Photos: Top 10 reviews of the week
2007 Mercedes-Benz E550
1. 2007 Mercedes-Benz E550
Editors' rating: 8.7
The good: A potent power plant and some advanced drivetrain technology make the 2007 subtly restyled Mercedes-Benz E550 a dream drive. Beneath its classy exterior, a sweet-sounding stereo, a well-appointed cabin and an innovative multifunction display enhance the onboard experience.
The bad: Awkward controls for the navigation and audio systems and threadbare map information left us lost in more ways than one. The E550's emissions ratings are among the worst in its class.
The bottom line: The 2007 Mercedes-Benz E550 is a powerful pugilist in a coat and tie. Its classy exterior, glorious V-8 and well-appointed interior are let down by some poorly designed cabin technology.
Rhapsody 4
2. Rhapsody 4
Editors' rating: 8.5
The good: Rhapsody 4 offers a streamlined, user-friendly interface with enhanced navigation, improved device integration and discounted songs for subscribers. Its diverse 2.5-million song catalog appeals to many users. Customer service is top-notch, and editorial commentary is amusing. Rhapsody Channels plus the SanDisk Sansa e200R equal a fantastic music discovery experience; supports Sonos Digital Music system.
The bad: You can't use Rhapsody to store or play your own videos and photos; no way to view content by album art; no auto retrieval for missing track info or album art; no cross-fading or gapless playback.
The bottom line: Rhapsody may not act as an all-encompassing media jukebox, but it does do music, and it does it extremely well. Prospective and seasoned users alike will dig on version 4.
Nokia 5300 Xpress Music
3. Nokia 5300 Xpress Music
Editors' rating: 8.3
The good: The Nokia 5300 world phone has a great display, user-friendly controls and a wide range of features including a music player, a 1.3-megapixel camera, Bluetooth, an expandable memory slot and support for push-to-talk networks. Plus, it delivers on performance as well.
The bad: The Nokia 5300's memory card slot is inconveniently located, and its internal memory is a measly 5MB.
The bottom line: The Nokia 5300 is a well-designed, user-friendly music cell phone that offers an amazing range of features backed up by outstanding performance.
SanDisk Sansa e280R Rhapsody
4. SanDisk Sansa e280R Rhapsody (8GB)
Editors' rating: 8.3
The good: The compact SanDisk Sansa e200R Rhapsody can play back music, video and photo files, and is available in capacities of up to 8GB; works well with Rhapsody; includes dual Rhapsody and PlaysForSure mode; includes an FM tuner, a voice recorder and innovative Rhapsody Channels feature; improved interface; user removable battery; expansion card slot; good battery life.
The bad: The SanDisk Sansa e200R Rhapsody's tactile scrollwheel is both a blessing and a burden; must convert photo and video files using bundled Sansa software; occasional low-level system noise underneath audio; proprietary USB dock connector; no AC adapter in package; no custom EQ; you must be playing a song to add it to the Go list.
The bottom line: Thanks to an improved feature set and GUI, the Rhapsody version of the flagship Sansa player is better than the original.
HP Pavilion SlimLine s7600e
5. HP Pavilion SlimLine s7600e
Editors' rating: 8.2
The good: Best combination of small-scale design, features and value in its class; internal PCI slot gives you more expandability, which the Mac Mini and others don't offer; HP's support runs laps around Apple's.
The bad: Visual appeal could be improved.
The bottom line: HP's new Slimline Pavilion s7600e strikes a near-perfect balance of size, features, value and support. Apple's Mac Mini might be more attractive, but there's almost nothing it can do that this small-form-factor Windows PC can't do better, and for less. If you're looking for a general-purpose desktop or a small, affordable PC to send media files to your TV, this should be your pick.
T-Mobile Dash
6. T-Mobile Dash (aka HTC Excalibur)
Editors' rating: 8.0
The good: The T-Mobile Dash has a sleek design with a vibrant color screen and features integrated Bluetooth 2.0 and Wi-Fi, push e-mail capabilities, multimedia functions and a 1.3-megapixel camera. The quadband smart phone also has good call quality and extra-long talk time battery life.
The bad: The T-Mobile Dash's volume touch strip isn't always responsive. The camera interface is also confusing, and picture quality is subpar.
The bottom line: With a sleek design, good performance and a robust set of productivity and wireless options, the T-Mobile Dash is an all-in-one hit and earns its reputation as a Motorola Q killer.
FeedDemon 2
7. FeedDemon 2
Editors' rating: 8.0
The good: FeedDemon has a clean interface, is excellent for managing hundreds of feeds (or more), lets you set up watch lists, offers an online edition, syncs podcasts with iPods and other handheld media players.
The bad: FeedDemon is Windows only; doesn't provide content sharing with other users.
The bottom line: FeedDemon is a terrific RSS reader that can handle hundreds of subscriptions faster and better than the many free Web-based readers available.
Read CNET's full review
Download FeedDemon 2 at Download.com
Logitech AudioStation
10. Logitech AudioStation (iPod speaker system)
Editors' rating: 8.0
The good: Logitech's AudioStation iPod home speaker system is sleekly designed and has a built-in iPod dock that charges your iPod. It includes an AM/FM tuner, clock, line input and both composite and S-Video outputs for displaying iPod videos and photos on TV. It also sounds good, with decent bass and clarity for a speaker system this compact.
The bad: The AudioStation is expensive, the S-Video slot is recessed, making it difficult to plug in many S-Video cables, and there's no alarm to go with the clock.
The bottom line: If you have $300 to blow on an iPod speaker system, the Logitech AudioStation is a strong contender for your money.