... But I simply had to, for this wonderful little machine!
The Samsung YP-Q1 comes in memory sizes 4GB, 8GB, and 16GB. For those who don't know the meaning of this, one GB (GigaByte) is 1024 MegaBytes. Your average MP3 file is about 4 MegaBytes, but it's different with me since I listen to metal ... Read review
Advantages: Looks, Sounds, And Works Absolutely Perfectly Disadvantages: The On/Off/Lock Switch, Emodio
...machine!
The Samsung YP-Q1 comes in memory sizes 4GB, 8GB, and 16GB. For those who don't know the meaning of this, one GB (GigaByte) is 1024 MegaBytes. Your average MP3 file is about 4 MegaBytes, but it's different with me since I listen to metal songs, and on average, these are longer than other genres. But 16GB will be a challenge to full up (I've filled up 14GB, so i'm close!), but i'm a MASSIVE music lover. So it's up to you to decide ... ...player I had was a Samsung YP-K3, and the sound quality was outstanding. Then I bought the iPod Classic 120GB, and to my surprise, it was nowhere near as good as the Samsung. I then bought a Creative Zen X-Fi, which was good but not as good (And may I add the player broke on the 6th day of me owning it. Avoid it like the plague), and the Samsung YP-Q1 (The MP3 player being reviewed right now. Pay attention!) surpassed each and every one of them. ... more
EDIT 03/06/2009: EmoDio review expanded
Hey guys, been a while! Reviewing can be time consuming, hence I havn't got around to going any other reviews. But I simply had to, for this wonderful little machine!
The Samsung YP-Q1 comes in memory sizes 4GB, 8GB, and 16GB. For those who don't know the meaning of this, one GB (GigaByte) is 1024 MegaBytes. Your average MP3 file is about 4 MegaBytes, but it's different with me since I listen to metal songs, and on average, these are longer than other genres. But 16GB will be a challenge to full up (I've filled up 14GB, so i'm close!), but i'm a MASSIVE music lover. So it's up to you to decide which size you need, based on your music library. To help you out, each album on average is about 70MB. So get counting!
These MP3 players are a far cheaper alternative to the iPod. A 16GB iPod Nano is a sizable £145, whereas this is just under £100. Impressive. But for those who couldn't fill those up, there are cheaper versiona going under £60, so it's so easy to find the right one for you and not overspend!
I'm going to go into the Specific Criteria under more detail, and other things this player has.
Sound Quality
If an MP3 doesn't have good sound quality, forget it. I won't touch it, and I certainly would never buy it! The first MP3 player I had was a Samsung YP-K3, and the sound quality was outstanding. Then I bought the iPod Classic 120GB, and to my surprise, it was nowhere near as good as the Samsung. I then bought a Creative Zen X-Fi, which was good but not as good (And may I add the player broke on the 6th day of me owning it. Avoid it like the plague), and the Samsung YP-Q1 (The MP3 player being reviewed right now. Pay attention!) surpassed each and every one of them. I mean... Wow.
This Samsung player is experimenting with a new thing called DNSe, which is Samsungs new technology for Sound Quality, which they have implemented on MP3 players. It wouldn't be more welcome by me, let me tell you. You can tailor your sound quality experience to the genre you are listening to or individual song! Or for the non Audio Junkies, you can use premade presets. You're bound to find the one just for the music you're listening to. And wow, it makes a hell of a difference that no MP3 player before it has ever done before. It's astounding. You can edit:
The Equaliser (This controls which sounds of the song stand out, so you can make the bass stand out in dance tracks and the treble in jazz and so on)
3D Sound and Bass (3D sound is how the song goes around your ear, this is best used with In-Ear Headphones. And bass is the bass, quite obviously)
Concert Hall (This is very clever, you can make every song sound as if it is live, realisticly!)
Clarity (I don't recommend using this, it's meant to make the songs clearer, but it doesn't do a good job) So with the top 3 settings (Don't use clarity!), you can make an amazing sound quality! Even on the loudest settings, the songs don't crackle or jump. It's something i've never, ever seen before. Ever.
The sound quality is the best i've ever seen on an MP3 player before. Good going, Samsung!
