What MP3 Player do you reccomend, budget of $150

[Schadenfroh]

what i need (in order of priority)
At least 5 gig
uber battery life
not that big
plays WMAs
will last a very long time in a college enviroment *IE a long warrenty*
looks half way decent, so i can wear it around campus on my arm or belt.
support shuffling of the songs to play random ones
good sound quality

im willing to go a lil over my budjet if it means a major leap in features

 

[Schadenfroh]

^

 

[SWScorch]

I just got a Rio Nitrus, but it's only 1.5GB. Still, it seems to be quite nice. Has all of your requirements except the storage part.

 

[biostud]

I just got the MuVo2 4GB with the Creative FM tuner Remote and I'm happy. Anand has just reviewed it.
It costs more and has less space than what you're asking for.

I doubt that you can find something that fits your requirements in that price range.

 

[SickBeast]

Originally posted by: biostud666
I doubt that you can find something that fits your requirements in that price range.

I agree.

If you're lucky you could find a used Apple iPod 1st gen 5GB used for somewhere around what you're willing to pay. There are even places that sell refurb iPods for very good prices.

TRY HERE

I bought my 3G iPod straight from the Apple website for $360CDN with the student discount. You get 15-20% off IIRC.
:beer:

 

[SickBeast]

I just thought of something else, I'm not sure if one exists though:

A DVD-R based MP3 player. It would hold 4.7GB, and would meet all of your other requirements. If one does not exist it should. I hereby copyright this thread.

 

[Schadenfroh]

how about for the ball park of $175, with a minimum of 3 gig

 

[wifi4lyfe]

budget

if you dont mind used, check out the older creative jukeboxes. they are kinda big but you can get alotta storage for cheap.

 

[Schadenfroh]

are the ipods really worth the price premium when compared to the dell equivalents if i stretch my budget that much? and will i be forced to use iTunes with the ipod and cant i use WMP9 with the dell right?

 

[SickBeast]

If you want my honest opinion, the iPod is the best piece of tech gear that I have ever purchased and it will change the way you listen to music. If you are the type of person who loves his music and has a large MP3 collection, there is simply no substitute for the iPod. The Dell unit is not as small or even close to as well-designed as the iPod. I'm certain its sound quality is lacking in comparison as well.

You will be "forced" to use iTunes with the iPod only if you want to purchase music online. There are other applications for syncing music onto it.

With your budget you may be forced to go with the Dell unit. I'm not saying it's bad; in fact it's better than the iPod if battery life is such a concern (which it sounds like it is). It's apparently built by Creative Labs which is also a good thing.

I'm almost certain that if you were to try out an iPod for an hour or so you would purchase one immediately, regardless of the price difference.

The 4G model is a mystery BTW, I've got no clue as to when it's coming out.

 

[Schadenfroh]

what about the iriver things over at new egg, people on some other forums i was reading say they are better than the ipod

 

[corkyg]

I echo what SickBeast says about the iPod. It is the best such device to ever come down the pike. I would be very happy with a used or refurb'd one.

 

[batmanuel]

I'd say go with the Dell DJ 15GB. Right now they are $199 regular price and every so often a sale or a coupon will drop it down to around $180. Good battery life compared to the iPod, even though it lacks the polish of the iPod, doesn't have as good of a scrolling solution, and requires MusicMatch for file transfers. A friend of mine bought a DJ20 and he's been quite pleased with it. I figure I'll get one myself around Christmas when the price ought drop to around $150.

 

[SickBeast]

Originally posted by: Schadenfroh
what about the iriver things over at new egg, people on some other forums i was reading say they are better than the ipod

It depends on your definition of the word "better". If more features=better for you, then yes the iriver is "better". The iPod is much more polished and well designed, with better sound quality to boot. It also has better build quality, and is slightly smaller. The iriver only comes in a 20GB model and would be outside of your price range I think. The 15GB iPod would be a stretch for you but I think you could pull it off.

 

[Schadenfroh]

Originally posted by: SickBeast

Originally posted by: Schadenfroh
what about the iriver things over at new egg, people on some other forums i was reading say they are better than the ipod

It depends on your definition of the word "better". If more features=better for you, then yes the iriver is "better". The iPod is much more polished and well designed, with better sound quality to boot. It also has better build quality, and is slightly smaller. The iriver only comes in a 20GB model and would be outside of your price range I think. The 15GB iPod would be a stretch for you but I think you could pull it off.

i can get the educational discount thru my junior college on apples site! looks like ipod will be the thing for me, ill pay more if its worth the extra, but the belt clip carrying case is 35 bucks, where can i find one cheaper from a reputable dealer?

