Portable Music Device help appreciated

[Taffycat]

Having recently read and enjoyed Crazylegs' iPod Nano review, here, which I found to be very informative, I've been seriously thinking of buying one.... except none of the Apple range have a built-in radio-tuner. I accept that radio reception via "Walkman-type" equipment is not always great (in that the earplugs tend to act as an aerial, so when you move about, the reception can falter............ or doesn't it do that any more? I've had my now very ancient Walkman for years and years...) but I still like the option to switch to radio listening when I'm "static."

Anyway, looking around the Net, I wondered whether Creative Zen would be worth considering? I see that they have an expandable memory, using cards... but in any case, they also come with quite healthy looking amounts of on-board memory using SD and SDHC cards. Battery life sounds reasonable too (about 25 hrs audio.) Example here.

We already own quite a big CD library, so I expect I would mostly be transferring music from the discs to the player....... although I'd also like to download audio books and probably the odd music track or two from the internet.

It would also be handy to have a dock with speakers, which can maybe re-charge the device at the same time...? Is that possible?

I would appreciate any advice or guidance that some of you long-standing MP3 users might be able to offer. Thanks for reading

 

[nivrip]

TC, you need one of those new fangled devices that use a CAT'S WHISKER. You'll have no trouble with spare parts.

 

[floppybootstomp]

Although I own an I-Pod, I think the Creative Zen is a better choice.

Advantages:

1) You can swap out the battery on the move, thus extending listening/viewing time. You can't do that with an I-Pod.
2) It supports mp3 format, the I-Pod does not.
3) It has a built in radio tuner
4) It has a built in dictating machine (voice memo).
5) It doesn't rely on I-Tunes which in my opinion is very much second rate software.

I'd thoroughly recommend the Creative Zen.

And don't forget your pair of Sennheiser PX200 headphones, cheapest price is on Amazon. Link

 

[floppybootstomp]

Ok, I just had a quick look at the specs on the model you're interested in and it looks as though you can't swap the battery out.

I was thinking of the 30Gb Video model.

It doesn't come with a charger or case, but nor do any mp3 players as far as I know, you have to charge through the USB port or buy a charger.

It does take a memory card, so you can extend the amount of songs/voice recordings/videos on it.

Not sure if there are any speaker docking stations available for it yet.

Now I gotta dash.....

 

[Anon_F]

TC i bought a 512MB Creative Zen last year after being advised from this very site!
Some how i managed to load the songs on to it, but the main reason was for the FM radio.
I think the music quality is good & so is battery life.
Click HERE for the updated version that i have.

 

[Abarbarian]

I'm keeping an eye on this for a friend . We are hoping to get one for around £30 inc postage . Seems like a nice player but it is only 1GB . Gets pretty decent reviews .

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI....m=360035882990&ssPageName=STRK:MEWA:IT&ih=023

 

[Taffycat]

Naughty Nivrip... somebody is asking for a smacked botty!!

Flopps thank you for taking so much trouble, I appreciate it. I had a look at the larger capacity Zen, but it would probably be a bit more than I'm likely to need.

I like that the Zen has so many features, plus the option to expand the memory if need be.

Thank you for the link to the Senheisers... I'd heard that the supplied earphones were not great, so I will add them to my list ...along with something to protect my eventual choice, of course

Feckit, thank you for the link, that certainly looks like a jolly decent player, which I had somehow managed to miss when looking around at the various models. More food for thought.

Abarbarian, good luck with getting the one you are after - it looks good - did you also see the ones here?

Thanks for all your help guys

 

[Abarbarian]

Have you looked at these sites for prices and ideas ,

http://www.play.com/Electronics/Ele...P3-Video-Player/Product.html?searchtype=genre

http://www.eclipsecomputers.com/product.aspx?code=MPS-ICE10008

 

[Taffycat]

Good finds, Abarbarian, thank you for the links That Sumvision looks rather nice, do we know how they compare quality-wise to Creative's offerings though?

I have to admit to coming this close --> <-- to ordering over the past couple of days, but I've held-off doing so because I've had some slight problems with the "accessory" side of things. There are occasions when it would be soooo convenient to be able to play music for several hours, non-stop, so, I'm currently dithering over the solution: whether to buy a set of speakers, some kind of dock, or an FM transmitter. If only there weren't quite so many choices

There are oodles around, but it isn't always explained if these things are compatible with anything other than an iPod... even some of the Creative Labs stuff don't mention whether they're usable with their own products (However, after much Googling, it looks as if most are, providing the headphone socket is used rather than the "docking" bit.)

Digressing slightly, I've even seen a pillow with built-in speaker Here £11.99 which is supposed not to disturb your partner if you want to listen at night. (They are sold elsewhere for almost double that price.)

 

[crazylegs]

Hey Taffycat

I wouldn't bother even thinking about the sumvision product, I have had 2 of these types of mp3/mp4 player and they are cheap chinese tat..

The first one just kept resetting itself over and over and I kept having to upload all my music and vids all over again because the memory just wouldn't hold the files after it had reset itself..The second player I had which was a replacement for the first but a slightly different model was ok but the screen quality was cack to say the least, and it took an age to convert everything over into the players format before I could watch any vids which sometimes took hours it was that slow..

No I learnt my lesson with Sumvision products and would never purchase one of there mp3/mp4 players again..

The Ipod is dare I say it the best of all the mp3/mp4 players that I have owned..(Cant believe I just said that but its true..

) The screen is just superb quality wise, theres nothing out there at the moment to touch it in that respect and there are just heaps of accesorries everywhere you look..

This is an old black and white film circa 1953 Norman Wisdom (Trouble in store) You can see the quality even though its in black and white..

