MP3 player recommendations

[inflames988]

Hey, ive kinda grown out of my minidisc player, having 20 mds kinda defeats the purpose of portability....anyways im looking into an iPod or something, but ive got a collection of 150 or so cds (metal ), and ive heard there are better types of player than iPod that are similar...anyways im looking for something to hold at least 5,000 songs (probably a 20gb iPod), and looking to buy through ebay or half.com or something to try and keep it under 200 bucks.

[inflames988]

PS i dunno how much hdd space it would take to save all the songs to my hdd i have 80gb hdd which should work, and at first i didnt like the idea of doing this but now i see that ipods kinda automatically sync which is cool and wouldnt mind doing this although it woudl take forever to get it all on the computer, either way is good but id like something that transfers fast w/ usb 2.0, dont have firewire

[Hi Ho]

The Creative Nomad Zen 30GB seems to be just what you're looking for. In my opinion it is a much better value than the Ipod. It also has a replacable battery, like that of a camcorder, which the Ipod does not have. It is also about $80 cheaper than the 20 GB Ipod. The 30 GB model should hold all of your music and then some.

[Punked Out Comp]

The Rio Karma is a very good mp3 player with a 20gb hdd

[juicelooser]

Although others may be cheaper than the iPod, I have found nothing I like as much as it. I didn't really realize how cool the iPod was until I had it in my hand and used it. I just love how compact it is, how intuitive it is, and it feels like a full package. Now, I haven't tried either of the above MP3 players, but I absolutely love my iPod. I don't think I'll ever use anything else.

[inflames988]

yea i know wat you mean, i picked one up and found myself scrollng through the songs perfectly and finding whatever i want in a minute or two, gotta love the little wheel thing.

[Punked Out Comp]

Is that your desicion then?

[Hi Ho]

Creative has a player with a similar interface to the Ipod. The Zen Touch. Still, the standard Zen interface is nice. I have used both the Ipod and the Zen and I like them both. The price and the battery are what keep me leaning toward Creative.

[inflames988]

Well i would LIKE the iPod, but i like to consider all my options and see if i can find anything better (and save a few bucks) before i purchase anything. Basically i need something around 200 bucks or less, 20gb or more space, and the iPod interface is nice but not my first priority. Is there anywhere i could buy used for this price? im not picky about what generation but i do like the newest one alot, my friend has one.

[inflames988]

Just took a look at the Zen touch, looks really nice, but how does it supposedly hold the 10,000 tracks when the 20gb ipod is only 5,000? Also i listen to metal and the tracks tend to be a little to a lot longer than most, sometimes up to 10 mins, do they compress them more, and is sound quality affected?

[Hi Ho]

The Ipod uses Apple's ACC format instead of MP3. The Creative players can use both MP3 and WMA. I am guessing that ACC files are a bit larger than MP3's or WMA's. Personally I like WMA format best. I think it sounds better and the files are just a smidge smaller. If all your files are at 128kb/s then you should get close to 5,000 songs on it. I would just go with the cheaper 30 GB model to be sure.

[damontgo]

i have an Ipod, and I have to say that it is the 2nd best purchase i have ever made, (1st being myiMac ) and it synchronizes flawlessly with iTunes, which is ,IMO, the best player out there. Yes, the ACC file format is a little bit larger, but I think it's of higher quality than WMA, for sure. Also, Apple sends out updates for the iPods, and has the absolute greatest customer support i have ever experienced. After i owned mine for about a year, i experienced a rare glitch where the LCD screen just freezes, you can't even turn the thing off, or do a software restore on it. So i called apple, and I was up and running about 10 mins later, with all of my songs still on the HD! iPod supports Firewire and USB, and is crazy quick when managing songs with iTunes. spend the extra $70 (20gb goes for $270 after a student discount, and everyone knows someone in college, if not i'll get on for you ) Also, who can beat all of the cool accessories for iPod?

[juicelooser]

Originally Posted by Hi Ho The Ipod uses Apple's ACC format instead of MP3.

You can play MP3s along with many other audio types.

[Yuanji]

i think that you can get a firmware flash soon for the new sony walkman that lets you play MP3s on it. its more affordable then the Ipod and has a longer bat. life.

[kram 2.0]

Originally Posted by juicelooser You can play MP3s along with many other audio types.