 

[Illissius]

SickBeast: Could you back up your claims of superior sound quality at all?
In every review I've read, and I've read many, the order is always:

1. Creative and Dell
2. iRiver (slight margin)
3. iPod (somewhat more significant margin)

Not to say the iPod has bad sound, it's probably more than adequate if you're not an audiophile, but to say it has the best would be incorrect.
At any rate, you should prob. get either an iPod or iPod mini with an educational discount, as there isn't much else in that price range, and certainly not anything better. At retail, of course. You can probably get something better off eBay, an older iPod or the iRiver iHP-100 (which is the 10GB version which /does/ exist, but for whatever ungodly reason is $50 more expensive than the 20GB at Amazon).
Also, rather than just ask us, go read some reviews of these things, at IGN Gear and Designtechnica for example.

 

[Schadenfroh]

so the dell has better sound quality than the ipod that would cost 60 more bucks for me? does dell have an education discount like the apple store or could i buy both cheaper by going thru a reputable dealer?

 

[SickBeast]

I'm sorry Illissuius but I don't have a link. All that I can tell you is that I read an article on an audiophile website that reviewed the iPod and even went into its individual components. I'll search for it to hopefully find a link. It actually came to the conclusion that the iPod was of audiophile quality. That's what did it for me. After having used the iPod for over 6 months now with $150 headphones I can confirm that the sound quality is phenominal. My only issue is with the EQ; some settings can cause distortion. I don't use it though, I prefer to hear the music as it was intended to be heard.

I think Dell does have an educational discount actually, but I'm not sure if it covers the DJ, and I'm not sure how much you'll save.

 

[SickBeast]

OK I found it: LINK

But is it a serious piece of kit worthy of serious consideration by an audiophile?

Surprisingly enough, I believe the answer is yes. The open nature of the iPod's playback format?or, more properly speaking, its lack of a single playback standard?means that the player can offer the sound quality its owner demands of it. Presumably, that could even include options not currently supported, including space-hogging, hi-rez digital files. However, that will happen only if audiophiles take hard-drive-based players seriously enough to participate in the ongoing dialog concerning their use and possibilities.

Fortunately, that's already happening, as a quick Google of the subject will reveal. Users are actively seeking better sound, even as they trade stories about how much fun they're having with the product as it currently exists.

And why shouldn't they be happy? With the iPod, you can have your cake and eat it, too. On the outside, all that the rest of the world will see is that you're one of the iPod-totin' beautiful people; no one will ever know that under those headphones you're listening to monstrously good-sounding, hi-rez digital copies of your favorite demo discs. Baby, you're a rich man!

 

[Wiktor]

"The iriver only comes in a 20GB model..."
--SickBeast

You don't know much about the iHP do you?

I'd save up for a Rio Karma!

 

[Illissius]

Here's a review or three from IGN Gear:

first
second
third

I read it at a few other places as well, couldn't find them atm unfortunately.

 

[SickBeast]

Originally posted by: Wiktor
"The iriver only comes in a 20GB model..."
--SickBeast

You don't know much about the iHP do you?

I'd save up for a Rio Karma!

I was unaware that they had come out with a 40GB model. How does this change anything though? The 20GB models are out of his budget; it's not like iriver came out with a 10GB model or anything.

I've heard of some serious issues with the Rio Karma by the way. They are apparently very poorly built and break extremely easily. Add to this the fact that they are much thicker than the iPod, which makes them no longer "pocket sized". I've dropped my iPod several times, once I even pulled the sheets of my bed, launching the iPod 6 feet into the air onto hard flooring...it survived with only a few scratches.

 

[Wiktor]

"came out with a 10GB model or anything."
--SickBeast

Haha! You'd be surprised!

All good players though!
Karma being slightly cheaper, although getting an extended warrenty is probably the way to go here...

 

[SickBeast]

Originally posted by: Wiktor
"came out with a 10GB model or anything."
--SickBeast

Haha! You'd be surprised!

All good players though!
Karma being slightly cheaper, although getting an extended warrenty is probably the way to go here...

OK wow...there IS a 10GB iriver player. You are forgetting to mention that it costs over $340 though, which is more than the 15GB ipod costs.

 

[SickBeast]

Actually, for the OP:

I have been thinking about this quite a bit, and honestly the Dell DJ is probably a better fit for what you're looking for. You listed battery life and WMA support as two of your main criteria; the Dell player is superior in both of these regards. Add to this that it's cheaper and I think I have to reccomend it to you. If you can get the iPod for a good deal, do it, otherwise the DJ looks like a better value. Can you get a student deal through Dell?

I stand by my conviction that the iPod is superior to anything else currently on the market, but the Dell player is a better fit for you as far as I can tell.