Check Out Hiby’s New R3 Pro and R8 Flagship Players

Whilst Hiby started off as mainly a software company focused on producing operating systems for other manufacturers of portable music players, they eventually ventured into creating their own devices. This lead to players such as the R3, R6, R6 Pro, the recent R5, and now a brand new flagship which is called the R8, as well as an updated and improved version of their R3, called the R3 Pro.

Meet the R8

Let’s first deal with the R8. Don’t make the mistake of thinking that the R8 is ‘just another portable player’. Oh no, in contrast, the R8 brings with it brand new features and functionalities that have never been seen before on a dedicated portable music player.

For starters, there’s a sim-slot. This means that you can insert a data-SIM and then have access to your favourite streaming services wherever you have coverage. It’s only within the last few years that such devices have received compatibility with WiFi networks, so the inclusion of cellular data connectivity extends the versatility into brand new territory.
Then, there’s also the processor, which again is a first as the Snapdragon 625 is the highest performing system-on-chip employed in any portable music player to date. It will also run Android 9.0, which means that it won’t have the GMS certification problem of FiiO’s M11 and M11 Pro.

Unfortunately, those are the only details available thus far about the R8 as Hiby are yet to shed some light on other aspects such as the DAC chips utilised, how much driving power it has, as well as the claimed battery-life.
If we had to guess, then a 4.4mm balanced output seems very likely, as does a dual-DAC setup.

Check out the R3 Pro

The original R3 was Hiby’s first statement device. In fact, it was their very first device sold to the public. As mentioned, Hiby was primarily a software company, but when they released the R3 it served as a warning-shot to other manufacturers of players that Hiby was not only willing, but completely able to compete with them head-to-head.
Priced at just $199, the R3 packed a ton of value into a relatively compact body. It had a great 3.2-inch IPS display, built-in WiFi and the ability to stream over Airplay, as well as both a 3.5mm single-ended and a 2.5mm balanced output. The R3 Pro, on the other hand, takes things up to a new level.

For starters, the ES9028EQ2M DAC of the R3 is replaced with a CS43131 DAC chip from Cirrus Logic. This is the same chip as is used in the Plenue D2 and Cowon’s upcoming Plenue R2. Looking at the specs of this chip in terms of power requirements and the THD+N figure, it also wouldn’t come as a surprise to see more manufacturers adopt this chip in upcoming devices. Compared to the R3, the R3 Pro has only slightly more power available via the 3.5mm output, but the power for the balanced connection has nearly doubled as it now sits at 210mW per channel into a 32-ohm load.
The THD+N has been improved by around 75%, and the battery-life has also increased by roughly 80%. You’d think, given the addition power available, that the R3 Pro might take a knock in terms of battery-life, but the fact is that the CS43131 DAC chip is so power-efficient that the R3 Pro can have this increase in battery-life despite still having the same 1600mAh battery.

Other improvements also include that the R3 Pro now has Bluetooth 5.0, and the WiFi can now connect to both 2.4GHz and 5GHz networks.

Pricing and Availability

Pricing for neither of these new models have been announced thus far, but it does seem like Hiby are set to release the R3 Pro towards the beginning of November, if not perhaps even slightly sooner.