I've had the Samsung Helix for three weeks. Now I understand why so many people are walking around in their own world with a headset on. My wife recently bought a Nano and, once I tried it, I was hooked. The Helix is better than the Nano, in my view, because it can record off the air while the sound is just as good. (The Nano, however, is half the size.) It's a terrific concept.

The sound is phenomenal with the included earbuds and very good with my Sennheiser noise reduction headphones. Using the Sennheiser, I have found it is better to turn them off unless I'm surrounded by noise. The sound has a more natural quality. I have also used it with the Boss QC2; they sound very good, although I prefer the Sennheiser's clarity. (The Boss have a slightly muffled quality to them -- with any device). If you don't mind earbuds and don't need noise reduction, go with the included earbuds.

I like the convenience or recording XM transmissions. I have excellent reception at my hi-rise in South Beach, which has a clear view of the southern sky, with or without the cradle. Walking around in the streets, or even in open spaces, is a different matter. It's similar to what happens with an FM radio, but much worse. Even if you are in a fixed spot, if you move a little bit, you may lose reception. I suggest buying the Helix from a dealer willing to exchange it for something else if necessary; if you happen to live in a home with poor reception, it will be nearly useless.

I have not signed on for the Napster service and don't intend to. I don't want to bother with that. My style is to record channels at night or individual songs as I'm listening to them. I also program it to record special programs according to the XM Radio schedule posted online. But you have to be in a fixed spot with good reception. The recording quality is excellent.

If you want to have your whole music collection in this device, it's not for you. With only 1 Gig of memory, it still can record up to 50 hours of music, either off the satellite of through Napster. This is more than enough for me. You can record over the old recording and have fresh tracks all the time, or lock individual songs, channels or playlists.

All the controls are intuitive and easy to use. They offer just about anything you would need, like creating and selecting favorite channels, creating playlists, recording on the go, even after the song has started (if the channel was tuned from the beginning), or deleting a particular recorded song as you are listening to it. You can bookmark songs, and you can be notified when your favorite artists or songs are being played on any channel. You can even adjust the gain on the line output or time-shift record like a VCR.

I am not sure I understand the complaint about not being able to use this set with the boombox at the office because of the FM transmitter being disabled. You can connect the Helix to any boombox, amplifier or other device that has RCA jacks using the special cable that comes with the unit. Also, you can buy a Travel Audio set for $80, which is like a mini-boombox that cradles and plays your Helix, similar to the Apple Roxy.

Included in the set are carrying pouch, an external antenna, a jack adapter and a travel charger so you don't have to carry the cradle.

If you buy it, partition the memory between XM and MP3s or WMAs before you start recording. If you partition it later, your recordings will be erased.

I highly recommend the Helix if you understand its limitations and intended uses.