#3: Cowon iAudio S9

Cowon has a place in audiophile’s hearts for its pedigree of great sound quality and highly adjustable sound settings. The S9 keeps with this theme but starts to show that Cowon is paying a bit more attention to design and user interface. This starts to become even more apparent in the recent i9. The S9 receives a place on the list right below the P3 because the UI still has some ways to go and it is lacking h.264 support comparatively but still does a better job in terms of sound quality.

The build quality is solid but a little on the light side but housed in this player is a gorgeous AMOLED screen putting it in the same class as the Sony X-Series and the Zune HD. The UI will take some time to wrap your head around but we really like that Cowon deciding to include tactile buttons for volume, track selection, and pause/play.

The S9 is a bit more complex and is more suited for the audio and gadget geek, but that’s why we like it. It is a very functional and very hackable player deserving a place on the list.

Tags: MP3


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