Wrapped in grippy, protective rubber, the Cali 256 is built to play hard. Solid-state electronics carry over 60 songs with no skips, ever. Comfortable Sport Clip earphones, case with armband, and integrated stopwatch with lap timer make the Cali a functional sport accessory. 5-Band Adjustable Equalizer gives more control over your sound than most players. Onboard FM tuner means you always have something to listen to. An empty expansion slot allows you to add up to 512MB of additional SDTM or MMCTM memory. Simple menus and intuitive controls make for easy one-handed operation. Features: 256MB internal memory provides hours of MP3/WMA playback Secure Digital or MMC expansion slots 5-band adjustable equalizer with pre-sets Includes MP3 player, carrying case with armband, sport clip earphones, one AAA Energizer battery, USB 1.1 cable and installation software CD
1 Had Two -- Both Broke within a month
It's flimsy plastic case, buttons that fall off, tempermental and whimsical mechanics make this perhaps the worst buy I've ever made. I had one and my wife had one. Each of them no longer have their power buttons and need to be turned on with a pen. The volume button on one is stuck on turning it down so you have to hold the volume up button the entire time. It's like a geriatric patient. And everytime you think it's finally dead, you slam it down on a tabletop, and it comes back for an hour or so. Bad news.
2 Old Reliable
I've had my Rio Cali for well over a year. Its made it through 2 winters (worn under my coat and sweater) and this will be its second summer. I live in NJ so its not arctic or anything, but its gets pretty uncomfortable in summer and winter as I walk to and from work 5 days a week. I've even dropped my Cali (more times than I like to remember). The only thing is I've gone through two pairs of headphones which all seem to break by the jack. Maybe I lucked out, but I got one for my grandson too and so far, no problems.
3 Misleading info in negative review from "an electronics fan"
The player can use standard mp3's, it just doesn't write them to the disk in a standard format. This is not optimal, but it has to do with the filesystem on the SD card, not the format of the music files. Using the card for the Cali doesn't make the card useless, it makes it the expansion for the Cali. If you want to use it in your camera, pop it out and go for it. You just need to reformat it for different uses.
Also, the unit can be loaded from iTunes on a Mac as well as Rio Music Manager or WIndows Media Player on PC's.
I have owned one for over two years without a problem.
4 Good for the money
I've had my Cali for almost two years and I love it. No it's not the best MP3 in the world...but what do you expect for such a small price? I do not have a problem with the software. It's very easy and simple to navigate through, and very easy to use. I use my Cali strictly for the gym so it goes through a lot. It gets banged up and wet on a regular basis and it's still working perfectly. The last reviewer wrote that the battery door is flimsy. Mine is solid and I've never had any problems. I also like that it has a belt clip because I can't stand using arm bands and carrying cases while I'm jogging. So overall, for the price, this is an awesome deal. It's great for MP3 beginners or if you just want something very simple. If you're an MP3-fanatic, this probably isn't for you.
5 Not As Bad As Everyone Says
I recently got this exact model of the Rio Cali, and all the complaints i've heard about it have yet to pass. I took the SD card from my digital camera, deleted it completely while it was in my card reader on my pc, put it in the mp3 player, and it formated it. I then put it back in my card reader and deleted all the files from it, and it still worked in my digital camera. When the SD card is in my card reader i can drag and drop files and the Rio Cali recognizes them. I can also drag and drop files to the mp3 player itself when its connected to the pc via the usb cable with no problem, i dont need to use the provided software. I only paid 50 dollars for mine brand new still in the packagae, and recently bought a 128mb SD card, and i currently have 250 songs on the mp3 player with the 128mb SD card when converted to 33kbps WMA format, and it still sounds like cd quality. I would recommend this to anyone who cant afford something bigger, like a Rio Carbon or an iPod.
6 Great MP3 Player
Really nice player, great sound, software easy to use.
Like drag and drop for loading tunes to player. I'll give
this one an A+
7 A Ticking Time Bomb
Rio Cali is a ticking time bomb.
It's just a matter of time before the dreaded "Upgrader" screen pops up on the display of this device. Follow Rio's website instructions on upgrading the firmware and your likely to find that the firmware will refuse to flash, and the mysterious message "Erasing" will be displayed. Customer Service at Rio had no idea what that meant, but after speaking to a supervisor, it was confimred that "Erasing" = "Defective Unit" and is irreparable.
The device was not dropped, placed in water, or anything other than subjected to the kind of conditions one would expect at the gym (the venue this device was made for, according to all accounts).
After speaking to 2 levels of customer service (average wait time... FOREVER) each level being more clueless than the next, the best they could offer me was an out-of-warrantee replacement at $70, for a device that now sells for under $100 new!
I hope Rio has made the necessary fixes to their MP3 players with their name plate change from "Cali" to "Forge". But I will not likely be willing to risk the investment.
It's a shame because I really liked the unit at first. It's just that I feel that after paying $150 for the thing, it should last more than one year (if that). No wonder their warrantee is only 90 days.
Sony's new Network Walkman Digital Music Player NW-E107, at about the same price I paid for the Rio Cali, except with 1 gig of storage is looking better adn better by the minute. 70 hours of play compared to about 15 or 20 for the Rio. (Can't anyone make these things rechargeable? I hate throwing out all those batteries. What, do they have a deal with Everyready or something?)
The only downside I see with the Sony is the inabilitiy to add SD storage to the device. I hope I find that Sony's tech support is better than Rio's, or better still, unnecessary.
Ironically, the only set of headphones I used with the Rio that lasted any amount of time were made by SONY. And they seemed to actually improve the reception of the Rio's rather poor FM tuner.
The only thing good I can say about the Rio is that it lasted longer than a hard-drive based RCA Lyra I bought, which was delivered broken. I couldn't even tell you what the quality of the sound was like out of the RCA! It took me over six months to get my money refunded from them. (Actually, all I wanted was another unit, but after 3 months of waiting for a replacement from RCA, I was told the unit was no longer made. Good thing I called or else I would still be waiting. I'll never buy another mini-hard drive device again because of that experience.)
What's with these consumer electronics manufacturers anyway? Why do they think that they can sell "disposable" devices prone to crashing if you have the audacity to actually use them? Does anybody out there actually make a truly durable unit? Let's see a warrantee to back up these units for more than a few months!
8 Good player for the money
I bought this player and have had it for 1 month. Its a great deal for the money. Here's the lowdown...
Whatever the problem people have had with the software in the past must have been fixed by Rio, because it works great with my laptop. I have loaded music directly to the player via the usb cable and have also done it by plugging the SD card directly into the card reader on my computer. Both ways work great.
The one problem that I've experienced that seems to hold true from the reviews, is that the headphones are not that great. Yet, at the same time they're my favorite pair (allow me to clear up this contradiction). The headphones are earbuds with sports clips to wrap around your ear. This is great because I always have a problem with earbuds falling out. However, the sound quality isn't the best and I get alot of static sometimes. This requires me to play with the connection to clear it up. I paid $18 for a pair of Sony Earbuds, if that's what you wanna call them, and the static went away. Problem is, the Sony earbuds are huge and aren't designed to fit IN the ear, so they're really loose.
After reading alot of reviews on this unit, here are two more complaints I've heard about. One said that they didnt want to stretch the arm band when at the gym and it fit pretty tight on their arm. I'm a die hard weight lifter and on the days I work arms I simply move the unit to my forearm vs. the upper arm and it works great. Another user said that they have problems with the unit falling out of the plastic arm holder when they're jogging. Personally, I'm far from that problem. I admit that I thought the holder was really flimsy when I took it out of the package, but honestly, I have a hard time getting the blasted thing out of the holder when I want to upload more music. Its pretty easy to use from the holder, but the usb connection isn't accesible while its in there. Also, on cardio days I go into the aerobics room at the gym and dance for about 1 hour. I do alot of hip hop moves and I'm all over the place. It has yet to come out of the holder.
Overall, I really like this player. The expandable memory is great, the user interface, great, durability, great as well. But the headphone connection? Forget about it, it sucks.
Would be nice to see a player and earbuds like this with Bluetooth capablity to get rid of the wires.
9 Hasn't lasted a year
In the beginning, the player was great. Battery life was good and it was lightweight; however, the earphones were not the best. After the first three months, I noticed some static interference when playing my songs. The radio was fine. This quickly would be resolved by reformatting the memory and reloading the song (as well as updating the firmware). However, this "static" progressively got worse and now it's accompanied by a high pitch noise. Again, it can be resolved by reformatting, but once every few days is now a nuisance. The tech support quickly responds to my e-mails but they are not helpful and have not been able to solve the problem. Therefore, if you are comfortable with just using the radio option, then this is an okay player. If you want a long lasting product with good tech support, save your money for another product.
10 Rio... you lost this customer for life.
Mine died 1 month after the 90 day warrantee expired. The firmware melted down as described in other reviews here. It was never dropped or abused in any way. Customer service was painfully inept. More like a loss prevention department. They kept on insisting that my computer was the problem & completely ignored the fact that the player worked fine for 4 months using the very same computer. After several days of go-around's trying to get this thing fixed, Rio's final solution was that I purchase a refurbished unit for $100 and so I wouldn't need to worry about the new one melting down, they assured me that I would be covered by the refurbished unit's 30 day warrantee. I passed on the opportunity.
Browsing other reviews here suggest that some players worked fine. It was an excellent player while it lasted. I replaced the Rio Cali with a Lexar MPC-231 JumpGear. A great design. Very pleased. I'm more than happy to give Lexar my money whenever I get the urge for something that works. MP3 players, CF memory cards, USB flash memory. The Lexar has been so stable I doubt I will ever need to use it's 2 year warrantee.
11 Perfect Durable Player
I purchased my Rio Cali about 10 months ago and I love it. I was looking for a player with the following qualities:
- DURABLE ( I am a klutz and drop everything often)
- Expandable Memory
- Easy to use
- Could be easily carried while jogging / working out
For what I was looking for in a player, the Cali was a perfect fit. Especially the durablity! I have dropped this player more times than I can count, on various surfaces and have not had the slightest problem with it. Several times, after a very hard drop, the SD card would move a bit and I would have to take it out and put it back in. That is the only thing that has ever occured after dropping it.
I find the player itself very easy to use, the play/stop/ff/rewind controls are very easy to control without looking at the player thanks to the toggle. The playlists, radio tuner, stopwatch, etc are all easily used as well.
I have not had any problems with my SD cards with this device (I've read other reviews discussing this). I have never formatted a card, I simply plugged it in and used it.
I should note, I always use the Rio software when putting music on the device, simply because I'm big on playlists. Also, I keep my music in WMA format.
I have used Windows Media Player to drop music on the device and on the card without any problems, but I couldn't change my playlists with Windows Media Player, so I went back to using the Rio software.
I use this player everywhere now: in the car (with an FM transmitter), working out, hiking, travelling and it has proved a great MP3 player.
