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"Where's The Playlists ? - Honest Review from an Owner." on by wakefiej
Pros: Great Interface, Ok sound, Good Controls
Cons: Poor Battery Life, Reformats, No Playlists, Support is poor.
Summary: I first noticed the device didn't transfer my WPL, or M3U playlists. Do you think I am going to poor through 3000 plus songs everytime I listen to my device. And you can't save the quick lists! How Stupid is that ?
No Manual EQ control. only has a couple of presets that sound mostly the same, Even on my Sure EC3 earbuds. The sound is good, but not outstanding. My Sony Walkman has better sound control. Why would you build a great interface and not provide extended sound contol.
Finally, and this is the most upsetting. It has reformatted on me twice now. The device just pops up a yellow triangle and 15 Seconds later all the content is erased.
This was the ball buster for me. I will be damned if I am gonna continually fart around with WMP Sync manager every Saturday to reload my content. I got smart the second time and made playlists to sync against.
Sorry Toshiba, your close, but this device has to many BAD HABITS, to pop out $250.00 bucks for.Updated
Reformatted again, and for the last time.
I Took it back.
I noticed there are others with this same issue in other posts.
Seems as if you let the battery run out. Or certain situations around syncing causes this thing to format the HD.
Then you Reload content again, and Again and Again....
Not me.. I have enough Love/Hate relationships in my life.Updated
Reformatted again, and for the last time.
I Took it back.
I noticed there are others with this same issue in other posts.
Seems as if you let the battery run out. Or certain situations around syncing causes this thing to format the HD.
Then you Reload content again, and Again and Again....
Not me.. I have enough Love/Hate relationships in my life. -
"A worthy iPod alternative for a Mac user" on by TRENTONN
Pros: Visually appealing user interface, intuitive and quick navigation, great audio sound, tactile controls, seamless and trouble-free intergration with WMP11, size and terrific build quality
Cons: Short battery life, 60GB black model prone to fingerprints/smudges
Summary: As a Mac user for a few years I began to get bored with the iPod/iTunes setup on my MacBook Pro, so I took on building a library on the WMP11 of my desktop PC and needed a worthwhile alternative to the iPod to sync with it.
I have gone through owning the Creative Zen Vision:M and Zen V Plus, but I am due to return them both now that I've found this Toshiba 60GB black model.
After a couple days of owning this player I am truly impressed by the appearance of the interface alone. Not only is its navigation very quick and extremely simple, but it is also highly polished and refined compared to the aging 5th gen iPod. Moving through the multiple views of a playing musical track is very fluid with hardly any hiccups visible to the eye.
The quality of its construction with the metal backing and glossy front is very high, sturdy and polished and definitely trumps the toy-like plasticity of the Zen players. Size dimension is another plus over the Zen Vision:M which felt rather bulky, and it even fits into my iPod belt clip holster.
I am not an audio expert by any imaginative stretch, but every track that I've heard is absolutely on par with (if not better than) the iPod 5th gen. The same goes for the screen quality in viewing videos and photos.
I am impressed by the ease and speed with which this Toshiba handles my photos and videos in the categorized libraries. Whereas both the Apple and Creative players needed to initially have a few seconds to load the thumbnail previews onscreen, this device requires no such thing! Going through the hundreds of photos and watching videos is smooth and seems very effortless. Doing this is also trouble-free when you consider the tactile buttons versus the touch controls of the iPod and Zen Vision:M.
Syncing media via the WMP11 has so far been a painless and rather impressive experience overall. After years of being accustomed to iTunes with my iPod on my Mac I can finally say that the desktop PC at my house should not be underestimated anymore. Both Creatives and this Toshiba needed no additional software to talk to the PC, so this plug-and-play efficiency I've had with my Mac and iPod is definitely a welcomed aspect of my PC experimentation.
