Not As Great As It Sounds.

If you're planning on using this much as a radio, think again. The reception on trains (over land) is terrible. The reception at work (in an interior office) is worse. XM Customer Service will tell you that you have to sit next to a south-facing window for optimal reception. As an MP3 player, it's okay -- as long as you don't have a vast iTunes library. It doesn't work with iTunes at all, and the software that Samsung provides is for PC only. Just my opinion.

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A Very Cool Product

The battery problem mentioned in other reviews has been resolved with the new firmware update. If you buy this, be sure to update the firmware--an easy task that Samsung guides you through.
This is everything I wanted it to be. I wish it worked without the external antenna in buildings, but it does need satellite access, after all. To use it when I work out, I just record a few hours of XM at home, then take it to the gym and play the recorded music (or whatever). To record XM you set it in its cradle with the external antenna set up to access the sky. It recharges while it records. Lift it from the cradle and off you go. I have used it for 3 hours without a recharge after having removed it from the cradle the day before. It will probably last longer, but I haven't had to test it. Interestingly, when it sits in the cradle--sideways--the display shifts 90 degrees so it's always upright.
I use it with Bose noise-cancelling headphones and the sound is topnotch. It accepts MP3s or CD transfers easily using the included Napster software. This software also allows you to organize your music, add and delete track by track or playlist by playlist. Recorded XM music needs to be added to a "Playlist", but CDs or MP3s are automatically set into Playlists.
The manual says it will record 25 hours of XM AND 8 hours of MP3s. I haven't tested it, but I have no reason to doubt it. (The memory can be partitioned to use up to 100% for XM and 0 for MP3 or vice versa, or any combination of the two formats.)
All in all, it's better than I had hoped. Since I have almost $600 invested including the Bose headphones and an extra Home Kit (one for the office, one for home), I really NEEDED this to be good. It is.


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Samsung YX-M1Z Helix XM2go

Great item! My only concern is the battery life could be better but it works and does a great job. A bit pricey.

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