12 Do Not Buy a Rio Crappy
Worst Mp3 player on the market. Save your money for an Ipod.
The Rio crappy only holds the amount of one CD and the Quality is very poor.
13 Very Content with Rio Cali 256 Sport !
(...)
For power, I see a rechargable AAA instead of a disposable AAA battery in the future for me. Almost wished it was a cross between a rechargable similar to PalmOne's Zire 21 PDA that can recharge thru the usb cable, and Rio's easy access battery panel for quick replacement when the rechargable dies.
Software, Rio's software may be proprietary, but works like Windows Explorer to add songs. Requires a reformat of memory to clear the unit and start fresh, but you can also add on the fly without reformatting with the unused memory. There are 2 models as I understand, the one w/ a red Rio button, the other with a black Rio button. The black button model allows for better playlist grouping, but a non-issue for the mp3's I play (I have the red button model), I only load what I want to hear and can toggle thru to something that is good to listen to quickly. It has a radio if that's what I want to listen to also !
This product is a couple years on the market, so it's not state of the art, but a sport player it is. An ultra-portable device with adequate memory size. Between firmware upgrades and software upgrades (all freely downloadable), this unit is still very functional. Perhaps the newer models (Forge models), there are improvements, but then again, you'll pay for those in spades @ checkout ! I gave it 5 stars because of the price and features, @ a higher cost and this can become a 4 star product rating.
14 A well-designed MP3 player from Rio...
The RioCali 256, while a comparatively old MP3 player by the time this review has been written, is still an excellent flash-drive based MP3 player that has the capacity and features exceeding that of the typical entry-level MP3 player, while still retaining the qualities of convenience and efficiency.
Briefly first, the contents of the packaging (which can be read under the product details, but I am mentioning this for the official record nevertheless): upon purchasing this MP3 player, you receive the MP3 player (of course), the USB cable, the software, an armband with an accompanying strap, instruction manual, and warranty card.
The MP3 player itself has a very durable design, with a strong rubber coating encompassing the entire MP3 player, enabling it to take much more of a beating than some of the smaller and more delicate MP3 players currently available on the market. The LCD screen is slightly curved, with the peak of the curve residing just below the rim of the rubber-disk surrounding it (so if you were to drop it on its face, it would be very difficult for the surface to come into contact with the screen, possibly breaking it).
The MP3 player itself is quite ergonomically efficient, with gripping it in the palm of your hand providing easy access to each of its fundamental controls. The Rio Cali is accessible to those who are right or left handed. For those who are left handed, to hold it in your hand with the screen facing out, the thumb can be easily placed on the top left of the Rio Cali, which is where the volume controls are, with moving your thumb slightly in each direction to reach track forward, reverse, play, and pause, the menu button, the lock option, and the power button. Those who are right handed can hold it with the screen facing inward and have the same degree of control accessibility.
The battery cover is quite durable, although there are only two, apparently fragile clips on both ends of the cover. While I have not broken the clips on my battery cover, it would be extremely unsurprising if it were easy to do so.
When I purchased my RioCali256, there was no information in the instruction manual as to where the slot for the memory upgrade happens to be located (although it is easy to find). Open the battery compartment, and just behind where the battery is located is the SD or MMC card slot that enables you to upgrade its capacity from 256 MB to 1 GB. The technical specifications under product details state that an additional 512 MB can be added to the unit, but the box of the one I purchased advertises 1 GB.
This is quite curious, as there are no memory cards which reside between 512 MB and 1 GB. A 512 MB memory card and enhance the capacity to 768 MB. But it is unclear as to how one would attain 1 GB worth of memory since the only memory cards currently available in that range are either 512 MB or 1 GB. Perhaps a 1 GB card could be used, in which case the remaining 488 MB would be wasted, but it is by no means certain if it would work in the first place. In any event, I would recommend sticking with the 512 MB memory card just to be safe.
The software is proprietary to the unit, and is necessary to transfer information from the hard drive to the RioCali. The software is quite easy to use, with the interface being quite basic. The software allows you to categorize your files into certain folders and so forth, and the transfer rate from the USB is decently fast.
When it comes to the sound quality of almost any MP3 player, the most significant element contributing to the sound quality is the over-all quality of the MP3 itself. If the MP3 file is highly compressed in order to save space, the sound quality will follow accordingly. The RioCali 256 can approach high volumes, but the sound quality is largely dependent upon the quality of the MP3, so definitely take that into consideration when evaluating the sound quality you are hearing. The MP3 player also has an FM turner, with eight digital presets.
The headphones are the sport-style in-ear buds, which essentially consist of in-ear buds that clip on to the top of your ear. I prefer this type of design, as I prefer in-ear buds, but notice them falling out during periods of exercise. The type of in-ear bud with the ear clip prevents this, and that is the type of headphone the manufacturer supplies.
The manufacturer advertises up to 18 hours of playback, but this number can be dramatically reduced if the LCD backlight if on. The LCD backlight, while an appealing blue color, can dramatically drain the battery life when left on throughout the entirety of its operation, especially if it is being operated daily for decent periods of time. Fortunately, the menu settings enable you to configure the duration of the backlight by selecting one of several modes, which are to turn it off completely, allow it to stay on for two seconds, five seconds, 10 seconds, 20 seconds, (the light turns on when a track is paused or changed) or on completely. Also, make sure to turn the MP3 player off completely when not in use, as the track can be stopped, but the player still be operational, resulting in continuous power-drainage until it is eventually turned off (or the battery runs out).
The RioCali256 also has a large spectrum of menu options, which are: playing all the tracks, selecting the track from a menu, selecting from available playlists, a stopwatch, customizable playback (shuffle and repeat), a five band equalizer, with several preset settings already available depending upon the type of music, power save options (which is basically a sleep-timer, if you want it activated), contrast adjustment, date and time settings (which can be based off of a 12 or 24 hour time-clock), several different languages to select from, and several other settings. The unit itself also has a "Lock" feature (which I briefly mentioned earlier), and for those who may not know, this feature essentially deactivates the function of every button on the MP3 player- including the power button- while the lock is turned on on, much in the same capacity that the "hold" feature on a portable CD player accomplishes the same task. This is especially useful during any point in which the MP3 player may be jostled around, in which case irrespective as to which buttons are pressed, the settings stay precisely the same.
The only problem I ever noticed with my RioCali256 is that the first time I transferred MP3 files to the player, I noticed that most of them had very brief intermittent interruptions (quite analogous to when a CD skips). However, that could have been the MP3 file itself, and since that point onward, I have not encountered that problem again, nor any additional problems.
I would recommend this particular MP3 player to one who wants an MP3 player that has moderate sized capacity (which, of course, stores information that can be overwritten when you wish), with a multitude of features that makes it quite customizable. The RioCali line-up is clearly designed with the comfort and ergonomic concerns taken into account, making all the fundamental features accessible, and providing a wide spectrum of available menu features that lets the user fine-tune it to their own preferences.
15 JUNK
I bought it and was happy with it untill it stoped working for no reason two months after I bought it. My gf bought one the same day for a present and it stopped working the same week mine stopped. Complete waste of money. DO NOT BUY!!!!
16 Rio Should Be Ashamed of Itself
Rio should be ashamed of itself -- they are aware of the "upgrader" problem, but simply refuse to service these devices. Save your money and buy an mp3 player that will last.
17 Great everyday mp3 player
I bought this mp3 player 8 months ago after becoming frustrated with an RCA model that did not work with macs (despite packaging claims). I use it about four hours everyday: 2 listening to the radio and 2 listening to music. The radio reception is great. The stopwatch is very handy. It interacts very well with iTunes (make sure you have an updated version of iTunes before you try to upload to the player). The battery life is fabulous. I have dropped it and used it in the rain. The arm band is convenient. It has been the most reliable and user-friendly mp3 player I have owned.
18 Here's The Deal...
this mp3 player does what a player should do: it plays mp3's and wma's and doesn't skip. downloading to and from the included software is fine, though having had the player a year, i find the music manager updates are just fluffy and annoying additions to the original program.
as with many other mp3 players out there in this price range, the ear phones kinda suck. (luckily sony makes a good pair of behind-the-head phones!) attempts the use the radio tuner in my gym - it's a building made of cinder blocks, which i guess mess up radio signals - have been fruitless. in the open air, the radio works fine.
the armband and holster clip work just fine, though i think the holster is a bit of an eyesore.
this player gets four out of five stars because there is no playlist option on the player itself, though the music manager has all sorts of fun stuff to organize your tunes.
the durability of the player is worth noting - it has taken a few spills, been thrown into a bag with wet gym clothes, and been taken running in below freezing temperatures. nifty little machine.
19 Complete junk -- it lasted about 2 weeks
The title for this piece of junk says at all. This was the worst mp3 player that I ever had to buy. It became completely useless after about two weeks of moderate use. Rio technical support is basically useless, if you can get them on the phone, that is. I sent in the player for a refurbished unit, and I never heard from them again. Please, for the love of God, do not patronize this company, and do not buy this wretched player.
20 Player died after only a few months of use
This is my second flashed based MP3 player. My first was a Nike branded player from Philips that died after a few years of use, but was replaced by a major retailers insurance. This Rio Cali was it's replacement. Now, after only a few months of what I can only describe as light use (i.e. running on a track a few times a month) my player has been hit by what some on the net are calling the "upgrader" bug (do a google search for Rio Cali and upgrader to see what I'm talking about). Now, everytime I turn this unit on, it shows the word UPGRADER, and won't play any music. It doesn't matter if you turn it off, take out the battery or upgrade the firmware, this player just won't work. I have accepted that it will probably never work and have to be thrown away, mainly because the company wants $100 dollars to take it back and send me a refub unit under their warranty (NO THANKS!). I just want to make sure that no one else gets stuck with this thing and finds it to be a useless chuck of plastic after only a few months like I have. I hope this was helpful.
21 Great Player - Takes Abuse
I have had this player now for over a year and use it for running 3-5 days per week. This thing has been through the mill, freezing temperatures, snow, severe rain, summertime heat and is still working great. I have never used the FM tuner so can't comment on that, also I must say the headphones that came with the unit were crap, purchased $40 Sony earbuds and the sound quality increased 10 times over. Very easy to use and navigate, memory is small, but great player for running, very durable.
22 Bomb-proof!
I'm perplexed to read some of the negative reviews here of the Rio Cali. I bought mine just over a year ago, and it's been one of the best purchases I ever made.
As a triathlete who trains for Ironman races I do a lot of long runs ranging from 1 to 3 hours in length. The Cali has made those workouts a lot more fun. I needed an MP3 player that was fairly small, could hold a reasonable amount of music, and most importantly, could handle considerable abuse. The Cali 256 fit the bill perfectly.
