Which MP3 Player?

Zebra

Never had an mp3 player and don't know where to start looking.

Is the ipod really the best or just the most fashionable? What features should I be looking for?

I'd be mainly using it to download from cd's and play through external speakers.

buglawton

Get one of the Apple range 'cos there are so many nice docs available - have a dock at your bedside and plonk the player in that, have a beefier dock in the living room and play in near hi-fi on that.

SuzieSue

I had never had an mp3 player until 3 months ago. I got a Creative Zen Style 300 which I am very happy with. It was much cheaper than an ipod and has built-in speakers which most ipods don't have.

OK_Sauce

Get anything that doesn't HAVE to go through iTunes. I have a Creative Zen, it's easy to use and you can simply drag and drop files onto it plus if you run out of space you can stick an SD card into it. All, of course, IMHO!

Zebra

Thanks for that guys.

I appreciate it's all about opinions, but for those of us that still refer to records and 45's it's all welcome.

I've always had the impression that ipods were all style over substance so will check out the Creative Zen ones. What are they like with external speakers?

Ximian

Due to the iPod's popularity there are many accessories available, such as external speakers, docking stations etc... When I bought my MP3 player I decided not to get an iPod because I wanted a device that never required any bloated software to transfer data and wanted a player that would also work easily on Linux. I also wanted an MP3 player that had good battery life and large storage capacity. I ended up buying an iAudio by Cowon: http://www.cowonglobal.com 4 years on and I'm still happy with it. I also hook the player up to an external system: via AUX inputs on Hi-Fi (3.5mm to RCA cable) similar to this

HTH

The_Grandmaster

I would agree ipods are good in terms of accessories available.
I own an ipod but I'm not sure I would buy again. Think ipods are costly due to design and if that's irrelevant, choose another mp3 player/ even a mobile phone.

jayme1

it depends on what you are looking to get from the mp3 player. just pure music? or music, internet, email, games/apps, not so good camera and HD video recording, skype/voip phone, ect?

I really like the iPod touch as it is a genuinely useful device and does very good music, the only real flaw is 1. it uses itunes (which I actually like) and 2. it does not have the best audio quality, but you you have to have VERY high quality headphones to tell (and I mean the expensive earphones).

also depends how much space your music takes up, and how much you want to spend.

Zebra

jayme1 wrote: »

it depends on what you are looking to get from the mp3 player.

I'm looking to get it for music - to download from existing cd's and playback through external speakers whilst on holiday.

That doesn't mean I wouldn't use other functions if they were available but the primary reason is as a lightweight replacement to a portable cd player.

SuzieSue

After I got my Zen, I was given an ipod touch by someone who was upgrading. It is useful to be able to access my emails downstairs without taking my laptop down as I work from home but that's about it and to be honest I wouldn't pay the extra just for that.

custardy

OK_Sauce wrote: »

Get anything that doesn't HAVE to go through iTunes. I have a Creative Zen, it's easy to use and you can simply drag and drop files onto it plus if you run out of space you can stick an SD card into it. All, of course, IMHO!

no MP3 player has to go through itunes