great, heaps of room for storage,very good battery life

Cons: it is so small i sometimes lose it!

Fabulous little deviceby - November 6, 2004

Pros: Intuitive, small, cool lighting, WMA compatible, good battery life, excellent stopwatch, bookmarks, hold function is customizable, USB drive

Cons: Doesn't remember "custom" eq setting if you switch to another eq setting; scroll wheel should allow you to scroll through the song ala iPod

Great Player is you love staticby - November 1, 2004

Pros: This is a cool looking product. Downloading songs are easy and the volume button is convienent.

Cons: When I was listening to my music every third song had static. I returned my Carbon and was given another one and the problem still existed. When I called customer service they tried to sell me a headphone extender. Wish they could solve the static issu

sleek form, clunky software and navigationby - November 1, 2004

Pros: beautiful form factor

Cons: software: no ability to re-order tracks on your playlist after I pick them from my full librarly. ie. I have to choose the songs to put into the playlist in the order I want to listen to them. player navigation: once in a list I can't quickly scroll ov

READ THIS BEFORE YOU BUY!by - October 31, 2004

Pros: Neat design, cute, small, long battery life.

Cons: Does NOT play all types of MP3 files. Inferior design. Case has NO clip or belt (Duh!). Cannot be operated in the case. No lock button (Duh!)! Back to the coffee room, ...huh, ...drawing room.

Totally Blown Away! My new favorite toy!by - October 30, 2004

Pros: I have been researching MP3 players for weeks before I finally settled on the Rio Carbon. I am glad I did. This thing rocks! Awesome, rich, full sound, compact design, perfect for my GYM workouts and weekend runs. Support is right there when I tested th

Cons: Carrying case is a joke. Waste of cow. I bought a Case Logic arm band case for it extra on Ebay, and its a perfect solution. Cant wait for more case options. Only other drawback is there is no menu. You have to skip through every song. Kind of stupid wh

Really good player.by - October 28, 2004

Pros: This is the best player out there. Much longer battery life, sound (the bass is great), and offers more for your buck. Quite sturdy as I have dropped it a couple of times and very intuitive to use (didn't even read the manual). Unlike most other player

Cons: Only one style and color. The case could be better by allowing holes on the body to allow access to the stop, forward, back etc. buttons easily.

Super Great, the Best....but!!!!by - October 27, 2004

Pros: Everything! I found this MP3 offers all of the bells and whistles w/ sleek style- the Vette of MP3s. Easy to handle, operate and store; so small, sometimes hard to find in couch after dozing off! Sporty red lighting accompaning superior ergonomics makes

Cons: One CON and one CON only. The headphone jack is @#!*%?&-ed up! This is the only flaw with this next to perfect MP3. Using any connection cord, with exception to the head-phones issued with, uncontrolable and annoying static occurs with any movement

OK, but not in the same ballpark as iPodby - October 25, 2004

Pros: The extra space is nice if you really need it, but the unit as a whole doesn't feel as solid as the iPod

Cons: The functionality of the buttons doesn't really flow as well as the iPod. And even though it has smooth edges, it feels kind of clunky in its interface.

Great design; spotty qualityby - October 24, 2004

Pros: Great form factor, easy UI, easy to synch, long battery life, good sound.

Cons: Crashes unexpectedly--just stops working, turns off and reboots.

good product but it wont let me keep it for a week..by - October 22, 2004

Pros: small, easy to download for free, right off of windows media player..sound quality is good. very easy to use, and new, great mp3 player

Cons: i like this alot but it freezes and then stops working..ive owned two..and now im just not trying it with another one..i would get an ipod. alot of headphones you hear static with, with this product.. the only pair I could use is the poor pair it came wit

It took awhile...by - October 20, 2004

Pros: 5 GB, voice recording, sleek design, and battery life is awesome! My friend just purchased one and it is amazing, i think i will get one soon. The sound quality is also a work of art.

Cons: Why no radio tuner, is it because of size?

Charge while connected to PCby - October 18, 2004

Pros: You can charge the Rio Carbon directly connected to your PC (rather than re-connecting in the AC plug). To do so, just donwload the latest firmware from Rio web site. Ordered mine from US to Canada. Have had it for 2 weeks. Great storage, battery life

Cons: no belt clip but I am getting used to carry it in my pocket.

What's fuss about the "HOLD" switch?by - October 18, 2004

Pros: Seriously, what's all the fuss about the "hold" switch? Hold down the side "menu" button and simultaneously press the center button on the key pad. Repeat to unlock. It's like locking a Nokia phone. Easy as pie. Have had my Carbon for the past 2 weeks a

Cons: They couldn't pack an extra cable? What bothers me more than anything is having to plug the USB cable from my CPU to the charger and back depending on whether I want it to charge or get music. That's a pain.

HAHAHAHHAHAHAby - October 13, 2004

Pros: Longer battery life (though we know its not 20 hours). Larger drive, but most people don't use their devices as their library, so hmmmm.

Cons: I WANT to buy my music, I just don't want walk into a music store, and choose by sight (I prefer previewing my music before I buy). That is why I use iTunes and support AAC. Looks like another gadget. Style DOES matter. Lighter?! - come on, is the iPod

Borrowed a friends for a weekby - October 12, 2004

Pros: Form is nice and all around features like capacity and physical controls worked nicely. Lower cost alternative to iPod.

Cons: USB only. Synchronization and music purcasing not iTunes (ipod) simple. Not as many extra functions (data storage, contacts, calendar, games etc...) as iPod

eat your heart out iPod.by - October 12, 2004

Pros: After reading all the negative feedback and buying the Rio I've come to realize that all the negative feedbacks on this MP3 player were written from the same person. If you want a iPod then go buy one. If you want something BETTER for LESS then don't look

Cons: There's not many accessories to be found, the interface is annoying, the headphone jack issue should have been corrected before they shipped the product.