The thing is bomb-proof. I have never cared for using an armband while running, so I simply carry the player in my hand (a large, loose rubber hand easily helps secure it in my palm). On one rocky trail run I tripped and came crashing to earth, instinctively thrusting both hands out to catch my fall. I landed full force on the Cali and assumed that the poor thing was toast. Miraculously, it didn't miss a beat, but kept right on playing even as I surveyed the damage to knees, elbows, and palms!
I've logged hundreds of sweaty miles with the Cali in hand, and the only sign of wear it has evinced is perhaps a little corrosion of the headphone port--- it can be a little particular about the precise orientation of the jack to the port to ensure that sound flows smoothly to both earpieces. Otherwise, the thing just keeps rocking.
I have had zero problems with the software, it's very straightforward and easy to use. I can't understand the problems another reviewer reported about having to convert pre-existing MP3 files to some different format-- I've never had to do that.
Overall, I highly recommend the Cali. No complaints!
23 Great product!
I recieved my Rio Cali for Christmas. It's fantastic! I only asked for it because my previous Rio, the Rio S305 (which served me very well, by the way), was not in very good condition. I'm very happy with my new Rio. Everything works just as it says. The only reason that it doesn't get five stars is because it is pretty slow. If you use to control stick to get to the next song, there is a one second delay until it shows the next song. This is the same for pause, play, and previous song. However, if you scroll through the songs quickly, it works fine. The radio, like most radios with Rio, is junk. Only a few channels work, but it's ok for me, since I don't really use the radio that much. Battery life is fine, I haven't really found out the exact battery life, but it works fine for me. I'll admit, Rio Music Manager is a pain to use, but it does get the job done. Overall, it is fantastic.
24 Didn't work from the start
Like someone else said, I wouldn't even give this one star if 0 was an option.
I got this for Christmas - after installing the music manager from the disk, I never got a "new hardware found message" and no drivers were installed. I upgraded my computer to XP to take advantage of the built-in drivers - even after uninstalling and reinstalling, the Music Manager still did not recognize the device. Tried uninstalling and reinstalling NUMEROUS times - then got an error message that the installation CD wasn't didn't have the programs anymore. Downloaded the upgrades from the Web site (which took FOREVER) and it still didn't work. Then out of the blue, it recognized that the player was attached for about 5 minutes - just long enough to remove all the pre-installed tracks - then it disappeared again.
Called Customer Service - the number included in the packaging was no longer correct. Called the new number and spent almost an hour explaining the problem (thank goodness for free long-distance cellular minutes) before they "graciously" agreed to send me a new installation disk. They said it would arrive in 7-10 days. Nine days later, they still hadn't shipped it.
E-mail messages through their Web site promised responses within 24 hours - one was answered after three days, the second one never was answered. The CD finally arrived 16 days later, and it was not even for the right model - I have a Cali, they sent me the Forge CD.
Gave it one more try last night - two versions show up as removable drives, but not only are they not recognized by Music Manager, they don't work with Windows Media Player either - I just get error messages or a request to "insert a disk" into that drive.
I have spent the equivalent of a full work week (in the evenings) uninstalling and reinstalling every version of the software from their web site, using every tip from their "knowledge" base, and none of it has worked. I'm very disappointed in their product and in their so-called customer "service." I give up - I'm returning it and buying an iRiver! I really liked the look of this one, the belt clip, and even the head phones - but not enough to keep this as just a radio player that doesn't even get AM for baseball games!
25 Don't buy this
I bought two of these to use when my wife and I work out. The clip holder doesn't fit properly on either of them - but that's not the reason not to buy it.
My wife hardly uses hers but I was using mine a fair amount and was pretty careful to not bang it around - but it is the "sport" model designed to take some knocks, right? After 3 months the unit just quit working. Stopped completely. I exchanged it and the same thing happened after a few months. The second time I thought it was just the battery but when I opened the battery compartment the entire casing broke so I couldn't exchange it. Since I bought the memory card, I foolishly bought another one (stupid) figuring I would have better luck. Son of a gun if the thing didn't quit in a matter of weeks and had hardly been used - it simply quit.
This is a bad product - poorly manufactured. The sound is OK and loading songs is very easy. But it's just a poorly made product.
26 A Solid Entry-Level MP3 Player
I bought this mp3 player for my wife after she complained about repeatedly dropping her discman and scratching her cds up at the gym. It delivers on everything it promises, although you must remember that it is Rio's entry-level player.
The standard 128 MB memory will hold either 30 mp3s or 60 wma files. This isn't very much so I bought a 512 MB SD Flash Card to go with it. These cards will run you about $50-70, but boost the player's song capacity to 150 mp3s or 300 wma's. That's more than enough for most people.
The software installed easily and automatically updated itself with no problem. It could be a bit more intuitive, but it gets the job done. It rips audio from CDs quickly and easily locates your existing mp3s and wmas files. You also have the option of transfering songs to the Cali from within Windows Media Player, Real Player and even Windows Explorer. Battery life is an impressive 8-10 hours on a single AAA battery. Operation of the player is easy and it's features are plentiful including a radio, stopwatch and tons of customization including a 5-band equalizer.
My only complaints at this point are that Windows XP (and all other OS I assume) will not recognize the external memory card unless you hook up the player to the USB port BEFORE going into Windows. If you hook it up after entering windows, it only sees the standard 128 MB. Also, creating playlists can be kind of a hassle and should have been made easier. To workaround this, I just loaded up the player and set it to shuffle mode.
There are far better MP3 players out there, but there are also far worse. The Rio Cali specifically tries to target athletes, exercisers and the casual MP3 user. I think they succeeded nicely. However, if you are looking for massive storage capacity or a higher level of features and/or pc integration you may be better served looking elsewhere.
27 Piece of Crap
This is my second Rio MP3 and I should have learned my lesson the first time. This one is worthless. I've had for about 4 months and it has never worked properly. Here are specifics:
1. Software - would not recognize the external memory card I purchased. After spending alot of time on the phone with the on-line support, the only way I've figured out to get it to recognize the memory card is to reinstall the software EVERYTIME I plug the device into the computer.
2. Memory card - I've spent hours organizing playlists on the external and internal memory cards, but after I turn off the device and disconnect it from the computer, the playlists are not saved on the external cards.
3. Stopwatch - Allows you to time multiple laps, but only displays the two most recently completed laps. You are not able to 'scroll' back to get time for earlier laps. On line support told me that I should 'write it down' as I do each lap (I'm training for a marathon and running 20 25 miles at a time, a little impractical).
4. Upgrader message - This is the big one. Everytime I turn the device on, I get the upgrader message and am not able to use the device. The website says that this occurs when you hold the menu button when turning the device on, but I've tried it without touching the menu button and this is not the cause. The website also has several fixes for this problem, none of which worked for me. On line support says to take the battery out for 30 minutes, then reload software (so you have to be at your computer) then turn it on. Ridiculous. Obviously if you want to be using your MP3 player, you're probably not at home sitting in front of your computer. And if you don't keep it on, the same thing will happen the next time you try to turn it on. Ultimately after attempting to turn it on 15 - 30 times (each time I want to turn it on) it eventually does work, but I never know how many tries it's going to take or why it decides to turn on when it does.
5. On line support. I've spent alot of time speaking with them. One person tried to be helpful, but she really didn't know the product, and everytime I felt like they were just reading the user manual to me (which I had already downloaded and read trying to figure out all these problems for my self).
I wanted to give it no stars, because it really doesn't merit any, but that wasn't an option.
28 it was great....for a couple of weeks
i got mine as a christmas gift and a couple weeks after recieving it i couldn't download any songs onto the player or take songs off of the player. The player played nicely but the same songs are on it since last christmas.
terrrrriiiibbbbllee!!!!!!!!!
29 Software and Technical Support Worthless
The software that comes with the Cali is unusable. I bought this to replace a Bantam MP3 player that I broke and I can say without hesitation it was the worse decision I ever made.
The software is cludgy and very difficult to use.
I called technical support. What a mistake. the tech told me to reformat my player but never checked to see if I had backed it up. When I pointed it out to them she hung up. Then I called again and was on hold for over 30 minutes. Then the Operator Tia Henderson apologized and transfered me to the wrong department and once again I got disconnected. I am now on hold for the 3rd time this morning and still no closer to a manager. Stay away!!!!!
30 Beware! Problem with software and horrible technical support
Do NOT buy this one. The Rio Cali I purchased came with a software problem that apparently none of their technical support representatives can solve. There is no toll free number available, so while they are all scratching their heads, I am footing the bill. I have wasted time and money, trying to resolve the issue and so far no success. From other reviews I read online, I can pretty much forget a refund, since they will just try to send a refurbished product instead. Take my advice, go with another manufacturer!
31 i love my Rio
I am completely satisfied with my purchase. I was considering a more expensive, definitely more trendy iPod, but the Rio is everything I need -- with an armband. I take it jogging, to the gym, and use it while I work on the computer so that I don't bother anyone. Yes, there are other products with a larger song capacity, but this is perfect for someone on the go who, like me, likes to swap out and change their songs every few days. The computer interface is straightforward, and the headphones are perfect for active people who hate the traditional headset. A huge thumbs up!
And to the person who claims the Rio can't use standard MP3's -- they must be confused. The Rio has a UI just like every other MP3 player through which you upload your songs, but it does NOT change the format in any way.
32 Flawed software, device not so rugged as it looks
Modeled and promoted as a "sport" player for exercise use, with a "rugged" and rubberized look, I was looked into thinking this would stand up to the elements. I found out the truth this week when I got caught in the rain running with this on and had to run back 20 minutes in the rain. After about 10 minutes of light to moderate rain, the Rio stopped working. I'm not talking about dropping it in a bathtub or swimming with it, I'm talking rain drops bouncing off of it.
When I got back inside, I could see water between the shell and the LCD screen. I immediately removed the battery and let it dry for several days and it appears that the rio will return to working OK now. Hope this lesson saves someone else potential headache.
Rio's software to work with it is poor. It doesn't let you change the bitrate of songs from the computer to the Rio (to save space for more songs on the Rio). It's buggy: adding songs to a playlist results in wiping out the playlist and starting from scratch. And, unfortunately although the Rio is supported by Windows Media Player and Real Player, the support with each of them is also flawed in some way. I've read good reviews of yet another player (Red Chair?) that might work well with this but it isn't free and it doesn't seem right to have to pay even a small price just to get the Rio to work the way it should out of the box.
33 mine didn't last
My wife purchased the Rio Cali 256 a year ago (11/2003) as a gift for me. She conducted a significant amount of research on the various MP3 players and went with RIO because she thought they would be more reliable than some of the other manufacturers.
I use it only for running and when I was am in the gym (probably about 6 hours per week max).
The software is okay. I don't get the advertised 18 hours with a single AAA battery.
The reliability of the player is extremely poor given the original $200+ price.
