review:
The Aireo's ruggedly built and relatively large chassis measures 0.7 by 4.6 inches by 0.9 inches, and it weighs a full 8 ounces. It boasts a water-resistant, rubberized finish and responsive, rubber buttons that click smartly when pressed. You can access nearly all of its important features via a streamlined, easy-to-use front panel that consists of a four-way jog control, Mode and Menu buttons, and an oversized backlit display. On the sides are a power button, a slot for up to 1GB of Secure Digital/MultiMediaCard (SD/MMC) flash memory, and a pair of headphone jacks that can accommodate two listeners at the same time.
The Aireo's primary storage medium is a tiny 1.5GB Cornice hard drive, and despite the fact that the player is nearly twice the size of Cornice-based models such as the Rio Karma, its ergonomic design places all controls within comfortable reach of your thumb.
The Aireo ships with one set of behind-the-head earphones, a USB cable, an AC power adapter, and an imitation-leather carrying case with belt hook, as well as the latest versions of Windows Media Player and Musicmatch. Optional accessories include 12V automobile ($25) and AC power (price not set) adapters and the $40 combo, 12V charger/docking station that lets you power and store the Aireo in your car.
ecause the Aireo's software is stored on its hard drive, there's no need for a setup CD (although your computer needs to be running Windows 2000 or XP). The initial hookup still involves multiple downloading, installation, and upgrade chores, but if all goes well, you'll find yourself listening to music less than half an hour after first plugging the Aireo into a USB port. Most of the up-front work involves setting up the SoniqSync Music Manager application, which must be configured to download MP3 and WMA content stored on your PC in Musicmatch and Windows Media Player playlists. Unfortunately, the Aireo cannot recognize individual track information (though it will play them as "unknown" files), so you must use one of these two programs to create playlists and use the SoniqCast transfer software to load the device, otherwise song information can't be displayed. (Hopefully, the company will figure out a more elegant solution for ID3 tags.) Another bonus to using this procedure is that it enables browsing by artist, album, or genre.
The Aireo can download music from any PC running SoniqSync through either a tethered USB 1.1 connection or an 802.11b Wi-Fi wireless network, and its integrated FM transmitter converts the device into a virtual radio station that can broadcast your music to any FM radio in the house, the car, or wherever. One of our favorite features, however, is the Aireo's ability to schedule unattended music downloads. If you leave the player in your car overnight (powered through its optional 12V charger/dock), it will automatically download music added that day to any playlist it shares with your Wi-Fi-connected PC(s). Initial tests revealed that this function worked well, as did the Aireo's HotSpotz feature, which clearly detected Wi-Fi hot spots as we walked around the neighborhood.
If all this isn't enough, the Aireo's hard drive can also serve as a file caddy. When connected to your computer via USB, the player appears in Windows Explorer as a removable 1.5GB storage device that can be used to hold and transport computer files. (Note: This function is not available through wireless connections.)
The Aireo's menu system is simple enough to learn, but the biggest reason for this is the fact that its content-navigation functions are limited to choosing whether to play a single track; a playlist; or all the songs associated with one genre, artist, or album. The player also offers a seven-band equalizer, a built-in FM tuner, and a song-shuffle option but lacks common features such as the ability to create and delete playlists or upload music to a PC. Plus, it has no mike or content-recording capabilities, and although our test unit could play music stored on SD or MMC media, it couldn't save content to those cards. For now, a card reader is required in order to play music from SD/MMC media. (SoniqCast assured us that an upcoming firmware upgrade will fix this problem.)
While we're on the topic of firmware, during the four weeks in which we tested our early-production evaluation unit, SoniqCast repeatedly enhanced the device, in the process upgrading its firmware from version 1.0 to 2.7. If you buy an Aireo, remember to keep checking for updates. The company continues to aggressively add features as we go to press and by the time you read this, expects to have FM station and EQ presets; a keypad lock; and support for downloadable Audible.com audiobooks, talk-radio shows, and audio magazines. Our favorite upcoming feature is SoniqCast's claim that Aireo users will be able to share music with each other wirelessly, on the go, via 802.11b. Many more enhancements are expected throughout the remainder of this year, including greater integration with Internet content.
