MP3 player..not sure what to go with :/

[Fox2k]

I hope this is the right place to post this..anyhow, I'm looking to buy an mp3 player, and I'm totally lost as to where to go.

Right now I have a Rio VOlt mp3-cd player. its too big, and its noisy when it loads and thats not good when im in class.

I have a couple in mind, I'd like to get at least 512 storage on the device, but right now 512 meg memory cards are extravagently priced..which leaves me pretty much with a nomad zen, or an ipod (or similar small HD players), all of which are way out of my price range. Before I realized how expensive half gig memory cards were, I was considering the rio 700 and one of the small RCA devices as well..I was wondering if anyone had perhaps a third option I might consider.

Any help would be appreciated.

Thanks!

 

[blues008]

You might want to wait til the end of the month...Apple is supposedly releasing a new iPod.

Link

The iRiver iFP-195TC has 512mb, but looks to be selling at around $500.

 

[slackerinabox]

I've been through a lot of mp3 players.. Rio Volt - ate up batteries, heavy, 3 of them broke on me (one of the times it was my fault).. I'm sure 1,000 people will say that they've had them ever since Nixon was president.. I just hated the damn thing (but it was the only "name brand" player available for a while.. Archos JukeBox- supposedly the new RECORDER line is great.. I broke TWO of the regular 10 gb jukeboxes.. GREAT warranty though.. Since they're reasonably priced I'd say they're worth a gamble.. SlimX (iRiver) - the best cdmp3 player i've owned.. The sound is a little tinny even using a good set of cans (grado's and senns.) but they don't skip, have FM radio, and the thing's really thin and light.. Mine is gracefully collecting dust ever since I got my... drum roll..10 gig ipod.. I love the freaking thing..It's just the best mp3 player out there.. if you are a student, like I am, you could get it from apple for around $30 or so less... I love it but still feel bad about paying $400 for it now that I'm unemployed.... Great, a little overpriced, but they're taking advantage of being the best of it's kind..

 

[Mday]

i'm using my pda.... =\

 

[Fox2k]

Originally posted by: Mday
i'm using my pda.... =\

hehe..yeah I was doing that for a while myself, but a) battery life is very poor on my model, I got maybe an hour per charge, and b) 128 / 256 megs isn't really enough to hold everything I need to keep me amused for a day

 

[ragiepew]

if you can put up with the size... and the cash... then the Apple iPod is the only way to go. Its not much bigger than most Flash based mp3 players yet store up to 20GB. I have the thinner 10gb ipod (i've also owned the 128mb Intel mp3 player) and I coudldnt live w/o it... especially if you have a tape deck in your car and tape adapter... there's just something nice about having 1500 songs at my fingertips while driving .

I have a friend who has a Zen... let me tell you... there's no comparison. There are some nice things about the zen, primarily the lower price, but its bigger than the ipod (very noticable), doesnt look nearly as nice, has a smaller and harder to use/read screen, and did I mention... doesnt look as good ?

Anyway, i'd wait a bit as rumor has it that Apple will release new ipods soon (about time) so either the prices of the current ones will drop or there will be something nicer for the same price.

Good luck.

 

[thorin]

Have you considered a NetMD device?

You should also check this thread on the same topic (Which mp3.....) and has ~50 posts.

Thorin

 

[Jeff7181]

What about the portable MP3 players that use removeable media... like compact flash cards. Only down side to those is you have to carry around the media if you have too many songs to fit on one. But they'd be completely silent =)

 

[Pauli]

I have a friend who has a Zen... let me tell you... there's no comparison. There are some nice things about the zen, primarily the lower price, but its bigger than the ipod (very noticable), doesnt look nearly as nice, has a smaller and harder to use/read screen, and did I mention... doesnt look as good ?

Who cares what the freakin' player looks like, especially since most people use a case anyway for carrying and protection? Plus, I'd argue with you that the Zen looks pretty damn cool in its own right. In any case, it sounds better than the iPod and costs much less, albeit in a larger form factor (still pretty small). You can get a 20GB Zen for about $250 bucks right now.

 

[BD231]

Slim-X 350 here, it IS the best MP3 player there is. Affordable, durrable, AWESOME sound and very light. Don't waste your time with anything else.

 

[slackerinabox]

BD231.. God.. I really HATE.. freaking HATE.. how people here have the tendency to say that what THEY like is the best.. The slime x-350 is pretty sweet but in MY situation, the IPOD towers above it.. in MY opiniom, I wouldn't waste my time on anything else.. Having owned the slim-x I must warn that the sound is a little tinny.. Nothing terrible and MUCH better than my other players, but worth mentioning.. actually, my ipod's a little tinny too.. I either compensate with really bass heavy headphones (Koss cans) or using my beloved grados with a headroom amp..

 

[BD231]

I'm a music buff and a solid storage device in general just wasn't the answer, the space limit alone was enough to keep me away. In terms of cost effective simplicity and sound quality I don't think anyone would need more than what the slim-x offers. I don't adore my slim-x at all, it just dose what anyone would need a cd-player to do(unless your insanely impatient).

The I-Pod is a big step up cash wise, and I find it very hard for more than a select few to justify purchasing one when a 700mb cd costs just cents.

 

[smp]

What's the battery life like on that slimx?

 

[slackerinabox]

Slimx has very decent battery life.. Uses these cool "stick" batteries that you gotta recharge (or use optional battery packs).. I like the slimx but find the Ipod more usefull.. I can have a running back up off nearly all of my mp3s and never have to worry about carrying around or scratching up a bunch of cds - one of the main reasons I switched to mp3s in the first place...

 

[Fox2k]

Thanks for the replies so far guys, although I think a couple of you skimmed past my original post

basically flash players are out for me..the memory is expensive, and I like to take a lot of music with me, so to buy any flash based player and get it even near what my current mp3-cd player has in terms of storage would cost me at least what a zen costs (512 meg mem cards are at what.$250 CAD?). I was hoping there was another way, as storage space and physical device size are my two main concerns, but I guess not. Although I admit the one device mentioned here I haven't heard of is the slimX, im assuming its similar to a nomad jukebox but I'm going to do some digging on it right now to find out more about it.

With the release of the new ipods, do you guys see the price of the zen dropping dramatically? I'm also wondering if it would do alright for mountain biking..ive read some reviews which say it's fine for jogging, and others that can't even use it while walking briskly. Since it is HD based, i'd tend to believe the latter, but im wondering how sensitive it really is.


Thanks again for the replies

 

[Fox2k]

bump, last try!

 

[MyName]

How about a Treo 15, the new firmware makes it a whole new player.
Shop around for a better price
I've got one and it's a great player for the money.