previously no complain on my part...after having it for about a month plus now i do

firstly, my fm radio just went dead few days ago, previously not using this function usually but tried yesterday, couldnt work...it hang the whole player (when you tried autoscan or scan down etc), it got sound for first 1 sec then its muted when the bar for the radio and mono turns up(not due to the radio frequency as i could hear the radio station for 1 sec and the bar reads full or 1, then when you tried switching presets it will just give you no sound at all) ..well need to go warranty. Another thing is i tried uploading some mtv on to it, some says required to be convert, but after i convert and uploaded it, one gave me a black screen with no option to play, one totally hang my player.

btw mine comes with already presetted firmware version 1.30.02

you will get used to the touch strip after awhile

-edit-
it seems alot of ppl having these issues with radio as well...mine died after 2-3 weeks after the last usage for the radio function(previously was working flawlessly,didnt do anything with firmware or anything) ..try searching for radio problems in creative forums..will see tons of it..all diff thread..in my case..should be firmware bug cos its still working until the status bar and the mono thingy turns up in 1 sec...no point going for warranty yet..as some ppl still having the issues of radio going dead after few months despite changing to new units(got one guy change 5 times and the radio still went dead after a period of time)
http://forums.creative.com/creativelabs/bo...scending&page=1

This post has been edited by khtan2000: Jun 8 2006, 11:40 AM

lol..i did everything to recover but still cant including reflashing the firmware...feel there's some bug or some failure as the radio still works...until 1 sec later when the status bar and the mono word turn on (then no matter whats the status bar is 1-3 or anything, no sound will come out again)..dont know what happen as previously the radio function still works...tried yesterday to see whats on radio when i discovered this problem. probably i just wait awhile (until end of this month i hope)to see any new firmware available as i dont see any point of doing rma when the problem recurring after few weeks/months apart from getting new player(from what i see in creative forum)

yup, you are right..using the creative bundled software..but now im using other converter to convert...faster than creative's ones.

i feel the ep480 is too big for my ears...sound wise its good but sadly not comfortable. use only one time before getting myself the ep630 instead...just for ear comfort, regarding the bass and stuff...feel like average only

just got a reply from one of the forumer in creative forum...guess my bad luck then or good luck ..can constantly change new player every month until i get the good working ones or ..until the shop throws me out ..guess will go rma soon(1 more day to a month for my purchase)

my review on the player: navigating through the menu using the touch strip sure takes some effort(or patience)..sometimes tend to overshoot what you select or select the wrong thing. Another thing is only max of 16gB can be allocate to become your removable disc storage drive. Cant set more than that and also to use the drive, first need to go select the player as a drive before connecting it to usb, else the comp wont recognise it as a removable drive. Playing mp3 on this player is a hassle IMHO as somehow im not used to its play function, need to use playlist, if not your music will be jumble up together regardless of folder in one list(or you need to fill in every music file details, like author, genre etc in order to use the play mode option effectively)-also the album art not displayed correctly, if one album art is available for one song and you copy all the songs in that specific folder, the player assumes the album art is for all songs(imagine like having some album art for all the songs in the folder regardless of what author is it). Foremost, for video there is no playlist, finish one video, you need to select another one manually (probably this will be fixed in upcoming firmware update). another thing is the four buttons (back,next, menu, play ) is kinda hard to press due to the design

On the other hand, quite alot of video format is supported, quite alot of function(black light intensity,radio, mic etc). Sound output is quite satisfactory with adjustable EQ.
well, for me, im still satisfied with the creative product apart from the radio function failure

eh, johnliew...is it true the usb charging could kill the battery ? i have been charging my player via usb almost everytime, while using as a external storage disc and uploading songs..

probably now cannot as i heard the firmware currently(although the same number as mine) its different from my original which can charge from any usb connection, the current firmware only allows computer with creative software installed to charge via usb(this is what i heard, not yet tested), also the current one now enables me to use my player while still connected to the usb cable(when no reading or uploading)

check out the new firmware ...just released

-edit-
still not working...radio is still the same..hang whole player. Well generally i dont use the radio much but after awhile kinda get bored with the songs loaded in the player...so can use the radio to listen to fresh music.

new firmware opinion : well cant see much changes, didnt use audible software, also now...once usb connected to my player, its always in sync mode now like original (dont know why i flash the 1.30.02 version, i can use the player like normal although plugin to usb, except it will auto stop and goes into sync mode only when my computer request data or transfer data to the player)

This post has been edited by khtan2000: Jun 9 2006, 06:35 PM

just return my player to the place i bought it(need to send it to supplier and see what they can do to repair).unfortunately there is no 1-1 exchange..probably because its a month old player already. Hopefully they repair the player permanently and not give me another player which have a percentage of failure(hate returning it all the time)

just a caution : always keep your receipt as a proof of purchase in case of anything (creative will only handle warranty if there is a proof of purchase-thats what on the creative website and technical support says, luckily i kept mine), online registration will only give you technical support and product announcement.

i use total video converter to convert those files that's not supported by the player and it's faster than creative video converter (sometimes i get that message too, file not supported for conversion etc). However got some issues with the timelength of the video, my player keeps reading like 1-4 hours long whereas the actual playback time is only 4-6 mins, probably some settings i need to adjust somewhere, video works fine..just that dont like seeing my video timelength like in few hours long(auto stop when the video finish playing,not depending on the time shown on screen though).