This player is unbelievable!by - October 9, 2004

Pros: Sleek, powerful, and superb quality music. Compare the battery life to the iPod mini. The carbon is hands down the better player.

Cons: I have found no flaws

Best Mid-sized MP3 Player to-dateby - October 9, 2004

Pros: Simple design, easy to use interface, great battery life alone makes this a best-buy, great software to support the player is also great.

Cons: USB cable used for uploading music AND recharging. Unplugging to do each is annoying.

great little thingby - October 9, 2004

Pros: i got it because it takes wma files and has a voice recorder. unlike some reviews here want you to believe it DOES NOT have an fm radio. Overall great value. I am not too impressed with the playlist set up, but i am just getting started.

Cons: i wasnt too impressed with its music software. also would have loved if it had a radio.

Rio Carbon vs Apple Miniby - October 7, 2004

Pros: Look, I need some serious help here, i am looking at the Rio Carbon and the Ipod mini, but i have no idea which one to get. They both look great and have alot of cool features but i need a second party involved here. Just tell me which one you think is be

Cons: Rio: no fm, no hold switch, reading forums people have had alot of problems, bad case , and bad support. Mini: battery life, battery not user replaceable, drains when you are not using it. Anyways say anything you want and tell me what you think, i am ser

Crashed within a week. Very poor response from Cust Serviceby - October 7, 2004

Pros: I was very excited to see an alternative to the ubiquitous pod, a sleek and minimalistic one to boot.

Cons: But... the player crashed within a week. I tried to contact customer service, but was put on hold for 1/2 hour before someone got on and gave me a complaint no. and put me back on hold for another 1/2 hour, at which point I gave up. I would definitely not

who posts hereby - October 4, 2004

Pros: Slick look, works well with real, win media, and included software. good sound, and my favorite part - not Apple. I dont get why apple fans need to "be part of a culture" like its some kind of cult. It music...not a lifestyle...

Cons: warranty sucks. My nitrus self destructed after 6 months, so lets hope this guy holds out or best buy will be passing me a new toy

If it worked as promised, I'd love it!by - October 4, 2004

Pros: Size, promise of good portablility.

Cons: I was invited to purchase a limited edition on 8/31/04. As a bonus, I was promised two-shipping. I purchased it right away. I quickly learned the Carbon was shipped via Ground, and it took two weeks, vice the promised two days. Upon receiving and char

The best alternative to Ipod miniby - October 4, 2004

Pros: Extremely thin and compact design. 20 hour battery life. Awesome audio quality, and even the included earbuds sound decent. Can use it just like an external hard drive. The Carbon shows up as a USB mass storage device, so you don't actually need to use

Cons: Cannot create playlist from the unit itself; you have to use the included Rio Music Manager and sync it. Included fake-leather case covers up the screen, and doesn't have a belt clip.

The battery life destroys the apples!!by - October 3, 2004

Pros: Battery life is unblievable for such a small player, same price as apple with one more gig! Small yet sleek design.

Cons: Headphone jack, case is supposed to suck, Rio customer support....terrible!

pretty slickby - October 2, 2004

Pros: great sound. long battery life. very small. fairly well designed. pretty too

Cons: case sucks. scrolling takes forever.

SELL YOUR IPOD! I sold mine...by - September 29, 2004

Pros: Small, battery life, quality, SIZE!! very user friendly and intuitive. When I heard about the new Rio, I decided to take the risk and sell my iPod on eBay, and am extrimely happy did so!

Cons: may get scratched easily like ipod. None other, really

GREAT WHEN IT WORKSby - September 28, 2004

Pros:

Cons: 5 days, 3 players. all broken. wont turn on, feezes while playing. do not buy this product!

So promising, such high hopes--maybe the next version will be better.by - September 26, 2004

Pros: Small, sleek, slightly larger capacity than the mini, voice recorder built in.

Cons: One hardware issue, one software(?) issue: My first unit started doing weird things within days of purchase. Even after downloading the new firmware (as was recommended by customer service), whenever I plugged it in to the AC adapter to charge, it would

Have you waited for the ultimate MP3 player?by - September 26, 2004

Pros: compact, multiple ways to find and play music. Smaller than an iPod, great battery life... and amazing sound quality

Cons: no lock to buttons

Beats any mp3 player I've ever usedby - September 25, 2004

Pros: My mp3 player before this one was a creative nomad zen, which can only be described as a brick when compared to the carbon. The carbon is also smaller than any hardrive mp3 player, and when I compared it to an ipod mini, the sound quality was better by f

Cons: The software isnt that great, and has problems with making playlists, I would recomend looking into software made by RedChair for transfering music to any mp3 player. It is dificult to get the carbon in and out of the case, and the case doesnt have a bel

Feels Cheap - Lacks Featuresby - September 25, 2004

Pros: Extra memory for the price

Cons: Feels cheap, not feature rich, can't wear it, terrible warranty, company has poor product quality reputation, hard to use, surface shows finger prints easily, lack of accessories.

Much better than the iPod (for PC users)by - September 24, 2004

Pros: Awesome design...very tiny! Great looks. Functionality is just as great. Really neat interface for easy browsing AND PC connectivity. Looong battery life (2x iPod Mini's). (I'm not hating on iPods, they are great devices too, but I dont like their iT

Cons: Wish it had radio and shuffle, then it would be perfect.

Support: 3 month warranty ????by - September 23, 2004

Pros: Nice looking player, excelent features and sound

Cons: Is Rio ever going to start backing their products? I've had 3 Rio Players in the last year, all broke within 3 months, don't try to get them to repair it. Forget it, the guy speaking Pakistani or Indian on the other side of the phone does not care about

Not too much, not too little.by - September 23, 2004

Pros: Five-band EQ, fast and easy PC connectivity, great sound, clear interface, sleek body, size, long battery life, and plenty of space for music and audible audio. Also very easy to update firmware.