Within 2 months the control stick stopped working - I had to send it back to RIO who provided me with a refurbished unit. The original headphones shorted out within 3 months and needed replacement. After I received the refurbished unit, I kept it in a padded hard-case in my gymbag to avoid potential damage. This didn't work to prevent the unit from falling apart. After having the refurbished unit for about 5 months, the "lock" switch fell out. The case separated and will not snap shut anymore. The on/off switch sometimes gets stuck (falls out of its track so you can't turn it on or off.)
I'm ready to replace it because it has fallen apart - this product should have lasted more than a year. Maybe I just had bad luck with the unit, but I can't imaging ever buying another Rio product after this experience - even at the lower price.
34 Everything You Need
The Rio Cali 256 is everything you need.
This is the 2nd Rio product I've owned. I bought my first one back in 2000, and it served me well for three long years.
I researched, researced, and researched some more before finally buying the Rio Cali 256. Why is it that so many MP3 players come without a belt clip? Who wants to wear something on their arm?! This player comes with both an armband (for those who want that feature) and a belt clip (for the rest of us).
I've had this player for 6 months now. I run with it. I work out with it. It's compact and lightweight. It serves me well. (Some folks have questioned this product's durability. I've encountered no problems whatsoever.)
I said it has everything you *need*. There's one thing thought that I'd *like* to have. USB 2.0. If it had USB 2.0, I'd give it 5 big stars.
So, if I were in the market for a new MP3 player today, I'd buy the Rio Forge 256 MB Sport MP3 Player. It's the same product as the Rio Cali 256, except that the Forge has USB 2.0 and a few additional upgrades.
35 worked great...for six months
I bought this player for my girlfriend last Christmas. She loved it, and used it all the time. Unfortunately, over the summer the control stick stopped working. The player is one solid piece, so you can't even open it up to attempt a repair. Rio charges $70 for a replacement if you still have the receipt. No thanks, I'll try another brand from now on.
36 Poor durability
I had purchased an earlier 64MB Rio, and loved it. So when I wanted more memory, I naturally tried another Rio. As soon as got my new Rio home, it didn't work. I exchanged it for another, and that one worked for three months, and then the volume button stopped working.
If it weren't for these problems, I'd rate it five stars. The controls are intuitive, and you can figure out everything without reading the manual. The only thin it lacks is the "pants clip" that the earlier Rio 64MB had - that is a lot more comfortable than the belt/arm device the new one has.
37 AGGRAVATION UNLIMITED--SAVE YOUR MONEY
I have had my unit since May. The first one suddenly refused to receive downloaded tracks. After about 6 phone calls and massive e-mail correspondence, I received the OK to send it back for a replacement, since all of their many troubleshooting helpers did not help at all. The refurb they sent out worked fine. Until one night in bed it just shut off. I had to go through all the aggravation again--countless hours of phone calls, e-mails and downloading firmware and software--all to no avail. After arguing with them they finally agreed to send me another refurb. Which upon receiving it will promptly be placed up for bid Ebay. I should have listened to my friend all along--I should have bought an iPod. mp3 player marketplace is very competitive; you would think they would be very helpful to a customer who has had 2 of their products break. Instead they were giving me the runaround. It wasn't a surprise to me to see many other reviews like mine. I strongly recommend buying an mp3 player from another company.
38 Upgrader
If you have owned one of the Rio MP3 players you will know what this means. I have owned two Cali's (256)- one return and the one I am throwing in the garbage. After several attempts to upgrade the system through their website to no avail. (Often called the upgrader bug). Cool design and very comfortable, but does not work. Go to their website (...) and you can read for yourself some very frustrated users.
39 Quality?
I like the player, easy to use and very functional, but there are quality issues. Bought mine in Jan 2004, one of the earbuds stopped working after about 4 months of use, no problem bought another set. However the latest issue is the joystick which stopped working in the Play/Pause position, the unit is less that 1 year. The tech support wants $69.95 to fix it, that's an excessive fee for a unit that can be bought now for less than $120.
40 Problems with this MP3 player from the first day.
I had power issue with this player from the first time I tried to use it. At first the player would only start intermittently (even with a new battery installed). Eventually (after on a week of owning the player), it would not start at all. Rio technical support has been difficult to obtain and the do not offer a toll free support number. If you have problems, you will incur a toll call fee while you wait for assistance. Bad experiences all around. I have since owned both an IRock 128MB player and an IRiver 512MB player and have had much more success.
41 battery eater
I just got a "refurbished" model. It goes through a new battery in about one hour, a pretty bad sign for any electronic device. I am returning it and will try a different brand--particularly after reading about the customer service.
42 DA SHIZNIT FO SHO IZZAY OFF DA HIZZAY
THIS PLAYER IS AWESOME AND IF YOU GET FREE P2P MUSIC, THEN IT'S WORTH ALL YOUR MONEY. MY REASONS FOR THIS IS THAT THIS "PLAYA PLAYA" HAS RADIO AND DATS BANGIN! I MEAN NOT EVEN I-POD HAS RADIO SO YOU CAN ALREADY GO TELL YO FRIEND WIT DA I-POD "YO WERES DA RADIO". AND U CAN ALSO UPGRADE THE MEMORY BY SIMPLY TURNING IT OFF FIRST THEN STICKING IN THE MMC CARD OR SD MEMORY CARD, WHICH GO FOR ABOUT $17-$50 BUCKS, AND JUST DOWNLOAD! FO SHO ITS DAT EEZAY!!! UDER DEN DAT DIS NIZ IS DA SHIZ. sEE U IN DA HOOD. I WANA GIB A SHOUT OUT TO ALL MAI DOGS & GEES. pEaCe OUT YA !!!!
43 Please listen to logevity complaints you see here
I give this player 2 stars because it was a very nice player for a few months before succumbing to the upgrader bug. I have had mine about 6 months now and am lucky to have it turn on properly in 1 try out of four. If I press the menu button without a feather-lite touch the unit shuts down completely and can take minutes to get working properly again. If you do buy, get an extended warranty.
44 Excellent Sport MP3 Player - RIO delivers again!
The Rio Cali 256MB is the second sport MP3 player I've owned to date, and trust me, I shopped around before deciding on this player. My primary use for the player is for exercise, so I am using it in a fairly rugged environment where I am participating in very rigorous activities.
Rio Reputation
---------------
My first player was the 128MB Rio Sport S50, which was pretty new on the market at that time. The S50 was very durable, although there were some problems with the FM Tuner and occasional problems with the flash memory being erased for no particular reason. There were also small firmware problems and little annoyances, for example, the system clock on this model was not battery backed, so whenever you changed the battery, you had to go through the process of resetting the clock. The armband design was also weak, as the product was not securely attached on the armband. The S50 lasted me over 2 years and enduraed several hard drops. I used it during my jump rope training several times, and it fell off my arm one day, flew across the floor, and hit a concrete wall. I eventually lost the LCD display, but this unit kept working! I even opened the unit (not gracefully) in an attempt to fix it, wound up breaking one of the latches to keep the device closed, and that thing still kept chugging along!!! I eventually decided to replace it and wanted to find a comparable 256MB model. I was going to immediately select the Rio Cali 256MB, but decided to do an extensive product comparison once again to ensure I was purchasing the product that was right for me.
Cali 256MB
-----------
Keeping in mind that my primary concern was finding a durable player that will endure tough, sweaty workouts and with enough memory to store hours of music to last during those extra long training sessions, I immediately ruled out other players such as the iRiver and the iPod-mini. The iRiver is indeed small, but not made in a sport model. It would fall off easily and the contrls are inconveniently small. The design of the iPod-mini does not lend itself to a sport environment. I mean, you can't exactly wear an armband and tote the device around on the arm. I actually tested the Nike/Philips model, and immediately ran the other way :-) The product, although it was a sport model, had controls that easily flushed into the body of the unit and were not designed for feel. For example, when you press a control, you do not have a touch/feel response that the command actually worked. Addionally, there was no protective housing unit for when the unit is worn with the arm band. After all of these reviews, I decided to stick with what I know, and was confident that I would not regret my decision. Almost a year later, I am confident that I made the right choice!
Rio Cali Features
------------------
The Rio designers really improved the overall look & feel of the machine, as well as the functionality. The device attachs much more securely to the armband with a redesigned clip and holder. The volume controls are much larger and easier to access in this model. The LCD is clear (as expected), and I like the new joystick command control. At first, I was worried that it would be too small, but it's actually quite functional. During my workouts, I am able to just hit the joystick in the appropriate direction and I'm done. I don't have to worry about if I pressed the button hard enough, etc. The only thing I don't care for in this model is that I have to completely remove the device from the housing in order to upload music. The USB port is protected in this new design (it was exposed in the S50). However, although it is inconvenient, I am glad they designed it this way because the port is protected from moisture and sweat. The battery compartment is also much more secure.
In this model, I have experienced the unexplained erased flash memory once. I also had some trouble upgrading the firmware. I had to do some tricky device recovery (using the included software) to sync up the device. However, all-in-all, I think Rio makes one of the best devices on the market. I think their included upload software is not very user friendly; I use Windows Media Player to upload music to the device. The only time I've used the Rio software was to reformat the device after uploading the firmware.
You won't go wrong with this product! It is one of the best on the market!
45 Rio Cali
I bought this for myself after our son, who is in college told me about the one he'd purchased. I liked his, but it was WAY too small for my older eyes! I did some research, and found this one. It's fantastic. If you are looking to purchase an MP3 player, be careful, because not all of them are expandable. This particular little gadget is perfect for all my needs. No more skipping, like you have with a CD player! It's easy to work, and sounds fantastic. I have no regrets about buying the Rio Cali.
46 way too fragile for a "sport" player
i had mine for 6 months and was pretty happy with it but one day it just stopped working. it will turn on but it comes on paused, with the volume maxed out and unresponsive to the joystick and menu button. needless to say, rio tech support was slow to respond and wasn't very helpful.
i am pretty disappointed in the fragility of what is supposedly a sports-oriented device (although i never did sports with it, i bought thinking it would be more rugged). i am not likely to ever buy anything from rio again. i should should have paid attention to the bad reviews on it and bought something else.
47 Good For MP3 Lover's On a Budget
This is an overall good MP3 player. I own the 128MB Cali, however I wish I had purchased the 256MB as 128MB is barely enough space for 5 or 6 CDs.
The included software, which IS Windows98 compatible despite what the package says, is easy to use if you have any knowledge of computers what so ever. It's as easy as selecting the files you want and clicking "send" to transfer them to the device.
As for the player itself, it seems to be quite durable although I haven't put it through any extreme tests, it holds up quite well for the trip between home and school.
The SD slot is located under the battery which is a bit of a pain because the battery must be removed to install it, however this is a bit better than having an uncovered slot on the top of the player as a lot of RCA players do.
The menus are simple and easy to navigate making switching between playlists and settings very easy to do one-handed. After getting a feel for the player, adjusting volume and moving between songs becomes second nature. All in all, I highly recommend the Rio Cali 128MB for those who can't afford, or don't want, an Ipod.
