The player is available in several different configurations: the slim X5 with a battery life of 14 hours and capacities of 20 and 30GB, and the bulkier X5L rated at 35 hours of battery life and the same capacities. A 60GB version of the X5 also exists, with the same dimensions as the X5L (due to the bigger 60GB hard disk). There is no 60GB version of the X5L.
Measuring 4.1 by 2.4 by 0.6 inches and weighing 5.4 ounces, the black and silver Cowon iAudio X5 is about the same size as the 4G iPod (including the Photo version), but it’s lighter, with a thin lower half that slopes inward from the 2-inch LCD. Just below the screen is a tiny, five-way navigational joystick, similar to those we’ve seen on Cowon’s flash-memory players; the play and record buttons as well as a power slider sit on the right side of the device. While the spare layout gives the X5 a clean, uncluttered look, it’s a pain having the play button relegated to the right side of the player; we wish it were right next to the joystick for easier access. And for that matter, a scrollwheel or a touch-sensitive slider for navigating our 30GB of files would have been nice.
Sturdy, versatile, and remarkably compact, given its voluminous storage capacity, iAudio’s X5 portable multimedia device is sure to be a hit. The 30 GB audio/video player and recorder can store about 7,500 songs (4 minutes each, 128 kbps) in a nearly unparalleled choice of formats, from MP3 and WMA to linear (uncompressed, CD-quality) WAV files, Ogg Vorbis files (which sound a bit better than MP3 for files of comparable size), as well as FLAC (Free Lossless Audio Codec, compressed but designed for 1:1 encode/decode). The X5 can recognize up to 2,000 folders and 10,000 individual files, and its super power-saving circuit provides up to 14 hours continuous playback on a full charge.
Another design similarity that the X5 shares with the M3 is that the headphone jack is located on the left side of the player. When using headphones with straight plugs instead of “L” shaped plugs it isn’t really ideal, but seeing that the player is so small, it doesn’t really bother me too much, even with my PX200. For my Sony Fontopia EX51 I personally find a side-mounted jack better than a top mounted jack. The M3 came in the standard “electronic gadget silver” which is nice, but in comparison to the X5’s sleek jet-black it is outclassed by miles.
Features:
- MP3, OGG, WMA, ASF, FLAC, WAV, Moving Picture Playback, FM Radio Receiver and Recording,
- Voice Recording, Line-In Recording
- TXT (Text), JPEG (Image) File Viewer (Image Enlargement, Background Screen Designation)
- Built-In HDD (20GB/30GB/60GB), USB Host, File Copy/Delete
- USB 2.0 Interface
- 260,000 Colors TFT-LCD, Resolution 160×128
- Long Playback Time : Up to 14 hours playback (35 hours for iAUDIO X5L)
(Based on company’s self-test, The playing time may be shortened according to settings.) - Multi language support
- Enhanced Integrated Navigator
- Play/Pause, Recording/Pause While Recording
- Next Song/Previous Song, Fast Forward/Rewind, Section Repeat
- Resume, Fade-In, AutoPlay Features
- Search Speed, Skip Speed Setup
- Volume (Digital 40 Levels)
- Various EQ and Sound Field Effects
-User-Adjustable 5-Band EQ
-Normal, Rock, Pop, Jazz, Classic, Vocal, User
-Supports BBE, Mach3Bass, MP Enhance, and 3D Surround. - Clock, Alarm, Timer Recording, Sleep Function, Power Saving Shut down.
- Power, LCD On/Off, Hold Combined Switch
- LCD Auto Off Time Adjustment, Brightness, and Contrast Adjustments
- Easy Firmware Upgrade
- Supports ID3V2, ID3V1, FileName
- Device Information Verification
(Firmware version, HDD capacity, HDD volume, total folder number, total file number) - Supports MAC OS (Data transfer only)
- Supports Linux v 2.2 or higher (Data transfer only)
- Software
-JetShell (File transfer, MP3/WMA/WAV/AUDIO CD PLAY, MP3 ENCODING)
-JetAudio (Integrated multimedia player software, music/video conversion feature)
June 29th, 2008 at 9:27 pm
Hi, I would love to find a Sound Dock system for the X5.
Something like the Bose Sound Dock would be perfect.
Can you sugest one that will work with it giving that excellent sound quality I am used to with the Bose in ear headphones…..
Here’s hoping…..
Cheers
Dom