Ease of Use
Well, with only 8 buttons, it couldn't be much simpler. Up down left and right to select things, A select button, A back button, A menu button, and an On/Off/Lock switch. If you're used to Samsungs controls, you will find these are perfect. The sensitivity of the buttons are point perfect. For those who havn't had a Samsung MP3 before, you will find them sensitive. But don't worry, you get used to them after a few tries. In all honesty, each button does exactly what you expect it will do. Back goes back, up goes up, etc. The menu gives you options specific to where you are. So if you're looking at a picture, you can use the menu button to turn off the music, put the picture as the background, etc. If you're listening to music you can change the play mode to Shuffle, you can edit the DNSe, etc. Really, it couldn't be simpler. Even new customers to MP3 players can take it out of the box, charge it, and use it without even looking at the instruction manual. I know I didn't! If you're putting it in your pocket, press the On/Off/Lock key Up, and no button will work. Press it down again for it to be back to normal. Simple! To turn it on, hold it Downwards. Do the same to turn it off. Up, Down, Left, Right to put the curser over an option, and the middle invisible button to select it. Press back to go back a menu, and press the Menu button to bring up the options. That's all you need to know, and the rest comes to you!
Look and Design
I love the new keypad, except for a few niggles:
When you're starting out, the "Left" key is far too close to the "Back" key. This will take some getting used to, and it can be a pain.
The On/Off/Lock key is FAR TOO FLIMSY. Whenever I use it I'm afraid i'll snap it off. The lighting effects on the arrow keys are amazing. I've never, ever seen ANY gadget do it as well as the Samsung does. I'm really surprised no brand has caught onto this, because it's genious. You don't have to Press anything, you just put your finger on it. Which is of course healthier for the fingers, and it's utterly silent. Every time you press one down, the lights make the effect as if you were literally pressing it down. Every time I use it, I say nothing except "ABSOLUTELY AWESOME!!!", and when you press the middle, all the arrows do the effect. It really is amazing. Insignificant to the MP3, but amazing nonetheless. I don't like the new shape of it. The YP-K3 was a complete rectangle, and amazingly thin. This one has curves and is thicker. I can understand it being thicker, because it has more stuff on it. But the curves make it look "Behind the times", but one look and use of the keypad and all worries will be wiped away in a blue light of joy. However, I do kind of wish you had the option for the Menu and Back key to light up. But to be honest, you don't really need it. Once you've used it once, you'll know exactly where to press. It doesn't raise a problem, but I wish it was an option. I gave Look & Design 4/5. It has some amazing stuff, and certainly will impress people more than the look of the iPod, but the niggle about the Back key and the On/Off/Lock key does set it back.
Range of Features
Heres a list:
Music (Obviously...)
Videos (This is the ability to view Videos on your player. The resolution is great, and the picture is sharp. Nothing else to say, it's excellent)
Pictures (Obviously, viewing pictures on your Player. The picture is sharp, it's quick to load, and you can use any picture as your background for the player. Excellent again.)
Texts (This is something no other player has ever done, you can view text files on your samsung player! So if you want to copy and paste a story on it and read it whilst listening to music, you can! Not something I'd ever use, but for the bookworms out there, you may appreciate it.
FM Radio (Obviously enough, a radio built in. The reception is satisfactory but can sometimes be glitchy, and you probably won't get a good reception when you have it in your pocket. Which is a shame, but not a lot can be done about it)
Datacasts (I don't know anything about this, because I've never used it. You have to use Emodio (The software that comes with it), and I don't like it. See further on in the review)
Games (You can play games on your player! The games are "Bomb Bomb", "Bubble Smile", and "Chicken Runaway". These are well made games, but again. I wouldn't use it, because it's not what I use an MP3 player for. I'm sure you can get more games, probably from Emodio, but i'd never bother.)
Voice Recorder (Yeah, you can record voice and replay it. You can also upload it to your computer and use it. So if you want to do an audio diary, you can. You can also record friends to humilate them, but again. I wouldn't use it)
"Subway" (This is very new, this shows all of the train routes in the UK. It's accurate, but a bit useless for a 16 year old unless I was planning on taking a trip)
Settings (You can change almost anything in here to make the player unique to you, it's awesome and easy to use) All in all, it's one of the most flexible and richly usable MP3 players I've ever seen. It certainly rivals the iPod, which is hard to do.
Value for Money
I'm going to challenge you to look at the market to find an MP3 player as good as this for a similar price. Here are the main rivals:
Sony - Their player most similar to this at 16GB is nearly £130. (I tried one out, and they were good, but not great)
Creative - Their player most similar to this at 16GB is nealry £150. (AVOID LIKE THE PLAGUE, Unless you have £150 to spend every 6 days. Because they break after the 6th day!)
Apple - Their player most similar to this at 16GB is £145. (The iPod Nano has a massive range of accessories, but it's sound quality lets it down.)
Samsung - Theirs reigns surpreme at less than £100. (This is very expensive over the internet, buy it from Argos for £100!) The Samsung is the cheapest of the range and also the best i've tried. No brainer.
