If you value a workweek’s worth of listening from a single AA battery, then iRiver’s iFP-890 (256MB) should definitely be on your short list. This flash-based player has excellent audio quality, a laundry list of features, and an amazing 40-hour battery life. However, if listening to FM radio, recording memos, or moving files between random systems are important to you, then you should probably keep shopping. While the iFP-890 is hardly massive at 3.48 by 1.4 by 1.07 inches, it’s still on the bulky side for a wearable flash player. And wearable it must be: Stuffed inside the iFP-890’s blister we found a neck cord, a silver plastic snap-on cover that acts as a belt loop (for very narrow belts), and a bulky, black clip-on Sport Band. We found the Sport Band terribly unsporty when we strapped it on; the combination puts the weight of the MP3 player out far enough from your arm that it flaps with every movement. You’re better off sliding the iFP-890 onto a belt or into a pocket.

Iriver iFP-890 UMS firmware 1.28

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