There is one concern I have that is certainly not a dealbreaker, but enough to subtract half a point on my review scoring (if only I could make it 9.5 instead of 9). The battery life when compared to the iPod and Zen players leaves much to be desired, but with my usual daily charging it should suffice nonetheless. The fingerprints and smudges is expected on the glossy, black front and is honestly not much of a big deal for me. Being that this is first and foremost a media device and not a PDA the omission of a calendar and address book, though sorely missed after using the iPods and Zens, is only spilled milk at this point...one can only move on. Also at this time I am not sure if there is a dedicated program for the Toshiba to download audio and video programs like TWiT, DL.TV and CNet Buzz, but I assume finding a way won't be difficult at all.Updated
After a while I decided to pull the plug on managing a second music library with the WMP11.
Although this media player is great at playing back music, showing pictures and showcasing movies it is just that...a media player. I didn't realize how much I relied on the PIM apps of my iPod and how much I would miss those podcasts. -
"Love the player...when it is charged and works" on by joshb2j
Pros: Intuitive, works well with WMP, great organization
Cons: Battery life, battery life, battery life
Summary: I spent a lot of time researching MP3 players before buying this in AUG 06. I cannot stand iPod and all of its quirks. I find that most people I talk to love their ipod except for having to deal with iTunes and all the apple-specific stuff.
Anyway, I knew that the battery life was questionable, but I though 12 hours would be okay. I had the problem where, when I connected the gigabeat to my computer the 2nd time, it erased everything in the gigabeat. Don't know why, but it never did that again.
Easy to use right out of the box...did not even read the instructions (until later--see below). Loaded up about 75 albums, numerous photos and some video, no problem! Only took up about 5 GB.
After the first few days, I noticed the battery seemed to be dying quickly. I called Toshiba and they didn't trouble-shoot at all, but had ME send it in (cost about $25 insured) and they sent it back 2 weeks later. They said the "Harmonics" function was turned on. Really? Thanks for asking about that BEFORE I spent the money to send it in. Also, if you read the manual, there are numerous other factors that condition the life of the battery. That is, good luck getting 12 hours.
I thought this would fix the Toshiba, but, I noticed it did not. I continued to get no more than 4 hours of battery life. When I would listen to the gigabeat for a couple of hours and then not use it for 2 days, the battery would be dead. VERY frustrating. Well, I called Toshiba, and guess what? Yep, send it back in and we'll look at it. I stated I wanted a refund, and they said no.
Now, the gigabeat is just dying. It will play for an hour, I turn it off, and then a couple of hours later, I get NO response from the gigabeat. I mean no backlight with the dead battery logo or nothing. A day later, it will turn on to show the battery is dead. What the heck?
I love this gigabeat, but the battery is a complete dealbreaker. You can't consider this thing a "portable media center" when you can't play it for longer than 4 hours.
I am working with Amazon and the warranty I bought to get a refund. I will get an iRiver Clix 4 GB. Too many people have the same negative battery experiences I have had. -
"decent, but will be returned" on by fluteplyr011
Pros: the tactile buttons are great, screen's color is good and having a built in radio is nice
Cons: music doesn't resume once it is shut off, battery life isn't great
Summary: The battery life for the battery is way less than what is rated by cnet and Toshiba. It only lasts 4 hours of continuous play and dies. It is also inconveient for the player to not resume on the last song it was playing (have to go through all the menus again). I do love the tactile buttons, one of the reasons why I won't buy an IPod, but that is just not enough to convince me to keep it.
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"Does everything very well" on by lkrsfan1
Pros: Sync's to Media Center - Sound - Button placement
Cons: none really - battery life could be a little better
Summary: My favorite toy by far. Syncs with Media center perfectly. Easy to use with WMP. Easy to use right out of the box. I love the buttons and their placement and how the menu system works. The screen has great color and quality. Not grainy at all. You can listen to music and watch a slide show of all your photos or watch TV you recorded on your Media Center PC. Battery life is a little short but by no means a deal breaker. The only other downside is that it is hard to find and accesories are even harder to find but you can find them on Ebay. I highly recommend.
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