The ergonomics, however, are a little debatable. It's not the handling of the product that is difficult. There are not that many buttons and they are conveniently located. But on the other hand, the large number of settings tends to complicate matters. For example, there are several things you need to do before you get to the personalized sound adjustments. It's not always that easy to understand the subtle differences between the digital equalizer called the Xtreme EQ, the volumetric sound accentuator Xtreme 3D and the EQ Select and EQ Limit buttons, all of which, in the end, may not be that useful.

On the other hand, navigation among the files stored is fairly easy. It's all done from a directional button that makes it possible to change the directory (up to eight levels of sub-directory are permitted), to display tune titles and create playlists (just one list at a time, though, because the iFP-890 does not accept lists of the WinAmp M3U type). Numerous other play options are available (random, repeat, extract, etc.) and each can be applied to a specific set of files or a specific directory.

It should also be noted that each of the three buttons available in addition to the directional buttons has a different effect, depending on the context and whether it is pressed quickly or at length. In all, it will take you at least an hour of practice to learn all the possibilities and eventually realize that in the end most of them are really not much use.