There is not much point for iRiver to offer 20 or so MP3 audio players that are not much different. Indeed, most MP3 players are very similar to Samsung's Yepp YP-T5. So why do manufacturers complicate matters by bringing out a whole slew of different types of virtually the same thing?

Take the two models we tested, the iFP-790 and the iFP-890. Are they twins or perfect clones? For starters, there are only five differences between the two devices: the color, the positioning of the connectors, the size, the weight and-weirdest of all - the price ($10 difference). And even then, can it really be said that 1 or 2 millimeters (fractions of an inch) in width or length and three grams in weight are a real difference? So we'll concentrate on just one product, chosen at random: the IFP-890, though remember, everything we say is equally applicable to the IFP-790 (and apparently to the whole of iRiver's IFP-390 series that we haven't actually had in our possession but which seem to have exactly the same characteristics).