Neuros Review 179
An anonymous reader writes "MP3newswire.net has just posted a lengthy review of the Neuros digital music portable. Just recently the company announced native Linux support for synchronizing the Neuros and we all know that Ogg Vorbis support is promised in the near future, so the unit is drawing a lot of interest. For the most part they liked the player, though they found the unit to be relatively big and heavy for a new generation portable. They also found the file transfer interface to be both impressive and glitchy."
Impressive and Glitchy? (Score:3, Funny)
promises promises. (Score:4, Insightful)
Re:promises promises. (Score:2)
Re:promises promises. (Score:2)
However, mainstream standalone player support helps add some l
Rio with OGG and 100Mbit ethernet... (Score:3, Interesting)
What would you prefer?
See http://www.dapreview.com for more info.
Note: I'm biased. I'm working on it.
Re:Rio with OGG and 100Mbit ethernet... (Score:2)
Ogg Vorbis Support (Score:2, Interesting)
Submit Feedback! Get ogg support on iPods too! (Score:5, Informative)
This is slightly off-topic, but slashdot apple while we're at it requesting ogg-vorbis support! Do so nicely, but be firm. Let them know you have music that can't be played without hacking iTunes, and you can't play it back at all on your iPod.
Let them know your future business depends on it!
Re:Submit Feedback! Get ogg support on iPods too! (Score:4, Insightful)
Not to try and flame you, but isn't that a bit of an empty threat at the moment, considering ogg-vorbis mindshare in the general public?
It'd be a nice "geek" feature, i'm sure, but I don't think it's really at the level where Apple will take lost business because of it very seriously.
Re:Submit Feedback! Get ogg support on iPods too! (Score:4, Insightful)
Re:Submit Feedback! Get ogg support on iPods too! (Score:3, Insightful)
Consider...It would be an area in which the consumer:
A) Knows that portable music players besides CD players and Walkmans exist in the first place, and wants one.
B) Is interested and knowledgeable enough to go after an (expensive) Apple product in the first place.
C) Knows that Ogg-Vorbis even exists in the first place.
D) Cares enough about format differences to have a need to play Ogg-Vorbis files.
Again, th
Re:Submit Feedback! Get ogg support on iPods too! (Score:5, Insightful)
Or the fact that until two months ago WMA was second to MP3, in marketshare, but now (with something like 3 million tracks sold) AAC is #2, despite only 3% of the potential market?
So far, far, more unlikely things have happened than Apple support Ogg; I mean, Apple supported MP3, right?
MPEG-4 AAC is why Apple will never support Vorbis (Score:2)
Exactly. And in that time, Apple also have their users migrating to MPEG-4 AAC, with the help of iTunes 4 and their shiny new .m4a extension.
Apple want people using components of MPEG-4, not some random audio format that really isn't supported by any of the big players of the industry.
It's in Apple's best interests for MPEG-
Re:Submit Feedback! Get ogg support on iPods too! (Score:2)
Consider: All members of population D will always already be a member of population C, and almost always a member of population A. Population B consists of Apple's complete potential market, so of course their goal is to saturate that population as completely as possible. S
Re:Submit Feedback! Get ogg support on iPods too! (Score:2)
Unix user marketshare IS important. (Score:5, Insightful)
Don't underestimate yourself before you make an effort at asserting what you want. You just never know...
Re:Submit Feedback! Get ogg support on iPods too! (Score:3, Insightful)
Re:Submit Feedback! Get ogg support on iPods too! (Score:2)
Absolutely true. Everybody knows that Windows users ALWAYS pay for software. It's a well known fact that there hasn't been a pirated copy of Windows, Office, or any other Windows Warez since 1992 at the latest, around the time Linux came about. Coincidence? I don't think so. In fact, all those Linux Warez sites are proof positive that those thieving Linux users will never pay for software. The same goes for P2P software. Look at all those Kazaa for Li
Re:Submit Feedback! Get ogg support on iPods too! (Score:2)
Giving it a bump certainly couldn't hurt. The people are there...and where there's people, there's money to be made.