48 Hard to beat
I'm very satisfied. The Cali has great headphones and sound quality. For me, on of the best features is the armband holster. I am rather abusive to my electronic equipment and this keeps the Rio out of my way (and out of danger). The expandable SD memory was also a key. Navigation is fine and the Cali does appear as a drive on your computer when connected, making file transfer possible via Explorer.
49 COME ON!
Why are you guys complaining about the software being hard to navigate! I'm 12 and I can do this fine, and I'm new to Mp3 technology! This is a great little Mp3 player! It holds quite a bit on a little AAA battery, it has great battery life, it has GREAT sound, comfortable earbuds, easy interface...it's really small too, compared to the IPod, so what's wrong with it? It's also durable, its got a stopwatch, FM tuner and presets, equalizer, playlists and much more...I could go on with this forever...
50 takes a licking and keeps on ticking
i'll be the first one to admit that i'm clumsy. my friends and family call me destructo-girl, because i manage to break everything i own (and many things i don't) within moments of coming into contact with them. others may have had issues with performance, but i have been using this player for just under a year now with no significant problems. i've dropped it countless times (just today it went flying out of my pocket and onto the pavement; the battery came out but it still works fine), gotten it wet, bitten it, sat on it, stepped on it and spilled beverages on it, and it still keeps playing.
the size and overall design are just great, i love the way the curve fits my hand for easy control of volume and tracking, and how nicely it fits in even the smallest of pockets. i do, however, always have to have it tucked away somewhere or in my hand since i think the armband is a tad awkward and uncomfortable.
like i said, i'm not used to holding on to any gadget for very long, but particularly for something as delicate as an mp3 player, this has really stood up for me. the headphones fritzed out after a few months, but i never expect to use the standard-issue headphones with portable devices anyway.
51 Great for exercising!
This little player sounds great and the armband stays tight to the arm. I've worn it roller-blading, jogging and mountain biking without the slightest worry of it falling off or coming loose. The radio tuner isn't the greatest, otherwise this is a great MP3 player!
52 Problems with Rio - Buggy!
Save your money, save your time. Search the web for "Rio" and "upgrader" and you'll quickly realize that this device (like all Rio MP3 players) is buggy and prone to failure after only a few months. We've had ours since Christmas 2003, so it's dead after 9 months.
Unfortunately, Rio offers one of the shortest warranties, and their customer service is terrible. The "fix" they offered was to replace my Cali with a refurbished model - at a cost of a hundred dollars! Well you can see here at Amazon that a new model doesn't cost much more, so that's hardly a good solution.
Avoid the Cali, avoid Rio, save up your money and get a reliable player like an iPod instead.
P.S. You may find some methods posted in web forums for fixing the upgrader bug in Rio Chibas, but I could not get my Cali to work using the same methods. I also reformatted the device and reinstalled the firmware but nothing has helped.
53 Worst Customer Service I Have Ever Experienced
Do not buy a Rio product. After dealing with many customer service departments and tech support groups over the years I can say that these people are entirely in a league of their own. Absolutely the worst experience I have ever had. Nothing else has even come close. You buy at your peril and risk.
54 Don't buy if you want it to last for more than a year...
I have had my rio for about 8 months now, and recently discovered that it will not recognize sd cards. I bought the card so I could expand the memory on my rio, and didn't realize till afterwards there is a problem with them and they don't recognize the cards. I was told by rio they are working on a fix, hopefully in the next few weeks (???). Also, careful if you drop it, I accidentally did, and now I cannot turn the volume up or down. Also, I have read some rios have errors where it will say "upgrade" and there is no way to fix it, it will eventually freeze that way and you'll just have to buy a new one.
55 Great for active folks.
The good:
Software is incredibly easy to use. Very intuitive and easy to set up.
Expandable with a memory card.
Player controls are easy to access and maneuver while lifting weights, cycling, or jogging.
Sound quality is very good for the price--even when using the FM radio.
The bad:
The armband is made by 95 pound computer geeks for 95 pound computer geeks. If you have a larger arm, it can be a little tight (think blood pressure exam).
If you have ears like me, it's easy to get a snug fit with an earpiece in one ear, but the other feels like it will fall out at any given moment. It doesn't actually fall out, but it feels like it will.
The screen will cease to function if you drop an 8 pound wall clock on it, but the music will still play.
The mixed:
If you have to call for service, give yourself a while to wait on hold, and you'd think a company that made music players would have better music for you to listen to while you were there, but no. Once the call is answered, the service is not as bad as you'd be led to believe by the other reviews. As for returns, I had a replacement in 5 calendar days.
It was out of warranty, but the replacement came to $70. Not bad, all things considered.
While the headphone cord length is fine for the armband, if you wanted to keep the player in your pocket and listen to it at the same time, you'll need headphones with a longer cord, unless you are a munchkin.
In Conclusion:
There are some things I'd like to fix, but I can say that I was only expecting to use this while I exercised and in reality I use it a whole lot more.
56 Love the player - Hate the armband
The player itself is nice and compact, and I have not had any problems with it. If you use it for running or walking or the gym it works well.
The arm clip is a different story. It's cheap, and the more you remove the player from the clip, the more loose the player fits inside the clip. Also, do not throw anything (like a stick to a dog like I did) near the water, as the player can fly out of it's clip and into a pond. Which is why i'm here looking at MP3 players again.
The earpieces arent that great either. Yes the are functional but they are flimsy and non adjustable and may not fit in one or both of your ears (may keep trying to come out of your ears).
If RIO corrected the clip/band i would give 4.5 stars. If they had better clip/band and earpieces it would be a 5 star solid buy.
57 Great Player Bad SportClip EarPhones
The player is Great but the SportClip Earphones went bad after 60 days...Trying to Get Rio To replace them is a nightmare...I have been waiting 45 days for them to replace the earphones no luck.. When I checked with the BBB in Santa Clara they have a consideral number of customer service complaints...I recommend not dealing with any company that ignores basic customer service of not replacing items under warranty..If you buy from RIO you are on your own...
58 Great for outdoor/active use
The Rio Cali is great if you intend to listen to MP3 music for sports such as running, rowing, or cycling. It is easy to change volume and move from song to song without having to look at the unit.
The compact and tough rubber casing was perfectly designed for active outdoor use (it can even get wet without adverse affect).
Utilizing AAA batteries is also great since I do not often have access to AC power for charging. The FM radio is nice to have too.
If you want to use your MP3 player for indoor use, maybe you should consider an iPod, but for sports the Rio has worked great for me.
59 Fantastic Player - Sturdy, Non-Skip, 160 Songs with add mem
I liked this player so much, even after taking another look at the I-pod,I bought a Rio for my wife. The one thing that no one has mentioned is that, by using one regular AAA battery, you can easily replace it when you're walking or jogging or cycling. You don't have to worry about losing power and recharging.
Next, by adding 128k memory, I'm able to get 160 songs on the player and, with random play (shuffle), I don't tire of the selections as fast.
I've had mine for six months, and not once has it skipped. If it starts to "skip," you can be sure that your battery is just about dead. Batteries last about 16 hours. Depends on how high you set the resolution and backlight on the display and how much you diddle with controls.
Could it be better? Well, scrolling through selections could be, but that's really minor especially if you're on shuffle. And, yes, the software is marginal. The documentation is really lousy unless you actually read the .pdf version and then everything becomes clear. And I replaced the earbuds immediately with Sonys. Last, FM radio is a waste of time in hill country or anywhere where line-of-sight is important. Too bad none come with AM radio.
Even with that, the display is good; it is comfortable (only weighs 2 ounces); the belt clip is the first I've had that actually holds; the equalizer is actually pretty good; and the sound is fantastic, and isn't that the point with mp3 players?
60 Great Player
I bought this player to replace a Gateway DMP 210 and all I can say is wow what a world of difference. The cali player can tune in radio stations clearly that the DMP could not. The cali is also more rugged and can take slight hits and still play music which the DMP could not. The sound is great with no distortion and is plenty loud. The armband is comfortable for use when working out. Overall I highly recommend this player. The amazon.com price also beat out all other local electronics store prices for this item.
61 Rio missed the point
There are two primary reasons to go with a flash based player rather than a hd based player: Weight, and durability. This is a light player all right and it also has a great battery life, unfortunately these devices are so fragile they must be treated like fine china.
I've owned two of these units, both were used strapped to my arm in a neoprene case for running, neither unit was dropped, and both have failed from the "upgrader bug" (see rioworld.org for details) in an identical manner. The "upgrader bug" is fairly common and if it wasn't for the fact that I had bought the extended warranty from the retailer I would be out big bucks.
Potential buyers: RIO players have the shortest warranty of any mp3 player on the market (3 months) and that fact should be informative.
62 GreatMP3 Player for the working out!
I picked up this player a few months ago and it is great for my workouts (lots of running). It fits securely on your arm and is easy to operate. I have about 80 songs on it (mp3 and wma). It is simple to use. Downloading songs is a cinch. The only drawback is that sometimes while running the joystick is sensitive. Wait, one other thing ... the battery needs replacing a little too often, but that's true of most MP3 players. Besides it only uses one 3aaa battery and it is easy to change. Best of luck in your search!
63 Rio customer support is a myth.
Overall, not a bad product. Small, light-weight, easy to use. If you have another CD ripping program and/or a collection of songs in MP3 or WMA format, loading music can be a simple drag-and-drop process using Windows Explorer.
I had an issue, however, with the Rio cutting off a few select songs before they were done playing. That's when I found the black hole called "Rio Customer Support".
First of all, there is no toll-free number to call. There is no way to submit a support issue via email in the US. That combined with limited hours of operation and limited resources with limited skills made for a very frustrating and expensive experience.
If you are a software engineer and can design and trouble shoot your own firmware, I recommend this device. Otherwise, stay away!
64 Poor quality control - terrible customer support
I think the design concept of this player is excellent, but the player itself has many quirks that keep it from operating normally. Rio's product support is the worst ever !!!
65 Keep Looking
When I first got the Rio Cali it seemed to work fine, however after just a few months of light use it started to have problems. Initally the forward button would stop working and then a few weeks later it stopped working all together. This is stated to be a "sport" player and I only used it with light exercise and never dropped it. I've heard similar problems with this player, I'd look at another brand.
66 Solid, simple device
I am afraid I am not sure why or how people are having so much trouble moving files to/from this device, but I have found everything to work exactly as I expect. Before I ever installed the Rio Music Manager software, I popped in my 128MB SD card, and listened to a bunch of songs on it that I had there for listening on my iPaq on business trips.
Another reviewer complained that it took RMM 15 minutes to catalogue 3000 MP3s (I think it was 3000). I have a collection that is approximately 25GB (I don't know how many files) and it catalogued it in seconds. My only complaint is that so many of my MP3s don't use the ID3 tag system, and RMM keys on that exclusively (easily remedied, except that I have thousands and thousands of songs with no tags).
