Home > Consumer Reviews > Cowon iAUDIO M3L - Digital player / recorder / radio - HD 20 GB - WMA, Ogg, MP3 - silver

There's been a lot of talk about this being the first real "iPod killer," but having used the iAudio extensively, I would say that is a bit of an stretch. It is, however, a strong alternative. The M3L has a less elegant but more pragmatic approach to portable music. The aluminum casing can withstand abuse, the display is small but crammed with information, and the buttons are many but functional. Fit and finish is excellent, the main unit is solid and amazingly small. The screen moved to the remote is inspired in my opinion, but it is purely personal preference. I can commute to work with the iAudio safely tucked in a pocket and still be able to control the music. But the tradeoff is the small screen and the reliance on the remote for all functions - without it the iAudio would be almost useless (additional remotes can be purchased).

Navigation is through folders which is a blessing if you've sorted your music collection, and it seamlessly plays M3U playlists, a huge plus if your comfortable with Winamp. The sound is amazing, a bit louder than the iPod and - with the extensive DSP effects - a bit more dynamic. But even directly from an MP3 or Ogg, it renders the sound precisely. The included headphones are decent and fontunately the iAudio can power a big set of heaphones easily. I've pulled 32 hours (!) of use from the M3L before recharging, and I was able to fill the unit's HD in just a few minutes through the USB connection. The FM tuner is clear with good signals but has trouble grabbing weaker ones, and the built-in recording is suprisingly good for voice, radio and line-in. In fact the line-in sounded beautiful, recording at 320kbs MP3 with good range and little static. I'd have no hesitation using the iAudio to snag a recording if I'm far from home.

All in all, it is an incredible player that has distinct style and features very much it's own, a well-kept secret I'm happy to have found. It should also be noted that Cowon's response to users' ideas and complaints has been solid, and they've continued supporting the M3 with firmware upgrades and features.

Highly recommended.

I've had the player for a few months. I was planning on purchasing the ipod, but the poor battery life and the lack of additional features (such as FM radio and in voice recording) steered me away from the product. Instead I opted for the M3L which has a 35 hour battery life on a one time charge (compared to the 12 - really 8 hour battery life of the ipod). I'm not really a high tech person, but in case I ever did become one, I wanted to have the player that had the most features.
The only negative complain I have of the item is it having no screen on the unit itself. It can be a pain using the remote (it's tiny) and the wires really tend to get in the way. To avoid this I create my own playlist ahead of time and scrap the remote. Anyway, for the specs this is good, but for ease of use and portability, other players would probably beat this one out.
Also the sound is AMAZING on this player. If I were you guys I'd wait until next year when Iaudio will release an M3 with a screen on the main unit. I really should've waited for that. Anyway, hope my review helps!

The iAudio really out did everyone with this mp3 player. It's small, compact, and lightweight. It weights practically nothing. There are a gazillion features this wonderful mechine has, including a FM tuner, a Voice Recording and a line-in recording. This is useful because if you want to hear something new instead of your music you can listen to the radio, and it is easy to even record the music from the radio to the mp3 player if you like the song. Have a memo and no pen? just record what you have to say in hifi quality on your mp3 player, and it takes about three seconds. The Line In is wonderful because you cant record a friends song to your mp3 player from there mp3 or cd player at an equal quality on the go. Plus you can record it at plenty of bitrates and it is all mp3 format, so compatibility is no issue.

But now with the actural playing. The player hase a wonderful array of features to make the music sound beautiful! It has BBE for high definition sound and MACH3BASS for wonderful clarity on lower notes. It has 3D surround sound on it as well that up-mixes the music to a mock surround sound, and it does feel like it is surrounding you. And the most wonderful thing is that it has a mp3 enhance to help bring out some of the music from compression. These things make the sound feel like it it coming from th e studio as you are listening. Litterally everything with the mp3 player is customizable, and very efficient. With the long 15 hour batter life, which i got over 20 hours out of, is marvelous, and hardly any other player out there has such amazing features like this.

The External screen is sweet. It may be small, but it has all the information on it and with the controls on it which I find very easy to use. You can't go wrong. There IS a learning curve to the thing, but it is about only ten to fifteen minutes. I clip it to the inside fo my jacket and leave the main unit in my pocket, so I don't risk breaking it and if you break the screen all it costs is 20 dollars, instead of like $90 that Apple charged me for my iPod. Yes I had an iPod, and this is simply better, not counting the fact that they are the same price. But comparing this to the iPod is an insult to the M3, so i won't do it. Go with the iAudio, and I guarantee you wont regret it. Firmware updates come very often from cowon, and keep the player at a marvelous condition for a long time.

This is probably the best consumer electronic item I've ever purchased. Essentially all of the best features of the iPod and iRiver are incorporated into the iAudio.