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Cowon S9 Review

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Keebler
01/19/09

In reply to Cowon S9 Review

Recording audio with the integrated microphone worked fine-functional but not stellar-which is to be expected: The mic is but a tiny hole in the case.

Sorry to nit pick here, because this is a good, thorough review, but having just a tiny hole in the case actually shouldn't affect the sound quality at all. If designed correctly, a tiny hole with the mic mounted closely and properly gasketted will provide the best performance.

The things to be more concerned with are the quality of the mic, routing of the cabling and the A/D converters/gain settings (unless of course it uses a digital mic).
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Mark Wilson
01/19/09

@Keebler: Interesting. An earnest question for you then—why aren't studio mics just little sheets of plastic with a single hole in them?
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fastm3driver
01/19/09

In reply to Cowon S9 Review
OK, ignore that accidental post.

I don't why they would not use a 120GB HD in this. That would be the killer app. The Touch interface is great but 32GB is not enough memory for me and it is way expensive. The interface begs for even more space for video too.

The Archos is way too big and not pocketable. Zune here is your chance.
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Kaiser-Machead
01/19/09

@fastm3driver: The most likely reason is battery life. Even though modern 1.8's are light on the battery sippage, they're not as good as media that lacks moving parts.
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Keith Peiris
01/19/09

In reply to Cowon S9 Review
Ummmn, so you reviewed a PMP and didn't talk about sound quality comparisons to the iTouch?????
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Mark Wilson
01/19/09

@Keith Peiris: There's no discernible difference to my ears. Remember, we're talking about compressed music here.
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General Halfshaftery
01/19/09

In reply to Cowon S9 Review
Mr. Wilson, did i just see "iTouch" in your review?

I'm afraid i'm going to have to send you to detention!
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Mark Wilson
01/19/09

@General Halfshaftery: It was Wilson Rothman's fault! Really!!
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Wilson Rothman
01/19/09

@General Halfshaftery: Yep, it's true. While editing this story, I used a term that has generally been accepted as a nice colloquial abbreviation, like Blam's "AirBook" and the universally approved "Wiimote." The greatest thing about our language, Gen. H, is that it's constantly in flux, and not even the powers at Apple can stop it!
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Kaiser-Machead
01/19/09

@General Halfshaftery: You better be careful. Milson and Wothman can be vengeful.
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RustyO918
01/19/09

In reply to Cowon S9 Review
Alternative to the iPod Touch??? I thought everyone knew about Archos.

[store.archos.com]
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ZLevee
01/19/09

@RustyO918: Giz isn't a fan [i.gizmodo.com] but if you have a long commute it's worth it if you buy the optional DVR station
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TechFanErik
01/19/09

@RustyO918:

Wow those look clunky.

Does it come with 15,000 applications?
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ZLevee
01/19/09

@TechFanErik: actually, yes. But there's like another 15,000 applications that they charge you individually for.
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ZLevee
01/19/09

In reply to Cowon S9 Review
How about the Creative Zen X-Fi 32GB as an ipod alternative? It's not a touchscreen but big deal.
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Kaiser-Machead
01/19/09

In reply to Cowon S9 Review
This looks like lots of potential that wasn't given time to bake thoroughly. Unless you really hate iTunes, I don't see much reason to go for this over a touch.

As for video resolution, the site's tech specs sheet says recommended video res is 480x272. That's sort of disappointing, as the touch supports higher resolution, which is nice for video out, and works well for those who want higher res videos for viewing on their computer at home, negating the need for duplicate files. The claim to 11 hours of playback for video is impressive though.

The audio codec support specs are interesting too:

File format:

MP3/2/1, WMA, FLAC, OGG, WAV, APE

Audio codec:

MP3 : MPEG 1/2/2.5 Layer 3, ~320Kbps, ~48KHz, Mono/Stereo

WMA : ~320Kbps, ~48KHz, Mono/Stereo

OGG : ~Q10, ~44.1KHz, Mono/Stereo

FLAC : Compression Level 0 ~ 8, ~44.1KHz, Mono/Stereo

WAV : ~48KHz, 16bit, Mono/Stereo

APE : Fast, Normal, High 16Bit, Version 3.97~3.99

When looking at that, it sure looks like a very solid device for people who don't have a lick of AAC files. The UI niggles are disappointing though.
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switchblade saints
01/19/09

@Kaiser-Machead: you dont need a zune to use the zune software. you can even get the zune pass.
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Kaiser-Machead
01/19/09

@switchblade saints: Gah? I wasn't talkin' about the Zune :S
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alpinerover
01/19/09

@Kaiser-Machead: And even if you hate iTunes, you can use Songbird, which is iPod compatible. Unfortunately not with the touch or iphone though...
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Kaiser-Machead
01/19/09

@alpinerover: So long as it doesn't have UMS support, I imagine not.
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wizardofpants
01/19/09

In reply to Cowon S9 Review
I've had an iTouch for just over a year now. I love it and would give my life defending its honor. That said; how about some worthwhile competition? It's frustrating to know that only 1 company has been able to come up with a smooth and good looking UI. It's like the other companies aren't even trying anymore. Something that would be cool is a PMP where you can customize the organization. Also, why bother with multiple formats? I don't care that all my files have to be 1 format and 1 res to play on my PMP; it makes life simple. Convert all that crap into 1 good file type, delete the rest. Either that or load a PMP with VLC's software. The only thing I liked about the S9 over iPod is the radio dial. That was pretty sweet.