As for the player itself, I run with it, and it is lightweight, the armband works great (someone needed instructions for this thing? IT IS VELCRO!!!). I have WinAmp playlists that I easily imported through the DJ part of RMM and I can listen to my established playlists easily on the player -- I didn't even notice a delay in playing songs (as another reviewer complained).
Perhaps the player I purchased has updated firmware beyond some of these other reviewers, but price/performance and the capability to use SD expansion memory make this product an excellent choice in my opinion.
67 Can't get it fixed
I bought two of these for Christmas '03. Both stop working when you take them outside in the winter. You get a high pitched screech and they die.
I have another problem with one and have been trying to send it back for repair since August 3rd it is now Aug 24th. Weeks of e-mails and phone calls and I finally get two numbers to call and fax. I do this and find both have been disconnected.
Finally today I get another e-mail saying you'd be better off buying a new one since it is out of warranty. My feeling is they have no service capability. I would never buy another product from this company.
68 Wish I could give it negative stars 1 is too many!
Having owned four Rio Mp3 players in the past and being very satisfied with them all (models S10, S30, S35, & S50) I had good expectations for this newer model but was vastly disappointed with the outcome. Below I have reviewed every aspect of the player both good and bad for you're perusal, first starting with the overall pros and cons in case you don't feel like reading the whole thing:
OVERALL PROS AND CONS
Pros
External lock switch keeps you from digging through menus like other players.
Comes with belt clip that most other brands don't provide.
Allows external memory.
Cons
Controls are too small to use without messing up.
Armband sucks and there are no instructions for it's use.
Instructions are horrible.
Sound quality is worse than previous mp3 players I've owned.
This version Rio Music Manager Software absolutely is horrible.
Software freezes while adding songs.
This player automatically alphabetizes the songs on the player..WHY!!?
Creating a playlist is a chore and doesn't work as good as just adding songs.
Playlists are incompatible with external memory cards.
Customer service sucks.
CONTROLS, DESIGN, & ACCESSORIES INCLUDED
Controls & Design
Upon looking at the player I noticed the first problem that would bug me and that was the controls to play, stop, and change tracks. They are all combined into one little joystick that you move in the direction you want and makes it too easy to hit the wrong one. This joystick is much smaller than even the average pinky fingertip and I don't think is located in a good place to change the tracks without looking (I had to look down at the player closely whenever I wanted to do anything). This was a disappointment because all the models I owned previously had large controls that were very easy to use without even glancing at the player.
One good thing about the controls was the location of the volume button was easy to reach and change since it is not obscured by the plastic carrying case as many models are. Also, Rio has finally put a lock switch on the top of the player so you don't accidentally hit anything to ruin you're mood, rather than burying the lock in the menus like other models.
Accessories Included
This Rio like most models comes with an armband and belt clip, which I find to be both bepretty poorly made. The belt clip is made of metal that is very tight and I couldn't even get it over the waistline of my shorts to use it. The armband as usual comes with no instructions on how you are supposed to use it (it's not like the Nike models that just go into the case on the band). This is just a velcro strap basically and you are on your own to figure it out..no matter how you go about it though you will have a larger mark on you're arm from the belt clip which will dig into you're skin the whole time.
Another minus is the headphones the player comes with. As with every other discman, mp3 player, etc. I've ever owned they are very poor sounding and you are going to have to get new ones ( I use the Sony earbud style and they work very well).
Sound
I found the sound quality of this model to be subpar compared to the other models I have had. Using the Sony headphones the bass was weak and distorted as was the treble on this thing no matter what I did with the EQ. Every other Rio I've owned sounded wonderful but this one took a turn for the worse.
The Instructions
The instructions absolutely suck they are about 6 steps front and back of one page that tell you nothing about the product or what you can expect to encounter. The full manual is on the installation cd, but that is also very lacking in content, nothing was explained about the installation or problems I encountered in using the player.
THE SOFTWARE & USING EXTERNAL MEMORY CARDS
This player comes with a different version of Rio Music Manager (RMM) then any other player that I have owned and I found this to be the absolute worst piece of software that I have ever used. After installing the software you connect the player and expect it to start working like all other models with no trouble. But, instead it chooses to install itself as a disk drive, and if you are using a memory card it will do the same thing for it thus two extra drives on you're computer..can anybody say IRQ conflict? There was no mention of this in the instructions and I didn't know what to do so I let it roll (it was installed as my G & H drive).
The actual interface of this version of RMM is more confusing and less user friendly than past versions for a number of reasons. First, instead of the split screen other versions have (with the songs transferring on the bottom and those you're looking for on top) this version only allows you to either see the songs on the player or those on the computer but not both at once. This is a problem because you can't see the transfer status of the songs whereas on the old version it had a bar for each song that went from 0 to 100% as it transferred. In order to see the status you have to click on the player icon on the left and then let it load the information, and then you don't even get a status bar, you just get told what song is transferring.
The second problem I had with this software was that on previous versions you could click anywhere in the drop down box on top to choose another folder, artist, etc. but on this version you have to click on the arrow on the right side of the screen for anything to happen. This causes you to move the mouse to the right every time you want to change folders and a real pain in the rear.
The third problem with the software is that about 50% of the time while I was adding songs it would just freeze with no error message or anything, leading me to unplug the player and get a whole lot of errors from the computer. I tried turning the power management to not shut off for 30 minutes of sitting there but this didn't solve the problem... I don't know what was wrong here. And yes before anybody says it I did reformat the player and try adding the newest firmware and software from Rios website.
Using An External Memory Card
I have a number of 128 MB SD memory cards and attempted to use one in this player, which led to another problem. In the RMM window when there is a memory card installed it will show the total size of the memory on the bottom (for me it was 363 MB), which led me to believe that it would put the songs on either internal or external memory on it's own for me and save the trouble of loading each. So I loaded up the player, next thing I know it freezes and I click down there and realize that it has attempted to put 290 MB of songs on the internal memory and about 40 on the external memory card, why I don't know. I have no idea why this horrible software couldn't just split it up on it's own to make it fit between the two since there was more than enough room. But if you are using an external memory card you have to load each separately or else it's going to freeze, what a piece..
The Worst Problem ...ALPHABETIZING
I don't know who's stupid idea this was, but bar none this is the dumbest thing I've ever seen on an mp3 player yet, and absolutely the determining factor for me to get rid of this player. When you add the songs in any other Mp3 player I've owned the songs remain in the order you add them when you play it back, not so with this player. The Rio Cali alphabetizes the songs instead of leaving them in the order you chose them, and not only that it doesn't alphabetize them the same way each time. Sometimes it was by song name, sometimes by artist, and sometimes by album, how it chooses what it wants to do I do not know. I looked through Rio forums and reviews and saw a number of others having the same problem and don't know why a fix has not been released yet. Please Rio get rid of this alphabetizing bull and let the songs be played in the order I want them, for now the only way to do this is by creating a playlist....which leads to the next problem.
Creating A Playlist
So in order to try and keep the songs in the order I wanted I tried creating a playlist as everyone says to do. The first problem in doing this is the RMM software has to scan all of you're music files on the computer which for me took about 15 minutes (around 2000 mp3 songs), as you can't add songs to the playlist through anything except that method. For me I have my songs arranged in folders by artists, etc. for easy finding and didn't need the software to find them for me but I had no choice in the matter.
When you go to add songs to the playlist more problems start rolling in, first is that while you are adding them you are told no information on the size of the playlist to know if it will fit on the player. In order to do this you will have to go to the playlist, then right click look at the information and read the size after each song to make sure you are not over spacewise, what a pain.
Next problem, once the songs are in the playlist you can't move them around to change the order...why make me to have a playlist if I have to keep the order and can't move them around?
Another problem is that when you are playing a playlist back there is about a 3 second gap between each song while the player finds it...remember it automatically alphabetizes them even if you are using a playlist you have to go into the menu to play it and then the gap comes in..what fun.
And the last problem with the "solution" to the alphabetizing problem of creating a playlist is that it does not work when you are using an external memory card. Read the instructions it's right in there that playlists don't work when an external memory card is in the player, what bull!
CUSTOMER SERVICE
Realize before you buy one of these that customer service/technical support hours for Rio are 8AM-6PM Monday thru Friday so if you have a job as I'm sure most people do you will not be able to contact them. When you do contact Rio support you should also be ready for somebody with a heavy Indian accent and little to know technical expertise about the product, they were of absolutely no help to me.
RECOMMENDATION
My recommendation is to not buy this player and don't buy any of the new Rio players until the alphabetizing problem is fixed and they revert back to one of the old versions of RMM or a new version. I bought this player because I had a Product Replacement Plan from Best Buy and when my S35 broke I had to get something in the store with the voucher money. I ended up selling this player on an auction site after about 7 hours of trying to make it work for me on the computer and ordering myself another S35 online. My recommendation is to get one of the older Rio S models and save yourself from a lot of hassle. Rio if you are reading this please, please fix this piece of you know what.
69 DO NOT BUY THIS ITEM!!
I am STILL on hold with "customer support" - a non-800 number. I waited on-hold 25 minutes just to speak to a representative who clearly has no experience, and now I've been on hold another 30 minutes trying to get some assistance. This SHOULD be easy - to transfer .mp3 files from my hard drive to my Cali player. Guess not. The rep put me on hold 11 times - eleven!! - so far to ask "someone" how to help me. I am still on hold. And still no help. Problems - creating playlists, transferring .mp3 files from my hard drive to Rio Music Manager, doing anything within Rio Music Manager, having multiple files of the same song appear on my playlist, when trying to remove a "duplicate" song from a playlist, all items are removed, to clear up space on my Rio Cali I deleted some songs from the playlist - but the "free space" indicator did not update, and so I now have two songs on the playlist, and am unable to add anymore! I have even more issues, but have run out of patience.
I purchased this item a mere three weeks ago, and already they've had me reinstalling firmware, etc. My incresing frustration finally got me to the point where I asked to speak to whomever the customer service rep - "Claudia" - was talking to so I didn't have to go through her as the middle man, and now - now - "Sherrie" - the C/S manager will call me back IN A FEW HOURS. Most likely when I have no access to this useless device.
I'm a successful, professional woman who only wants to listen to music at the gym. I have NEVER had such TERRIBLE support in my life for such a simple device. Connecting my Bose surround sound home system was much easier than this!!
PLEASE DO NOT PURCHASE ANYTHING FROM RIO - this is THE MOST AGGRAVATING EXPERIENCE -- EVER!!!
Good luck - and find something else to purchase. I'm going to try and return this device.
Sara
70 I love it.
Small, light, expandable. Perfect for my 40 minute work commutes and workouts.
