What is this?
iRiver's first micro hard drive MP3 player sports 260k color 1.5" LCD; equips with a 5GB Seagate; conforms to MS' PlaysForSure music subscription specs; and holds tons of photos. Plus, you get to pick from four different colors.
iRiver H10 5GB ReviewFebruary 11th, 2005
Pros: Color screen; text and photo viewer; variable recording quality; durable; removable long-lasting battery; well designed case; future line-in recording.
Cons: Cheap earbuds; confusing interface; no connection for TV; no data storage; Windows XP exclusive.
Verdict: The iRiver H10 is makes for a well rounded MP3 player that is sure to last through the unintentional abuse we give all handheld electronics.
iRiver really worked hard when developing the H10, and it shows. With a 260k color display for photos, five gigabyte hard drive, FM recorder and the ability to play subscription music, the H10 outperforms every MP3 player in its class. The only things missing are a data partition and TV out.
Package Content - iRiver H10 5GB Player Lounge Gray
(Also available in Remix Blue, Trance Red & Triple Titanium)
- Instruction Manual / Warranty Card / Quick Start Guide
- Earphones
- AC Adaptor
- Carrying Case
- Installation CD
- USB cable
Sharp Looks At 4.75" tall, the iRiver H10 is one of the larger MP3 players on the market to use a 1" hard drive, but the slim form factor allows the player to slip into your pocket easier than any other competing player. The layout of the controls is very minimalist, with only two buttons and the vertical touchpad on the front. The arrangement of the front controls vaguely represents a tie and collar underneath the head of the 1.5" color LCD. The color scheme for the case is flowing and accented by the iRiver logo with no tacky implementations. The image on the right shows how Creative Zen Micro stacks up against the iRiver H10.
On the top of the player lie the hold switch, headphone jack, and remote port, while a proprietary USB jack provides data transfer and power on the bottom. The rest of the controls are concealed (almost too well) on the sides of the unit, with the power button and microphone on the left and the play / skip buttons on the right. On the backside of the player is the matching color battery, securely latched and not hidden under any compartment that could break off. The iRiver H10 also felt quite sturdy, with no parts of the case bending in when subjected to pressure.
Accessories, To Come Later iRiver chose to include a pair of Sennheiser MX400 earbuds with the H10. Although Sennheiser is a respectable brand in home audio, we strongly urge you to pick up a real pair of headphones as a replacement. While the earbuds are comfortable and stay in place, they deliver a painful amount of treble with almost no bass. However, we can easily forgive them for this since they included the best stock carrying case we've ever used. Flexible like the popular iSkin eVo protectors for iPod, the case fits snugly on the iRiver H10 with openings for the screen, touchpad, USB jack and top. A solid plastic belt clip attaches to the reinforced back that won't fall off while jogging. It's ugly, but it protects your investment well.
Also announced were three optional accessories for the iRiver H10. Although not available for shipping quite yet, word on the street says they should be out later this month or in March. First off is an inline remote control that has its own port next to the headphone jack similar to those found on Sony players. No LCD will be on the remote, just controls. Second is a cradle for the iRiver H10 that can charge either the player or a second battery (also to be available shortly), and also provides line-out to your stereo system and a line-in jack for recording. Line-in recording will only be available if you have the cradle, but since Line-In isn't even a feature stated on the box, it makes for a nice bonus feature.
Stay in Sync One of the most hyped features of the iRiver H10 in the reviews that have floated around the Web is the support for all three major operating systems. Unfortunately that is not the case. What these websites neglected to mention is that they were reviewing the international versions of the H10 that use a UMS transfer protocol. The models that are being sold in the US use Microsoft's MTP protocol, or PlaysForSure. This means the only way you can transfer media is on Windows XP, with Windows Media Player 10 that was included on the installation CD for those who don't already have it.
Also, the iRiver H10 does not have a separate data partition, so using the player as a USB Mass Storage Device is not possible. This feature may be added in a later firmware upgrade. While the loss of cross-platform compatibility and data storage is a setback, the MTP protocol means that the US version can playback songs downloaded from subscription services like Napster To Go, something the international models cannot access.
Transfer times for the iRiver H10 were decent, taking 7:58 to transfer 121 songs totaling 886MB via Windows Media Player, which is about 14.84Mbps. Testing the large file transfer times was a bit more difficult. Because the player does not have a dedicated data partition, we tried renaming our large movie file to an MP3 file, although it was too large for the H10 to handle despite its 3.6GB size being well within the 5GB capacity. So instead we uploaded our largest MP3 to the player via drag and drop and timed it. It transferred all 66.7MB in 33 seconds, about 16.18Mbps.
