mp3 player help

[shaowq]

I'm looking for a good mp3 player that doesn't cost too much money. anyone got any suggestions? Something like the mini ipod or something like that would be good. I have no use for something that is 20 gigs of storage unless it's way cheap. My friend suggested me to the Rio Carbon and i think that's actually worth considering. Any input is very much appreciated as usual. THanks people

 

[DGath]

Dell Axim X30, high end, $266 Shipped. Same price, insanely more versatile. For the price, most HDD MP3 players are way overpriced. For the price of a 40gb iPod, you can get a sweet PDA with accessories. Sure 40 gb is nice, but is it neccesary, no way, just get 1gb SD/CF cards.

 

[00obrimw]

If you don't need 20GB of space then the Creative Muvo squared could be good for you. 4GB of space and cheaper than a mini ipod. A Creative Zen Xtra 30GB hardly costs much more but with the extra space comes a heavier and bigger player. One feature I like about the Muvo squared is that windows xp recognises it as a removeable disk so you don't need any drivers or software unlike the zen xtra and the ipods. Haven't seen one but the Creative Zen Touch at 20GB could be an option, more expensive but smaller and longer battery life, though people would probably call it a bit of an ipod ripoff.

 

[shaowq]

DGath and brim thank you for your posts. I will be looking into your suggestions. Have you guys personally read any reviews on those mp3 players? (just wondering) or have any experience with them?

I was going to get the Dell JukeBox but was told that it comes with more problems than one needs. And i thought it kind of strange that their 20 gig mp3 player would come with a trade-in warranty for 1 year instead of a repair or something. The crazy 20 hour battery life on one charge is what drew me to it, but a friend of a friend has one and it stopped working 30 days after he bought it and it had to be replaced. And he's been having problems with it ever since.

More suggestions are welcome thank you

 

[pax2179]

dude get a Neuros it is amazing and has way more features than any othe MP3 player out now, plus its cheaper, and can go up to 80 gig if you want. I have one and love it, i highly reccomend it A+

 

[rileychris]

I have a Rio S30 (todays version is called Rio Forge). It is great! Very small. Comes with small amount of built in memory but SD cards are pretty cheap these days. I primarily use mine while I run. Just another option -- buy a non-HD flash mp3 player and stick a big card in it. You could buy the one with 512mb built in and add a GB giving you 1.5 GB.

 

[LtPage1]

youd be insane to buy anything but an ipod. find a used one or something- ive got a first generation 5gig, and its never given me any problems.

 

[Taejin]

I personally own a iRiver iHP-120.

At first I was going to get an ipod, until I found out Apple was trying to force people to use their stupid software in order to do anything. I personally dislike strings attached with products -> I would prefer it if they made using iTunes optional.

THe iRiver is awesome I really dont know what else to say about it except that it's a really nice piece of hardware. Easy to use, plug and play, drag and drop, no apple bullshit.

If you're really not using that many songs, I would recommend getting a flash drive mp3 player. Theoretically it has a longer lifetime than hdd players, since there are no moving parts/hard drive failure.

 

[AWhackWhiteBoy]

new Rio Carbon, smaller than the ipod mini, more storage, better gui, costs less, better sound(i think). what more could you ask?

 

[karmasalad]

I just bought the Rio Carbon yesterday, and I'm loving it so far. I debated long and hard between the Carbon and the 4G iPod. While I love the iPod's design and elegance, the Carbon just had the features that I really wanted (battery life, size, drag n drop music, use of standard mini USB cables). Sure, 20GB would be nice to have over 5GB, but neither would be able enough to hold my music collection anyway.

I also think the Carbon sounds better than the iPod, but that's subjective, of course. The iPod is a great player though, don't get me wrong. I just helped a coworker buy one, and it is a thing of beauty and stupid easy to use. But for my needs, the Carbon was the better option.

 

[Anonemous]

Originally posted by: shaowq
I'm looking for a good mp3 player that doesn't cost too much money. anyone got any suggestions? Something like the mini ipod or something like that would be good. I have no use for something that is 20 gigs of storage unless it's way cheap. My friend suggested me to the Rio Carbon and i think that's actually worth considering. Any input is very much appreciated as usual. THanks people

Muvo2

or if you need more space, 180$ for the 30 gig Creative Zen

Zen

Other than that ipod mini and carbon are all good choices. But since you were looking for CHEAP and good. Can't beat 80-100$ less than the other prices.