71 Tech Support is AWFUL
I have been unable to install the provided Music Manager software on my computer. Waited 35 minutes on hold to tech support, only to talk to someone who "just started" and never did get the problem resolved. The MP3 player armband and headphones are good. The sound from the FM tuner is excellent. Can't tell you much about loading music as I am unable to because I can't get the software to load and no one to help me!!
72 Horrible company!!
Bought one of this company's mp3 players and I lost my cord which connects it to the computer. I ordered a replacement and waited WEEKS to get it despite the next day air priority shipping. For over a week they showed that it was ready to ship, but they still didn't send it out. If you buy this item, pray you never have to replace a part!
73 A MUST BUY PRODUCT
i would give this mp3 player 5 stars because there were absolutly no glitches. It started fine, I could understand the user manual, it played the songs clear and absolutly no skips. perfect for working out or just listening to in a car ride. i would highly recommend this mp3 player to anyone.
74 Great MP3 Player But...........
I looked long and hard for an MP3 player and finally after months of researching on amazon, cnet, etc etc, I settled on these. I can't complain about the quality or sound because it is pretty sweet. I have owned this player for almost 6 months and have had no glitches in the player or the software. The one problem I did have was the headphones. Most standard headphones are not that great in the first place. The right headphone began cutting out and finally just quit working all together after 3 months of use. Other than that, this is a very good MP3 player with plenty of room for music and easy to use features.
75 Great Versitile MP3 Player!
I am so impressed with the Cali that I bought for my husband that I'm going out to get one for myself! I love the easy-to-use software! I found that you can easily download a MP3 upgrade (for FREE!) in order to RIP songs into MP3 format as well as WMA, FLAC, and OGG! It's lightweight, has an FM Tuner, an expansion slot for additional storage space, and is designed for an active lifestyle. What more do you need? I too had a little trouble at first with the ear buds, but quickly got used to them. When in use, they drown out nearly everything else going on. I love it! I stumbled across this one and have since looked at what else is out there. This is the MP3 player for me!
76 Great Player, Great Price!!
Based on the reviews for MP3 players, I was going to buy the IRiver, at Costco.com (Sorry Amazon, the price at Costco was less and I needed it ASAP). I assumed the brick and mortar Costco would also have it, but they did not. So I bought the Rio Cali as Costco has a nice return policy and I was fed up with my Sony FM player giving me static and dragging CD's around was a huge hassle. Battery life on CD players is also horrible.
The included software is great. It did require an update of over 25 MB, but it was rather fast on DSL. Many others complained about the Cali, but I'm quite happy.
No battery issues like iPod. When I found out about that, I decided to buy an MP3 player, as 256 MB with expandability is plenty for me. My primary purpose for my Cali is in the gym and I do not want 1000 songs on my player, as I'd never hear them all. I like having about 50-100 workout style songs to push me along.
Pros:
* Very intuitive software interface.
* Copying tracks from audio CD's was simple and fast.
* Transferring to Cali was just as easy.
* Comes with belt clip unlike IRiver. Although some complain about skin irritation, at least it comes with one. I do not like arm bands, as it's tougher to access and not good for those who train with weights.
* Expansion slot for up to 1 GB.
* Excellent battery life with indicator.
Cons:
* Ugly green color.
* Cannot alphabetize songs or artists, which would make playback simpler. It does offer playlists, so you could create a playlist for each artist, album, genre, etc.
* Poor FM Tuner. But the reason I bought this was to have MP3 anyway.
Aside from the minor cons, the Cali is great for me and it deserves 5 stars. It also cost $30 less than the IRiver. I'll apply the savings to a better headset, as most MP3 players provide bear-bones head phones.
77 " I Run With Mine "
I was really exited to get this product. It's my first mp3 player. It holds a lot of music. It's light weight and easy to use. It does have some downfalls. The clip it comes with is made of plastic and metal so it digs into your skin when you run with it/you will have to use the arm band. On a recent run it got to much sweat on it and cut off. The radio reception is not that great and that's what I was looking forward to as well. That is why I gave it 3 stars. It really depends on what you are going to use it for.
78 It did okay for a while
I had my wife buy this for me for gym use. That way I wouldn't have to listen to BORING 24Hr fitness music. Initially it worked fine. Downloading was easy and the software was user friendly. The sound was rather "flat" though. I like a lot of hip hop and the sound was mediocre. The radio easily lost reception while moving around in the gym. After a few weeks it started shutting of in mid song so I replaced the batteries. NO JOY. It still was shutting off. So I returned it to Walmart in hopes that exchanging it for the 256 CHIBA would be better. I will let you guys know if it was worth it.
79 Music for running, biking, rowing... but not on the subway!
I have been using this rugged little MP3 player while exercising for about nine months, and it has yet to skip a beat or miss a note. In addition to the normal sweat and water associated with running, I have dropped it several times without ill effect. The radio reception is great, and the only physical problem that has developed is a slight fraying of the earphone cord which is visible but has not yet affected the sound. Overall I rate this product very high for those who want to take an hour or two of music with them while working out. However if you are looking to have access to your whole music collection at all times you will have to upgrade to one of the hard drive based MP3 players such as the iPod to get enough storage space.
80 great product, not itunes compatible
I bought the rio on impulse with no real research--but I got
lucky as this is a great workout player: super light and the
arm band and set up is well designed. Comes with very useful
cd ripping software (wdm only). Sound quality is excellent.
Comes with excellent 'bud' style head phones. My only gripe
is the small memory allocation (126 mg = less than 2 albums)
and that it does not play itunes mp4 files. Amazing battery
performance.
81 Do not buy any Rio products
I bought the Rio Nitrus in Decemeber 2003 and in July 2004 6 months their was a bug in the MP3 code that caused it to completely broke down with no hope of fixing it.
Rio had already known about this falty code from other cases but it refused to replace my unit without charging an $80 fee due to their 3 month warranty. (approximately half the price of the player).
They should recall every Rio Nitrus on the market if their code causes it to break within 7 months or at least replace their faulty products free of charge.
IF YOU ARE CONSIDERING BUYING AN MP3 AVOID THIS COMPANY.
If anyone at Rio sees this, my case number was #727662. You'll find this message everywhere. You want me to stop, make good on my player and replace it.
82 Rio S50 and Rio Cali 256 SKIP!
I own both Rio S50 and Rio Cali 256, believe me both players have playback problems with approximately 5% or more of WMA files you load. I only rip and encode and transfer and load my own CD collection. I have been in contact with Rio for about six months concerning this problem. I have been testing and investigating this problem for Rio, although I am not being compensated by the company in any fashion. The problem is so obvious that you can visualize the skipping of music files on each player via the digital second display on the players. You will see a second or seconds speed up and then skip over the second or seconds which you will also notice aurally as being missing from playback. Some WMA files you have transferred and loaded properly on the player(s), and which do not skip on your own p.c., skip consistently and repeatedly on the player(s) even though you delete the WMA file from the player(s) and retransfer the WMA file which is flawless on your own p.c., meaning some of your favorite music might not be ever playable on the S50 and/or the Cali 256. Some WMA files, which did skip, will not skip on the second go around after you have listened to your entire loaded collection. So the burden is on you to always listen at least twice to any WMA file you have transferred to the player(s)which skips before wasting your time attempting to cure the problem by deletion and re-transfering. And each time you have played back the entire loaded collection, the burden is on you to delete the WMA files that skip, then retransfer the same WMA files from your p.c. so hopefully the player(s) will somehow not then skip. If you then choose to make changes to your WMA file song collection, you risk having another list of songs which skip. You can always expect 5% or more of the files to skip. My first mp3 player was the Iriver with 256mb of memory, which never had this playback problem. The Iriver was transferred to and loaded with the same WMA files from the same p.c.. As discussed by many other reviewers, customer support at Rio (Digital Networks) is not toll-free and the representatives are not helpful. I would never recommend Rio mp3 players to anyone until if/when the engineers at this company can answer the problem which I have clearly outlined. It is even more troublesome to me that Rio claims these players are skip-free, when obviously they are not. Buyer beware.
83 Rio Cali 256 with upgrade
I love my Rio Cali. I wear it to run, work out in the gym, travel, etc. I love the arm band because I like to have my hands free. On long runs even the lightest players can feel heavy, and this also allows me to wear the player when lifting weights... and I don't have to wear a stupid fanny pack! I have had mine over a year, and my husband would borrow it all the time for his workouts. So I bought him one. We both upgraded ours with a 256SD scandisk, and now it takes multiple workouts to get through the whole player. I haven't had any problems with the player, or downloading. I have dropped it and it works fine. The battery life suits me fine as it is only one little AAA battery. Most players take multiple batteries, so this is pretty cost effective. I suppose if you were really concerned you could buy rechargeable batteries and trade them out. Again, love my player!
84 2 rio calis 128 /both junk
5 stars from anyone with 1 to 2 weeks use. Check anyone that had one over 3 to 6 months!
BAD NEWS
85 2 rio calis 128 /both junk
I bought two of these around Christmas '03. In May '04 both had problems and I started e-mailing there customer support.
Each time I was told to upgrade the firmware. I would explain this was not working. Finally I called there phone (not a toll free number), and after 30 plus minutes of upgrading the firmware again I was told to send in the player and $59.95 for each player to get a refurbished model.
Let's see, I pay for the phone call, I pay for shipping, send them $120.00.
No Thanks STAY AWAY FROM RIO
86 Battery only lasts 5 hours!
I just bought mine this Saturday (today's Tuesday) and already it's used up 1 and half AAA batteries. I don't understand how people can agree it can last 18 hours. If anything each battery last only 3 hours for me. Otherwise, it's fine. Any thoughts? -mike
87 Great product for runners
Unlike some of the folks below, I've had great luck with my Cali 256, including many long distance runs and one marathon. The armband is fine by me - it can be tightend/loosened to get it just right. A couple of times I've had the unit appear to go dead, but simply taking out the batteries, wiping the contact, and reinserting it has solved the problem every time. I've not yet sprung for an additional memory card, mainly because I'm finding that 256mb is plenty even for long runs when you intermix mp3s and live radio. The software has also been fine for me. Nice little product.
88 Software needs a bit of work
I find that the player is great, but I haven't put it through the (literal) marathon of sweat that one of the other reviewers has. From what I've experienced, the sound is very clear and the buttons easy to use by feel. The armband *is* a bit uncomfortable; there HAS to be a better way to keep the player on securely!
I'm a bit unhappy about the software though. When it rips CDs, it's very slow to rip and encode. The worst part is that it names the file with only the name of the song. That means that it experiences problems with the song "Loser" by both Beck & 3 Doors Down.
The software has a potentially nice feature, but one that backfires: to let you rip a whole CD collection, it will eject the CD at the end, and automatically start ripping a new one. However, if you let the ejected CD stay out for too long, the CD door closes and...it starts ripping the same CD again, and getting "File Exists" errors. Once it's done, the cycle begins again. So, in order to rip a CD collection, you really need to sit in front of the computer the whole time :(
89 The perfect player for runners
I settled on the Rio Cali 256 Mb player while looking for a suitable replacement for my dearly departed Intel Pocket Concert, which I'd had for three years.
