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iPod Alternatives: Page 3 of 14

If you're not in the mood for your songs, the S10 also offers an FM tuner. And if you really like the station, the player also supports presets so you won't have to scan your way through the FM band again. However, small often means reception problems -- if you decide to put it in your pocket, the crackling of the radio will become an annoyance in no time.

Product Info
iRiver S10

iriver

www.iriver.com


Price: $170 (2GB)

Although the S10 is the best iPod Shuffle alternative, it doesn't quite compare to its main competitor. The S10 will play Ogg, WMA, MP3 and ASF files, but does not support DRM-protected music, so if you want to dump some songs you purchased off of a music store onto the player, you will need to burn them to a disc, and rip them back onto your computer in MP3. Additionally, the S10 does not offer the same seamless experience as the iPod, and I sometimes found it frustrating to sync the player through its headphone jack (there is no USB connectivity). Even worse, if you are a Mac owner, you might as well move along -- the S10 does not support Mac OS X.

All in all, the iRiver S10 is a fine player that offers better sound quality than the iPod Shuffle, but still can't match the end-to-end functionality of its main competitor. And for what the player offers, nothing can justify the steep price: $170 for 2GB.