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Toshiba MEG50AS Mobilphile (11/06/2002)

Toshiba MEG50AS Mobilphile

Entered CNET Catalog: 11/06/2002

SKU: 0022265980156

Manufacturer: Toshiba

Content [Hide]
  1. Manufacturer's description
  2. Product summary
  3. Editors' review
  4. Users' opinions
  5. Keywords

Manufacturer description

MEG50AS MOBILPHILE portable digital audio player is just awesome! It combines a nifty design and a high functionality with the comfort you need. The removable 5Gb Type II PC card offers storage capacity for approximately 1, 000 songs. And you can use this HDD card for temporary transport of important files from work to your home PC. In addition to offering full compatibility with USB1.1, the high-speed USB 2.0 capability of MOBILPHILE offers users more music in less time. A transfer rate of nearly 480Mbps lets users download music quickly and efficiently. With USB 2.0, you could potentially download as many as 1000 songs in 10 minutes, depending upon the processing power of your connected CPU. Toshiba proprietary software program makes media manipulation a breeze. This software enables the user to convert MP3, WAV or WMA files to a rights-protected data format recognized by MOBILPHILE. Once converted, the Toshiba Audio Application software allows you to transfer files directly to the MEG50AS. Slightly larger than a pack of playing cards, the stylish metallic MOBILPHILE is your ideal companion. Fitting easily into a shirt or coat-jacket pocket, it measures just 72x112x22mm and weighs just 180 grams. The removable 5Gb PC card adds a mere 50 grams to the overall weight.

Product summary

The goodThe good: Classy design; fairly compact; slick interface; removable 5GB PC Card; hard drive interfaces with laptops; in-line remote; USB 2.0 support; rechargeable batteries.

The badThe bad: Slightly expensive for a 5GB player; no belt clip or carrying pouch; must use Toshiba file-transfer and encryption software to load player with music.

The bottom lineThe bottom line: Toshiba's Mobilphile is a smooth, deluxe MP3 player that's especially attractive to laptop users.

Average user rating: from 19 users
2.5 stars

Editors' review

  • Editors' Choice: No
  • Reviewed on: 11/21/2002
It's too bad that Toshiba's Mobilphile didn't arrive before the iPod. If it had, this slick-looking hard drive-based MP3 player, which comes with a 5GB removable hard drive, support for fast USB 2.0 transfers, and an in-line remote, would possess a little more wow factor. But as it stands, there's still a lot to like here--especially if you use a laptop, as the 5GB hard drive slides right into a PC Card slot for easy file transfers.

The Mobilphile's remote control is just like the rest of the package: classy, understated, and capable.

Cosmetically, the Mobilphile is quite impressive, with a large, backlit screen; slick controls; and a sturdy, aluminum case. The unit looks expensive, and indeed it was, until Toshiba dropped the price by $150 soon after its release. The Mobilphile is also pretty compact, measuring 2.8 by 0.9 by 4.4 inches and weighing 8.1 ounces (with the hard drive), though it's not quite as small as the iPod. As noted, what makes this player different from other hard drive-based devices is the fact that the its memory is removable; the bottom of the unit pops open so that you can slide out the 5GB Type II PC Card-style hard drive. If you have a desktop with a PC Card reader or a laptop, you don't even need to install any software or use the USB cord: just pull the card out of the Mobilphile, place it into your computer, and drag files and directories to the PC Card drive. An extra 5GB drive currently costs around $300, but as PC Card hard drive prices drop, memory expansion could be a reasonable option.

The in-line remote control is a nice touch and easily handles all functions when the Mobilphile is out of reach. And the LCD, with its orange-and-blue backlight, warrants mention as well. Navigation is very clean and easy--similar to that of the iPod, although this Toshiba lacks a scroll wheel.

The Mobilphile's file-transfer software encrypts music files but does not slow down transfer times significantly.


All in all, we really dug the unit's interface. Simple navigation of menus and song directories makes for aggravation-free listening, with each tune and playlist only a few clicks away. Unfortunately, the Mobilphile can't automatically sync to your PC's digital-music collection the way that Creative and Apple players can. However, the Mobilphile does manually move files quickly and easily using the two-pane, drag-and-drop Toshiba Audio Application.

You can transfer MP3s and other files onto the PC Card using Windows Explorer. Or, you can drag and drop tunes, then upload them to other computers. But unless you use Toshiba's file-transfer app, the MP3s won't play on the unit. This application adds .sat to the end of every MP3 filename and encrypts the file so that it cannot be uploaded to another computer in a playable condition--even if you remove the extension from the filename. The choice is yours: You can either have the ability to transfer MP3s to other computers or the abilitly to play them on the Mobilphile.

You can eject the 5GB PC Card hard drive and plug it right into a laptop or any handheld/desktop with the right adapter.

Sound quality was excellent, with a clean signal-to-noise ratio of 90dB--nearly as good as it gets for a portable player. Loudness, bass expansion, and other equalization options optimize the already great-sounding audio to your taste. Another plus: The Mobilphile's lithium-ion battery lasts 18 hours on a single charge, which is almost twice as long as that of the iPod.

