Best Mp3 Player...

[triksR4rabits]

I realize a very similar topic was posted recently (by Jr2swiss i believe), but I have different parameters. I felt that this would be a good place to ask, so here it is.

I'm looking for an mp3 player with a storage capacity between 10 and 20 gigs (preferably 20). Naturally the fisrt thing taht came to my mind was an Ipod, but I would like to know if the alternatives are better. I've heard that the Dell DJ is quite good, and I've seen the Sony Network Walkman, which I have no idea about. If anyone can shed some light on this, perhaps make a reccomendation, i would very much appreciate it.

EDIT: did some research on the new sony NW-HD1 walkman and it seem like a no go on that one. Why did they set up such a proprietary format!? What good is an MP3 player that cannot play mp3's? Turns out you must reformat your music to ATRAC

 

[thecheat]

the dell is shite. terrible navigation, plus its MASSIVE.

 

[sam fisher]

i have two. 2 gp32's. Yeah well if i had the money id get an IPOD or Dukebox but my money i managed to scrounge together has gone staright on a DS. Which seeing as i got in the early pre order list by email should be here next week.

 

[triksR4rabits]

the dell is shite. terrible navigation, plus its MASSIVE.

​

really? I've just done a bit of research on the jukebox and it seems like the right way to go. The older models have a good battery life, I don't find the unit to be all that massive (a kid on my floor owns one), and its sooooo much cheaper. I think I'm gonna go for a jukebox...

 

[spray]

rio karma

brilliant UI, easy as piss to navigate, huge file support and true gapless AND cross fading, in my opinion the single greatest feature ever to grace an mp3 player!

 

[thecheat]

go for a karma over a Jukebox.

 

[Jr2swiss]

I just got iriver h320. I was reading on it, receiving it on Monday. Has 20gb, nice screen, ~13 hours of battery life, radio however said had some bad controls. If you can wait i'll give you my opinion on it. It also cost $265 which hurts.

www.gp32z.com

 

[skysnapper]

its now been hacked so that it can now play movies!

If i had known that would happen when i bought my hp140 would have bought the H320 instead..

 

[Klown]

Zen Touch . Don't let the size put you off much. It still will fit in your pocket and it is a high quality, cheap alternative to the IPOD.

 

[thecheat]

zen touch has terrible control as well... seriously, iPods really are worth it.

 

[triksR4rabits]

Zen Touch . Don't let the size put you off much. It still will fit in your pocket and it is a high quality, cheap alternative to the IPOD.

​

The Zen really intrigues me, and I honestly can't afford an Ipod.
@ Klown or anyone else that can answer- I have a few questions about the Zen, namely can it be used as a portable hardrive (i.e. can it store files and such and not just music)? Is the software it comes with to transfer music any good? Can I transfer songs from the Zen to another pc? It looks pretty big; is it?

Any help would be much appreciated

 

[loz_the_guru]

The Zen is relatively big, its certainly bigger than an iPod. But i would get a zen touch fo sho. The battery life is great,. Plus, you cna turn any MP3 device into a portable storage device, by renaming hte file extension of say a .RAR file to .mp3, tehn changing it back when you need to use it.

 

[thecheat]

iPods are only 30 bucks more. And why would you change the extension when you dont need to with an iPod. Honestly, the only reason that should detract you from an iPod is battery life, which isn't that bad, plus anytime you hook it up to your comp it recharges via firewire. they also come with AC chargers, too.

 

[Klown]

stuff

It can store any files you want. The drawback is that you have to install the drivers for it on every machine you connect it to as it isn't plug and play. It's not that big really. 10.2 x 6.7 x 2.1 is small and it easily will fit in your pocket.

Ignore thecheat's anti zen bullshit, the ipod is a very nice player but the £50 drop to a zen is worth it.

 

[thecheat]

NOT BULLSHIT. in the US, the the iPod is only $30 more. i guess it is more there, but i didnt know that. I'm not saying its that bad, but the navigation isnt too good, the strip is skippy.
BTW it got 7/10 in Max. PC.

 

[Klown]

NOT BULLSHIT. in the US, the the iPod is only $30 more. i guess it is more there, but i didnt know that. I'm not saying its that bad, but the navigation isnt too good, the strip is skippy.
BTW it got 7/10 in Max. PC.

​

The strip takes about 3 minutes to get used to and the sensitivity can be adjusted.

 

[triksR4rabits]

i can get a Zen for 200, but cheapest i can find a 20 gig ipod is around 300, so no way am I getting an Ipod. I don't wan't one and I can't afford one.

The Zen is intrigueing me...
I appreciate all the answers you've given me, but I have yet another question. The drivers you mentioned, Klown, I'm assuming their quick to install and don't require a high powered comp? The reason I ask is b/c my laptop up here in college is rather old. It's gotta pentium 2 w/ 128 ram. I'm assuming this should not be a problem?

Also, the decision is now between this and a refurbished Rio Karma (it would be the same price). I read that the Karma can NOT be used as a storage device (i.e. only music, no files) which tturns me off to it. What do you guys think? Karma or Zen?

Thanks again

 

[spray]

karma can indeed be used as a storage device, it is accessible via a program called rio taxi, however it does not allow folders to be saved, just files.

intruigingly for the more technically minded it can be accessed via a network as the base station has a built in ethernet port, a simple java client has been released and i've heard its very agreeable.
apparently rio are working on the karma better in terms of harddisk file storage functions, so the future could produce more fruitful results.

in terms of functionality, usability and general goodness it rocks, the built in rio dj software is excellent and the ui is in my opinion unparralled. Its got a squatter fatter form factor that reminds me of my minidisc players of old.

check out riovolution.com for more karma related stuff.

 

[triksR4rabits]

karma can indeed be used as a storage device, it is accessible via a program called rio taxi, however it does not allow folders to be saved, just files.

intruigingly for the more technically minded it can be accessed via a network as the base station has a built in ethernet port, a simple java client has been released and i've heard its very agreeable.
apparently rio are working on the karma better in terms of harddisk file storage functions, so the future could produce more fruitful results.

in terms of functionality, usability and general goodness it rocks, the built in rio dj software is excellent and the ui is in my opinion unparralled. Its got a squatter fatter form factor that reminds me of my minidisc players of old.

check out riovolution.com for more karma related stuff.

​

Thank you Spray, you seem to be in synce with many other Rio owners whose reviews I have read. The biggest prob I have with the Karma though is the hardrive problems. I've visited Riovolution before and they highly recommend purchasing the extended warranty with it. Unfortunately I lack the funds to do so, so the Karma scares me off. It's lookin like a Zen as of right now

 

[Jr2swiss]

I bought the iriver h320 20gb for $265 brand new off of ebay. Just wondering whats your limit. Once the mp3 player is done charging and I get acquanted with it a bit i'll give some feedback.

www.gp32z.com