mobiBLU DAH-1900 (2GB) review

Because the DAH-1900 won't allow contiguous playback of any tracks outside the current folder, you'll be tempted to dump your entire music collection into the root directory. While this overcomes the problem of not being able to randomise playback of songs organised in folders, it does mean the length of your playlist becomes unwieldy. If you have the patience to scroll down to the end of the average MP3 collection using the interface mobiBLU has designed, you have the patience of a monk. For most this is too frustrating to contemplate.

For voice recordings, you can use the DAH-1900's built-in microphone, or an external microphone using the bundled USB to male 3.5mm jack. The bundled cable is perfect for recordings direct from a line-out source, like a CD player. But if you want to plug most small microphones into the player you'll need to buy a cheap male to female 3.5mm adaptor. This will let you plug the male end of the microphone lead to the male end of the USB-to-3.5mm cable.

Radio fans can listen to FM broadcasts on the built-in tuner. Reception is constantly monitored by a series of bars that indicate the strength of the current station in a similar way to the bars on a mobile phone. Mesmerising though this graphic is, there's a rather more simple way to tell how strong the current reception is, and that's by listening to it -- something you're probably doing already when in radio mode.

Supernatural battery life aside, the most interesting feature of the DAH-1900 is its timed record function. This lets you schedule recordings in advance. The player will either record from the built-in radio, or from the line in via the bundled USB cable. This makes it perfect for espionage. Set the player up in a discreet location and time it to record when the subjects of your surveillance are likely to be present.

Performance
We auditioned Breathe by The Prodigy on the mobiBLU DAH-1900 and then compared it to the same track on our reference system using flat-response headphones.

The track begins with a low-fi drum beat, and the DAH-1900 managed this 5-second intro well enough. But when we expected the bass end to come crashing in, as it does on our reference system, the DAH-1900 fell dismally flat.

The low-end sounded muddied -- there was none of the frenzied clout of the original MP3 -- the mid-range lacked definition and, strangest of all, the separation between instruments had been completely lost. Headphones usually over-emphasise the positions of instruments in the mix, because there's no chance for the sound to mix in a room. However, something very odd happens with this player. The left and right channels almost sound like they've merged.

Auditioning the Beach Boys' Good Vibrations couldn't have been more ironic. The DAH-1900 delivered a passable effort, but most of the fidelity of the original recording had evaporated. It's difficult to understand how mobiBLU got this one so wrong. The Cube wasn't nearly so disappointing to listen to.

Podcast lovers may be prepared to tolerate the low quality of the DAH-1900, simply because the battery life on this player is so incredible. For them, poor fidelity may not be a deal-breaker. However, mobiBLU has made some serious compromises to extend the battery life of this player.

Edited by Mary Lojkine
Additional editing by Nick Hide