Cons: No album shuffle function (like iTunes or iPod), when you pick a single song to listen to the unit will not play rest of album, finicky with ID3 tags from PC iTunes.

I'm very happy with this product.by - September 23, 2004

Pros: Great battery life. Small device, with easy to navigate menu. 5 gigs of memory. Looks cool! I also have a 1 yr old Cali flash player - better sound then my Cali.

Cons: Not sure if I like the RMM software, but you can drag/drop music into the device anyway. I consider the earphone jack issue a NON-issue. This only affects a fraction of headphones, and is easily remedied.

Excellent, small HD playerby - September 23, 2004

Pros: Small, sleek form factor. Long battery life. USB 2.0. No drivers needed to connect to PC.

Cons: Wish playlist option wasn't buried in the menu.

Hope you don't need accessories!by - September 22, 2004

Pros: Slick and feels good in your hand. Feather light. Decent sound. Better storage than iPod mini. Drag and drop instand harddrive! Besides, iTunes is so overrated and bloated.

Cons: No accessories, no belt clip, no arm band available for this product. That means no way to carry it other than your hand or buried in your pocket. No skins available for protection. Pricey for what you get. Comes in a blister pack, ugh! I bought one an

I would say it's perfect but..by - September 22, 2004

Pros: Battery life, look and feel, size.

Cons: The case.. The case is just horrible, what were they thinking? Several times now I've turned it off, then in pushing it into the case I Accidentally turn it on in the process. All this engineering to be defeated by a stupid little worthless case that do

Sweet playerby - September 21, 2004

Pros: This product is really great. I have had my Carbon for about 13 days, and I have to say this is a winner!It is so easy to use, unreal sound, absolutely love it. I have a solution for all you Carbon owners as far as a carrying case is concerned. I use a di

Cons: 00000000!

Why not a 15GB trustworthy iPod..by - September 20, 2004

Pros: Don't understand why not an IPOD, IPod has been such an excellent machine ever, why there is such an Anti IPod feeling???

Cons: 5GB for 250?? Why would I pay for that when I can get an IPod for 236 from Amazon or would rather buy a mini-Pod?

Crashed in 24 hours!by - September 20, 2004

Pros: Sleek and small.

Cons: Playlists are a drag to work with. Changing the order of songs took forever, whether in Rio Music Manager or Windows RealMedia Player. Unit crashed within twenty-four hours of having it.

Best of micro-drive players.... by farby - September 20, 2004

Pros: . Size !!!! . 5GB when the concurrence is offering 4GB players (iPod mini) . Battery (I personally tested it; 21 hours with MP3s / 17.5 hours with WMAs) . External Hard Drive --> plug and play ! No need for software. . Good sound with EQ (average witho

Cons: . Case; needs to be modded to be really useful . Some subjective software changes . FM player would be nice . Not so comfortable earbuds . Static problem with SOME headphones (resolved simply with a piece of tape)

It's still a Rioby - September 20, 2004

Pros: Like most Rio products, it looks really cool and promising.

Cons: Like most Rio products, it will undoubtedly break and you will receive horrible tech support. Fool me once, shame on you. Fool me 4 times, shame on my own dumb self.

Best PLayer I've Hadby - September 20, 2004

Pros: Slim cool design. Easy to tranfer files. Fading backlight, equalizer, great overall sound

Cons: A little pricey, no playlists, no FM tuner

My favorite toyby - September 20, 2004

Pros: Sounds great. Works great. Can be used as an external USB drive. Battery life is awesome!

Cons: Rio audio manager software has some major bugs when dealing with DRM. I have to use winamp to get around a lot of the bugs and create playlists.

Great player, the problem is the interfaceby - September 20, 2004

Pros: Great player for windows. Good battery life.

Cons: It's the windows interface that kills it. Can't compare playlist and library management to iTunes on Apple. Still not even close to the seamless integration of iPod and iTunes.

Doesn;t support Audible.Com file type.by - September 20, 2004

Pros:

Cons: Unlike the Apple iPod, the Rio Carbon doesn't support Audible.com, so no good for audiobooks.

Really Glad that I bought itby - September 19, 2004

Pros: Excellent sound. Great battery life. You can really tell the difference between MP3s that were well recorded and those not. Been a while since I've had a personal music device and this blows everthing else I ever had away. Easily adjusted the custom equal

Cons: The carrying case is difficult to use and seems an afterthought. No access to the play controls. Registration mentioned illegal entries... Only gave it what I give everyone else. Based on the review here, I bought a separate set of headphones. If you don'

This is not a winner over iPodby - September 19, 2004

Pros: Slick new design.

Cons: The iPod has 20Gigs of storage which can be used as an external drive to transport or for file back up use. No iTunes compatability. I think for only $50 more you get whole lot more bang for your money with iPod.

Alot better than iPodby - September 18, 2004

Pros: Overall a much better value than iPod @ the same price. Larger drive, more battery life plays WMA files (iPod won't EVER period).

Cons: None really. If you are technically challenged (e.g. get confused by more than one mouse button) consider the iPod I guess as Apple has designed its products for people who NEED limited choices & to be shown what they want.

The player for you?by - September 17, 2004

Pros: First off this sucker's small. Yes you've heard it but it is. If you're as blind as some of the users here and you can't read a book, don't expect to read the LCD. Next off, sound quality is superb with 99.9% of Rio products and this is now exception.

