Rio Riot

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The Rio Riot was a hard disk-based "jukebox" MP3 digital audio player produced by Diamond Multimedia as part of the Rio line. It shipped in March 2002, and was an early competitor to the Apple iPod, coming out some four months after its release. ^[1]

Reception

Critical reviews of the Riot were mixed, with many describing it as a good device in its own right, but one that fell short of the iPod. ^[1] Reviewers praised its generally strong hardware and large storage; ^[2] however, they panned its large size ^[3] and slow USB transfer rates, ^[4] especially relative to the iPod's FireWire connection.

Specifications

• 20 GB hard drive
• USB 1.1 ^[5]
• 240x160 backlit monochrome LCD display
• FM tuner
• 10 hours per charge at 50% volume battery life
• iTunes support
• Supported formats: WMA, MP3, including ID3 and WMA tagging support
• *Note*: Lacked ability to retrieve data off HD.

Preserved specimens

One Rio Riot is held by the Computer History Museum in Mountain View, California. ^[6]

References

1. "iPod vs. Rio Riot: The winner is clear". March 2, 2002. Archived from the original on September 27, 2011. Retrieved July 6, 2011.
2. Wiley, M (16 Jan 2002). "Rio Riot Review". IGN. Retrieved 13 Jan 2025.
3. Captain, Sean. "Rio Riot: Big Music for Big Pockets" . Retrieved 13 Jan 2025.
4. Patterson, Ben (10 Apr 2002). "Rio Riot review: Rio Riot". CNet. Retrieved 13 Jan 2025.
5. Wiley, M (29 Mar 2002). "Rio Riot Review". IGN. Retrieved 13 Jan 2025.
6. "Artifact Details: Rio Riot MP3 Player". Computer History Museum . Retrieved 13 Jan 2025. Catalog Number: 102745636

2. Manual