• iAudio COWON S9 [Review]

    iAudio COWON S9 [Review]

    Frazier Barretto, Feb 10, 2009 1843 hrs IST

    The next device after the iPod/iPhone to have a capacitive screen

    Great screen quality, great audio quality, good video playback, classy design, USB 2.0, Bluetooth 2.0 A2DP, good battery life

    No Wi-Fi, touch sensitivity could have been better, minimalist package, a bit expensive

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Performance


Let's look at the performance of the S9 now that we've talked about its esthetics and interface.


 



 


Audio


The audio quality of the COWON S9 is excellent. Coming from the iAudio stable, the audio enhancement offered is JetEffect, and it's pretty good. You need to pair it with a good pair of headphones or earphones, and you'll experience its true sound quality. There are several audio presets; much more than the usual JetEffect set of presets I've seen. You have a total of 28 presets, of which 4 are user customizable presets, 9 JetEffect specialized presets, and 15 standard presets (Rock, Pop, Jazz, Hip-Hop, etc.).

The JetEffect specialized presets will offer even an above-average user a great sound experience, but then you can still go ahead and customize one to your liking. Also, to enjoy the audio quality, you have to own a good pair of head/ear phones; the provided earphones are good, but the experience can become much better with a Creative EP630 or with a headset. The standard earphones crackled if the volume was too high, but with good earphones you can max out the volume and get a clear sound reproduction as well.


 



 


Video


The COWON S9 has good video capability. The player accepts XViD and WMV video codec. Format support isn't much, but it's good enough as most videos end up being encoded with either of the two. The S9 was also put through our video test folder. The player played DiVX (v4 onwards) and XViD, as well as WMV. It didn't manage to play other file formats, but did well with the supported formats.


Video playback on the S9 is brilliant. The screen is excellent with good color reproduction. Movies look really great on the screen and are a pleasure to watch. The sunlight legibility is average and could have been better. Dark movie scenes weren't all that clear even with the brightness set to max; everything else was good. The S9 is great for movie buffs.


FM Tuner


The FM Tuner of the COWON S9 is good. The player has provision for saving 24 channels and took about 15 seconds to scan the entire band. There were a lot of extra channels saved, which I had to delete later, but it scanned and found all FM channels. You also have the option of mono/stereo audio.


Battery Life


The COWON S9 has great battery life. The player has a rechargeable Li-polymer battery chargeable only through USB. The specified time for charging the player completely is 5 hours via USB, which I find to be quite a lot as it does take around the same time to recharge completely. Coming to the discharge; the player has a specified time of 11 hours video and 55 hours of audio playback. The S9 delivered on both fronts. Video playback lasted for over 3 movies with an average runtime of 2 hours each; while for just plain audio playback, the player delivered for a complete week with around 4 hours of playback each day. That is real good battery life.


Price and Conclusion


The iAudio COWON 16GB sells for Rs16,000 with a one year warranty. The pricing of the player is justified for its multimedia capabilities. There are no video conversion hassles and the quality is top-notch. Also, the battery life of this player is good, without a doubt. I enjoyed my experience with the S9. The only catch is the missing Wi-Fi and its capability to offer more entertainment and convergence options, like in an iPod Touch (games, web-browsing, applications etc.). The iPod Touch has really spoilt us with all the extra options, and we tend to expect similar features as a standard package from all players in that price bracket. And to be honest, nothing comes close to beating it yet on the features and interface front, neither does this player. Nevertheless, if you belong to the old school, with your core focus on sound and picture clarity, I promise, you won't be disappointed with the S9 even at 16K.


Editor's choice cowon S9


Test unit sourced from Lipap Systems Pvt Ltd.

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Discussion Board
(10) Comments
ramcharanteja
,hyderabad, on Feb 11, 2010 09:22 PM
this modal is very old so please get the new modal.
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Abhinav
,Ghz, on Nov 28, 2009 12:38 AM
Not a good review at all. Compare the reviews done by forums like anythingbutipod etc.. those are much superior. The S9's touchscreen has improved by leaps and bounds after the firmware releases, and there are some fantastic UCIs (claw's UCI) which make the interface look much more than just "nice". Also, it has no wifi and there is honestly no need for something like that either. Most people do not use it, as it would not be able to support internet browsing and as far as wireless playback is concerned, that can be achieved with bluetooth. I beg the indians to stop thinking that the iPod is the best PMP around. Cowon beats the touch by a !@#$ing mile!
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Anonymous
,Mumbai, on May 11, 2009 12:01 AM
Seriously, the duties and other taxes really beats the price of the same cowon anywhere. Logically thinking, one can even get it cheaper by post from ebay than from the indian distributors. And priced at 19k the indian office is giving an introductory discount of 500 bucks. I would say better not give! The microphone is at the back of the phone for the S9 models. Having it on the sides or on the top surce would have still provided a better sound clarity, but hiding it underneath will only make things worse. It may be a good media player in terms of video, yes but compromises on the sound and audio systems. the plus point which I see in all this is the 55 hour playback time for audio and it is far cheaper than I-pods of the same configuration.
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Anonymous
,Mumbai, on May 07, 2009 03:04 PM
When are we expecting the 32gig model to be launched in India? And what would be the price range for this model?
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rushabh
,bombay, on Feb 18, 2009 10:04 PM
cowon s9-16gb has hit the croma stores!! i got mine for 15,750.......and i lovee this baby...
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Anonymous
,Delhi, on Feb 12, 2009 06:33 PM
Mr Barretto seems to have learned a new word - (a)esthetics, and that too inadequately. Esthetics pertain to looks while ergonomics are what deal with usability and comfort. It would be a good idea to learn both words. It would be an even better idea if small words like looks are used instead of esthetics for better audience outreach.
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xotiq
,blr/denver, on Feb 10, 2009 10:38 PM
PAthetic Review..!! S9 has Bluetooth ver. 2.0 + EDR, hope Mr.Baretto understands the relevance. You mention 4hrs per day for a week as the Battery life??? so thats 28 hours not counting standby time. What is this thing about 'old school'..?? anyone who uses a PMP, does so for sound, picture, clarity, portability and features. Seems like you want to convey something, but end up doing the reverse. FYI....abroad, this unit retails for max $190-200 (Rs.10000). So it really doesnt make sense to pay 16k in India.
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varun
,bombay, on Feb 11, 2009 02:08 PM
Prices in India are official after customs duty, 12.5% VAT etc..I have made this comment over and over again, products imported into India are subjected to customs duty and a 12.5% vat, also 16k is the mrp which includes 12.5% VAT, look out for offers on our official website, croma and other retail outlets to get the best deal..goods purchased from outside India will not be under the official Cowon India warranty policy. We offer you local support etc..if anyone needs any further clarification on the prices please feel free to email us about it.
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Grimrocker
,Bangalore, on Feb 10, 2009 11:30 PM
I believe this particular model also comes with an 8 gb capacity and costs 'bout 11.5ks
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Dinesh
,Chennai, on Feb 11, 2009 11:38 AM
What is the cost of 4GB and 8GB model in chennai ???
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