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(More customer reviews)Speedo Aquabeat Waterproof MP3 Player
I was, at one time, a competative sprinter, now train purely for health benefits...I swim laps in a 25 yard pool now (2-2.5 miles a day/5 days a week). I was just looking for a simple H2O proof MP3 player that was reliable and easy to use. I don't require outstanding sound quality or a bunch of bells and whistles from an MP3 player. After doing A LOT of research and reading all the reviews on all the available waterproof MP3 players out there I settled on the speedo aqua beat and ordered it from Amazon.com, here's my analysis of the product...
THE PLAYER - small, lightweight with easy to use controls and fits on most goggle straps. I swim with swedish goggs and the straps are a bit thin. This makes mounting the goggles on the back of your head kind of tricky because if you don't get it just right, the player has a tendency to pop off when pushing off the wall or doing a flip turn (VERY ANNOYING)...the drag is negligable from the device while swimming along, but with any kind of a strong push off the wall, it almost always slides down to the base of the back of your head even with VERY tight goggle straps (also VERY ANNOYING)...recommend using goggles with a wide strap if you're going to use this product. Of note, the internal, computer OSB rechargeable battery is a nice feature and the player can be used with other sets of headphone as a "dry land" MP3 as well.
THE SOFTWARE - easy to use, music can be easily drag-and-dropped into the "removable" hard drive that pops up on your computer...Note - you have to plug the player up to your computer's OSB port and allow it to charge 1 full time before you can load music to it (takes about 2 hours to charge) and the single LED on the player will turn from amber to green when it's fully charged. I was over-zealous and tried to load music on to the player within the first half hour of the first charge with no luck.
THE EARPHONES - These were the biggest let down in the whole package...they do come with 3 different sizes of triple flange rubber ear pieces, and while I have what I assume to be average size ears/ear canals, I could never really achieve a proper seal with any of the three sizes of plugs. These headphones REQUIRE a water tight seal to work properly...and even when you do get that seal, the minute you start swimming and turning your head to breath, the movement of your head or while streamlining off the wall makes the seal change and therefore VERY susceptable to water entry...BOTTOM line, they just don't fit well...ultimately your ear canal fills with water and the sound is no longer audible. This requires constant "fiddling" with the ear pieces after each lap and severly detracts from your workout. Also, in order to get a good seal the ear pieces need to fit very tightly, this causes ear canal pain over time...not being a wimp on this one, I can certainly hack the pain... and would have gladly accepted that as part of the deal if that were the only issue with the earphones! Additionally, after 1 use, my headphones developed a short in one of the wires to one side of the earphones...I'm not holding this against the product in my "number of stars" review as it may have only been a one time incident with my particular Aquabeat...but be aware that the wires from the player to the headphones are VERY thin and appear to be quite susceptible to fatigue/failure or shorting out after only a few uses. ALL in ALL this was a DISAPPOINTING PRODUCT, especially for how much it costs...I've elected to return the player to Amazon based on the defective short in the headphones. By the way, Amazon is great with their return policy and it's quite easy to do with a few clicks online. I've decided on trying the "bone conduction system" of the Fini-swiMP3-V2, and will order that from Amazon when my aquabeat is refunded.
In short, I would not recommend wasting your time and money on the Speedo Aquabeat MP3 player.
I'll write a Fini-SwiMP3 review in a couple weeks when I've had the chance to fully test that one out!
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Want to listen to your favorite music while swimming laps? Turn to the Speedo Aquabeat MP3 player, which is outfitted with a waterproof housing that's safe at depths of up to 3 meters. The Aquabeat--which includes ergonomic, easy-to-navigate buttons and multiple sizes of ear buds for a comfortable, custom fit--holds up to 1 GB of music, enough for 250 MP3 or 500 WMA files. The device's playlist editing software, meanwhile, makes it easy to sort songs and add new files. Best of all, the chassis attaches easily to swimsuits, goggles, board shorts, bikinis, wetsuits, and just about anything else. Other details include a short earphone cord for easy wear, a USB cord for charging through a PC or laptop, and a playtime of up to nine hours per charge. The Aquabeat, which weighs only 35 grams, carries a one-year warranty.
About Speedo In 1914, Speedo was founded in Australia by Alexander MacRae, a 22-year-old Scottish immigrant who arrived in the country in 1910. The company began when MacRae Hosiery manufacturers, established by Alexander in 1914, extended the manufacture of underwear to swimwear and became MacRae Knitting Mills. A naming competition was held by the staff in 1928 and won by a Captain Parsonson, who coined the slogan, "Speed on in your Speedos." In 1929, the first swimsuits were in production and it didn’t take long for Speedo to successfully establish itself. World War II caused the brand turn over 90% of it’s manufacturing to war production, providing the armed services with vital equipment such as mosquito nets. After the war, Speedo opened a new factory and was able to re-establish itself, due to increased demand for swimsuits. In 1951, Speedo Knitting Mills (Holdings) Ltd, was incorporated and became a publicly traded company on the Sydney Stock exchange.
Speedo hit the international stage in earnest, at the 1956 Melbourne Olympic Games, and a few years later the brand grew on a more global scale. Export sales to the USA began and an international division was set up to monitor trade in New Zealand, Japan and South Africa. The expansion of the brand continued, and in 1976, Speedo was appointed as the official swimwear for the 1976 Montreal Olympics, where 52 out of 54 countries wore their swimsuits.
Speedo continues to make its mark in the pool and on the beach today. Many world class athletes who wear Speedo include U.S. phenomenon Michael Phelps, legendary Australian swimmer Grant Hackett, world record holder Kosuke Kitajima from Japan, and Holland’s Inge de Bruijn.
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