Cons: The service is a little annoying if you have problems. It's best to go to a suggested Rio help forum. If they tell you that you have a bad HDD, just call Rio and say it. Don't have them trouble shoot it, state you need an RMA ASAP you have had an HDD f

Wish iPod mini had 5GBby - September 17, 2004

Pros: Extra gigabyte! The extra 250 songs makes all the difference in such a tiny player! Rio copied the good from iPod's controller -- now Apple just needs to copy the 5GB capacity! Despite the drawbacks I listed below, Carbon rocks because it can hold ALL my

Cons: Very weak on the features I wanted. I wanted a player like my pal's iPod mini but with a 5GB hard drive -- if only Apple would add the 5GB to the mini! (especially the Seagate, they have the most trustworthy drives.) Interface and jukebox are weaker than

How can they sell a HD based player with a 3 month warranty?by - September 17, 2004

Pros: Features, performance, innovation.

Cons: Manufacturer with a poor reliability record combined with the shortest warranty of an MP3 player? Bad combo. If Rio wants me to take a chance on them, they need to match the one year warranty offered by Apple, Creative, and iRiver.

Kills my mini ipod for size.by - September 17, 2004

Pros: Real small size, user interface, ease of sync, slick looking, unbelievable battery life (20 hrs.).

Cons: Needs wearable case because of its size.

Rio Carbon Not What It's Tracked Up To Beby - September 16, 2004

Pros: Long battery life

Cons: Short product warranty period; No Firewire port; poor product design

Great oveall but case is horrible.by - September 16, 2004

Pros: Love the product overall. Sounds great and battery lasts a long time. Also very easy to use.

Cons: Don't be fooled by the single line mentioning the difficulty in removing from the case. Maybe it will eventually break in but: 1) It is annoying that you have to remove from the case to control the Carbon. 2) It is VERY dificult to remove (especially wit

Sleek and easy to navigateby - September 16, 2004

Pros: I gave up my 20GB Nomad Zen for this puppy with better navigation and a smaller package. Works well with an FM transmitter. I have encountered the static issue when using headphones with exposed metal. Easy enough to fix. Overall, the thing is rock solid.

Cons: Software could be more context sensitive. No playlists on the device. The carrying case doesn't allow you to see the screen. The headphone thing is just stupid.

On-the-fly playlists is a big oversightby - September 15, 2004

Pros: Can play WMA files

Cons: Nowhere near as cool, beautiful or solid as an iPod Mini Looks very plastic-y

Easy to get use to, habit formingby - September 15, 2004

Pros: Easy to use and understand

Cons: Could use some better ear buds, and a practical case.

Yeah it's that good.by - September 15, 2004

Pros: Very cool looking. Smaller, hotter looking than Ipod mini - more space and better bat life than mini. Great UI and form factor - operable with one hand and no looking. Matches interior of my car!

Cons: Some headphones with metal backing on jack can cause static.(easy fix) Polished back can scratch easily.(leave on clear plastic backing). Case that comes with it is not playthrough (mod it!).

Rio has done it!by - September 14, 2004

Pros: Super cool design and form factor. Weight is fantastic. Battery life kicks the ipod's butt. And it works with TONS of music stores, not just locked into itunes.

Cons: wished it came in other colors

Such a disappointmentby - September 13, 2004

Pros: Great looking, easy to use, sounds great

Cons: But it's a piece of unreliable technology. I first bought a Rio Forge Sport. The thing kept turning off no matter what button I pressed, even in lock mode. Returned it. Saw this Carbon and thought that it had to be better than the cheaper Forge. Well

Better Designby - September 13, 2004

Pros: I heard people said the 5Gb Hard disk is just a 5Gb Micro Drive. Someone did pull it out and used it in a D-Cam. Don't try unless you are sure this is not a rumor.

Cons: No other language song name display

WOW A CLEAR WINNERby - September 12, 2004

Pros: This product is awesome, I use it for different purposes. Its my back up drive just in case I need to transfer files. The sound is amazing a 5GB hard-drive that is efficient on battery life. What else can i think off, well the casing is amazing, the fade

Cons: Nothing!!!! Oh yeah its cheaper then the IPOD in addition more value for the $250. If you don't believe me, just read all the other reviews.

Effectively a 3GB device..don't be fooled.by - September 12, 2004

Pros: This unit has a sleek design, and better profile than the ipod.

Cons: Complete lack of any "second generation" audio format support! The ipod has AAC, and the Rio Karma and a few other models supported the superior non-proprietary ogg vorbis format. Sadly, this new Rio offering is a step backwards, and only offers support

Nice little unit at last!by - September 11, 2004

Pros: Good sound quality, easy to navigate, 5 gig in such a small size, good software

Cons: major faux pas in not shipping the limited edition out 2nd day air as promised, tuner would be a nice edition

Great; however...by - September 11, 2004

Pros: As an actual owner of a Rio Carbon, I assure you that the battery life is excellent, but 17 hours would have been a better estimate. The sound quality is superb (that's coming from an audiophile), but get rid of the included headphones. The slim design is

Cons: My biggest fuss with this mp3 player is the navigation system. It's easy and great if you upload playlists to the player, otherwise, prepare to scroll through your 2000+ tracks. It also sorts them by artist, album, genre, and year. The voice recorder is

IP Killer, I indeed!by - September 11, 2004

Pros: Small size, long battery life. Great look and feel. Nice controls. Nice sound.

Cons: Doesn't play lossless WMA files (yet at least - maybe with firmware upgrade)

coolest mp3 player yet!by - September 10, 2004

Pros: So small and lightweight, amazing battery life! My first mp3 player was a Rio and I was happy with it. The menu's quick and simple, and this player looks really cool w/ a fading away effect and red lighting on the d-pad and Rio logo. comes w/ a couple of

Cons: no sport band, length on the earbuds could be longer. Not sure how tough this is, I dropped it about 3 ft on hard carpet and the back casing looks like it might've came a little loose, since its chrome plastic instead of metal, but it's hard to tell. Stil

I liked it but froze on 2nd dayby - September 10, 2004

Pros: I thought about a ipod mini but I have windows 98SE and can't use ipods with that. Bought this at best buy. I liked it cause it was small and 5 gigs, and long battery life. It was easy to use. 1st mp3 for me so nothing to compare it to. Sound was pre

Cons: Case was too tight, it was hard to get it out and it covered all the buttons and the screen- so when I wanted to change song or pause had to struggle to get it out. And here on the second day of using it it froze on me. After shelling out 250 bucks plus

better than all othersby - September 10, 2004

Pros: features, battery, looks, organization , ease of use this was exactly what i was looking for ... exactly!!!