Although hard-drive players like Apple's iPod are all the rage these days, I knew I wanted a flash memory player that wouldn't skip while running and doing other activities. My old player's 128 megabytes of storage was big enough for most workouts, the cost of flash memory has come enough in recent years that it made sense to go for the 256 megabytes offered by the Rio Cali.
Another big plus is the Rio Cali's form factor. This is more than just vanity or finding a device that looks cool hanging from your waistband. I had loved the Intel player so much because it felt good and solid in my hand, with an intuitive and simple button layout, and a decent-sized screen that I didn't have to squit at. The Rio Cali meets all these criteria, yet is even lighter.
A nice surprise was discovering that the device's software interface is great. After turning it on, the center of the display shows the track, artist, and album, all at the same time, without scrolling across the screen like smaller players. The top has icons to show volume level, whether shuffle/repeat are on, and battery life. The bottom can be toggled to show time/date, equilizer setting, track elapsed time/track number, or track time remaining/track number.
The red miniature joystick feels good under a fingertip and is easy to manipulate. It controls play/pause, stop, and forward/back. In addition, there is a main menu button that brings up the following options: play music, tuner, stopwatch, settings. The equalizer has several presettings but you can also customize it to your tastes.
The Rio Music Manager is okay, nothing special but with no major flaws apparent to me at this point. You can search for music by artist, song, genre, and albums. Playlist creation is
straightfoward.
The included earbuds of course don't sound as good as even a $20 set of headphones purchased seperately. However, they have a big plus, which is that they are held in place by a soft rubber loop that fits snugly over the ear. I have had problems with earbuds falling out, and larger headphones squeezing my ears after too long. These seem to hit a sweet spot that holds them in place while maintaining comfort. Oh yeah, there is a durable plastic holder with a firmly attached metal clip for hanging the player on your belt or on the included armband.
If there is one drawback to the player, it is that there seems to be a high-pitched whine during playback. I didn't even know it was there for the first few days -- full-bodied rock music or a modest level of external background noise is enough to drown it out. However, it became noticeable when I listened to a softer song in a quiet room. Since I am using this almost entirely for workouts and outdoor runs, it doesn't bother me.
To sum up, the Rio Cali 256 Mb is a high-capacity flash player that is compact and light, yet solid, and boasting a great feature set that seems tailored to an active lifestyle. I highly recommend this player and know that I will be looking at the Rio Karma 20 Gb hard-drive player as well.
90 Great Workout Player
I've been using a Rio Cali for about a week, and I'm very pleased with it. It's got no moving parts, which makes it ideal for workouts, running and hiking. As I discovered, iPods skip during physical activity, despite what Apple claims in its advertising.
I'm storing music in WMA format on the Cali. at 64 kps, I can get about eight hours on the 256 MB unit. The music on my PC is sampled at 128 kps, so I use Riorad Explorer software from Red Chair software as my download manager. It can be set to transcode from 128 kps to 64 kps as it transfers, without changing the original on my PC. It also makes it easy to set up playlists in the Cali, a definite plus with that much music.
I've read some criticisms about the earbuds provided with the Cali. I personally like them. I think it all depends on whether one prefers earbuds or earphones. What I like about the Cali's earbuds is that they go ober and around the ear, so there's no problem with earbuds falling out as one in running.
The Cali has an expansion slot for up to 256 MB more storage. My original thought was to record music sets on memory cards and swap them as needed. While that's certainly doable, its a pain. To get to the memory slot, one has to remove the battery cover and batteries. Fortunately, 256 MB holds a lot of music, and one can simply add a card to expand total memory to 512 MB.
All in all a great player. If the memory slot had been more convenient, I would have given it a 5-star rating.
91 NOT FOR REAL RUNNERS
I have gone through two Rio's (only because they were covered under extended warranties)... The first one went dead on me during a hot summer run, the second would not turn on at Mile 20 in the NY Marathon!!! I assume the sweat disabled the player, but what a bummer... Also, the arm band is terrible for distance running - it is too flimsy, and the metal from the player cuts into your arm.
I can't believe they call it a "Sports" MP3.
92 Rio Cali for the gym?
Very durable...i work out consistently with this player and its so small and light weight its easier to grab it in the palm of my hand on the treadmill rather than use the wrist band it comes with. I heard the arm band was usefull but i just think it gets in the way when working out. Lifting weights i just put it in my pocket and it doesn't bother me at all. It looks cool and i've never had problem with the file transfers. The software is easy to install and easy to use. The only problem is the headphones, they are flimsy but you can avoid this buy buying $15 philips headphones that are sporty and wrap around your ears better because its bendable plastic. The stock ones tend to move and adust which gets really annoying. Other than that, its awesome! I just got to buy another 512 stick of memory for the expansion slot which some mp3 players dont even come with.
93 What Customer Service??
I must echo the concern about the lack of customer service provided by this company. The player slipped from my wife's armband causing the Play button malfunction. I contacted the customer service department (a long distance call I might add) and tangled for quite some time. I purchased the player 60 days ago (well within the 90 day warranty period) - but since it was manufactured last year, they told me the warranty had expired. They said something about the length of time Target held the product in it's store, and before you know it, I was debating the finer points of inventory management!! They finally cut me the break of a lifetime and agreed to a one time policy waiver if I faxed them proof of purchase. Obtaining the information from Target's customer service was a snap! However, getting the fax to transmit was another nightmare. They use some funky, out-dated fax machine. I am now waiting to find out what sort of hoops I must jump through next to get this issue resolved. // Generally speaking the player worked well and sounded great, but if you have a problem, be prepared to spend twice what you invested to get the matter resolved!! // If I actually get a replacement unit, I'll request my rating to be moved up from 1 star to 2!
94 I'm having the same problem
I seem to be having the same problem that some of the other reviewers have written about. It will stop in the middle of a song and has to be started all over again. Sometimes it stops in the middle of powering up and won't re-start at all, but I can fix this problem by removing the battery and the SD card, and then re-inserting the battery and starting it again. Then the problem only occurs every now and then, not very often, but I wish I could use the card to hold my extra songs. Sorry! :-(
95 Customer Support is Terrible - I do NOT recommend RIO
Bought a unit - was generally happy with it. Bought one for my wife as well. One day at the gym, she and I are talking about the units and she says to me she likes it but doesn't like that it falls off the clip all the time. I indicate that mine does not. We compare units, and hers is missing a button that holds the clip. I figure RIO will honor our purchase and the fact that the unit shipped that way to give us a new clip. My wife is sure that it was always broken. Contact RIO by email. They claim we are out of warranty (by a whopping 30 days) and will not send us a proper unit. I explain that it was purchased like that and give details to the story. They still say no. I am surprised, because it is such an easy thing to fix. Would you really want to spend a couple of hundred on something like this when they wouldn't even take the time to replace a defective plastic holder? They wanted me to send them $20 plus shipping for a new holder. I think their customer service is terrible. I recommend going with a better, more customer focused company.
96 Received 2 broken players and no rebate
Ordered one, it was broken, exchanged it for a new one, it broke a couple of months later. And Rio "never received our rebate form", so we didn't get the rebate, either!
97 A few models later... and it will be great
The Rio sounded like an amazing deal and in general I am pleased but am disapointed with the red mouse button that no longer works 100% (it won't play on command) and the battery life that was advertised is not what I am getting. It does store the amount of music it claimed to which is great. I love that it is small, does not skip and comes with an arm-band. It is to bad the radio reception on these comes in poorly because I have to wear a sony radio and the rio mp3 for optimal options. I think if I had to do it over again I would have waited for a few models down the line till the manufaturer works out the kinks.
98 YOU'D BETTER READ THIS BEFORE YOU DECIDE
Ipod shmipod. I think I will die with my Rio Cali on... or at least be buried with it. Music has never sounded so energetic and tangible until now. The acoustics are incredible. I feel like I'm in a recording studio at times. The low's, mid's and high's are crisp despite it's miniature size, and I get 512 mb of music with the memory expansion card, which is like 240 songs in wma format(can upgrade to 768 mb with a 512 mb card). On my old mp3/cd player, I found myself replacing the batteries every four hours or so. With the Rio I am spoiled with at least 12 hours of constant play and 16 hours at a low volume. As a matter of fact, I'm listening to a few of my favorite soundtracks right now. And did I mention the surprisingly powerful bass response? The armband is a nice addition, too. However, it would have been better if the armband was roomier, and not so scratchy when I'm moving around a lot or working out. But whatever, guess I can't have it all. Well... get one and stop reading reviews.
99 Annoying - won't stop shutting off in the middle of songs
I purchased the Rio Cali 256 about 6 months ago. Occasionally it would experience the annoying behavior of shutting off in the middle of a song, but it only occurred infrequently so I let it go. Now the problem has become more persistent. For example, on a recent 45-minute jog it shut down eleven times and had to be restarted each time. I've tried to correlate it with warm weather vs. cold weather, jogging vs. sitting at my desk, fresh battery vs. old battery, waiting a couple minutes before playing vs. playing right away, SD card inserted vs. not inserted. I even tried loading it with some classical music (Mussorgsky), but the problem still occurs. I've also downloaded the most recent firmware (version 112), which only made the problem worse. To anybody looking, I'd recommend purchasing a different device.
100 9/7/2004 addendum: decent player with concerns
I was looking for a lightweight music player to use while lifting weights and other physical activities. The "Rio Cali 256 MB Sport MP3 Player" does a good job.
Transferring MP3 files and respective playlists to it is fairly simple but initially can be mildly confusing. The armband is soft and comfortable, the player has easy access buttons, and the overall size is small for everything it can do. I've been using it over 2 months now, 4 times a week for roughly 2 hours a day, and have had to replace the battery each month. The earphones fit nicely and don't get in the way unless you wear spectacles. Although I rarely use the radio tuner, it works well but presetting the stations is slightly difficult.
I thought the price is steep, about as much as a PlayStation 2, but so far I am pleased with the purchase. A longer armband and an optional clip for the dangling cord from the player to the earphones would have been nice.
Thank you.
September 7, 2004 addendum:
An "upgrader" message occurred about 4 months after purchase, excellent timing with the end of the warranty since it is useless while in this state. I dropped it but the earphone cord caught it a foot from the ground, it popped off the cord then hit the ground. Not too hard of an impact but the whiplash might have jarred something. After some research, I found out taking the case apart (only one critical screw located behind the sticker under battery casement to pop it apart) and removing the memory board then reattaching it fixed the problem. The board did not appear loose or removed from the processor board. What the player advertises, I feel it shouldn't have had that problem.
I would change the star rating to 3 after this incident. Please search the internet for information regarding this issue with keywords "rio" and "upgrader".