Usability, in Color While the menus show off the LCD's capability in a vibrant array of colors, the intuitiveness of the interface left us yearning for more. Almost all options must be accessed by going to the root menu, then going through the proper settings menus. No shortcut menus were in place, and the menu options can't be customized. Some features like rating songs and setting the equalizer preset must be accessed by the same button in the same menu, with no text captions to guide you, so be sure to read the manual.
The iRiver H10 was built for multitasking. Text documents and photos can be viewed on the screen while listening to music or the radio. Unfortunately you cannot view album covers that go with your songs, but iRiver dropped a hint that this may be added in a later update. When listening to the FM radio and your favorite song starts playing, you can quickly record it without much latency to start recording, and the quality of the individual recordings can also be set to best suit your needs, with options for 32, 64, and 128kbps MP3. Voice recording also has three levels of quality, and is very handy for taking quick notes when a pen isn't handy. As with other MP3 players, don't expect to use it for recording across a room, it isn't that sensitive.
Photos Anyone?
The built in photo viewer displaying up to 260k colors is about the same quality as you would expect from a picture-enabled cell phone. The smaller the image, the better the quality since the iRiver H10 doesn't have to compress as much. Smaller photos will also load much faster. The iRiver only supports JPEG, so any GIFs will have to be converted before syncing with the player. Also, the H10 does not support Progressive JPEGs either. Currently there is no way to view your photos on a TV, so make sure a Windows XP computer is around before showing your albums to someone with bad eyesight. If the iRiver H10 could support USB OTG to off load images from digital cameras, that would be a big plus. Unfortunately, it's still on our wish list.
iRiver claims that the H10 will last up to 12 hours, and even provided the settings at which they got the results: 128kbps, LCD off, 20 volume (out of 40). We gave the H10 a more reasonable test with 160kbps songs, moderate LCD usage with backlight timing of 5 seconds, and a volume level of 25 for our hearing loss. At these settings, the iRiver H10 lasted just under 10 hours, which is very nice.
Get to the Point Already… All in all, the iRiver H10 is makes for a well rounded MP3 player that is sure to last through the unintentional abuse we give all handheld electronics. The color screen is vibrant, the audio quality is great, and the battery lasts. About the only things lacking are the interface and data partition. For $279, the iRiver H10 is a bargain.
- R. Scott Clark, Consumer Technology Editor
Where to buy iRiver H10 5GB?
User Review(s)
"DOES MORE THAN THE REST..." I did my online research before buying this little gem of an MP3 player. A friend of mine lent me her 20 Gig iPOD and I didn't really find anything special about it, especially among the current crop of available MP3 players. I thought the circular interface was OK but it still took some getting used to. But this MP3 player from iRiver is great!
Pros:
(1) The H-10's 5 Gig. HD is 1 more Gig than the 4 Gig. iPOD Mini. Extra song capacity for essentially the same form factor. Plus, if you convert all your MP3's to WMA format, you can almost double the number of songs you can pack into the H-10's hard drive.
(2) The H-10 has a bright, vibrant color screen that allows you to see pictures you've transferred to it. iPOD's has no color unless you pay for the pricey iPOD Photo. I just wish the screen was a tad larger for viewing photos, but its size is satisfactory for viewing photos with not much small details.
(3) The H-10 has a swappable battery. When the iPOD's rechargeable internal battery gives up, you'll have to send it to Apple to get a new battery. Not so with the H-10. You'll be able to buy aftermarket batteries that will keep your H-10 going for years till its Seagate hard drive decides to give up.
(4) The H-10 has an FM radio. Get tired of your 1000+ songs? You can still listen to FM music.
(5) The H-10 has SRS WOW sound enhancement. Activate it and, in a word, WOW!
(6) The H-10 has an easy to use interface. You wanna go up on the menu? You move your thumb up, then press. Wanna go down? You move it down and press. Then you press the "select" button on the upper right. To back out, you press the "back" button on the upper left. Hmm... JUST LIKE NAVIGATING WINDOWS INTERNET EXPLORER! To me, iPOD's was a little annoying in that it forced you to go around and round, clockwise and counterclockwise. Personal preference, I guess... but to me iRIVER's H-10 seemed more intuitive.