We noted a file-transfer speed of 1.6MB per second over USB 2.0, meaning that it takes less than a minute to transfer and encrypt an album using Toshiba's software. If you don't have USB 2.0 installed on your computer, you can transfer tunes using USB 1.1, although it's slower.

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 19
User Rating:
3.5 stars

out of 19 user reviews

Great player, great battery lifeby - October 29, 2004

Pros: I really like this player/ Had it for 3 years now and it works like a champ. Removable drive, great battery life, easy to navigate and easy drop and drag files, great sound. Have a remote to. Very nice. I also gave an ipod and to be honest i wasnt that c

Cons: THe only problems i have with the player is the software . I keep getting BSOD and it only works on my W2k pc. Also, the bad thing is once you put songs into the player, they get converted to .sat and you will never be able to convert or play them in a re

Review:
User Rating:
5.0 stars

out of 19 user reviews

Best MP3 Player I've usedby - April 30, 2004

Pros: Removeable hard drive upgrades your old laptops. Plus its a USB drive to replace floppies altogether. Sounds great, it now resumes songs at the position when you turned it off. Awesome design, the aluminum case is much more durable than the iPod's pla

Cons: Other reviewers here didn't read the manual. Files are not re-encoded, they are encrypted (no loss in quality) to save them from an RIAA lawsuit (they hand those out like candy) You do NOT need the AC adpater to connect to USB, it just asks for it cause U

Review:
User Rating:
3.0 stars

out of 19 user reviews

excellent, practical valueby - March 16, 2004

Pros: After daily use for the past 3 months, I think I can fairly identify what the Mobilphile is great for. It's not an iPod killer, but rather an alternative. Removable 5gb hard drive is great for storage (just drag and drop from explorer), and you won't ha

Cons: Interface is very slow; takes a good second or two to toggle between songs and directories. Random mode doesn't allow you to go backwards in your playlist, only forward. The randomizer isn't really random, either; keeps playing the same songs over and o

Review:
User Rating:
4.0 stars

out of 19 user reviews

iPod sycophants move overby - October 28, 2003

Pros: Great form factor -- the drive is REMOVABLE folks -- it works great by itself as a data backup device. One person here describes the Toshiba as BIG AND BULKY. It's nearly the SAME freakin' size as the iPod. Are you people religious zealots or something

Cons: Well, I must concede proprietary software isn't the best.

Review:
User Rating:
1.5 stars

out of 19 user reviews

Not even close to an iPod killerby - May 4, 2003

Pros:

Cons:

Review: This thing is really bad. Its big & bulky, requires mp3's to be re-encided, and is simply hideous to look at. No way should any one consider this, get yourself the real deal! Get an iPod!
User Rating:
5.0 stars

out of 19 user reviews

Ipod stinks on iceby - April 19, 2003

Pros:

Cons:

Review: Toshiba kills the ipod!!!!!!i have no idea y everybody refers to the ipod?????it sux......GO TOSHIBA
User Rating:
2.5 stars

out of 19 user reviews

Encryption makes it POKEYby - April 4, 2003

Pros:

Cons:

Review: It's a nice unit, but beware the encryption software. It makes transfers slow. I don't have U.S.B. 2.0 but both 1.1 and PCMCIA transfers of MP3s are a lot slower than regular files. Assume over an hour to fill the drive and there is no auto-synchronizing to your hard drive. Fine if you don't want to swap new music in constantly and are happy with 5 gig library.
User Rating:
3.0 stars

out of 19 user reviews

Great Unit BUT Quality Unknownby - January 8, 2003

Pros:

Cons:

Review: I bought one and was very happy. But it stopped working after about 3 days - I've returned it .. and i'm trying to decide if i should this one again or another KEY POINT ... This player remebers which track was being played but not how much had been played. This is crucial if you want to listen to one hour recorded radio programs! Anyone know an MP3 player that restarts at same point after power down?
User Rating:
2.0 stars

out of 19 user reviews

Nice try but no cigarby - December 10, 2002

Pros:

Cons:

Review: Although Toshiba had the right idea, they seemed to have fumbled it when they made proprietary software format a requirement, like a gymnist doing a flawless act but messing up horribly at the end. Now if only Apple would make an iPod that had a removable drive in it. (Creative's Zen isn't bad either but it's HUGE and not so pleasing to the eye). Anyways, back to the Mobilphile. The mobilphile is definitely not made for the audiophile in mind. Re-encoding an already lossy format is bound to cause trouble. And because it's proprietary, Linux users are out in the cold. (the iPod mounts as a firewire drive and all you do is copy it over.) Final word: Thank god for the 30-day return policy!
User Rating:
1.0 stars

out of 19 user reviews

the software kills itby - December 4, 2002

Pros:

Cons:

Review: If they didn't use the stupid software to re-encode mp3 files (which are ALREADY encoded!), it might be worth buying. Toshiba have killed the product with theie foolish decision to use a proprietary file format.
User Rating:
3.5 stars

out of 19 user reviews

CNET editor repliesby - December 4, 2002

Pros:

Cons:

Review: We are revising our review to reflect the fact that the Mobilphile does in fact encrypt files when they are transferred via the Toshiba Audio Application, and that this application must be used in order to hear the MP3s on the device.
User Rating:
2.5 stars

out of 19 user reviews

It could have been a good player if...by - December 3, 2002

Pros:

Cons:

Review: Don’t buy this. You have better options (e.g. iPod and Creative Zen). The reason I bought this was to use it as a portable hard disk drive. I don’t have broad band internet connection, so I was wondering if I can use this Mobilphile to download and store files from the desktop at my school. I am not saying that I can’t. However, when I download (or upload) files, the unit must be connected to AC adopter. Hence I need to carry AC adopter for Mobilphile wherever I go. Of course, if I use PCMCIA card alone I don’t need the AC adopter. Moreover, the CNet editor provided false review. He said that I don’t need the Toshiba audio application if I connect PCMCIA hard directly to a notebook, but if you transfer music that way, the player will not recognize the music files. YOU HAVE TO USE THE TOSHIBA AUDIO APPLICATION IN ORDER TO PLAY THEM USING MOBILPHILE. Irritating! Then, what’s the purpose of PCMCIA HDD? Sound quality is OK, but bass is the weakest of all portable audio players. If you want deep bass, don’t buy this. If any of the above doesn’t bother you, this player might be a good player for you. When this unit is connected to USB2 or PCMCIA, the transfer rate is very fast.
User Rating:
4.0 stars

out of 19 user reviews

Great alternative to the iPodby - December 2, 2002

Pros:

Cons:

Review: When you first take it out of it's box it looks a little chunky, but once you get past that it's really nice looking. The processor can sometimes be a little slow, but I mean lets face it so can the ipod. Even though it's the same price as the 5GB iPod I would choose this puppy, sure the iPod's a little smaller but the removeable hard drive takes the cookie for me, there's even talk that Toshiba will soon be releasing a 10GB card. The software is...windows software, thats all I have to say, but if you're buying an mp3 player for the software then I think it's safe to say the iPod beats out everyone else. I think it's a real competitor for the iPod and overall a good buy
User Rating:
3.0 stars

out of 19 user reviews

what's the problemby - November 28, 2002

Pros:

Cons:

Review: It's usb so it works with most pc's, not macs. You can have multiple drives by picking up another pc card; rumor has it that toshiba is readying a 10 gig card. And, the 20 gig hard drive on the Zen is not recognized by a pc has a mass storage device (I know, I've had both) so you need to install the software on every computer you use the device on. So, if you are like me and use this for music and a backup storage device, then the Toshiba is great. It IS recognized as a mass storage device by windows and files can be transferred using typical drag and drop. This is not so of the Zen, which is why I returned that. The Toshiba is almost as small as the ipod, looks as good, and you can increase the memory without getting a new device.
User Rating:
1.0 stars

out of 19 user reviews

bad dealby - November 27, 2002

Pros:

Cons:

Review: $300 for 5gb? try Creative Nomad Zen 20gb for the same price. the worst part of mobilphile is that the required software re-encodes MP3s to a proprietary format to play on this device, so that you can't download them off the removable hard drive later. looks nice, but its the funcionality that is crippled.
User Rating:
3.5 stars

out of 19 user reviews

Something a little bit new but..by - November 27, 2002

Pros:

Cons:

Review: Not an Ipod ripoff at all. Its a lot different. 5gb for $300usd rivals the ipod's 5gb model, but unlike the 5gb ipod, this comes with a remote, and also a removable harddrive, which is just great for laptop users. however, I have doubts about the pc software.
User Rating:
0.5 stars

out of 19 user reviews

This is hideousby - November 26, 2002

Pros:

Cons:

Review: Can someone say iPod rip off? If you're gonna rip off the iPod at least make an effort to.
User Rating:
2.0 stars

out of 19 user reviews

not used but....by - November 26, 2002

Pros:

Cons:

Review: Being pcmcia compatible, could possibly use a compact flash adaptor, turn it into a solid state player, or could use a IBM microdrive, not cheep but an alternative. If this device had a extra compact flash slot, I would buy one just to store shots from my digital camera while on trips. Toshibas loss in vision.
User Rating:
1.5 stars

out of 19 user reviews

Mandatory use of Poor Software for File Transfer requiredby - November 9, 2002

Pros:

Cons:

Review: This competitor for the IPOD could have been a wonderful unit. Unfortunately, Toshbia designed it so it only reads music files encrypted by the supplyed software. The softward is very buggy, and crashed two desktop systems and two laptops (using XP Pro and Win98). Toshiba has built a horrible failure in this unit. Fortunately, it does work to transfer data files to and from their excellent 5gb hard drives (which I use to carry backup data on trips). Repeated requests for help from Tohshiba support have a provem failure rate (not uncommon with Toshiba products in my experience).

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Toshiba MEG50AS Mobilphile specifications

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