Reviews of Rio MP3 Player Top Picks. Compare the best Rio MP3 Players. Scroll down for comparisons of portable media players and digital recorders. Join CleverJoe's clever newsletter and he'll let you know when new articles are posted.

 
#1 Rio MP3 Player Top Pick

Rio Carbon 5 GB MP3 Player
One of Rio's best selling mp3 players, the Rio Carbon offers 5 GB of storage capacity which, for those of you counting, holds up to 2500 songs, or for those of you not sleeping, 80 hours of continuous MP3 music. You can double this to 160 hours with WMA. The battery is rechargeable and lasts up to 20 hours on a single charge. The rechargeable battery does tend to wear down after a while. One thing to note is the Rio Carbon mp3 player's body, flashy good-looking as it is, it can get scratched if you're not careful (much like CleverJoe and his cat). USB 2.0 for fast downloads, and a built-in condenser microphone is included for digital voice recording. This is an ultra lightweight, sleek looking mp3 player that is extremely easy to use. The Rio Carbon seems to live up to the kingdaddy success it's enjoyed as one of the most popular mp3 players on the market.

 
#2 Rio MP3 Player Top Pick

Rio Carbon Pearl 6 GB MP3 Player
Store up to 96 hours of mp3 music, or 192 of WMA music on the 6 GB Rio Pear mp3 player. Includes a built-in microphone, USB 2.0 for fast and easy drag and dropping your music. The bundled Music Manager software will help you organize your tunes. About the size of a credit card, this tiny MP3 player sounds great and is another top pick.

 
#3 Rio MP3 Player Top Pick

Rio Cali 256 MB Sport MP3 Player
If you're looking for durability, the Rio Cali Sport MP3 Player is a sure bet. Built with a rugged, rubberized protective body, this is a great choice for athletes, students and people on the go. The onboard 256 MB of memory provides over 4 hours of skip-free MP3 or 8 hours of WMA music. Upgrading to more storage is easy with the expansion slot providing up to 512 MB of additional memory. There is also a built-in FM tuner. One AAA battery can provide up to 18-hours of continuous playback. Compatible with computers with USB 1.1 ports running Windows 98 SE, 2000, ME, XP, Mac OS X. The Cali Sport MP3 player is one of Rio's most popular sellers. It's a very good value, rugged mp3 player that won't break the bank and is easy to upgrade.

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#4 Rio MP3 Player Top Pick

Rio Forge 512 MB Sport MP3 Player
Rio's Forge Sport Player is another good choice if you're looking for something that isn't going to break the first time you drop it (and you know you -will- drop your mp3 player sooner or later!). It has grippy, protective rubber and a protective stainless steel face for extra protection, and overall the Rio Forge has a very well built body (as does CleverJoe himself, in his own mind). The Rio Forge Sport player provides up to 16 hours of continuous digital music, and you can upgrade to 1 GB whenever you feel like it. An extra bonus is the stopwatch, included as a nod to the many athletes who buy this mp3 player. The Rio Forge mp3 player is another top pick, it's skip free durability and sound price gets three hearty thumbs up!

 
#5 Rio MP3 Player Top Pick

Rio Nitrus 1.5 GB MP3 Jukebox
The Rio Nitrus mp3 player is a good choice if you're looking for an above average, quality media player with a good chunk of storage. Over 25 hours of MP3 music or 50 hours of WMA music can be stored on the Nitrus. USB 2.0 for fast transfers, and content can also be transferred between multiple PCs. Up to 16-hours of continuous playback with the rechargeable LiIon battery. The EQ is usually quite good in Rio mp3 players, and the 5-Band adjustable equalizer in the Rio Nitrus is no exception, with a very nice selection of EQ pre-sets. The Nitrus is another good choice if you're looking for sound quality and decent storage. Easy to use and stylish to boot, the Rio Nitrus gets a solid nod.

 
#6 Rio MP3 Player Top Pick

Rio Chiba 256 MB MP3 Player
This is one of Rio's least expensive mp3 players, but is also a best selling Rio mp3 player. Let's face it, many of us only need a few hours of music to keep us going, and we don't want to spend big bucks on big storage. The Rio Chiba's 256 MB of memory plays back over 4 hours of MP3 or 8 hours of WMA music. Secure Digital card/MMC expansion slot provides up to 512 MB of additional memory. The Rio Chiba sports a built-in FM Tuner, with 18-hour continuous playback using one AAA battery.

More MP3 Players here...

From a digital audio perspective, today's MP3 players have reached a level of sophistication that would make CleverJoe's mama proud. Many MP3 players include decent built in equalizers and excellent digital audio converters that will convert your fave CD to MP3 format. Although this is still compressed audio and audiophiles among us will point out that it's not going to replace professional DAT recorders anytime soon, the big bonus here is that a large amount of digital audio can be stored on a small and portable MP3 player. With no moving parts, MP3 players are well-known for delivering skip-free music, and music on the go is obviously the big theme here.

MP3 players and MP3 music, like everything else technology related, are in constant flux. Recognizing that, most of today's best MP3 players now ship with re-programmable firmware that will enable support of new digital audio formats and software extensions as they emerge. Yes, clever music lovers everywhere can have their cake and eat it too.

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