What mp3 player do I buy?

chimaira

appologies for the off-topic discussion, but I was just curious to what you guys think. i've been doing my homework in searching for a new mp3 player, but i'm still unsure. i've been looking at the iriver h10 and creative zen micro. also i think the new creative photo zen micro is out the end of this month or next at the same/similar price to the zen micro. just wondered if any of you guys have any of these players? basically, all I want from an mp3 player is great sound quaility, plenty of storage (4gb+) and ideally be under £200. other features are a bonus really. any suggestions would be muchly appreciated :)

Ben

Ever heard of the iPod Nano?
It holds 1,000 songs (4GB ) and it's £179

chimaira

yeah yeah I-pods... everyone i know with an I-pod has problems. i read that the nano also has a big problem with scratches. apparently their was a faulty batch were a wrong chemical was used in the plastic (or something like that) but its caused them to scratch really easily. people have just put them in their pockets and they have been covered in scratches.

Minisweeper

well i'm seriously considering getting an ipod nano if i can sell my ipod mini (which is 4gb btw if you're looking for a bargain...includes dock and remote and i'm taking sensible offers..?) Otherwise i'd have the zen micro, my friend has one which he seems happy enough with. I prefer the ipod over it but the zen plays wma's which the ipod does not and therefore if i were to go back and use napster again i'd have no choice but to take the zen micro.

FLC

yeah yeah I-pods... everyone i know with an I-pod has problems. i read that the nano also has a big problem with scratches. apparently their was a faulty batch were a wrong chemical was used in the plastic (or something like that) but its caused them to scratch really easily. people have just put them in their pockets and they have been covered in scratches.</blockquote
Actually, all iPods are like that, my 3G iPod got scratched up by Chicago O'Hare airport security staff simply by rifling though my bag

I can't say nothing wrong about iPods (or iTunes for that matter) I've had mine for 2 years and the only problem I have had is the battery is slowly dying, which is to be expected though

And mini, iTunes converts WMA's to a format the iPod can play, what that is I'm not sure as I wouldnt touch a WMA if my life depended on it

lech

I forgot where I read it but if you do a casual google search for "disecting ipod nano" you'll probably stumble across some interesting complaints of the ipod nano lacking certain conectivity features of it's bigger brothers. Along with other interesting flaws. Its cute, but seems heavily flawed in terms of usability.

moe

i own an ipod mini and must say that the next portable mp3 player i'll buy will probably not be an ipod. yes, the ipods are sexy (and from the pics it seems the nano is even more sexy) but there's some downsides.

here's my personal list:

• battery life sucks. under "normal use" (playing like 4hrs/day) the battery lasts only 2 days for me. even worse, it discharges rapidly when not in use. a full charge goes to zero in only 3 days of just sitting on a table..
  
• the clickwheel is cool for browsing through long lists quickly but it kinda sucks for "in-pocket" usage. i noticed that whenever i want to do something other than adjusting the volume i have to pull it out and look at the display. having owned this thing for a little over 1/2yr i'd now much prefer a player with remote control or at least separate buttons that i can identify by "feel" like with my old sony MD players.
  
• i'm a linux user and it was a major pain to find software to deal with the ipod properly. i'm now using a set of scripts (gnupod) that work fairly well. but if you don't like itunes (which i couldn't stand using if someone held a gun to my head) you're kinda lost. this may not matter much for you, as most people seem to like itunes
  

be sure to let us know what you end up buying, maybe even put up a small review

NAG

im gonna get me an iRiver H10 soon enough



you can get them here on OverClockers UK

Minisweeper

FLC - i'm aware of that but itunes isnt willing/capable of converting DRM'd WMA's to aac (i believe thats the format it uses) and thus when i'm downloading stuff legally (omg!) off napster it doesnt do me any favours. Moe - just as a pointer you can get a simple inline remote for the ipod, allbeit screenless, with play/pause/skipfwd/skipbwd/volup/voldown on it all easily identifiable by touch when you get used to the layout (i used to use mine with thick leather biking gloves on no trouble) Lech - I'm not sure which article you're referring to, but i just read what seems to be a fairly detailed on on arstechnica http://arstechnica.com/reviews/hardware/nano.ars which does seem fairly impressed with it. It does highlight that it doesnt have all the connectability options of the larger ipods, but apparently it works fine with the standard ipod dock, the main issue being that it doesnt work with the remote connector accessories but that doesnt particularly bother me now i have a car. I'm glad to see the battery life has also been increased (apparently atleast) Nag - That thing does look pretty tempting at the price OC are offering it. Shame i cant afford to buy it this week and it's just that little bit bigger and non-ipod than the ipod nano :(

chimaira

i will post a review as soon as i've made my choice. it probably won't be until next month anyway. i think i-pods are great (apart from the flaws you guys mentioned) but the main reason i don't want one is everyone has one... i want to be different. you probably think i'm some kid that likes to stand out or something, well i don't, its just i quite often don't like trends. i believe there are better mp3 players out there for better prices. and cheers for links nag. i have already been tempted by the price on the oc website.