Every time the Aireo synchronizes itself with your PC, the player automatically updates the songs in its locally stored mixes to match the contents of the corresponding playlists on your computer. The device defaults to deleting any tracks that you've listened to in their entirety since the last update, but it lets you preserve specific songs by tagging them as permanent Favorites.
Should you run into difficulties, SoniqCast offers unlimited technical support at a toll-free number from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. ET Monday through Friday and from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. on weekends.
Configuring the Aireo for its first dynamic download was a cumbersome task that involved creating Musicmatch or Windows Media Player playlists and loading them into SoniqSync "mixes," which the program then transferred to the player. But once we completed the initial setup, adding and deleting music from the device was relatively simple.
The Aireo's FM reception was surprisingly good and in most cases, limited only by the quality of the radio and the content itself. Also, the player's autoscan feature does a good job of finding a clear FM broadcast frequency, though you can also select one manually. The Aireo's highly directional FM transmitter had limited but acceptable range, and obtaining good reception sometimes took a bit of experimentation, but we loved the way each radio in the house picked up the player's output as we walked from room to room. In the car, it took a bit of fiddling to find the clearest path to the antenna. Being able to manually adjust the Aireo's FM modulation level (essentially, its broadcast signal strength) made the job much easier.
We were impressed with the Aireo's wizard-driven Wi-Fi setup procedure. After enduring horrific problems configuring other 802.11b devices, it was refreshing to watch the Aireo automatically detect our network and identify all attached PCs running SoniqSync. We were also pleased to discover that the player worked well with WEP-encrypted networks (Wired Equivalent Privacy), although it won't support the newer, more secure WPA (Wi-Fi Protected Access) protocol until later this year.
Once configured and connected, the Aireo yielded so-so results in our file-transfer tests. When we used the SoniqSync software to copy files to the device wirelessly, the player's transfer rate came to just 0.28MB per second, while the same task over USB 1.1 clocked in at 0.3MB per second. Dragging and dropping files via Windows Explorer (which you cannot do wirelessly) produced a better outcome, moving an acceptable 0.48MB per second. If you prefer to switch files overnight, the speed isn't a big deal, but those who like to gas up with specific tunes and dash out the door will be frustrated.
Battery life was also unexceptional. Our evaluation unit played continuously at moderate volume for a mere 4 hours, 35 minutes before shutting itself off due to low battery conditions, considerably less than the 7 hours specified by SoniqCast.
Specs:
General
Product type Radio / digital player
PC interface(s) supported USB
Signal-to-noise ratio 96 dB
Total harmonic distortion 0.1%
Digital storage Built-in 1.5 GB Hard disk drive
Weight 8 oz
Dimensions (W x D x H) 2.7 in x 0.9 in x 4.6 in
Software included Drivers & Utilities
Carrying Case
Case type Case
Digital Player / Recorder
Digital formats supported MP3,WMA
Sample rate 8 - 48 kHz
Playback modes Random play
ID3 tags support Yes
External hard drive function Yes
Built-in Display
Built-in display LCD
Resolution 128 x 64
Backlight color Blue
Features Adjustable contrast
Audio Features
Sound output mode Stereo
Additional features Auto power on/off,Upgradeable firmware,Built-in FM transmitter
CD System
CD system None
Radio
Tuner type Digital Radio tuner
Tuner bands FM
Tuning display LCD display
Headphones
Headphones type Binaural Behind-the-neck
Sound output mode Stereo
Connectivity technology Wired
Connectivity
Cable(s) included 1 x USB cable - External
Connector type 2 x Headphones Mini-phone stereo 3.5 mm,1 x USB,1 x DC power input,1 x Docking station
Slot(s) provided 1 x SD Memory Card
Battery / Power
Battery 1 x Lithium ion Rechargeable Player battery
Mfr estimated battery life 8 hour(s)
Recharge time 4 hour(s)
Power supply included Power adapter
System Requirements
Min operating system Microsoft Windows 2000 / XP
Min processor speed 200 MHz
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