Intro

If there is one thing I have an addiction for, it is electronic gadgets...... especially when they play music. I am therefore thrilled to be doing my first review for PimpRig on just such a device. Up for review today is the Ultra 4 in 1 USB 1.1 128MB Drive / MP3 Player from Ultra Products. I was initially expecting a different model that didn't include as many features so I was pleasantly surprised to receive Ultra's flagship flash/mp3 combo. This is especially nice as it shows that Ultra Products listens to it's customers. Every concern that I could foresee having with the older model seems to have been addressed with the release of this model. Let's see how it stacks up, shall we?

Package

UPS delivered the package in a semi-plain brown box with only a hint at what is inside. Inside the box the clamshell containing the product was kept from shifting with an air bag rather than the standard foam peanuts. There was no damage on my package or product but I know some delivery people can get a bit over-zealous so this may want to be taken into consideration in the future.

The unit packaging itself was the standard clamshell which included a punchout at the top which leads me to believe that Ultra offers or has plans to offer this in retail stores as well as through online storefronts. You can check Ultra's website for available retailers.

After taking all the contents out of the clamshell, you will notice all of the components included with the device itself. The earphone/neckstrap combo, driver mini-CD (only needed for Windows 98 for USB drivers), a USB extension cable, and the user manual. A single AAA battery to power the unit is also included for your convenience. I am not sure whether I like the neckstrap/earbud combo or not as I am also a DJ that likes comfortable headphones, but I can understand the desire to keep this product a compact unit.

The Unit

Upon taking the unit out of the packaging, the first thing that jumps out at me is that the device looks to be made sturdily and has a very comfortable and non-slip rubberized coating for improved grip. I surmise from this that customers who lead an active lifestyle such as joggers were kept in mind during the design process. For this purpose, it would be nice to have an included clip to attach to your belt or an armband for joggers but is not necessary for most casual users.

If I had to nitpick the design, I think there is only one minor flaw that I personally found "uncomfortable" and that is the location of the volume buttons in relation to the lock button. When changing the volume, the natural handgrip would put fingers over the lock button at the same time. It would appear that Ultra kept this in mind also, as the lock button does need to be held for 3 seconds to activate so this is merely an aesthetic complaint more than anything else.

Here are some closeups of the unit itself:

The first closeup below shows the volume buttons located on top if viewed facing the LCD, the second is of the lock button and headphone jack on bottom, and the third is of the memory card slot.

Now as the title mentions, this is a 4-in-1 unit so let's find out what this thing is capable of.

MP3 Player // The main draw (for me, at least) is the mp3 player portion. Obviously there are included Play, Stop, Forward and Rewind buttons (yes, holding down on the Forward or Rewind buttons serves for rewind/fast forward funtion as opposed to track selection), but also included is a 5-mode EQ preset button. The modes are normal (no EQ and also the default), Classic, Rock, Jazz, and Pop. Personally I choose to use the Rock preset for most music I have listened to so far which has included Classic Rock, Blues, Jazz, Classical, Hip-Hop, Electronic, New Age, and even a yodeling track by Jewel. There is also an A-B repeat mode which can be handy for me, but most consumers will never use..... nice touch though. Mp3s can be stored either on the built-in flash drive, or on a media card as explained below in the third function.

Flash Drive // The second funtion of this unit as the built-in 128MB USB 1.1 flash drive. Not much explanation is needed here so I won't go into detail, just suffice it to say that it serves as a super-portable 128MB hard drive, much more portable (and way cooler) than a zip disk. Just hook it up to your available USB port and 2 drives will show up in Explorer. I am running Windows XP Pro so if you are not your mileage may vary here but it should work the same.

Card Reader // You may have asked yourself, "Why does 2 drives show up in Explorer as opposed to only 1 drive?" This brings me to the third function of this unit, the SD/MMC memory card reader. The first drive displayed is the internal flash drive but the second is the capacity of a memory card if you have one inserted. I would like to include a picture with the memory card in the device but I only have one card and that needs to be in the camera, my concern is that the memory card hangs out of the slot about 3/8 to 1/2 of an inch. If this product is ever redesigned, I would recommend adding a cover for the memory card slot just as a precaution to prevent possible damage to the memory card.

Voice Recorder // The fourth and final function of this unit is a built-in voice recorder which records in .wav format so your reminders are only limited by the capacity of the flash drive and installed memory cards. This can come in REAL handy if you tend to be forgetful like I am.