Entered CNET Catalog: 07/23/2002
SKU: 0044319201468
Manufacturer: RCA
Manufacturer description
Take your 20 GB hard drive with you wherever you go. The lightweight and compact design of this Lyra Personal Jukebox make it easy to enjoy your favorite mp3 files all over town. With 20 GB of storage you'll run out of tunes before you run out of space. Not only is this totally awesome device all you need to listen to your favorite digital tunes, it will also store your all important word processing files, presentations, spreadsheets and other computer files.Product summary
The good: Great sound; 20GB hard drive; thoughtful accessories; inexpensive; syncs to and from any compatible computer with the proper software installed; long battery life.
The bad: No high-speed FireWire or USB 2.0 connection; somewhat bulky.
The bottom line: Bargain hunters with lots of MP3s will love what they get for their money with the Lyra RD2820.
Editors' review
- Editors' Choice: No
- Reviewed on: 11/27/2002
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 The display is big enough to see plenty of menu items clearly. |
A boxy, rectangular affair, the Jukebox RD2820 is approximately double the size of the iPod--5.1 by 1.0 by 0.3 inches--and weighs a pretty hefty 11 ounces. You'll definitely notice the Lyra when it's clipped to your hip, but thanks to the sturdy carrying case, it works just fine for listening to tunes while walking (but not running) or biking. Two joystick-style controls and four multifunction buttons make for easy menu navigation on the roomy, 2-inch, diagonal, backlit LCD, which displays plenty of detailed information, including the battery-life indicator that was missing from the 10GB RD2800.
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 The included car kit covers power and audio connectivity. |
Although the Jukebox RD2820 works flawlessly once you set it up, initial configuration presents a couple of issues. After you load new files, either your PC or the Lyra itself must profile the device's music collection, pulling song information from your MP3s' high-end hard drive players--the profiling process draws out an already lengthy setup time. As a result, filling up the device takes about six hours.
The file-transfer speed might not be the fastest available, but at least the process is smart. Like Creative's Nomad Jukebox line, the Lyra syncs both to and from any PC, a feat that is as horrifying to record labels as it is convenient to consumers. Just use the simple LyraSync software to specify which directories on your PC and the Lyra you want to sync, and files transfer both ways until the directories mirror each other. You can also view the RD2820 as a removable hard drive inside My Computer--or on the desktop if you're using a Mac--and ferry MP3s or any other file types back and forth to any machine with the software installed. One important tip: When transferring tunes, make sure to reserve a few megabytes for storing the profile information; otherwise, the profile process will not be successful.
The RD2820 doesn't have an FM tuner, and it can't record audio or organize your contacts. But it does have everything that you need to play MP3s in a variety of ways; you can sort by artist, album, genre, or directory, or you can use a few different Random and Repeat modes. RCA claims that it's also possible to create 18-song user playlists on the fly, but we couldn't do it without connecting to a PC.
This device plays MP3s and MP3Pro, the next-generation codec developed by RCA. Download RCA's MP3Pro encoder, and you'll be able to store files at half the size of MP3, essentially doubling the RD2820's capacity.
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 RCA includes a healthy dose of EQ options with the RD2820. |
Spinning our favorite test tunes, the Lyra churned out loud, clear, and hiss-free music. In addition, the bundled wraparound headphones delivered better sound quality than those that are normally included with portable devices. Six EQ presets, including one five-slider graphical EQ, augment the audio quality. One small annoyance: We occasionally encountered slight delays when toggling between different screens. RCA told us that this is because the hard drive doesn't spin until the buffer is nearly empty, a measure that conserves power.
The unit never skipped during extensive testing, but we wouldn't recommend treating anything with a built-in hard drive too roughly. This model's internal, rechargeable, lithium-ion battery offers improved life over that of the step-down RD2800, dispensing roughly 17 hours of power between charges. That's better than what the iPod and other hard drive-based players deliver.