/my2cents
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Kaiser-Machead
01/19/09

@wizardofpants: Having a broader range of codec support is always a good thing since it caters to a broader crowd, but for the most part, I agree. Having my files be one format works out a great deal better, because if ever I decide to get a new piece of hardware for playback, I don't have to worry about how it will react to my hodgepodge collection. Its behavior will be universal. Of course, my collection is in two formats, mp3 and AAC. However, these two will not lose support in the foreseeable future.
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bitchincamaro
01/19/09

@wizardofpants:

"I've had an iTouch for just over a year now. I love it and would give my life defending its honor".

Why not let Steve Jobs continue that effort?
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BadBoyNDSU
01/19/09

In reply to Cowon S9 Review
All my downloaded movies are mkv. If it can't play mkv's, I'm not interested.
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OMG! Chariot!
01/19/09

@BadBoyNDSU: Now why would yo need HD quality for a screen that small?
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ZLevee
01/19/09

@Chariot: maybe it's not for the quality, but to avoid the time-consuming recoding of the moveis for transfer.
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robinandtami
01/19/09

@BadBoyNDSU: Nobody cares if you have a device to watch your pirated media on.
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Fantasysage
01/19/09

@Zlevee: MKV2VOB man, remuxes mkv's to avi's in like 2 minutes.
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dirtybacon
01/19/09

@Fantasysage: I haven't had ANY luck with that program... I know this isn't the place for a discussion, but seriously, I have tried converting 4 or 5 different series and it didn't work...
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Lite: hates Illinois Nazis
01/19/09

In reply to Cowon S9 Review
For $240 you might as well spend the extra $60 and buy yourself the iPhone 3G.
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Evan, How Dare you Sir!
01/19/09

@Lite: Picked the wrong week to stop sniffing glue.: but not everyone can afford the phone's plan.
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Lite: hates Illinois Nazis
01/19/09

@evangelistc01: If your finances are generally that tight, then you probably shouldn't be worrying about whether or not you have a portable touchscreen video/audio player.
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rcast1986
01/19/09

@Lite: Picked the wrong week to stop sniffing glue.: That tight!? How does 80 dollars a month for 400 minutes, data, and 1000 texts (960 a year!) per phone indicate a person's finances are tight? Besides, you act like if you have money it's your civil duty and obligation to spend it. How do you suppose people that have money continue to stay wealthy? By blowing it all on things they don't necessarily want or need?

And what about people that don't want or need the phone? What about people that just want a music player for the gym, the car and/or on their home sound system and are perfectly fine with the phone they have? What about those who are locked into a contract with another carrier? Those who hate AT&T or don't have good ATT coverage in their area?

There are literally dozens of reasons why a person wouldn't want or need an iPhone instead of a touch. Finances aren't the only reason. Maybe you should consider the bigger picture before deciding what does and doesn't constitute "tight" finances and the decisions people make. By your logic, no one should have a touch and everyone should just get the phone.
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beardedkid
01/19/09

@rcast1986: I was going to shove that guys comment in that guys face but you beat me too it and did a much better job. Kudos.
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Lite: hates Illinois Nazis
01/19/09

@rcast1986: Let's face it, there are plenty of options that are far cheaper when it comes to wanting to listen to music. Even if you want to watch video. So if you were so hugely concerned with cash that would be the wiser route.

Buying an iPod touch is basically buying a smaller version of an iPhone w/out the phone functionality. Unless you HAVE to have a touch screen interface, mp3 player, video player, web browser, et al in one you're paying extra for a few niceties that don't really scale well w/ the price difference.

I was also mistakenly thinking that the iTouch was more expensive still than it currently is. A 16 gig version being only $60 more and not requiring a phone contract/etc. But there really are not literally dozens of reasons to buy an iTouch over an iPhone when you could save yourself $100 w/ a Nano still get video playback, and have the same 16 gig of storage.

Again, unless you somehow "needed" the wifi/web browsing bit it's a nice "extra" and if your money is tight there are still far cheaper alternatives.
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Lite: hates Illinois Nazis
01/19/09

@beardedkid: Oooh! Ooh! Shove the comment in my face! In my face man! Yeah!

Seriously? Grow up.
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