Gigabeat S or F?

[Obstinate]

I'm looking for a new player. Should I just wait and purchase an S or go for an F? I'm looking to put Rockbox on it of course.

[Chronon]

That's entirely up to you.  You can probably find an F for cheaper and it's a more mature port.   But the S definitely wins out in hardware specs and the port seems close to being supported.  You have to decide which seems more appealing to you.

[isanggon]

I use S now. But I think F is more attractive to use. S's spec is great but it's runtime is very short. I changed default 700mah battery to 1000mah, but S's runtime was only 5h 45m. I think more optimizing is highly needed to cpu clock management. And charging was worked on OF only. It's so premature to use rockbox on S. I recommend F to comfortably use

[AlexP]

Yes, and as has been said the S port is not finished.  It is neither released nor supported, so to compare it at this point is a little premature.

If you want a mature, working target right now, the F is the only choice.

[Chronon]

Yes.  I don't want to give the impression that the Gigabeat S is supported at this stage.  There are reasons for this, so if you want a device that works now, go for the F series.

[Obstinate]

Ah great. What about the iAudio X5 or Gigabeat F?

[Chronon]

Well they're both supported.  You should ask yourself which features are most important to you and consult this:
http://www.rockbox.org/twiki/bin/view/Main/BuyersGuide

[Mad Cow]

The gigabeat F port is very mature, it's nearly perfect in my opinion. But given time, I think the S port would become just as good. What I don't like about the F is the size and touchpad, it's a very durable brick that will outlast almost everything. Mine has been dropped so many times that the case is held together by a rubber band, the screen cover is coming off and the case itself is warped and dented, but it still works just like new.