I have owned creative zen 2GB in the past and if you think the Ipod software is clunky, its got nothing on the Zens..I hated the way my mp3 files would end up all scattered in different places on the device just because they had come from slightly different albums..And to manually tag every mp3 so as to keep in some sort of order was just a real pain and very time consuming..


Nah I'll stick to me Nano thanks..

 

[nmbrod]

I feel it is my duty to point you in the direction of Sony

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Sony-NWZA81...1?ie=UTF8&s=electronics&qid=1206716055&sr=8-1

For just £90, it is so simple to use, when plugged into pc it performs like a usb device, drap and drop files

Windowss media player compatible

I've never run out of battery, at uni i take a usb cable and it charges off the pc there

Quality is amazing, visual and audio.

At the end of the day i believe the ipod is anovelty with incredibly good marketing, but are apple known for sound quality etc.

Sony's reputation and these customer reviews should swing your vote

I bought it in January, and use it every day watching prisn break, house films on the bus and when walking, its top drawer

On reflection, slighty biassed but by it!!!

 

[Abarbarian]

There are occasions when it would be soooo convenient to be able to play music for several hours, non-stop, so, I'm currently dithering over the solution: whether to buy a set of speakers, some kind of dock, or an FM transmitter.

Where do yuo want to play the music ???

I guess its when your not at your pc .

If you go for a FM Transmitter then get one that has afull range of settings , Not the ones with 8 or 10 presets . I have one for use in the car and it works darn fine . Works on house radios aswell .

Can't say about the quality of any players . Its worth thinking about what you want one for though .

I got a Sumvision XT 105 for £6 inc postage it needed a mini sd card as it has no onboard memory . So in total it cost me £11 . Its pretty easy to use , drag and drop for the music files . Replaying the individual artist folders is a bit fiddly but thats partly due to the size of the thing and the dull small lcd screen . I like listening to full albums though and its easy to make up a decent folder of music so thats not a problem . I just use it in the car and it lives there all the time . As it cost such a small amount of money I'm happy to leave it in the car and it saves me the faff of unpluging it and carrying it around . It sounds great through the car speakers and does just what I want for next to nothing.When it packs in , if it packs in , I'm going for a cheapy 1 GB with a bigger screen so I can see whats going on a bit better .

Am I going to cry if it packs in or I drop it or it gets nicked from the car , not me it only cost the price of a few pints . The FM transmitter cost nearly three times as much and does not live in the car .

 

[Taffycat]

Crazylegs - your iPod's display does indeed look very clear ... that is also one of my favourite oldies, Norman Wisdom films always cracked me up. As I mentioned, I was swayed by your review, but I really want to have a built-in radio tuner too, for listening to in real-time.

Abarbarian, mostly I would be listening around the house, sometimes using headphones, but also "sharing" with Terry (hence the speaker requirement.) I'm not very likely to use it in the car though. And as for the kind of music, that will range from rock to classical and hopefully will include audio books too, which I love when "hobbying"

 

[Taffycat]

I got my new Zen today I've charged it up and have even managed to load a few experimental tracks successfully

I'm still finding my way around the menus, but getting the hang of them as I go along... that's why I've only added a few ripped tracks as yet, so that if I mess up, it won't matter a bit.

It's fun and sounds really good, although I'm still waiting for the Sennheiser earphones, so temporarily using the supplied Creative ones.. which keep popping out

I just thought I'd give you an up-date, because I really appreciated the help and advice you all had to offer. Thank you guys.

TC

 

[psd99]

OMG it's Sir Norman Wisdom is he one of my most like actors!

I've seen that film trouble in store it's really funny but most of all I like the film "the early bird."

Didn't know you were a fan crazylegs.

 

[floppybootstomp]

I got my new Zen today I've charged it up and have even managed to load a few experimental tracks successfully

I'm still finding my way around the menus, but getting the hang of them as I go along... that's why I've only added a few ripped tracks as yet, so that if I mess up, it won't matter a bit.

It's fun and sounds really good, although I'm still waiting for the Sennheiser earphones, so temporarily using the supplied Creative ones.. which keep popping out

I just thought I'd give you an up-date, because I really appreciated the help and advice you all had to offer. Thank you guys.

TC

Groovy

 

[psd99]

.

It's fun and sounds really good, although I'm still waiting for the Sennheiser earphones, so temporarily using the supplied Creative ones.. which keep popping out



TC

Glad to hear the Zen has arrived SAFELY!

you will notice a HUGE difference with the earphones you are waiting for.

 

[Taffycat]

Pillow talk

As someone who occasionally has totally sleepless nights (due to migraine) I find it helps if I can listen to music or an audio book. But, it's not very comfortable to wear earphones in bed ... they either "bite" my ears, or the wires try to strangle me as I turn over

I've found a solution called "Sound Asleep" MP3 Compatible Pillow - £9.99 in Argos - and it works rather well It feels very comfy and you can't feel the embedded speaker at all. I can hear it clearly without getting my ear "bitten" by earphones ... or strangling myself in the wires if I turn over The sound quality is surprisingly good too and listening doesn't disturb your partner. It's a clever invention. which actually works!

Hmmm... software or hardware would you say...

 

[crazylegs]

Aha you got a Zen Taffy...Nice Player..

I hope you have many hours of listening pleasure with your new toy...Enjoy..

 

[crazylegs]

OMG it's Sir Norman Wisdom is he one of my most like actors!

I've seen that film trouble in store it's really funny but most of all I like the film "the early bird."

Didn't know you were a fan crazylegs.

Yeah love old Norman Widom and got all his films the whole collection..

The early bird is great and my favourite is the Square Peg..

The guy is a national treasure and a genuinely lovely bloke..