Ibiza Rhapsody MP3 Player
Review by Robert Young-Pullman | Published April 2008 | Review Archives

It's amazing: how many years ago was the iPod released? And how long did it take to clone it? And how sad is it that competitors are still making products that look just like the standard-issue iPod, throwing a bunch of features in the box while still not getting at the device's soul?

Yes, your iPod has a soul (damn you to Hades if you disagree with me). It's why you fell in love with what was basically a Sony Walkman with a very very long cassette tape inside in the first place. It's why you call all MP3 players "iPods" rather than the silly names like "Zune" that companies come up with for their clones.

The Ibiza Rhapsody has nothing to do with Spanish party island Ibiza, and very little to do with online music service Rhapsody it's supposedly cross-promoted with. It bills itself as an even better iPod than your real iPod and in some ways, it is: it looks about the same, weighs about the same, plays music the same way and does a whole lot of other things that most of Apple's iPods can't. For instance, it has Wi-Fi and stereo Bluetooth capabilities, meaning that it can sit as the brain of a home entertainment center. It can also update podcasts using Wi-Fi, meaning that you don't have to plug it into a computer to get the latest episode of your favorite podcasts. It also has an (incredibly limited) Web browser - good enough to check your email, but a pain in the butt to check out anything else. This is comical considering that this uses the Rhapsody name after the rhapsody.com online music service.

This is all awesome, except for the fact that while it's better than an iPod out on the streets today, it's probably not going to be better than the next generation of iPods released later this year. Also, it only works with Windows - a safe, but stupid, bet and thumb-in-the-eye at Apple. And for all of that Wi-Fi flashiness, the Ibiza Rhapsody is a dinosaur when it comes to EQ options. That means that while it can be the brain of your home entertainment system, it's a pretty dumb one.