Cons: my first one was deffective small warrenty --- get the 2 year plan!!! 40 dollars for 2 years? that very reasonable and wise to do

The Best of its Kindby - September 10, 2004

Pros: Beautiful, small, and easy to use. Hold PLENTY of songs with 5 Gig, and is compatible with Audible too! You'll love how easy it is to synch with the included software.

Cons: Should buy a 2-year product protection plan (90 days isn't enough). Case doesn't allow you to see screen or press buttons. Opening the package is self-torture.

Got Rid Of My iPodby - September 10, 2004

Pros: Incredibly sexy, best-looking portable audio player out there. Battery life is H-U-G-E!

Cons: If Rio figures out how to put a 40GB drive in a similar sized package, I'll pay $1,000 for it!

Steve Jobs won't get my money.by - September 10, 2004

Pros: Great overall design, super slim, extra long battery life, futuristic look, easy to use software, and has 1 gig more storage than IPod mini.

Cons: No FM radio

best mp3 player I have seenby - September 9, 2004

Pros: Excellent form, design, and most importantly sound!! This machine is extremely easy to use and sounds terrific.Plenty loud for those who worry about this. And there is so much room on this baby!! In addition to my mp3's I like to listen to audible.com boo

Cons: None yet. I bought this at Best Buy before they were even on the floor, and still love it.

Very happy so far!by - September 9, 2004

Pros: Best battery, best storage space, USB 2.0 mass storage class device for easy transfers, lightest weight.

Cons: Headphone jack can be crackly.

Excellent size, sound and battery lifeby - September 9, 2004

Pros: Size, battery, sound, simplicity, showing up as a drive.

Cons: Included case, no FM radio.

Good Hardware, OK Firmwareby - September 9, 2004

Pros: Compact and lightweight, yet carry enough storage for a good selection of songs for short trip and vacation.

Cons: Firmware could use a little improvement. Control in the menu is annoying because it jumps back to the player screen during set up is updated, it should remain in the main menu.

Great with WMP10by - September 8, 2004

Pros: Windows Media Player 10 makes it really easy to sync with this device. It's really small, the controls are intuitive, and it sounds great!

Cons: It wouldn't power on after I disconnected it from my computer. Make sure you use the "Safely Remove Hardware" icon in Windows XP.

beautiful & easy to useby - September 8, 2004

Pros: Easy navigation, great ergonomic set up. Good sound, adequate volume. super slim, nice palmfeel, I didnt' like the ipods navigation, ergonomic or software

Cons: prone to scratching, I don't think you can make playlists on the fly

Very Good product for what I was looking for!by - September 8, 2004

Pros: 5GB of space is enough for me right now. It is very small and is no issue in my gym pants/pockets while working out at the gym. Slick looking (love the red lights). Good sound quality if you have good ear buds. Easy to navigate. LOVE the drag and drop fea

Cons: No FM Radio (would have liked this for emergencies only...but no big deal). No playlist from the unit itself (though you can do it from the software provide on your computer). Would have prefered 8-10GB for the same price. Included case should have allowe

Beautiful Product Overallby - September 7, 2004

Pros: Slick design with full feature and excellent battery life

Cons: Didn't find it yet??!!

OK, but not an iPod beater.by - September 7, 2004

Pros: The best feature is the hard drive.

Cons: The lack of connectivity to an online store is a major drag.

An excellent idea with a lot of bugsby - September 6, 2004

Pros: This product has limitless potential. Small size, a beautiful exterior, flashy illumination, ease of use, long lasting battery

Cons: I have purchased 3 Rio Mp3 players. All 3 have had buggy software. The "Rio DJ" function would never work. The two nitrus-es were returned. Both had inconsistent batter lifes, differences of hours. The customer service representatives (all in ind

small cheaper then ipodby - September 6, 2004

Pros: Cheaper then ipod on most websites mini doesnt have the voice recorder. Tiny makes the mini look huge.

Cons: fm radio? 3 months warrnety

Hardware good, company crooksby - September 6, 2004

Pros: Nothing, company is incompitant.

Cons: Avoid Rio products, period. Company run and services by incompetance, billed twice for an order cancelled, still in dispute over my credit card charges. Took 20+ minutes for their "tech" support to cancel my order, guy was an idiot and probably used my

Finally.....by - September 6, 2004

Pros: Long battery life and very small. Out of the box I got 5 hours w/o charging. I bought this yesterday and love it. I had an Ipod for the last month and the sound on this is a lot better and louder. Also...the jog dial is very nice and durable.

Cons: The only con about this is the case they include. It's worthless unless you make it into a belt clip case somehow?

Best player in its catergory by far!by - September 6, 2004

Pros: Best sound quality I have ever heard, extensive EQ, extremely small size(a lot smaller than iPod or iPod mini), nice design, cool backlights, metal back finish, platinum plastic front, informative LCD, easy, one of a kind menu system, fast and quick navig

Cons: Only big stand out feature is Voice Recording, scratch-prone back that requires Brasso or Sponge to remedy the situation, 90 day warranty, case isn't good.

Room for Improvementby - September 5, 2004

Pros: Slim, great battery life. USB charger...