We sent a 68.6MB album from our test PC to the RD2820's hard drive in 76 seconds, for a file-transfer time of 0.91MB per second. This is the fastest USB 1.1 file transfer that we've seen from an MP3 player, although we do wish that RCA had included USB 2.0 or FireWire support for even more rapid transfers.
User opinions
Select a User Opinion to view: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19out of 19 user reviews
Promises much, no follow-through
Pros: 20Gig,multiple format support,long battery life, resonable price (or so I thought)
Cons: Very slow download. Controls are touchy--either unresponsive or not responsive at all. Downloaded latest software from RCA web site--since then, can't connect to any computer. Bulky, heavy.
out of 19 user reviews
BEST MP3 PLAYER EVER!
Pros: Long battery life, big HD, Copy directly to driv ewithout having to use the stupid Music match that is bundled with it. VERY durable. I have dropped it (accidently) sooo many times and it just keeps on tickin'
Cons: Comes with Musicmatch but since you dont have to install it thats ok. I;ve had it over a year and have over 4400 songs and the internal profile no longer works as it can;t handle toe volume but the desktop profiler still works fien and How often do you ne
out of 19 user reviews
Not bad for the price, but a number of faults
Pros: Twenty Gigabytes!! - you can get thousands of mp3s, wmas or mp3pros on here, along with any other files. Battery life is considerably long, especially compared to the Ipod which lasts less than 8 hours, this lasts 15, and you can quite easily replace the
Cons: Relatively slow loading music files, and downloading onto the hard drive. However it is still USB so it is not painstakeingly slow. Just have to wait the first time you put the music on, then updating with new music little by little isnt too slow. MOST IM
out of 19 user reviews
Not the best of the bunch
Pros: Nice size hard drive. Good for an extra hard drive
Cons: Too complicated compared to the Creative Nomads..easy to store stuff, hard to use as mp3 player
out of 19 user reviews
BUYER BEWARE: Buggy product, shoddy product support
Pros: GOOD FOR CD CHANGER REPLACEMENT: I also want to say it is very nice to use the unit as a CD changer in my car. Finally my tape player has a use again!
Cons: BUYER BEWARE! I purchased this mp3 player and at first it worked just fine for less than an hour. SYNOPSIS: This is a neat toy but has become a very expensive paperweight after just a month. The product tries very hard to be a jukebox/second hard dri
out of 19 user reviews
good size HD for the money but customer support sucks
Pros: Large HD for the money.
Cons: The customer support is really bad. The company does not take responsibility for flaws that are obviously theirs. The transfer times were in excess of 3 hours
out of 19 user reviews
It's okay no ipod though
Pros: It’s built like a tank. But who wants to use a 1 inch thick mp3 player. So as far as people who want to carry it = not good. Great for data storage. For cars it’s great. Beats the radio, but the screen must become bigger. Sound was great and battery
Cons: Well got mine in March 2003 and now it is just a paper weight. The battery is dead. I think the headphone jack is dead too. Also the carrying case stinks. Headphones are good but people are right they don't sit on your head. Great headphones if you we
out of 19 user reviews
Freeze all the time, carrying pouch not very heavy duty
Pros: 20 gig is a lot of space. Can backup anyfile. MP3Pro support.
Cons: Freezes all the time, every two song had to reset the unit, have to use a paperclip or something, who carries paperclips when they are walking ? ANYWAY, the pouch broke down, the metal thing all used up the material. Had buy a "in-store" warranty, they
out of 19 user reviews
Replaced twice
Pros: This thing has a great interface, it does the job well, powerful built in amp.
Cons: I've had to take this back to the store TWICE in 8 months due to the headphone jack crapping out. My warranty expires in December, what do I do then? I'll have a $300 paperweight. Great.
out of 19 user reviews
RCA has not yet got it right
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Great Companion !
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Tough, great sounding player...
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VAL-U
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Finally an MP3 Pro player
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RCA has done this right!
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this device rocks
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Great Product / Crappy Support
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out of 19 user reviews
best i can find
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out of 19 user reviews
Neat Gadget
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