I wrote emails to three different addresses at iRiver and hung on their 1-800 number until my ear went numb, and nothing. No email response, no person to talk to. I was pissed.

The next morning at 9 AM the UPS guy is at the front door – a replacement unit from iRiver, shipped Next-Day Air, with a pre-paid return Next-Day Air shipping label inside the box.

Still no email response, but in light of the fact that they’d rather make good immediately than discuss it at all is pretty impressive.

BTW, this is a $129 unit – with two Next-Day Air shipping charges they can’t be making too much money on this sale. But they certainly have earned a loyal customer.

I believe I'll add that company name to my Rolodex.

The only "complaint" I have is that I'm kind of a straight-ahead guy, the fewer options and complications the better.

The 450 operates from a "wired remote" with an LCD display and has to be set to do things like charge the batteries (rather than just charging automatically when plugged in). A little less flexible and a little more automatic would suit me better.