NAG

the main reason i don't want one is everyone has one... i want to be different. you probably think i'm some kid that likes to stand out or something, well i don't, its just i quite often don't like trends. i believe there are better mp3 players out there for better prices.

i totally agree on that. most people (who own ipods) probably couldnt even tell you the name of another mp3 other than an ipod and if asked they'd probably reply with, "uhm... ipod mini?". fact is, people see ipods now as a fashion accessory and not just an mp3 player so they dont even care what else is available and just buy into the ipod fad which absolutely sickens me. especially now that my gf keep harping on at me about how much she wants an ipod mini - just because it comes in pink! like, give me a fúcking break, get a mind of your own ffs! i think im gonna buy her an iriver just to be spiteful ^^

and cheers for links nag. i have already been tempted by the price on the oc website.

lol, np m8

vena

i can't tell if nag is being sarcastic or not... anyway, go to bestbuy. most of these devices are price fixed in some way, so you're not going to do much better elsewhere. why bestbuy? because you can "try" every one they sell. buy one, try it for a few days, return it for a different one. that's what i did. i tried creative's offerings (only the zen micro of their line comes close to the kind of build quality that'll survive normal use, but its interface annoyed me), phillips' offerings (pretty, but functionally retarded software written in bad java), rio (well they're dead now...), iriver (rubbing its plastic vagina made me feel funny), and finally the ipod. i kept the ipod. i originally felt the same way as many others; it's a fad, it's fashion. but then i realised it has the most tremendous third party support. accessories, yes, but also software. hacking that little bastard is fun. ipods do scratch sans a $9 evo3 jelly cover (which is invisible in white). but i thought you weren't buying for fashion? :)

NAG

nope, no sarcasm here <--- not sarcasm either - just so we are clear

vena

battery life sucks. under "normal use" (playing like 4hrs/day) the battery lasts only 2 days for me. even worse, it discharges rapidly when not in use. a full charge goes to zero in only 3 days of just sitting on a table.

the ipod doesn't really turn off unless you explicitly turn it off, it enters sleep mode which drains battery but allows it to boot faster when you come back to it. it's right in the manual. afaik, every other mp3 player does this as well. though 8 hours + sleep time between isn't really "sucks" imho, but opinions differ

i'm a linux user and it was a major pain to find software to deal with the ipod properly.

i'm a *bsd user who occassionally has to work in linux. i found no software issue. gtkpod, yamipod, syncpod, there's several. on windows, i just use winamp. only time i use itunes is on my mac, but it seems to annoy me less there for some reason

chimaira

i-pods are purely a fashion accessory as you say, but it doesn't bother me in the slightest if other people want an i-pod for that purpose. for me though, an mp3 player is about music... good quaility, good navigation and that suits me. and what everyone is saying about all i-pods scratching, i have never really noticed. my gf has a mini-ipod and it looks brand-new, although she does treat it exceptionally well, and another mate has an original i-pod which looks good still.

NAG

i think they are talking about the chrome panel on the back of them and yes, i have noticed that happening on my mates ipod

vena

nah, the plastic will scratch as well. both the white and the clear that covers the screen (though that's to be expected). the wheel can get grungy as well, but that $9 evo3 cover protects it, too if you care. it's not especially HARD to take care of them, but you definitely get a little attached to its looks. philips' hdd 120 got really annoying because most of it is shiny, black plastic, and you keep finding yourself rubbing finger prints off it with your shirt like it's a pair of sunglasses :)

Krak

Ahaha, i always get a kick out of ipod threads. I love to hear what new ways people will try to flame them in. I have an ipod mini, have had it for a few months, and i did do some research on mp3 players before i bought it. And trust me, I hate apple, but the ipod is a good piece of hardware. Battery life lasts about 12 hours. Of course if you have it on shuffle 24/7 and use the backlight constantly you will get less batt time, but uh...duh, you are using a light and making the hdd spin more often. Thats to be expected. Having a light on all the time and getting 18 hours of play is absurd. Not going to happen on any player. I dont have any scratches on mine, but the minis dont have the metal plate either. which i hear gets finger prints. As for the wheel, its freaking awesome. I love the search wheel, and I use it in the dark, in my pocket, whatever. If youve had it for over a year and still cant navigate it without staring at the screen, thats a personal issue. The sound quality is great, the extras are cool, and its small/light enough to toss in my pocket and forget its there. The only thing I can say that sucks about the ipods....are the colors. white just doesnt work. It gets dirty too quick. But again, thats not an apple only thing. I bought mine versus the creative, rca, and iriver, dell and rio because well, rca and dell suck. Crappy quality. Didnt care for the layout/functions of the iriver. It really was between apple and creative. Went apple cause it was smaller (if i remember it was cheaper too) and more available in my area. Another thing people complain about (of course non ipod owners) is about itunes. Cant do this, cant do that. Well, it does all those things you think it doesnt. I dont buy my music via itunes, and you dont have to. A simple drag n drop and I have my collection on my mini. And it does double as a removable hdd. If I had to choose again, id still go ipod. Purely because of the wheel. Man I love that wheel. But other than that, the Zen is nice too. Most people just like to bash ipods because they are still on the "i hate apple" bandwagon. Nothing more than a fad. Grow up, get a life, and find a real reason to dislike the ipod, or piss off. (not saying thats any of you)

chimaira

Ahaha, i always get a kick out of ipod threads. I love to hear what new ways people will try to flame them in.

Most people just like to bash ipods because they are still on the "i hate apple" bandwagon. Nothing more than a fad. Grow up, get a life, and find a real reason to dislike the ipod, or piss off. (not saying thats any of you)

you either got the total wrong end of the stick from what I was saying (and also nag i think), or that was just a random post. like i said earlier, my gf owns an i-pod, and i think it is great... and i agree with the majority of what you said. the wheel is indeed great, good quaility, excellent sound quaility, and i-tunes is fairly decent. apart from the battery, so many people have had problems (apple lost something like £10 million last year replacing batteries - it was that bad) i don't really fancy going down the same route.

anyway, back on topic. any else got an mp3 player who could post a mini review?