Re:Submit Feedback! Get ogg support on iPods too! (Score:2)
What I want more than anything else is an Ogg player that will play files from a MiniCD. I would go for a regular-sized Ogg/CD player, but I think they would be too big for my taste, and I bet spinning a MiniCD would be far less power-consuming.
SCO might want to know if (Score:4, Funny)
Impressive and Glitchy (Score:5, Funny)
I always based my buying habits on the premise that the two were mutually exclusive, but I guess I'm just a picky customer.
Silly Amish Boy! (Score:2)
Re:Impressive and Glitchy (Score:2, Funny)
Re:Impressive and Glitchy (Score:3)
For example, if the program copied the files, but managed to mix them up so that various chunks of music would play within different files, and moved the ID3 data around randomly, that would be pretty impressive. Not impressively correct, but impressive that they decided to ship it like that...
So yeah, something can easily be impressively glitchy - it leaves an impres
Linux Support (Score:3, Informative)
Re:Linux Support (Score:2)
Re:Linux Support (Score:2)
Re:Linux Support? (Score:3, Informative)
Here. [xiph.org]
Sorry.
or maybe both... (Score:2, Funny)
Re:or maybe both... (Score:3, Funny)
Just make it work (Score:5, Insightful)
Just make it work. I want a 100% certainty that I will be able to migrate music from my linux box to the player. No message board lurking, no sifting through google groups.
If this product cannot reliably transfer music without copious under the hood tweaking, I am not interested.
USB 2.0 would be a nice addition too but even on that I will make accomodation.
Re:Just make it work (Score:5, Funny)
Not to be a troll (this is a serious question), but how did you ever get started in Linux with *that* attitude?
Re:Just make it work (Score:2)
Re:Just make it work (Score:2)
Re:Just make it work (Score:2)
Well, let's wait and see. I think it's being coded up by Monty of Vorbis fame, so it should be a quality piece of code.
USB 2.0 would be a nice addition too but even on that I will make accomodation.
The review said it supported USB 2?
Re:Just make it work (Score:3, Informative)
The Positron synch software is requiring less and less tweaking over time. Having music be automatically detected would be nice, but Ogg's consistent handling of metadata, mp3s support only a variety of hackish id3 tags which are probably best handled outside the device.
USB2.0 will be a free upgrade for those who b
Re:Just make it work (Score:4, Interesting)
You're willing to spend a bit more, and you don't have to deal with any product design issues...
And it just works. FAT32 iPod.
DIY [duke.edu]
GTKPod [sourceforge.net]
Re:Just make it work (Score:2)
But on reading those sites, it certainly seems more stable than the reviewed Neuros... though possibly the current shipping versions are better.
On the other hand, the iPod has 2 years plus and 3 hardware revisions to iron out hardware issues...
RTFProductSpec (Score:4, Informative)
RTF Produce Spec [neurosaudio.com]
Clearly states USB 1.1.
USB 2.0 support is coming, but not here now.
Another recent review (Score:4, Interesting)
Re:Another recent review (Score:2)
Re:Another recent review (Score:2)
People who've never held an iPod?
People who've never used an iPod?
People who don't know that an iPod works on Macs, Windows PCs, Linux, and just about any platform that has firewire, Java, or Perl?
I mean, if only 1 in every 4 MP3 players is an iPod, than that means, for those people who don't yet own an iPod, 3 out of every 4 potential buyer is a target for this device, right?
Re:Another recent review (Score:2)
Whilst the old iPods work fine on PCs and Linux with Firewire, and come June will support USB2 with only the purchase of a USB2 cable to the dock/stand...
Which seems to be more reasonable, for any and all Linux users with USB 1.1 (works), Firewire (works), or USB2 (RSN, just like the Neuros)
Re:Another recent review (Score:2)
How many crowds are there? (Score:3, Interesting)
I find it rather interesting that MP3Newswire gushed on and on about all the cool features, but said very little about how well they worked. Whereas USA Today reported various pro
Re:Another recent review (Score:2)
Not standard, but for about $35 you can buy a slick solution that lets you broadcast your ipod to FM frequencies (and it looks like it was made just for the ipod, well because it was...) Check that out here [ipodlounge.com].