Cons: I really don't like the over all button design and position. There is no HOLD botton like the Nitrus(manual button). It's very easy to turn on the player when taking it in and out of the tight case. You have to go through the menu(3,4 steps) to get to the

Blows away the iPod miniby - September 5, 2004

Pros: Mass-storage compliant, uses Winamp playlists, small size, large storage, excellent sound quality, not made by Apple, no compulsory use of iTunes

Cons: no replaceable battery does not recognize ogg/flac/aac

Very nice player!by - September 5, 2004

Pros: More memory than ipod mini, easy to use, nice navigation setup, wowy battery life, super sleek size.

Cons: sometimes the headphone jack gets a bit hard to work with but u just gatta push it in more...thats it

Great alternative to Ipod if you don't own apple stock!by - September 4, 2004

Pros: I bought this unit yesterday and already loaded it with tunes (WMA files only, they're smaller than MP3 files) The ipods are cool but let it go already. Many of the features that most people use are including in the Rio Carbon. Its an MP3 player, is a n

Cons: Because its a new item, reliability is yet to be seen. I purchased the product from Bestbuy and bought their 2 yr. replacement warranty just in case!

For those still using Windows 98by - September 3, 2004

Pros: Cavet: I have only had the unit for two days, but so far, everything is as advertised. Small, solid and a fair amount of storage. Has a shuffle feature for random play and seek time between songs is minimal. While not high end strereo (nothing playing

Cons: While I have enough music on the computer to fill Apple's 40 gig i-pod, that's not an option for a Win 98 holdout. The included leather slip case looks good, but gives no access to the navigation controls (although you can adjust volume and turn it on and

Don't be fooled by Apple's Goonsby - September 2, 2004

Pros: I would be nice if some of the people posting comments here actually used the product.

Cons:

Get over it Ipod huggers! It's better.by - September 2, 2004

Pros: I'm tired of hearing people rip this product and compare it when they've never used it. I received my Carbon a day ago and it's a brilliant device. I considered the mini but for the price, style and storage this was it for me. I have a Rio S35 sport playe

Cons: Case could be better. Hoping for more accessories in the near future.

The mp3 player to haveby - September 2, 2004

Pros: Easy to use interface, excellent sound, a great design, the perfect size HD, and over 20 hours of battery life.

Cons: 3 month warranty- you need an extended warranty from a 3rd party (best buy, viking, walmart etc etc). no playlists on the fly- a little irritating at first, but once you do load up a couple from your PC it's smooth sailing.

Apple is too far aheadby - September 1, 2004

Pros: Better battery, and a bit more space.

Cons: A little pricey, Apple already holds the market, and the majority of accessory companies cater for the iPod market.

ipod slayerby - September 1, 2004

Pros: an extra gig of space,long battery life, mp3,wma and audible compatable plus great sound quality and ultraportable

Cons: u will find yourself listening to music werever u go

Great First Effortby - September 1, 2004

Pros: The obvious stuff. For those writing about how this doesn't sync up to iTunes, the fact you guys are still paying for music reflects your neanderthal thinking. Stop blowing Apple already.

Cons: Waiting for second generation, which should be brilliant. Will risk ridicule for not being trendy.

Great player !by - September 1, 2004

Pros: Sleek, excellent battery life, 5gbs of music storage, voice recorder, feels like it cost a lot more !

Cons: one color only, but it is a good one.

What's an iPod ??by - September 1, 2004

Pros: Less money, easier to use in terms of features. Why bother with MAC?? Haven't had it long enough to find out about support or reliability but so far I'm pleased.

Cons: Needs a better case.

Rio getting back in the driver's seat.by - September 1, 2004

Pros: Have owed Rio products for years. Sound quality, menu designe and feature set have always been high priorities and the Carbon is no exception. Hot!! Hot!! Hot!!

Cons: Same price as a 20GB Rio Karma (Best gadget I've ever owned.) Oh, and to the reviewer who said "I'll stick with solid state iPod", none of the iPods are solid state!! All use hard drives just like the Rio's and iRiver's HD players. Try dropping your iPo

What about ogg support?by - September 1, 2004

Pros: A nice product, a great alternative to the iPod.

Cons: What happened ogg and flac audio codec support? The Rio Karma allows me to play these formats - why the step backwards?

EFFIN AWESOMEby - September 1, 2004

Pros: This is the best digital music player in existance!! You can't go wrong with the Rio Carbon, as everything about it exceeds the iPod's attributs!

Cons: I'm a target for theft... >:)

"Think outside the Pod"by - September 1, 2004

Pros: the extra GB is clutch on my long road trips and my highschool courses

Cons: its not waterproof

Better than iPod Mini.by - September 1, 2004

Pros: More stylish, easier navigation, better sound quality, longer battery life.

Cons: iPoder's will try and bash this product because they suck.

What are you reviewing?by - September 1, 2004

Pros: I'm curious what the two other reviewers are reviewing. This is Aug 31st and the product isn't even shipping from the manufacturer until Sept 3rd.

Cons:

Nice to see competition...wma support!by - September 1, 2004

Pros: Nice package, good battery life and range of media formats (except iTunes proprietary); go competition!

Cons: Lousy warrantee; should be backed by at least 1 year

Nice try, but no 'Pod Pummelerby - September 1, 2004

Pros: Excellent battery life, good file support.

Cons: Terrible interface. Not ambidextrous. feels cheaply made.

Surely a Killer...by - September 1, 2004

Pros: With this carbon, aple can't win over those windows users. If you're a windows user, need more than just 1.5 gb for the nitrus, and less than 15 gb the karma, you should get this. Right now Rio is offering only 500 special edition carbons with an ipod sha

Cons: It doesn't have an FM tuner, or recording.it just has a voice recorder, the Rio logo, and buttons do lite up red, but i think a lot of people were pulling for the FM tuner, maybe not event the recording.

