During the launch event where FiiO debuted its new desktop lineup of products, the company showed off the R7 and the SP3 speakers in addition to the FT3 over-ear wired headphones. You can see how the R7 plays well with both given the analog output modes on offer, and the design language of the R7 also matches the SP3 speakers very well to further explain the use of this novel portrait profile. Some might already complain about not having enough vertical space on their desk and yet I see desk surface real estate being more precious. There's also something very cool and nerdy about having this tiny Android system on your desk which can do a lot of things besides being a DAC and headphones amplifier. FiiO also teased the R9 coming up in the future which no doubt builds upon the R7 and yet we get so many features here itself that I almost feel like saying it's good to go and the $700 asking price feels like a bargain to an extent.

Then I get back down to earth and remind myself that $700 is a lot of money regardless, but if there was ever an audio brand to make it feel worthwhile then FiiO continues to do it. The penultimate page goes over some of the use cases I went through with the R7 and I only wish I could have have shared in real time the excitement I had when discovering new things it was capable of. I had received the device even before the product page was up and the quick start guide only goes so far in explaining everything. The good thing is, at least if you are familiar with Android, the FiiO R7 is easy to use. The screen is large, bright, and responsible enough and you can even get away with not needing to use the touch screen thanks to a well-programmed multi-function knob and capacitive touch controls underneath the screen. The Android section itself is also more modern than the HiBy R5 Gen 2 we saw recently which is a DAP that costs $450 by itself. The FiiO R7 does not have a battery admittedly but offers so much more in return to where calling it a desktop DAP would be doing it a disservice.

I mentioned before how there are a couple of other brands that have tried to add in a screen and mobile OS to desktop DAC/amps but they never felt complete while also costing significantly more. At this point I can only urge you to read through the entire review since summarizing it would not be the easiest thing in the world either—the FiiO R7 is the most versatile piece of audio gear I have here! If you are the type to spend money on a DAC/amp based more on its features than the enhancement to sound it can supposedly provide then I can't think of anything else that does it better for the money. As such, I am happy to award FiiO both my recommendation and an innovation award for putting out a well-designed all-in-one unit with novel use cases that are executed nicely too.