Olympus WS-331M Digital Voice Recorder and WMA Music Player

Olympus WS-331M Digital Voice Recorder and WMA Music Player Review

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I hadn't used this recorder consistently since I bought it over 6 months ago and being as how the semester was going to be difficult taking Calculus III and University Physics II, I decided to break out my very much unused 0 piece of equipment for the Fall semester. br /br /It's been a very solid recorder for recording my class lectures so far. I'll throw a few disclaimers out there though before I start the review for the recorder for my school lectures. My classes are about 30-40 people as I'm at a community college so there's not a huge auditorium to compete against or 200 other talking people. I also don't sit as close to the teacher as the first row. I'm usually in the 2nd or 3rd row back out of 4-5 rows. Those two things being said, the recording is amazing even if you don't real real close to the teacher. I do have to turn up the volume on my speakers when I download the recordings via USB, but that's about the only thing that I have to do to hear my lectures well when I'm reading over my notes again. br /br /The features are pretty standard I suppose. This is my first time owning a recorder like this with no tapes and a 2 GB usb storage mechanism. The one thing I really love about it is that it's EXTREMELY light weight and compact. The pictures on here almost don't do it justice as to the portability of this device and for a college student looking to not be loaded down with 80 pounds of books and other items, it's a huge plus for me. Battery life is about a good solid 8-10 hours depending on which setting you use. It is best to use rechargable batteries for this kind of thing though since two 3 hour lectures in one day on the high quality settings can tend to run down the battery by the end of the day (although it always makes it through both of my classes with a few hours to spare). br /br /I haven't bought any others like this except for an old micro-tape recorder that my dad used to have, but from my experience with this recorder alone, I won't be purchasing anything else until this sucker finally plays out on me! (fingers crossed) :)br /br /-Travis

Olympus WS-331M Digital Voice Recorder and WMA Music Player Feature

• Robust and versatile digital voice recorder/MP3 player with USB PC link
• 555 hours available recording time; 2 GB internal memory
• Store and listen to up to 500 songs for entertainment on the go
• Speedy USB 2.0 connectivity
• 21-hour battery life

Stay organized and on the move with the Olympus WAS-331M Digital Voice Recorder and WMA Music Player, a high-quality digital voice recorder and powerful music player. Record meetings or notes and even store large documents to bring from one computer to another. For added convenience, the device features a speedy USB connection for easy file transfers with a PC. The its speedy USB 2.0 connection, just plug the WAS-331M into an open USB port and start transferring files. Up to 500 songs can be stored and played in impressive stereo sound with track and artist name clearly displayed on the WAS-331M's easy to read LCD screen.p The WAS-331M has the ability to play recordings in fast and slow playback modes, up to 50-percent faster or 50-percent slower than real time. The unit records files in the WMA (Windows Media Audio) format, and its 2 GB of flash memory is able to capture audio recordings in the following modes: stereo XQ mode (35 hours 30 minutes), stereo HQ mode (71 hours), stereo SP mode (142 hours 5 minutes), HQ mode (142 hours 5 minutes), SP mode (279 hours 35 minutes), and LP mode (555 hours 45 minutes). Other great features include voice activated recording, and a built-in 18 mm round dynamic speaker. The device runs on one AAA battery and offers up to 21 hours of continuous battery life. Compatible with Microsoft Windows 2000 and later operating systems (including Vista), the WAS-331M measures 3.73 x 1.52 x 0.43 inches and weighs just 1.66 ounces.pbWhat's in the Box/bbr WS-331M digital voice recorder, USB cable, stereo earphones, one AAA alkaline battery, and instruction manual. Stay organized and on the move with this high-class storage device and powerful music player. Record meetings or notes and even store large documents to bring from one computer to another. The easy USB input lets you plug the WS-331M right into the computer for fast results. And up to 500 songs can be stored and played in impressive stereo sound with track and artist name clearly displayed on the LCD.

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Customer Reviews

Great, until it dies prematurely, no mp3 option - Joe the Pro - Beverly Hills, Ca United States
The worse technical aspect of this device is that it only records in wma (or Windows Media Audio format). MP3 is the standard and users should have that option even if the manufacturer prefers another format. It also suffers from a reliability problem as well.br /br /We enjoyed the ease of use so much that we bought about 5 of them for our reporters, various WS3xx models. While they functioned well for about a year, all of them after about a year started having issues with corrupting audio files. We tried lots of things to fix them, reformatting, etc. but the problems persisted. It would record fine, but then you couldn't transfer the file off of the device, nor could you play it back completely. After losing a couple of irreplaceable interviews, we finally had to purchase another brand. Of course none of them are covered under warranty, so this seems like typical planned failure by manufacturers, which is why I can't recommend this device to anyone who cares about a device that has longevity and security of your audio files in mind.br /br /I suggest purchasing another brand, although be careful with Sony, as some of their products require you to install software to access the audio, and the software is only compatible with certain operating systems, not mac-friendly, nor 64-bit friendly.br /br /We now use the Zoom H4n, which blows them all away in every way, except its price and size. But you get what you pay for. Good luck.

Great buy! - AgaSki -
This is great, very clear sound and very easy to use!br /br /Love it.


May 03, 2010 06:08:12