(7) The H-10, while not imbued with the distinctive soft color palette of the iPOD Mini's, has it's own luscious set of colors as well: RED, BLUE, SILVER, and DARK GRAY. Doesn't matter anyway, the H-10 comes with an excellent rubber skin protective case (which is similar to an aftermarket skin available for the iPODS). But iRIVER graciously INCLUDES the case with the H-10. It's the best STOCK case I've ever seen! You'll want to use it always.
(8) The H-10 has a decent battery for long play length. I usually get 10-11 hours of play time on mine.
(9) The H-10 can, in a pinch, become a dictaphone. Need to record a class lecture or a business meeting? Press the right buttons and you can record several hours worth.
(10) Finally, the H-10 can show TEXT files. Need to have access to a list of things to buy? A good recipe? A memo? Transfer it to the H-10 for access without having to bring your Palm Pilot or Pocket PC! Very cool feature.
CONS:
(1) Slightly buggy initial 1.0 Firmware but a very easy downloadable flash upgrade to version 2.01 gets rid of the problems. Just be sure to go to "Settings", then "Extra", then "Database Refresh" to re-order your music according to track number rather than alphabetical.
(2) The included Sennheiser earbuds sound "tinny", not that much bass. But when you hook up some good BOSE or higher-end SONY earbuds, the sonic quality is simply amazing! Do yourself a favor and dump the Sennheisers.
(3) Since the screen is small to begin with, the H-10 doesn't have a thumbnail view for searching through your pictures. You'd better have your pictures text-labelled correctly on your PC before you transfer them to the H-10 or you'll be endlessly scrolling and having to view PIC1, PIC2, PIC3, etc...
GREAT JOB iRIVER! Thanks! I'm enjoying my H-10 immensely! Best combo: hook up your H-10 to a Logitech Z3 stereo speaker setup or a Klipsch PC stereo Speaker setup for maximum bump!
I highly recommend this very cool gadget. So easy to use, my 66 year old mom snagged it from me for a few days to "check it out". :) I guess I'll be getting her a nice red one for Mother's Day so she won't snag mine again in the future.
From GENE S., May 04, 2005
"DOES MORE THAN THE REST..." I did my online research before buying this little gem of an MP3 player. A friend of mine lent me her 20 Gig iPOD and it was OK. The circular interface was OK but it still took some getting used to. But this MP3 player from iRiver is great!
Pros:
(1) The H-10's 5 Gig. HD is 1 more Gig than the 4 Gig. iPOD Mini. Extra song capicity for essentially the same form factor.
(2) The H-10 has a vibrant and bright color screen that allows you to see pictures you've transferred to it. iPOD's has no color unless you pay for the pricey iPOD Photo.
(3) The H-10 has a swappable battery. When the iPOD's rechargeable internal battery gives up, you'll have to send it to Apple to get a new battery. Not so with the H-10.
(4) The H-10 has an FM radio. Get tired of your 1000+ songs? You can still listen to FM music.
(5) The H-10 has SRS WOW sound enhancement. Activate it and, in a word, WOW!
(6) The H-10 has an easy to use interface. You wanna go up on the menu? You move your thumb up, then press. Wanna go down? You move it down and press. Then you press the "select" button on the upper right. To back out, you press the "back" button on the upper left. Hmm... JUST LIKE NAVIGATING WINDOWS INTERNET EXPLORER! To me, iPOD's was a little annoying in that it forced you to go around and round, clockwise and counterclockwise. Personal preference, I guess... but to me iRIVER's H-10 seemed more intuitive.
(7) The H-10, while not imbued with the distinctive soft color palette of the iPOD Mini's, has it's own luscious set of colors as well: RED, BLUE, GRAY, and BLACK. Doesn't matter anyway, the H-10 comes with an excellent rubber skin protective case (which is similar to an aftermarket skin available for the iPODS). It's the best STOCK case I've ever seen! You'll want to use it always.
(8) The H-10 has a decent battery for long play length. I usually get 10-11 hours of play time on mine.
(9) The H-10 can, in a pinch, become a dictaphone. Need to record a class lecture or a business meeting? Press the right buttons and you can record several hours worth.
(10) Finally, the H-10 can show TEXT files. Need to have access to a list of things to buy? A good recipe? A memo? Transfer it to the H-10 for access without having to bring your Palm Pilot or Pocket PC! Very cool feature.
