It increases the overall bulk of the H340 by quite a bit, so there’s no way you’ll be able to carry this in your pocket, but it is useful on long car, train or plane trips where you don’t have access to a power point to keep the H340 charged. It will also support NiCd and NiMH rechargeable batteries, reducing the cost of repeatedly buying alkaline batteries.

Docking Cradle

Another accessory for the H340 that was not supplied for the H140 is the docking cradle. It allows the H340 to be connected to the AC adaptor as well as connected to the computer via USB 2. The USB 1.1 host port is not used, as the cradle was most probably designed for use with a computer, meaning there would be no need for the USB host function.

Inside the dock, the USB 2 port and the 5V power connector are lined up with the three support struts that match up to the relevant sockets on the H340 unit. There’s also a felt lining (not very obvious in the photo) along the back that protects the unit from scratches as you remove and replace it.

Leather Carry Case

As with the H140, the H340 is supplied with a leather carry case that protects the player. The cases that came with both also had a belt clip to facilitate mobility and transportation of the player; however, the newer case has a twist

The actual clip on the case is easily removed, giving the wearer the opportunity to leave the clip on the belt while still making use of the H340. Pushing the release button on the top of the clip allows the case to be removed. It also opens from the bottom up, or the top down, which ever suits the user.

Wired Remote

This, to me, was probably the biggest (maybe the only) disappointment in the accessory bundle. It lacks the LCD display on the remote control that was bundled with the H140. This means that to navigate through the player, you have to use the unit itself, which can be a real annoyance if you have it stashed away in your bag, using the remote only when necessary.

That said, the remote functions quite well in what it does. Three buttons on the face of the remote, back, play/pause and forward, hold switch on one side and volume controls on the other. The hold switch only affects the options on the remote, leaving the buttons free on the main unit and the hold switch on the main unit does not affect the remote.

USB Host Adaptor

This little cable is the only thing between the H340 and the UMS compatible device to be connected. My only gripe is that it seems that the port design is proprietary and losing this cable would mean that the USB host function would be useless until you can get another from the manufacturer.

Using the cable is simple, plug the small end into the USB 1.1 host port, and plug the UMS device, or its USB cable into the other end, then proceed into browser mode on the H340

Cleaning Cloth

This little cloth, I’m assuming, is used to wipe the LCD free of smudges and finger prints. There’s also an iRiver imprint in the centre of it as well. Quite a nice little addition.

Sennheiser MX300 Ear buds

Sennheiser are a respected name in the audio business. When you hear the name, you think quality headphones and microphones, however, this set is an exception.

These headphones are the “short” variety, designed for use with the provided remote control. Although bearing the Sennheiser name, these do not produce a high quality sound. However, being bundled headphones and all, they are quite good in comparison with the stock ear buds from the H140 and the iPod, so a pretty good starting set. Anyone interested in audio quality will be buying, or already have, far better quality ‘phones.

Line In to Line Out cable

This cable is about 1.5m long and is the same one supplied with the H340 and has a 3.5mm stereo TRS jack on each end.

Only really useful for recording from a portable CD player, as most other sources I can think of use either larger 6.5mm jacks or RCA plugs. Even though, I would not expect a portable music player to be supplied with one.

External Microphone

In addition to the built in microphone on the H340, iRiver have also supplied an external microphone on a roughly 1.5m cable.

The design on the microphone, with its clip, suggests that it was meant to be clipped onto a tie or shirt pocket. Useful for recording speeches you are giving if necessary, but I’m not sure what other applications it can be used for without extra support. I will be testing to see whether it is a higher quality microphone than the built in one.