- Quick specs
- Price: Free
- Operating system: Windows 98/Me/2000/XP/NT
- Date added: October 01, 2004
- Total Downloads: 797,410
- Downloads last week: 1,522
- See full specifications
- CNET editors' rating: stars
- Average user rating: stars out of 49 votes
See all user reviews
CNET editors' review
Reviewed by: CNET staff on March 16, 2009
With so many media players on the market, the bar has been set pretty high. Unfortunately, Ashampoo Media Player's faulty features barely make it off the ground.
The user interface looks like a prop from a sci-fi movie, which is fine on screen because those things don't have to actually work. In action, it wasn't as easy to use as other media players we've tried. The interface is skinnable and you can toggle between size modes (small, medium, large), but with each change, we had to learn how to navigate the interface all over again. The player does come with the ability to burn data, MP3, and audio CDs. It also comes with an online radio and the ability to create playlists, but we received an error message whenever we tried to access both features. On top of that, you won't find a ripper or a conversion utility. The one standout feature of this program is its ability to handle a long list of file types, such as AIF, FLAC, WAV, and DAT files, just to name a few. We were able to play our own audio files without any interruption. Help is available through pop-up guides and a help menu, but neither addressed the errors that we received.
The online radio we could live without, but the inability to create playlists was a media player standard that we could not. Although we liked some of what the Ashampoo Media Player had to offer, we suggest you wait until a later version fixes the bugs and emphasizes usability over design.
Publisher's description
From Ashampoo :The new Ashampoo Media Player is completely free and offers integrated support for a huge number of video and audio formats, including Ogg Vorbis. The program also features integrated burning support for audio, data, and MP3 CDs (more than 1,500 drivers); integrated image-viewer support; online radio support with direct track buying; a 10-band equalizer for maximum sound quality; support for the FLAC lossless audio format; 10 new visualizations for your viewing pleasure; a fully skinnable desktop; and support for English, German, French, and Italian. Additional features include support for the standard audio, video, and streaming formats, dynamic playlists, online folders and files, online playlists, and plug-in and add-on technology.
Version 2.03 build 2 features an optimized user interface; optimized performance for connecting to Internet radio stations; and a new language: Spanish.
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User reviews
- Average user rating: 3.6 stars out of 49 votes
- My rating: 0 stars Write review
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Showing 5 of 41 user reviewsSee all 41 user reviews
This software version | All versions -
1 out of 1 people found this review helpful
Version: Ashampoo Media Player 2.03 build 2
"Free and, well, OK for what it's worth"
Pros: Does what it promises, no longer supported, nice interface and a small footprint so it could go an a usb. I really like the interface, and I really like the radio stations, and the visualizations are good too. Overall a great addition to my audio choices as a simple, fast, clean player.
Cons: No longer supported, meaning it works great but what you see is all you will ever get. Ashampoo is a very nice company to deal with and you should try their other products - don't judge by this one alone.
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3 out of 7 people found this review helpful
Version: Ashampoo Media Player 2.03 build 2
Pros: Very easy to install, helpful configuration assistant and introductory help panels - you can turn them off when you wish.
Cons: Confusing interface, very poor streaming radio support. No effective library function, and playlist navigation is odd to say the least. Compared with Winamp, JetAudio, or the excellent little XMPlay this offering is decidedly unimpressive.
Finally, once the program was uninstalled, it was necessary to clear out the registry with CCleaner before other media player file associations would work - very bad manners!
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1 out of 1 people found this review helpful
Version: Ashampoo Media Player 2.03 build 2
Pros: Another good addition to Ashampoo`s collection of software.I personally like this media player,it is easy to use,and is an all round great media player.Developed by Ashampoo,s just tell`s you of the quality behind this software.The great thing is that it is free to download from the Ashampoo site or from here on cnet straight away.
Cons: N/A.
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2 out of 3 people found this review helpful
Version: Ashampoo Media Player 2.03 build 2
"Updated, excellent sound quality, easy to use..."
Pros: If you are looking for a simpler player to substitute your more complex player, this is a very good choice...
It provides excellent sound quality, many easy to use features, and you can play a pretty much endless array of file types with it... it also uses Open Source technology in some of its encoders, and decoders...
If you are looking for a Media Player Suite of some sort, this is not for you, but it serves superbly as a: I just want music, not fiddle, and I am an audiophile to boot, usability...
Cons: A modern player really only suitable for more modern computers...
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4 out of 4 people found this review helpful
Version: Ashampoo Media Player 2.03 build 2
"Easy to use and easy to record with"
Pros: AShampoo is a nice looking player. I downloaded some videos and put them on a cd which I can play in my dvd player and recorded faster than any other software I have used to make video cds with
Cons: I tried making an audio cd and it took almost 25 mins. compared to the 10 mins it took to make a video cd. It doesn't make any sense. I keeping this software strictly for making video discs.
- See all 41 user reviews Write review