CONS:
(1) Slightly buggy initial 1.0 Firmware but a very easy downloadable flash upgrade to version 2.01 gets rid of the problems. Just be sure to go to "Settings", then "Extra", then "Database Refresh" to re-order your music according to track number rather than alphabetical.
(2) The included Sennheiser earbuds sound "tinny", not that much base. But when you hook up some good BOSE or higher-end SONY earbuds, the sonic quality is simply amazing! Do yourself a favor and dump the Sennheisers.
(3) Since the screen is small to begin with, the H-10 doesn't have a thumbnail view for searching through your pictures. You'd better have your pics' text labelled correctly on your PC before you transfer them to the H-10 or you'll be endlessly scrolling and having to view PIC1, PIC2, PIC3, etc...
GREAT JOB iRIVER! Thanks! I'm enjoying my H-10 immensely! Best combo: hook up your H-10 to a Logitech Z3 stereo speaker setup or a Klipsch PC stereo Speaker setup for maximum bump! From GENE, May 04, 2005
"Solid to EXCELLENT with firmware v.2.0" I travel for business and had used my PDA for music and workouts, but I wanted more music variety. I looked at Zen Micro but its touchpad was unstable, as reviews indicated. Ipod is, well, Ipod.
H10, with the Firmware upgrade, works great. The sound is impressive, as is the color screen, it's light and FM sound is much better than hoped for. Record feature will be handy for business.
Music Match, which came with my dell laptop, will also sync the H10, so you aren't stuck with Media Player 10. Buy one. You'll be happy. Sony's earbuds (ex51sl $40) tangle, but work great with it. From MKR, April 04, 2005
"Feature filled and priced right" positive: sound quality,looks, fm, removeable battery, photo viewing, text viewing, recording
negatives: needs firmware upgrade to be used as ums.
I was drawn to the good looks and fell for an h10. Its a fun player and the sound quality is really excellent. You may want to try nice earphones before making a judgement on that. I liked the removeable battery design too. For what you get, and if you have windows xp and especially if you plan on trying napster to go, this is the player. They really did a good job of integration.Recommend. I give the h10 a 9.2 out of 10
From Jim Stevens, February 11, 2005
We're currently upgrading our user review system; so we won't be accepting new reviews for now. H10 5GB Specs
Extras Lost a USB cable? Get a replacement USB cable.
Running out of USB ports? Get an extra USB hub.
You may need a new USB card to achieve Hi-Speed USB speeds.
Confirm with our USB 2.0 FAQ if you have Hi-Speed USB on your PC.
Sharp Looks
On the top of the player lie the hold switch, headphone jack, and remote port, while a proprietary USB jack provides data transfer and power on the bottom. The rest of the controls are concealed (almost too well) on the sides of the unit, with the power button and microphone on the left and the play / skip buttons on the right. On the backside of the player is the matching color battery, securely latched and not hidden under any compartment that could break off. The iRiver H10 also felt quite sturdy, with no parts of the case bending in when subjected to pressure.
iRiver chose to include a pair of Sennheiser MX400 earbuds with the H10. Although Sennheiser is a respectable brand in home audio, we strongly urge you to pick up a real pair of headphones as a replacement. While the earbuds are comfortable and stay in place, they deliver a painful amount of treble with almost no bass. However, we can easily forgive them for this since they included the best stock carrying case we've ever used. Flexible like the popular iSkin eVo protectors for iPod, the case fits snugly on the iRiver H10 with openings for the screen, touchpad, USB jack and top. A solid plastic belt clip attaches to the reinforced back that won't fall off while jogging. It's ugly, but it protects your investment well.
One of the most hyped features of the iRiver H10 in the reviews that have floated around the Web is the support for all three major operating systems. Unfortunately that is not the case. What these websites neglected to mention is that they were reviewing the international versions of the H10 that use a UMS transfer protocol. The models that are being sold in the US use Microsoft's MTP protocol, or PlaysForSure. This means the only way you can transfer media is on Windows XP, with Windows Media Player 10 that was included on the installation CD for those who don't already have it.
Usability, in Color
iRiver claims that the H10 will last up to 12 hours, and even provided the settings at which they got the results: 128kbps, LCD off, 20 volume (out of 40). We gave the H10 a more reasonable test with 160kbps songs, moderate LCD usage with backlight timing of 5 seconds, and a volume level of 25 for our hearing loss. At these settings, the iRiver H10 lasted just under 10 hours, which is very nice.
