iAUDIO U5-08BS U5 8GB MP3 Player (Black and Silver) Review

Average Reviews:

(More customer reviews)I've owned a Cowon D2 for awhile and thought I'd get a 'scroll/pad' version (rather than D2's touch screen)for 1 handed use while exercising or while driving;

the menu system and features are similar to the D2, but

it does not have the ability to bookmark (see corrections/updates below)
it cannot speed up play (I use this for audio books) if mp3 is recorded under 44Khz,
the control pad is really too small/thin to use without looking at it, they might want take a look at Sandisk's implementation,
non-expandable...no sd slot as in D2,
battery life ok, but only about 1/2 that of D2,
uses less common micro usb cable (D2 uses more common mini),
and,like the D2, it cannot recharge and play at the same time;

on the positive side,
the screen is big and bright,
very light and small, great for use while exercising/jogging,
sound is good,
drag and drop files and folders, no need for additional software,

I bought the u5 for it's speed up playback feature(as long as it's +44Khz) to listen to audio books, which it does well, but it's inability to do bookmarks is a major drawback;

features seem less well implemented and refined than either the D2 or the rockboxed Sansa that I own;

update:
1. there is a bookmark feature, accessed by by backing out the music directory and into the bookmark directory!
2. clarification...the 'scroll wheel'is just really a 4 directional pad, cannot be rotated in any manner;

further update/corrections:
I accidentally found that if one holds down the centre button while playing, (it usually is the play/pause button), an 'undocumented' menu pops up (this feature is not listed in the pdf manual I downloaded from their site): add to dpl/add to bookmark/delete; this makes it a much more useful player for me!

...am upgrading the player to 3.5 stars

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Product Description:
Supports Windows Media DRM 10, MTP (Media Transfer Protocol)MP3, WMA, WAV Playback / FM Radio, Recording / Voice RecordingBuilt-In Flash Memory 4GB, 8GBHigh-Speed USB 2.0 Interface1.8 inch TFT LCD display with 128x160 resolution and 65K colors.Long Contiunous Playback Time: Up to 24hours (Based on company test result. Play time may be shortened if TFT LCD is used often.) Multilanguage supportEnhanced music file browserPlay/Pause during Playback, Record/Pause during RecordingNext Track/Previous Track, Fast Forward/Fast Rewind, Infinite LoopResume, Fade In, Auto Play feature supportSearch Speed, Skip Speed SettingDigital Volume Control :40 levelsVarious EQ and Sound Effects (JetEffect)- User adjustable 5-band EQ- Normal, Rock, Pop, Metal, Jazz, Classic, Vocal, User- BBE, Mach3Bass, MP Enhance, 3D Surround, Pan, EQ FilterSupport Clock, Alarm, Scheduled Recording, Sleep Timer, Auto Power -OffAuto display off feature to save battery power and screen burnoutEasy firmware download and upgradeTitle Display with ID3Tag or File NameSupport M3UDisplay Product Info (Firmware version, Total capacity, Total usage)USB Data Transfer Support for MAC OS (9.X, 10.X) and Linux (v2.2 and higher)