Does IPOD have line-in based recording?
Actually, not yet... but if you did any research you'd see that people found in the firmware the ability to activate ipod recording. Read about it here [lindqvist.com]
Oh, and best yet... it's still an ipod. Slick UI, really ligh
Expensive (Score:3, Interesting)
Re:Expensive (Score:2, Informative)
Penny Arcade to the rescue (Score:5, Funny)
Re:Penny Arcade to the rescue (Score:2, Insightful)
Getting there (Score:2, Insightful)
OOS MP3 Player (Score:5, Informative)
My good friend has one, and he loves it. It is a really nice portable mp3 player. He was able to develop a program so that it automaticly sends his voice mail (in mp3 format) to his Neuros. The only thing that I didn't like about it is that it is bigger than most mp3 players. Especially when you add on the 20 gig backpack to it. Awsome features! Fm transmitter, ogg mp3 wma support, and good battery life.
Re:OOS MP3 Player (Score:2)
Likely, if you can get it into text, mp3, or aac, the Apple iPod will be able to play, display, or present the data to you. For example, using text to speech [macworld.com] the iPod can grab newsfeed headlines. Using QuickSpeech [webnation.com] you can similarly turn any text into an MP3 the iPod can play... unread emails from prospective employees? Messages from your dad? Intrusion alerts from your web server
How's it compare to the Archos (Score:4, Interesting)
http://www.thinkgeek.com/computing/mp3/5b44/det
Same price as 15gb iPod (Score:5, Informative)
This means 5gb more for your money with the Neuros - you decide.
Re:Same price as 15gb iPod (Score:5, Insightful)
Re:Same price as 15gb iPod (Score:2)
Upgradability is a third.
Re:Same price as 15gb iPod (Score:2)
Usability is a fifth.
Re:Same price as 15gb iPod (Score:2)
Of course, I do understand that Neuros *officially* supports Linux, in beta, while Apple hasn't; it's all be community stuff for the iPod.
Oh, and aac is a standard [aac-audio.com], though arguably not open, while ogg [vorbis.com] is open, but not a standard. Semantics are a bitch, aren't they?
Re:Same price as 15gb iPod (Score:3, Insightful)
In my recent memory I recall iCommune, which was 'settled' as a license issue, and they later rereleased software and are at 2.01.
Apple hasn't stopped Yellowdog from offering Linux, hasn't stopped Marathon from offering rackmount Macs, hasn't stopped MacOnLinux from booting Mac OS X or Classic inside Linux, released their own distro called mkLinux, released Darwin for PC and x86, still supports OpenDarw
Still offering a discount... (Score:5, Interesting)
Also, drop me your mailing address, too; I might be able to send you extra goodies. Don't worry, I'll make sure your E-mail address and mailing address are kept private. Thanks!
Emmett Plant
Community Outreach
Neuros Audio [neurosaudio.com]
mic in? (Score:2)
The feature of not having to capture the audio in realtime from the MD to begin editing alone would make the switch worth it.
Re:Still offering a discount... (Score:3, Insightful)
Everybody knows that Emmettfish is Emmett of Xiph.org fame. We also know the Xiph guys have been working with Neuros.
Even if it was just some anonymous schmoe on slashdot, he is asking you to contact him by an address at neurosaudio.com, which definitively means he has connections.
That said, I'm still not buying anything until Ogg support is officially finished.
lot of interest? (Score:4, Insightful)
"drawing a lot of interest"? From who? Most of the world hasn't even heard of Ogg Vorbis, people. Most who have heard of Ogg Vorbis realize it may sound better at lower bitrates, but nobody wants to re-encode all their CDs and stuff. So let's can the editorializing, okay?
