Have we finally found an iPod killer? CNET reviews iRiver’s 20GB iHP-120 MP3 player, declaring it a “true threat to the iPod.” The iHP-120 is almost exactly the same size as the iPod — the length and width are identical — but it is a miniscule two-hundredths of an inch thicker than the 40GB iPod. It also has an almost overwhelming array of features (many of which are missing from the iPod), like support for the open source Ogg Vorbis audio format, SRS surround sound, a line-in port for making voice memos or recording live concerts using an external microphone, USB 2.0 for file-transfer, digital and analog inputs and outputs, a remote control with an LCD (the first on a hard drive-based MP3 player), a built-in FM tuner, and you can even read text files stored on its hard drive. The only thing we’re not impressed with is the iHP-120’s design, which isn’t up to par with the iPod’s, or even that of the HDD100 from Philips.