No support for ACC - Ogg vorbisby - September 1, 2004

Pros: I like the small size, battery life and 1 GB extra over the ipod-mini for same price.

Cons: Not as stlyish as the mini, and looks cheap. No Ogg Vorbis or ACC compatability (which I prefer).

The hottest MP3 player ever made.by - September 1, 2004

Pros: Look at it. Then look at it's specs. This is the best MP3 player ever made.

Cons: None.

Anything beats an iPodby - September 1, 2004

Pros: It isn't made by Apple, it is larger capacity than the mini, looks better, has better battery life, which is the single most important aspect of any player

Cons: not enough recognition, some people think Apple is the only company that makes an MP3 player

Good attempt, but not an iPodby - September 1, 2004

Pros: Small, decent hard drive size, good battery life, voice recorder.

Cons: Control ergonomics are not up to par. No compatibility with the iTunes Music store (which offers the best online music shopping experience). Pricey.

Why fight buying an iPod...? if it's a quality product, just buy it...by - September 1, 2004

Pros: battery life appears to be good...

Cons: still not an iPod...

IPOD KILLER!by - September 1, 2004

Pros: Battery life, slimmer, sleek, sexy. Better value for your dollar. Rio software is great!

Cons: job wheel a big cumbersome.

It's Great !!!by - September 1, 2004

Pros: design !!! battery life, size & weight, 5 GB into your pocket, portable drive without add. software,

Cons: without :)

No WAV??by - September 1, 2004

Pros: Price, not an iPod, size, not an iPod.

Cons: No WAV format? I know it's only 5 Gig, but...no WAV??

THE alternative to the iPod!by - September 1, 2004

Pros: FINALLY, Rio is being smart. They are captivating us with a very beautiful piece of machinary. Great features, sound, ergonomics, slick size, long battery life.. What more could you ask for in an MP3 player?

Cons: I haven't found anything wrong with this great product, except maybe the excessive amount of drool? hehe ~,^

Kicks hughe amount of wicked ass!!by - September 1, 2004

Pros: ·Small size ·Large battery life ·5 Gb memory

Cons: ·No bluetooth support ·Offered as an "alternative" ·Still very expensive

I love how the video review...by - September 1, 2004

Pros: I love how the video review of the Rio Carbon has a song titled "Hard Cold *****" on the screen right before he slips the device into his pocket.

Cons:

Might as well throw your money awayby - September 1, 2004

Pros: As with most Rio products, it looks extremely attractive all-around (Design, features, etc.)

Cons: As with most Rio products, it will completely completely screw up and be near worthless. And tech support won't help worth a #*&$@

This thing rocks.....very cool form factor from stem to stern. The iPod sheep are gonna jump shipby - September 1, 2004

Pros: memory, battery performance....this thing is sleek like a Ferrari. Very cool from the inside out and back in. Finally an alternative to the overrated iPod.

Cons:

I can't see other users opinionsby - September 1, 2004

Pros: I can't see other users opinions can someone help me out?

Cons: Am I the only one having this problem. E-mail with help at headbackheadback@yahoo.com

doesn't have the right capabilitiesby - September 1, 2004

Pros: price; said to be "20 hours of battery life"; 5GB hardrive; known company

Cons: wieght; doesn't support WAV files; software ???

Carbon factsby - September 1, 2004

Pros: :-XIpod killer? no mini ipod killer. The carbon said as the successor to the nitrus, well was the nitrus a success? The carbon still has many minds to boggle with it's pre-release rumors.(said to be out ***BY*** September 10th) Are any of 'em true, the ca

Cons: The carbon does have many pros, and many good features, but it doesn't have many newer type of features

THE only mini harddrive playerby - September 1, 2004

Pros: 20 hours of battery life!!!! no stupid itunes, wma support, easy plug-and-play interface, more memory. bravo rio, way to kick the crap out of apple.

Cons: absolutely NONE

iPod mini? where'd it go?by - September 1, 2004

Pros: Small! 5gb! $250! FM radio! Gorgeous looks! Kicks the iPod minis ass so hard it will disappear! Value! it has SO MUCH MORE than the Mini! I have a Karma and i can tell you, the Rio interface whoops the ipods...

Cons: Design looks a tad too much like the ipod, and hence the shiny, scratchable back! Also, I am not an Apple basher, i love their computers, their powerbooks are amazing... jus think that the iPod range pales in comparison with top competitors

ipod mini's arch enemyby - September 1, 2004

Pros: more memory capacity than most mini harddrive players. smaller size than whats expected because of its jam packed features

Cons: looks lopsided and buttons are small

End of the iPod's stronghold !!!by - September 1, 2004

Pros: I have a 20gig iPod but the easy of use and intuitive menus make my new 5gig Carbon my first choice. The sound reproduction in your car is also superb , good Job RIO !

Cons: None at this time

Add 3.5 gb to the nitrus= carbon= perfectby - September 1, 2004

Pros: This products is similar to the nitrus and in my opinion, the nitrus only has 3 flaws, 2 of which are fixed, much cooler design, more memory You also get the fm tuner and the voice recorder. Great looking product

Cons: the third-- no on the go playlist making

This is the ONEby - September 1, 2004

Pros: Stylish Design Nice UI - love the fading red LEDs. The Best Battery Life The Best Audio Quality USB High Speed + Mass Storage 5GB capacity FM Tuner is a nice feature. WMA music stores are less facist than iTunes. I had the opportunity to play with a pre-

Cons: I didn't find anything that I didn't like about the Carbon. It would be better if the price were < $200, but it's still a better bargain than the mini. I guess that it would probably be worth more if it said Apple on the front and had white ear buds

Extra Gig and FM Tuner!by - September 1, 2004

Pros: A whole extra gig for the exact same price as a Mini! Not to mention, a FM tuner with voice recorder tossed into a package that is slimmer and shorter than an Ipod. Cool sleek design that belongs in all Hollywood stars hands...or anyone that can recognize

Cons: The back is probably very likely to smear just like the original Ipod backing. It would be cool if there was a belt clip included. One possible downside is the recharging of battery via USB only.

