Get a rush playing your favorite tunes as MP3 files
By Vishnu K. Mahmud
JAKARTA (JP): There was a crowd of people at Gatot's desk and that could only mean one of two things: there were either free goodies to eat or Gatot had just bought a new toy. Unfortunately for my hungry stomach, his Philips Rush MP3 player was not edible.
MP3 players have come a long way since they were first introduced in 1998. When the Diamond Rio PMP300 player was launched, few people apart from the techies and geeks even knew what a Motion Picture Expert Group, Audio Layer 3 (MP3) was. Two years, one Napster and a few dozen lawsuits later, everyone knows that MP3 is a standard to compress audio files into near CD- quality sound for ease of transfer over the Internet.
I chose the Minidisc over MP3 players back then. Although the Rio was priced at US$199 at the time, the built-in 32 megabytes of memory were enough for only 11 songs (roughly 38 minutes of music). Memory module prices were quite high and you needed a computer to add or delete music. Compare that to Minidisc cartridges at $2 a pop for 74 minutes of music, thus allowing the user to swap music as easy as loading a Walkman.
The Phillips Rush, on the other hand, may change my mind about MP3 players. At 8cm by 8cm by 1.8 cm, the Rush is the smallest music gadget I have ever seen. It also weighs a minute 50 grams, making it perfect to fit in your shirt pocket. Since MP3 players have no moving parts (CD and Minidisc players do), it provides uninterrupted music playback -- useful for those bone-jarring potholes in Jakarta.
The Rush uses SmartMedia memory modules that are smaller and lighter compared to the pricier Compact Flash cards. It comes with a 64 megabyte SmartMedia card that can be used immediately as the Rush does not have any built-in memory. You can transfer music using either a USB or parallel port as both transfer data faster then the antiquated serial port.
Using the bundled RealJukeBox software from RealNetworks, we easily ripped a few songs off my favorite Vengaboys CD, converted them to an MP3 file and loaded them on the Rush. Using the parallel port cable, we managed to upload 10 songs in less than three minutes. File transfer using the USB cable should be even faster.
The Rush's sound is near CD-quality but it again depends on your source. If you upload a song that was encoded/recorded at 96 bits (instead of the regular 128 bits), do not expect stereo surround sound. The Rush can accept songs encoded at up to 512 bits, which is the closest quality to a CD as you can get. It also takes much more memory.
My only beef about the Rush is the power source. It uses regular AA batteries instead of rechargeable ones. Although it does offer 12 hours of nonstop music, I prefer to utilize a reusable source of energy instead of going to the warung for another set of batteries. In addition, there is no remote control attached to the earphone cord for easy access to your music. You would have to use the buttons on the unit if you wish to bookmark a song or skip to the next title.
Sugeng Rijanto, Philips Audio Product Manager, said the Rush was also prepared to handle Secure Digital Music Initiative (SDMI) technology when that standard is implemented. SDMI was created by record labels in response to the large number of MP3 files exchanged freely -- with no fee to copyright holders -- over the Internet. This new specification essentially blocks portable MP3 players from accepting illegally created music files. However, SDMI is still a long way from being widely accepted and there has recently been some concerns on how hacker- proof the initiative really is.
The Rush retails for about Rp 2.5 million and is available at Audio Plaza and Agis Electronic Superstores scattered around Jakarta. As for the music, you can easily convert your CD (or tape) collection to MP3s. You can also obtain music from MP3.com or Napster (while the site is still legally up). With it's diminutive size, shockproof music and cool shape, the Philips Rush can easily be an ideal stocking stuffer for Christmas. Now if only I could get Santa to get me one.
You can check out www.rush.philips.com for more information. (vmahmud@yahoo.com)