Durability
Time will tell. My previous Samsung had been stepped on with a football boot, dropped on concrete, and it still works today. The only reason I got rid of it was because it didn't have enough memory. The design of this is very similar to that of the YP-K3, so i'm going to rate it "Good", because I can assume it's awesome, but I don't know for certain.
What Comes In The Box?
USB Cable (A strong and easy to use cable, which is just the right length. Though more length on it would be welcome)
Headphones (Uh-oh, Audio Junkies beware. They're good-ish, but nothing can recreate pure In Ear headphones. I recommend buying a pair of Sony headphones, they're great quality and they compliment the Samsung very well.)
Instruction leaflet (It isn't even necessary with how easy it is to use)
Installation CD (Not necessary, but it includes Emodio)
Warrenty cards etc.
The Box Itself (lol)
It's all packaged in a lovely box that folds out like a book. It's easy to open, and everything is safe in there. Theres 2 little compartments. One containing the leads, and the other, the cards, leftlets, instructions, and the installation CD. I use the compartment for the cards and leaflets for my reciept, just in case something goes wrong. They use the shape of the keypad as a fashion accessory, as it's printed all over the box. It's the thing that really stands out. Overall, it's well packaged.
Emodio
Emodio is the software which comes with the MP3 player. When you start it, it immediately asks you if you want import a library. If you click ok, BEWARE. It scans your WHOLE computer. Which means all the songs in your program files, everything. Which clutters up your library. Just click no, then click the menu, and click Import, and click Open folder. Direct it to where you keep your music. From there, things are childishly simple. Double click the song you want to play in it and it plays it. Though, this is the one awesome thing about it. DNSe is built into the player. And if you get it just right, with a decent set of speakers, wow. Just wow. It is the best sound that has ever came out of my computer, it sounds simply stunning! Mess about with the settings of DNSe in the software, it's totally worth it.
Now for the store. The store holds music which anyone can download, but this service is stopping on the 26th of June. It isn't any big deal, I can get all my MP3s from Amazon and CDs. Though what will happen to that tab, I don't know.
I'm not sure what Datacasts are. The MP3 player comes with no instructions for Emodio, so there isn't any explenations. If I find out, i'll edit this review again.
'''WARNING: DO NOT PUT SONGS ON YOUR MP3 PLAYER WITH EMODIO!!! This is because: Windows Media Player puts the files in order, and makes a folder for each band and album making it really easy to manage. Emodio just throws the songs onto the player, ruining the order of the music folder! Use Windows Media Player to sync your songs onto your player!'''
So in retrospect:Good:
Amazing sound quality for a software. Hear detail you've never heard before!
Looks pretty sleek
Easy to put files on your MP3 player. Highlight, Right Click, Add to portable device.
Bad:
It is very laggy. It slows down your computer a bit, but I think this will go away.
It takes a long time to go between songs, when it tries to go to the next song on it's own. Whereas it's rivals, Windows Media Player and iTunes don't. Windows Media Player has a very, very small gap, and iTunes has no gap whatsoever.
When loading it brings up a splash image, which is very disruptive. This comes up whenever you plug in your player, and it is a pain.
Not as well organised as it's rivals.
It's a nice iTunes rival, but not quite as good as iTunes or Windows Media Player on a design point of view. But I don't care, the sound quality you can get on the right settings is just simply stunning, and makes up for all else.Though Samsung, it would be nice if you fix these issues.
BBC iPlayer
Miss that favourite show? Not to worry. This works with BBC iPlayer, and it works well. The playback is smooth, and it's easy to use. You just put the BBC iPlayer files on the player and you're all set. Unfortunately, I don't watch TV often. So this doesn't get used enough. Also, it saps the battery life completely.
Battery Life
The battery life is great. It lasts just as much as it says on the box, I tested it. This is what I did. I made a playlist which lasted 30 hours, and I put it on constant play for a day. I went back, and the battery was dead god knows how long later. I went back on and did the maths, and it lasted through 23 hours. Note, that my music is a very high frequency and I was using high volume. So on normal songs on a normal DNSe, it will last a long time. Changing the song and watching videos and pictures saps the battery, and that is why playlists help ;)
All In All...
Having tried all of the rivals, the Samsung came out far superior. It's also surprisingly the cheapest, too. The sound quality is the best i've ever heard, it's easy to use for new people to MP3 players, it looks and feels great (Though it is a fingerprint magnet), it has a HUGE range of features, and it's the cheapest in the range. Everything done on this MP3 player is perfect, and this player is almost utterly perfect. A few tweaks (The On/Off/Lock button, Software), and this would be the greatest MP3 player ever made.
Even still, this is worth every star it gets. 5 Stars.
This is the best MP3 player ever made as of yet. I'm so excited to see what Samsung do next. MP3 players don't get better than this. Buy one.
