MP3 Players

[jessd 0]

I would like to buy an MP3 player and I have no idea what to look for in one. Does anyone have any suggestions on what brand to buy or what features to look for? I don't want to spend a lot of money on one either. I mainly want one for when I travel and go to the gym.

"Life is not measured by the number of breaths we take, but by the moments that take our breath away..."

[AggieDave 6]

For travel and such, Ipod kicks ass. For high-impact stuff like going to the gym, then you really want a solid state player instead of one with a hard-drive.

--"When I die, may I be surrounded by scattered chrome and burning gasoline."

[kingbunky 3]

i have a rio 600 and i like it a lot. pros: battery life is good (about 10 hours or so on a rechargeable), sound is good, it's tough, plays mp3 and wma, it was cheap. it is expandable, but you have to buy a 'backpack'. smartmedia cards or compact flash would be much better. cons: transfer speed is kinda slow, but my system is usb 1.1, i don't know if the player supports 2.0 or not. if yours does, look for that as a connection.

"Hang on a sec, the young'uns are throwin' beer cans at a golf cart."
MB4252 TDS699
killing threads since 2001

[eeneR 1]

I have an iRiver iFP-190TC. It is wonderful. Its small, solid state, uses 1 AA battery which is good for at least 20 hours and it has 256meg of memory!!!

She is not a "Dumb Blonde" - She is a "Light-Haired Detour Off The Information Superhighway."
eeneR
TF#72, FB#4130, Incauto

[CrazyIvan 0]

If you don't want to spend a lot of money, I'd suggest a Comotron MP3 player, I have one of them and is just great, I paid $99 at CompUSA.

Check it out
http://www.comotron.com/MP3audio.html

Mine is the Model: c3310-128

__________________________________________
Blue Skies and May the Force be with you.

[Guest]

Part of the answer depends on what you're doing.

If you're doing action stuff like sports, a player that uses Compact Flash or some other solid-state medium is recommended.

Pros: skip proof, long battery life, small size, light weight
Cons: low capacity

If you're staying put, a hard disk-based player is handy.

Pros: Large capacity
Cons: reduced battery life, higher weight, larger size, tendency to skip if subjected to shock

You can also put one in your car.
Pros: high capacity, flexibility
Cons: higher expense, can't take it with you (unless it's the portable kind)

CD/MP3 players are now available.

Pros: flexibility - the best of both worlds. Play your existing CDs as well as MP3s and/or "hybrid" disks (MP3/WMA/RAW/CDA, etc.)

Cons: more expensive than CD-only portable players (which I have picked up in flea markets in good working order for $2).

There are DVD/CD/MP3 console players for home stereo / theater too.

Before making a purchase decision, do your homework. There are a lot of MP3 players out there now, and frankly, some of them are sh*t.

Checkout mp3.com's hardware section. Go to consumer electronics stores. Give 'em a test drive, kick the tires.

Also, if you see one you really like, try to pick it up on eBay first.

"The mouse does not know life until it is in the mouth of the cat."

[skygod7777 0]

hey, how do you get the music from your computer to the mp3 player??

like is there some cable or like a little chip that you computer has to have a port for or what?? yes, i'm dumb.

thanks

[Guest]

Typically a USB connection, though there are other methods.

[murrays 0]

i have a 20gb iPod and love it. Besides storing a couple of days of music right now I also have the following on it:
- 7 gb of digital video files I moved to make some room on my hard drive,
- 2 gb of digital photos - essentially a backup of two years of family photos,
- all my contacts - phone numbers, addresses, e-mail, etc.
- all my calendar items.
File transfer is FAST as it uses Firewire.
It has 32 mb of skip protection - I use it walking, not running and it has never skipped.
Excellent design and interface...you can do everything with one hand.

--
Murray

"No tyranny is so irksome as petty tyranny: the officious demands of policemen, government clerks, and electromechanical gadgets." - Edward Abbey

[Cajones 0]

Both Lew and I have the iRiver, also. Works very well running/working out, and has an FM radio. The FM radio is nice to have. It doesn't have a slot for additional media, but it has plenty of built-in storage (they have up to 512MB!) and a high transfer rate (up to 6.4Mbps). Super compact.

One drawback to the iRiver is the armband. It is rather large for Lew. At the smallest setting, it is still too big for her bicep. The largest setting can fit around my thigh. Just looks like an engineering oversight - making the elastic far too long for the avarage person.

The laws of physics are strictly enforced.

[jessd 0]

Quote

I'd suggest a Comotron MP3 player, I have one of them and is just great, I paid $99 at CompUSA.

I went to the CompUsa website and this brand was not listed. Maybe I'll go there this week and check it out. Thanks for all of the suggestions.

"Life is not measured by the number of breaths we take, but by the moments that take our breath away..."

[CrazyIvan 0]

Quote

Quote

I'd suggest a Comotron MP3 player, I have one of them and is just great, I paid $99 at CompUSA.

I went to the CompUsa website and this brand was not listed. Maybe I'll go there this week and check it out. Thanks for all of the suggestions.

Is not listed but they carry them, they are by the area where they have the Palm pilots, MP3 players, etc, they might be hanging on an endcap.

__________________________________________
Blue Skies and May the Force be with you.

[jessd 0]

Quote

Is not listed but they carry them, they are by the area where they have the Palm pilots, MP3 players, etc, they might be hanging on an endcap.

Thanks. Once again you offered some great advise for electronics/computer related questions.

"Life is not measured by the number of breaths we take, but by the moments that take our breath away..."

[lewmonst 0]

Yeah, I love my iRiver 190T. Check them out http://www.iriveramerica.com/product_index.htm.

I love it becuase it's SOO lightweight, holds like 30 songs and has FM radio, which I'm impressed with the signal. I'm pretty ADD when it comes to music and working out, so i get tired of songs quickly, where lots of storage is helpful. And sometimes i just feel like cruising the radio, so it's perfect. I was stoked to get the armband, but as Cajones said, it's designed for arnold schwerzineger or something. I mean, i'm a pretty big girl and i got some muscles, and it's still loose around my bicep, so I couldn't use it to run with. So I'm sure it won't fit most chics arms. But it's so light and easy to hold in my hand that it's not a big deal. It's 32 grams without the 1 AA battery... incredible. The software is easy to use, and i just get songs off Kazaa Lite. I love it. It helps me run more so that's a good thing.

We'd also recommend if you get it or whatever you get, go to BestBuy and get the warranty, it pretty much covers everything but cosmetic damage.

peace

http://www.exitshot.com

[skymedic 0]

I use sony minidisc....works great for me...problem is you have to use there software to use it. I get about 6hrs on one minidisc...I can jog, life weights with out issue....

Marc
otherwise known as Mr.Fallinwoman....

[jumpy 0]

Quote

I use sony minidisc....works great for me...problem is you have to use there software to use it. I get about 6hrs on one minidisc...I can jog, life weights with out issue....

Yeah MD's the stuff I tried to get my md to skip.. ran up and down the stairs about 20 times before it skipped for 1 second when i colapsed and the thing then just kept on going.. You'd have to be fit as hell to skip that thing

[Guest]

That is an advantage I forgot to mention. The large-capacity players often double as portable drives, so you can carry vast amounts of data around, not just MP3s.

"The mouse does not know life until it is in the mouth of the cat."