Philips SA238/17 256 MB Digital Audio Player Review

Average Reviews:

(More customer reviews)This unit has surprisingly good features for the discounted price that I paid (sub-$100). Decent audio, light weight, acceptable supplied earbuds, and handy neckstrap + armband made a good package. Pluses are that it can be used to hold data files as well as mp3 as a mass storage device. Also, the FM tuner is pretty good.

128 MB SD card limitation DOES NOT apply on my unit, however it is not explained how to make it function with larger cards. Simply hold the center button down until the unit powers up! For the supplied 128MB card it only takes a couple of seconds, but, for a 1GB card, it takes up to 8 seconds or so, but it will work if you are patient. My guess is that the player has to build a database of files on the card before powering up completely, and the processor is a little slow. 1.128 GB of storage gives a lot of files to listen to during the day.

Cons are that the batteries do not last more than about 10 hours if it includes time consumed by much moving of data to/from the unit with the USB transfer. Also, the latch that keeps the back cover on does not seem to hold too tightly, but I have not had a problem with it, yet.

Click Here to see more reviews about: Philips SA238/17 256 MB Digital Audio Player

Product Description:
Join the digital music revolution with this Philips portable audio player, which plays both MP3 and WMA files. The device combines 128 MB of built-in memory with a 128 MB Secure Digital card, adding up to approximately eight hours of high-quality music. Listeners can also record their voices via the digital voice recorder, or listen to the radio through the digital FM tuner, which includes 10 presets for quick station scanning. Additional features include a shockproof housing that protects the device from jarring drops and an automatic power off function that preserves the battery. And as with any good MP3 player, the SA238/17 is expandable, letting users store additional songs by adding a larger memory card.