Jumping into the budget MP3 player arena is the iRiver Lplayer. Available in black, white and pink, the Lplayer measures 2.3 x 1.6 x 0.9 inches, enough to fit easily into a shirt or pants pocket. The 1.5-ounce player barely weighs anything. With the D-Click control system, pressing up, down, left, or right on the outer edges of the mini-music box controls the Lplayer. The reviewer noted that the volume button is awkwardly placed at the bottom of the device. Also, it doesn’t have any media card slot for memory expansion. The Lplayer supports WMA, ASF, FLAC, and OGG Q10 formats. Sound quality using the bundled earbuds sounded good, though it lacked bass. It can also display image files as well as play MPEG-4, WMV9, and XviD videos. However, watching through the 2-inch display proved to be difficult for the eyes, though the 320 x 240-pixel resolution made for a sharp image. The player is rated for 4 hours of video playback and 12 hours of audio. If you feel that 4GB is enough for your needs, the iRiver Lplayer’s compatibility with multiple file format makes it a capable multimedia device.

iriver’s innovative D*click technology, as seen in the Clix, has made its way into the company’s newest PMP, the LPlayer. This device is truly miniscule, measuring 2.36-by-1.69-by-0.51-inch and weighing only 1.45 ounces. Almost the entire front is dedicated to the 2-inch, 320-by-240 screen, so holding the player without blocking the display can take some getting used to. The Lplayer supports multiple audio and video formats, including OGG and FLAC. For video, you can play WMV9 SP, Xvid SP, and MPEG-4 SP formats. The user interface is easy to navigate and the menu well organized. However, the reviewer stated that some settings are hard to find and require extensive poking around or reading the manual to locate. The bundled earphones are of poor quality, so you might want to swap it for better sounding ones. The customizable EQ’s bass boost is noticeable and doesn’t distort. Battery life is rated at 12 hours of playback for music, though the reviewer said that they were able to squeeze it to 16 hours and 27 minutes. For Clix fans or those who’re looking for alternative to the nano, the iriver Lplayer is a good, less expensive choice.