Everytime iTunes uploads the files from your computer to the iPod, it translates it into ACC format - a special iPod reading format. I guess it's for reasons of protecting the sale of the iPod.

kram

[juicelooser]

Originally Posted by kram8806 Everytime iTunes uploads the files from your computer to the iPod, it translates it into ACC format - a special iPod reading format. I guess it's for reasons of protecting the sale of the iPod. kram

I don't know how it would be doing this because I accidently (don't ask how) deleted all my music files on my computer and, to get them back, I took the MP3 files off my iPod. As far as I know they are still stored as MP3 files on the iPod. AAC is just iTunes' format because it includes DRM.

[Yuanji]

theres a program http://ipodsoft.com/ipodagent.aspx what it's called but it lets you take the music off ur ipod and put it into other comps i think it converts it back to mp3. worth testing out. they did a segment on the prog today on the screen savers.

[Mac Medic]

Originally Posted by kram8806 Everytime iTunes uploads the files from your computer to the iPod, it translates it into ACC format - a special iPod reading format. I guess it's for reasons of protecting the sale of the iPod. kram

No, thats not quite correct. I tunes transfers AAC, MP3, AIFF, WAV and apple lossless audio formats. There is no conversion to the ipod. You may be thinking of the Airport Express wireless audio streaming that converts audio to the Apple Lossless format on the fly. But and MP3 on an ipod is still an MP3 when you transfer it back to the PC.

The best part of the ipod is itunes IMHO. Organization, tagging, searching, speed etc are all far superior to any other player, and Apples fairplay DRM for purchased songs is the fairest system available, allowing you to copy to 5 PC's, burn unlimited CD's copy to unlimited ipods. Try getting that with Napster and WMA.

[Hi Ho]

Apples fairplay DRM for purchased songs is the fairest system available, allowing you to copy to 5 PC's, burn unlimited CD's copy to unlimited ipods. Try getting that with Napster and WMA.

With Napster and WMA you can burn unlimited CD's and copy to three PC's. Who even needs it on two PC's?

[Mac Medic]

My understanding with napster (i can't visit the site on a mac but thats a different story) is that the DRM is different for each song. Some allow 1-3 burns while others allow more, unless that has changed since the launch of the service. My music is on 4 machines right now, will be on 5 when i replace the G5 she took.

[Hi Ho]

As far as I can tell it's unlimited burning on all songs. Napster, Walmart Music, MSN Music, and Musicmatch are all integrated into WMP 10. I have bought several CD's from both Wal-Mart music and Napster and I have burned songs to many CD's.

Hey, Im new here and Im curious whether to buy the Zen Touch (20 GB) or the Zen Xtra (40 GB).

I dont really see any special reason to get the Touch over the Xtra besides the Touch pad obviously, but is that worth losing 20 GBs? Are there any features that I'm missing that makes the Touch better? Thanks for any help..

[inflames988]

i just heard the ipod only lasts for 1-2 years or 18 months? is that true? no way im spending $300 for that.

[juicelooser]

There have been reports of the batteries on iPods dying after 18 months. They are replaceable by sending them into Apple for $99, or you can replace it yourself.

[Hi Ho]

or you can replace it yourself

It's not that simple. If you replace it yourself you void the warranty and risk damaging the unit. That's the thing about the Ipod. A replacement battery for a Creative Zen player is around $50 and those batteries have been lasting quite a bit longer. Replacing the battery in the Zen is as easy as pressing a button to pop off the front cover. I like the looks and the interface of the Ipod and I would love to have one. However, I'm not going to pay the prices they charge especially since they don't last long.

[nubbler]

Originally Posted by Yuanji i think that you can get a firmware flash soon for the new sony walkman that lets you play MP3s on it. its more affordable then the Ipod and has a longer bat. life.

It also has a switch to turn off automatic charging when placing in dock to sync, somthing that haunts the IPOD and uses cycles therefore making the battry life smaller, plus it has a 30 hour batt life, IPOD doesn't come close to that.

[nubbler]

Here is the link for the Sony thing. MP3 player I know all the reviews are bad, here's why, ATRAC3 - don't worry, they have or will shortly be releasing an update that lets you play MP3, cuz right now it aint a Mp3 player actually.

Hey I have another question about the Zen Xtra... does it play secure WMAs like the Zen Touch does? Cause I have Napster and the original reason I liked the Touch was because it played secure WMAs. Then I found out about the Xtra and that you could get a 40 GB one for the same price as the 20 GB Zen Touch.

I would really appreciate if someone replied .

[Hi Ho]

I believe that any player that plays WMA files will play secure WMA files.

So then if that's true, what do you all recommend? The Zen Xtra or the Zen Touch? Do I go with the more space of the Xtra or is it really necessary? Should I go with the Touch because it's newer and Creative added a few new features? Or is there another MP3 player for around 250 that I should get?