Death of a Podplayer
Last Updated on February 23, 2024 9:08 pm by
My podplayer is dying.
The “lock controls” switch has broken. I think it has actually physically broken, so that, when I move the button on the side of the box, the controls do not lock.
I can’t start it and put it in my pocket, because moving around manipulates the controls. As a short term fix, I dug out a belt-case I bought a while ago, put it in the case, and put the case in my pocket.
This worked fine for a while, then it didn’t. Getting in and out of my truck one day, my pocket manipulated so many controls that the software locked up at 1: 04 p. m. I could not even turn it off.
It remained 1:04 until the battery died sometime early the next morning.
Upon recharge, it worked again; I’m listening to it now, while waiting for the new one to arrive. But I have to treat it very gently.
I ordered another by the same manufacturer, the most recent version of the same model, because I’ve been very happy with this one, not least because it has native *.ogg support.
(Many of my geeky Linux podcasts have abandoned the *.mp3 format because it’s non-free.)
And, frankly, I can’t complain about its wearing out; I have beat the stuffing out of it every day since I got it, probably averaging 30 or more hours a week of listening.
Update:
The new one arrived today, after I first drafted this post.
It works. I tested the navigation, the music, the recording and playback function (sadly, it records in *.wma rather than *.ogg), and the FM radio. I did not test the video playing, because I have no interest in playing video on a small screen when I have three televisions, a netbook, two laptops, a desktop, and two DVD players available.
Another plus was that I can mount it in my Linux systems without having to change the file system from MFT (compatible with Windows Media Syncing) to MSC(UMS) (acts like a USB stick). MSC(UMS) is now the default. (More about that in the post I wrote when I got my first Iriver before Jeffrey graciously allowed me to geek out here.)
Iriver has also made the menus more attractive and improved the navigation, though I didn’t have any particular complaints about the navigation of the old one.
Then, again, I listen to podcasts, I do not care about music playlists and stuff like that there. For music, I have a component stereo system with six speakers, plus a great sound system in my truck.