So far, no pocket size flash deck is perfect, with no issues to consider.
In my opinion, these compact portable audio solutions do offer lower cost, easier battery powering, and this translates to having more opportunities to always carrying around and more easily catching sound recording opportunities often missed with owning larger, more costly, power hungry, and more featured portable deck configurations with fewer or no technical/quality issues.
As most of us have realized, the microphone, and how it is being used is responsible for 90-95% of the audible recorded quality, with the preamp next, and the deck's A/D being last for what's important in having satisfaction with the recorded results.
Even with a small flash deck having an equally compact external preamplifier configuration maybe costing what a much larger, much more power hungry all-in-one deck solution as an affordable possibility, there's the 'awkward factor' traveling with the larger deck solution.
So for many of us, the larger power hungry all-in-one solution equals more missed opportunities being tired of the bulk and power issues always associated with these larger rigs.
So far, the most complete compact deck seems the Sony D50 that's almost not pocket size, requiring 4 AA cells, costing about $100 more than other choices, but does include a quiet minijack input mic preamplifier.
The next most quiet model is Olympus's LS-10 that's extremely compact, runs on 2 AA cells for a long time, but mic input lacks lower bass bandwidth requiring an external preamplifier if below 85 cycle bass is important to your recording interests.
See review:
www.sonicstudios.com/ls10revw.htmMy current favorite model is newest Edirol R-09HR with mostly quiet internal mic preamplifier, runs a long time on 2 AA cells, has uncommon 88.2K recording mode, and is a good shirt-pocket sized solution not needing an external preamplifier as long as the low frequency noisy internal mic power feature is not used.
Internal mics are also considered by many the best sounding of any compact flash deck currently on the market.
See review:
www.sonicstudios.com/r09hrrev.htmIn conclusion, even if the cost of a small shirt-pocketable deck + equally compact external preamplifier is about the same cost as a much larger, more featured portable deck model, the pocketable rig might have way more value in practical 'always easy to travel with/ready power for 'on the spot recording' purposes.
This translates to the same costing, but pocketable rig configuration being far more useful for general field recording purposes.