 

[constable]

The rio carbon islooking to be an excellent player, judging by cnet's reviews. You can also find many older 15gb+ players for @$250 or less (e.g. 3g ipod, Rio Karma, Creative Zen xtra, dell jukebox, etc).

 

[piroroadkill]

Originally posted by: Taejin
I personally own a iRiver iHP-120.

At first I was going to get an ipod, until I found out Apple was trying to force people to use their stupid software in order to do anything. I personally dislike strings attached with products -> I would prefer it if they made using iTunes optional.

THe iRiver is awesome I really dont know what else to say about it except that it's a really nice piece of hardware. Easy to use, plug and play, drag and drop, no apple bullshit.

If you're really not using that many songs, I would recommend getting a flash drive mp3 player. Theoretically it has a longer lifetime than hdd players, since there are no moving parts/hard drive failure.

Wholeheartedly agree, I would hate any device that MADE me use a certain piece of software just to be able to do a simple thing like copy and manage my music. That just sucks.

I have an iRiver iHP-140, so we're in the same boat, it's a damn, damn sweet device.

 

[shaowq]

good stuff good stuff, i really appreciate all your input. I think im almost ready to make my decision. Again thank you all for your replies

 

[konakona]

Originally posted by: LtPage1
youd be insane to buy anything but an ipod. find a used one or something- ive got a first generation 5gig, and its never given me any problems.

???

I also think the Carbon sounds better than the iPod, but that's subjective,

when the vast majority of the net agrees with you, you are entitled to be objective

 

[AWhackWhiteBoy]

Originally posted by: LtPage1
youd be insane to buy anything but an ipod. find a used one or something- ive got a first generation 5gig, and its never given me any problems.

Ipod zeal is over rated. Apple simply doesn't offer all the features you can get from other players for less money.

 

[shaowq]

i just bought the Rio Carbon online for 217.97 and i'll let you guys know how it turns out

 

[shaowq]

so i've had my carbon for a few days...about 4 days to be exact and it never leaves my pocket unless it's time to charge it or something. So far im lovin it. They say the battery life is "up to 20 hours" for mine on the other hand it hasn't been getting up to 20 hours really. I had it playing for about 9 hours straight and i had about 1/3 - 1/4 battery left so i should have been able to get close to 15. But still good on a 3 hour charge. Like the drag and drop instead of using ITUNES to get everything onto the mp3 player and the sound quality that comes out of it is pretty impressive. My friend has a Mini Ipod and we compared, the ipod is only bigger by about an inch and thats it. I like my carbon though so i give it 2 thumbs up

 

[SickBeast]

Yes, the Carbon looks like an excellent little player.

That said, for the price you paid you could have had an iPod mini shipped to your door if you had used the student special. I prefer the interface of the iPod to anything else on the market.

There are pros and cons to each player; I'm not saying you chose the wrong player, just that I'm not certain that the Carbon beats out the Mini. It's missing a hold switch and on-the-go playlists, which are two big no-no's IMO.

 

[karmasalad]

Originally posted by: shaowq
They say the battery life is "up to 20 hours" for mine on the other hand it hasn't been getting up to 20 hours really. I had it playing for about 9 hours straight and i had about 1/3 - 1/4 battery left so i should have been able to get close to 15. But still good on a 3 hour charge.

The battery indicator on the Carbon isn't that accurate. I ran a battery test on mine this weekend and I was able to get 19+ hours before I stopped because I didn't want to run the battery completely down. The battery meter drops steadily until there are about 2 or 3 bars left where it then stops and runs for several hours before losing another bar.

Also, the volume at which you play, the encoding of your mp3s, and whether or not you have EQ on all combine to have an effect on your battery life.

 

[ECHO]

I'm looking at the rio carbon as well but will mainly be using it at the gym, specifically on the treadmill. Since this is a HD based player, is there any problem with skipping due to constant movement?

Also, does the carbon allow fast forwarding or book marking?

Thanks!

 

[konakona]

if you are using it on a treadmill, dont they come with a shelf thingy where you could put your purse and stuff? just a thought.

 

[ECHO]

no, not the ones that I use. Besides, I usually run pretty fast and at an incline so there's a lot of vibration.

 

[grant2]

there's a tonne of new players popping out of the woodwork for the xmas season.

http://reviews.cnet.com/4520-6490_7-5553119.html

They're all close to the same size & weight and all are listed under $250