Oh, and to all the people who are rabidly trying to convince Apple via silly little petitions(I bet half a week's iPod sales are bigger than the # of people who have signed any such petition)- give it up. They've got AAC, they could give a crap about Ogg, and they've said as much. Stop trying to force your stuff on the world- if there's a genuine market for Ogg, companies will recognize the need to support it.
Re:lot of interest? (Score:4, Insightful)
Me? I have a brand new 80gig disk and an urge to fill it. Unlike most, I didn't rip all my CDs ages ago, because I didn't have the room. Now I do. So I'm going to have lots of Oggs soon, because that is the default under Linux.
Most of the world hasn't even heard of Ogg Vorbis, people.
Most of the world don't buy MP3 players, natch. Considering the huge amount of support DI are getting from Xiph, it becomes a simple numbers game. How hard is it to support Linux and Ogg? How much will we get in return for it?
There are quite a lot of Linux users around now, big enough that it can make a difference for a small company.
Linux has defaults now? (Score:2)
Re:lot of interest? (Score:2)
Re:lot of interest? (Score:2, Insightful)
That is like saying the superior technology will win, when the truth is that the best marketed tech usually wins out. The only way to get Ogg on more devices is for consumers to show their interest. (By signing petitions, emailing, or otherwise pestering the company)
Re:lot of interest? (Score:2, Interesting)
Exactly!
Some time ago I ripped my CDs to Ogg on an external, 40GB USB drive that I've been using at home and at work. Now I'd like to replace that USB drive with a portable player so I can also listen to my files in my car and when I'm mowing the lawn.
I'm not interested in re-ripping my 650+ CDs into a format I don't like as much, so I'm waiting for a decent, Ogg-supporting device.
Re:lot of interest? (Score:2)
Re:lot of interest? (Score:2)
I'd bet the numbers from The Matrix 2, taught Warner Bros not to let down their loyal geeks...
Re:lot of interest? (Score:2)
What do you want, a show of hands?
Exactly, which is why any player that can't handle Vorbis, is useless to me. I've oggenc -q 7'ed my CDs into 70 Gigabytes of Vorbis files and once is enough.
(The only thing keeping me from buying a Neuros is that I had my share of promises and vaporware in the '90s. When Vorbis support is available in the present-tense, someone's getting my money. If that someone turns out
Can't pry my 15GB IPOD from my hands! (Score:2)
And it works with my MacOSX box and my Linux Box
without a problem.
I'm working on some management tools for the IPOD on Linux now.
I'll buy one when... (Score:2, Interesting)
Until then I have my trusty AM/FM radio.
MyFi (Score:2, Interesting)
Wow. And wow. This is an amazingly cool idea, and not confined to the car.
Re:MyFi (Score:2, Informative)
Check out an article about it here [macworld.com]
The again - I'm still ranting about the battery issue
Re:MyFi (Score:2)
http://www.thinkgeek.com/electronics/audio/5dab
https://www.myirock.com/players/300W%20-%20FM%2
Re:MyFi (Score:2)
claimed "iPod killer" features, no proof (Score:2, Interesting)
"...the Neuros offers features not only unavailable in the iPod..."
"The Neuros has features that could make it an iPod killer..."
It turns out that the only "killer" feature I could come across was "HiSi"(records 30 seconds of radio, then tries to fingerprint it and match the fingerprint to a central database), and the reviewers found it thought random noise was "Benditos Malditos". It thought a rap song was Van Halen.
Re:claimed "iPod killer" features, no proof (Score:3, Insightful)
As far as the other features go, all the reviewer's experiments showed was that the hisi has problems when not used properly. The random noise test was a joke and they said that they purposely used a bad version of the rap song as a test of how well hisi d
Re:claimed "iPod killer" features, no proof (Score:2, Insightful)
1) I can play it when I want
2) I don't need to sit and wait through insultingly stupid DJs (the second lowest form of life)
3) Most music isn't played on the radio
4) Clear Channel - a big reason for #2 and #3.
Re:claimed "iPod killer" features, no proof (Score:2)
Well, having it built in is nice, but separate devices that connect to any headphone jack and broadcast FM have been available for a while. So simply building it into the device is nice, but isn't really a killer feature. Here's a review [the-gadgeteer.com] of one of them.