IPod Mini... Who CARES!by - September 1, 2004

Pros: The Carbon is smaller, lighter, sounds much better, supports more codecs, has longer battery life, has greater storage capacity... and the list GOES On and On! I own a Mini, G3, and G4 (which I'll be returning today) iPod, and can say that they really are

Cons: The stainless steel back-plate will probably look cool for about an hour, and then let the finger prints and scratches begin!.. and what happened to the RIO STICK?

The Mini ipod killer is hereby - September 1, 2004

Pros: Great battery life, nice colors, voice recording,fm tuner, backlight color, dpad feature. 100% improvement of the Ipod.

Cons: I rated the value at a ten becuase you can buy 5 gigs instead of 4 for the same price at the mini, BUT you have you remember you can buy a 20gb player (like the rio karma) for 20 bucks less.

WEAK AT BEST, RIO, AS WELL AS MANY OTHER COMPANY'S HAVE A LACK OF CREATIVITY, WITH THEIR SHARP WITSby - September 1, 2004

Pros: iTS "CREATIVE LOOKS", RIO, AS WELL AS MANY OTHER COMPANY'S HAVE A LACK OF CREATIVITY, WITH THEIR SHARP WITS AND FAST THINKING THEY THOUGHT UP OF THIS DUD, IT LOOKS LIKE A BALL OF SOCKS PAINTED SILVER. tHESE PRODUCTS LACK ALL OF THE FEATURES AND ACCESSORIE

Cons: EVERYTHING, BESIDES THE NAME (RIO,I AN UNRELIABLE PRODUCT BECAUSE OF ITS LACK OF STYLE AS WELL AS FUNCTION)THIS PLAYER LACKS THE FOLLOWING LOOKS,MEMORY,ERGONOMICS,ACESS ORIES,FUNCTIONS... AND THE LIST IS TOO HEAVY FOR ME TO HOLD. THEY NEED TO LEARN TO HIR

Amazing product which destroys the Miniby - September 1, 2004

Pros: Smaller then the previous Rio Nitrus, 23hrs battery life, smaller then the ipod mini. Join the riovolution!

Cons: None so far

the ipod mini killer!by - September 1, 2004

Pros: this thing is hot! style and function all in one tight little package. I would get this over the ipod mini anyday!

Cons: I really can't think of any.

Im getting it!!!!by - September 1, 2004

Pros: This is the perfect memory size for me, super small, exactly what i am looking for!!!!

Cons: None so far

Yeah, sure its not out, but still:by - September 1, 2004

Pros: This thing looks kick ass. All the features of the Nitrus with 5gb!! Suckit apple. And also, its got a killer design. It looks like its doing away with the rio-stick, for a more traditional dpad style control. thats cool. plus an FM tuner

Cons: The thing has a tiny ass screne, baseing on the Nitrus' screen, which was miniscule. I gave service and quality a 5 because i don't have it and i don't konw. I gave value a 9 because its the same price as the mini and has a ton more fatures, and features

Feels great in your handby - August 30, 2004

Pros: Great stlying, very intuitive navigation, and smaller than the IPOD mini.

Cons: No FM tuner.

I am sold on this product!by - August 30, 2004

Pros: The battery life and the extra gig of space exceeds its competitors. The sleek look and overall feel of this unit makes it a wonderful buy.

Cons: Not available in other colors.

A clear-cut winner over iPodby - August 29, 2004

Pros: Superb sound, excellent battery life (I got almost 18 hrs. the first time I used it) and super slim. Great product!

Cons: It's addictive.

Not enough to switchby - August 27, 2004

Pros: Extra gigabyte over iPod mini

Cons: Half the gigabytage of a low end iPod regular. Rio service not exactly good.

Apple still makes better productsby - August 7, 2004

Pros: The iPod isn't just a gadget. It's a seamless, fast, and efficient tool between iTunes, the iTunes music store, and a music player that has become an icon in America. The Rio offers great features and a good value, but...

Cons: Not backed by Apple support, integration, or seamless wiring into a music store or program.

The new era of mini-HDD Playersby - August 6, 2004

Pros: Capacity, Battery life (20+ hours!), Looks (subjective, I like it...), SIZE, Features (Voice recorder, regular astounding Rio control, EQ, etc.) Bundled package (Carrying case, AC adapter) Quality!

Cons: No FM tuner, Rio had severe costumer support problems in the past, The screen might be just a little too small, No Ogg Vorbis support, No gapless fading

The Carbon Rocksby - August 5, 2004

Pros: Great Product, Smaller, sleeker and more sylishthan the I Pod Mini. Drap and drop is the icing on the cake.

Cons:

As an iPod owner!by - August 4, 2004

Pros: I have to say this looks good. Finally after how many years and how many imitators we may finally have a contender. Not only does it look good but it beats the iPod in every other category. And this is not easy for me to admit. Apple you need to step it

Cons: Have not tried it yet.

the future looks good for Rio!!by - August 3, 2004

Pros: FM turner, voice recorder, not plastic but "metal" covering ....N 20 hour battery life....wow it changes my mind on my interest on the ipod mini now. N da design is sexy n slim. Love da red backlight also.

Cons: nuthin 4 now....but i have the rio nitrus n wished i could of waited longer so i could get this 1!!......lol

First impression: definitely a competitorby - August 3, 2004

Pros: High number of features for a mini-HD player. Small and cool casing. 5gigs instead of 4. Rio quality audio

Cons: I bet it scratches easily. USB charging only.