A closer look at the IRiver U10
There are now hundreds of MP3 devices out there, and the number of video and MP3 players is increasing. This little beauty caught us by surprise - not only is it tiny, it's also packed with a stack of features that make it a top buy...
This page take a deeper look
at why this is worth a look...
The 1Gig iRver U10
A look at the iRiver U10
This has the following impressive specs:
- Supports music, videos, photos, texts, games or flash animations
- Revolutionary direct click concept directly on the display and without knobs or buttons
- High-resolution display with 320x240 (QVGA)
- Outstanding features: supports MP3, WMA, ASF, OGG Q10, MPEG4 SP videos, JPG photos, texts, flash games
- Built-in FM-tuner including recording and alarm function
- Available in 1 GB and 2 GB versions
- Cool docking station with infrared remote control available optionally
| Availability:
The iRiver U10 became available in early 2006 in the UK. Here are the main online stores where you can get your hands on one:
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Mini Review
This is a nice piece of kit that supports music, videos, photos, games, FM radio and text on the move. It's a tiny and lightweight little box of tricks.
As well as playing back a range of different formats, the iRiver has a built-in mic for voice recording, and can play and record FM radio. Optionally, a docking station, pictured below, is available. The docking station adds stereo speakers, mini-USBand a line-in / line-out
Below is a picture of what you get if you order the iRiver U10, plus the docking station. The U10 box includes: manuals, earphones, CD, USB cable and pouch. The cradle kit comes with a docking station (with speakers) and a tiny remote control.
In summary, this is a pretty powerful box that's ideal for keeping you entertained while on the move. With only 1Gig on board, you don't get as much music or video as you would with an iPod or our favourite, the Creative Vision M, but then it's a lot cheaper, and importantly, a lot smaller. Sound and video is pretty impressive, and it's a well constructed unit. If you're looking for something smaller, and cheaper than the big boys, this is an impressive unit with extras not found elsewhere, such as a collection of Flash games. Also recommended for it's PC connectivity.
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Listen online now |
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FAQ
This section includes the answers to frequently-asked questions we've received...
| How do I copy music & video to the iRiver? |
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| Something different to listen to? |
Perhaps try a podcast... think of these as downloadable radio shows. You could do worse than give our podcast a try - FrequencyCast is a regular podcast that you can download to your device as an MP3 file. Each show looks at UK technology and information on digital TV and radio services. Check out the latest show at www.frequencycast.co.uk If you fancy listening to audiobooks, classic comedy or drama , try an audio book, comedy file or one of the other 18,000 audio files available from Audible.co.uk |
| Podcasts | Expand your listening pleasure on your U10 product by downloading podcasts onto your player. A podcast is an audio (and now video) file available for download and transfer to your device. They're often updated regularly and are a new type of broadcasting set to change what we listen to. You can subscribe to channels of interest and get updated recordings synced to your U10 on a range of subjects.
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| Headphones | So,
what are the headphones like? They're OK - nothing special, but pretty
well-made. After using ours for a few days, we swapped back to our
Sennheiser MX500 earbuds (the inline volume control makes the difference).
The freebies with the U10 are perfectly fine, and a good comfy wear,
but our darker headphones with the volume control have meant that
the standard earbuds are back in the box.  Although
there's nothing wrong with the supplied headphones... if you're looking
to get more for your listening pleasure - consider getting some Sennheiser
headphones - either a set of top-quality earbuds, or if you're budget
can stretch to it - a set of noise-cancellers - especially recommended
for train or plane travellers! More on the Sennhesiers on our Accessories
page |
| Home Hi-fi? | If
you're looking to connect your U10 to your hi-fi to play back audio from your home hi-fi system, then note that the only audio output, is the headphone socket.  You'll need to connect from the 3.5mm headphone socket to two male phono plugs. This will let you to connect to your stereo's line level AUX input, although note that you will need to turn the headphone volume down to a low setting to avoid overloading the line-in.
You can find a suitable lead at AdvancedMP3players or Maplin (Part: L32BA) |
| In car? |
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| What about my old records? |
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| Accessories? | If
you're looking for accessories for your iRiver, such as spare headphones, the Cradle Kit or a case, try AdvancedMP3players.co.uk and Amazon.
There are also some excellent bargains to be had on ebay, including new clear cases - try a search on ebay.co.uk. |
If
you want to listen to your MP3s in your car, there are a couple of options here. Probably the most elegant is to make use of a little gadget called an FM re-transmitter. These plug into your MP3 player,
and transmit the audio from your player a frequency that you can tune your car
radio into. Until December 2006, use of these was illegal in the UK, but Ofcom has now overturned this law, making the use of CE-approved short-range FM transmitters legal. Take a look at the range on offer from 
The other option is an audio
car adapter - these plug into the headphone socket of an MP3,
walkman or portable CD player, and the 'dummy' cassette gets inserted
into your car stereo's cassette deck - the sound will be played through
your car's system.
Got a huge vinyl collection tucked away in the loft? Get yourself an ION USB turntable that connects to your PC - You can use this to transfer your old singles, albums and even 78s to MP3, WAV or WMV format - ideal for your iPod or MP3 player. Bundled software allows to you copy music at double speed, and can automatically remove crackles and noise from your records.Useful links:
- iRiver - The official homepage
- Audible.co.uk
- Wide collection of comedy and audio books available for download
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Got a question? If you're thinking of buying an iRiver U10, and have a question about what it can do, create a post in our Mobile Audio forum and we'll try to help |
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