Don't apologize for asking a question like this. It is only "old news" if you have heard it before. I would hazard to say that the situation of the Empeg/RioCar is deserving of a FAQ entry -- or a "sticky" post that some BBSes have. Doubtful you'll be the last person coming here looking for the straight poop on "EOL".

[Oh, goody. There's still time to edit this post and make believe that I already *knew* there was a FAQ entry about EOL -- OK, OK, I haven't been hanging around riocar.org enough! Awright, time to delete that "hazard to say" bit, uncheck the "Mark as Edited" box, and I'm good to go!]

Short of urging you to buy an Empeg, let me give you my summary of the situation:

The folks in Cambridge have built a mobile music product that remains without equal. The devoted following it enjoys is due in great part, not only to the unequaled wonderfullness of the player software, but also to the open "hackability" of the Empeg itself.

The manufacturing costs of the Empeg relative to volume remained prohibitively high, however, for many consumers who wanted the MP3 functionality, but who would not pay a premium for the "geek"/hackable aspects of the Empeg.

For what I consider to be fairly rational business reasons, SonicBLUE decided that they could make more money by selling "OEM" Empeg software function to high-volume, mass-market manufacturers (Pioneer? Panasonic? Only time will tell) for inclusion in less-expensive, mass-produced mobile players. SonicBLUE got out of the automotive audio biz.

So, it seems fairly likely that you will be able to go to Best Buy or Crutchfield during the next year and buy something that has a lot of the software functionality of the Empeg (and which in fact shares the code base of the Empeg), but which will be cheaper and which probably has a snazzier faceplate. It may even integrate with that manufacturer's in-car systems in a way that is cooler (assuming you buy all of their stuff!).

On the flip side, the possibility exists that none of these OEM products will come to fruition. Whatever OEM products *do* come to fruition, it is *highly* unlikely that they will have a serial, USB, and ethernet port. Indeed, given mass-market manufacturers' desire for a "trouble-free", easy-to-use, easy-to-support product it is likely that the functionality may be dumbed down and that any "back-door" interface is closed. Don't look for an OEM Empeg with a command prompt!

It is not clear that the shift to OEM products reduces the prospects for the original Empeg. Sure, they are not going to be manufactured. However, if OEM products continue to use the "modularized" code base that we see in V2 (a complete reworking of the original Empeg code), then the base of existing Empeg owners represents a valuable resource of ersatz alpha testers for SonicBLUE/Empeg code destined for OEM use.

Should you buy one?? Well, IMO, the many CDR-based MP3 players do not address the fundamental problem -- how can I bring all my music with me and organize it the way I want? -- that Empeg does. I knew that Empeg would always be a good bet in this respect as I knew that 2.5-inch drive prices would continue to drop. Some folks on this board now have 98GB Empegs. Touch that.

OTOH, you may be able to wait a while and buy an OEM unit that has 90 percent of Empeg function with decent storage (say a single 48GB drive) for not much money.

Many folks on this BBS (myself included) have gone back, though, to buy a 2nd Empeg because they are reasonably certain that its like will not be seen again. There have also been recent posts here from Neo owners who bought Empegs upon the occasion of the EOL price drop and who appear to be ecstatically happy.

In the end, you are the only person who can make the choice. I would encourage you to look around the BBS and riocar.org some more to help you decide whether the Empeg is "right for you" . I hope this little treatise has helped.

[P.S. - Aside from volunteering to get shot because I was negligent of Tony's never-ending, all-encompassing, most-excellent FAQ labors, I would be interested to know if folks think I'm off base in terms of my summary. I do think that there are potential buyers out there who might ultimately feel unhappy buying an EOL Empeg -- folks who might be more satisfied waiting a bit and buying a simpler OEM product. Allan, I can't say enough good about the Empeg, but in the end it comes down to whether it is a good match with what you want. Fair?]