Re:claimed "iPod killer" features, no proof (Score:3, Interesting)
PS, I'm big on Xiph, don't trust me
Re:claimed "iPod killer" features, no proof (Score:2)
That, and it's still much, much lighter
Re:claimed "iPod killer" features, no proof (Score:2, Informative)
You are kidding, right? If you want a killer feature, being able to transmit a shortrange radio broadcast is definitely it. "MyFi" iirc, would be so useful. In the car, I have a built in radio/CD player, but no 'in jack' to the amp. So short of ripping the dash apart or replacing the stereo, I wasn't able to connect anything external to it. By broadcasting on a spare FM frequency, I can easily play my stored music back through my i
iPod Sacrifices Features, Affordability For Size (Score:4, Interesting)
On the plus side, they do look cute, and fit in most pockets easily. Well done to Apple for figuring that a large proportion of potential MP3 player buyers are not interested in advanced features, and will pay a significant premium for compactness and a simple, constrained interface.
In the 90s, AOL similarly spotted that they could capture a large proportion of online users by offering a simple, integrated system. I think iPods are "training wheel" MP3 players for many people. It remains to be seen whether Apple can manage their new users' experience growth and release more compelling iPods using latest technologies so that these maturing users graduate to more fully-featured iPods and do not desert to other manufacturer's media player offerings.
Re:iPod Sacrifices Features, Affordability For Siz (Score:2)
Um equivalently featured? One of the major features of the iPod is the size. Beyond that, I have yet to see any mp3 player that has as elegant a solution to navigation.
They have no digital line-in recording, no mic facility, no FM radio, and no easy way for users to replace or expand the dev
Re:claimed "iPod killer" features, no proof (Score:2)
Most of the world doesn't even KNOW what Ogg-Vorbis is.
I'd suspect that the same can be said of AAC. Outside of the Apple world it's not known. Most people know and use mp3 and/or wma. Not because either of them is better but because that's what they know about and that's what the tools they're w
Take a look at this player (Mambo-X) (Score:3, Informative)
It isn't glorious or beautiful (iPods certainly are cute), but it works really well, is fast, CHEAP, high-capacity, and really light.
And, no, I'm not associated with the company in any way. But if you are already looking at the Neuros, you should be aware that there are products that cost half as much, and have 95% of the features. (The radio thing is neat, but we don't care -- headphones are the only thing that will be plugged into it.)
lame reviews / descriptions (Score:2)
the description on amazon (which the article links directly to) is abhorent.
Will it act as a regular hard drive? (Score:2)
Does anyone know if the Neuros can be used as a regular USB hard drive as well? That is, I plug it in and it appears to my OS as just another drive that I can copy any file to (or from).
Or can I only put music files on it using the proprietary interface/sync program?
This is one of my requirements for any portable device. If I just bought a 20GB portable hard drive, I want to be able to put any damn file I want on it and not have to use a particular program to do it.
Planned Ogg support? (Score:2)
OK, I'm just grouchy because every indication is that all the useful software updates in the new ipods are not going to be ported back to the old versions (i.e. mine!).
Re:Planned Ogg support? (Score:2)
Sure, the new On-The-Fly playlists and the new games weren't, but I'm much happier with the new codec. The fact than even the original 5GB iPod that was released in 2001 now supports the new codec is awesome.
Doesn't meet my minimum specifications (Score:2)
I will buy a portable MP3 player when the following requirements are met:
-The device must have at least 20 gig storage.
-The device must be portable and reasonably small. I'm not talking iPod small, I could care less about that size. This one is a fine size.
-The device must support a FireWire connection. Fsc
WARNING!!! (Score:2, Informative)
Re:These harddrive mp3 players cost too much (Score:4, Funny)
Maybe i'll just buy an mp3 player.
Re:These harddrive mp3 players cost too much (Score:2, Informative)
Re:These harddrive mp3 players cost too much (Score:2)
Re:But... (Score:3, Funny)