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Community Newsletter: Q&A: Buying my first MP3 player, advice needed!
- 12/7/07 8:11 AM
yep here is one
by gamer3015 - 11/26/07 9:08 PM In reply to: Buying my first MP3 player, advice needed! by Lee Koo (ADMIN)
you can go and get a sam sung e200 or one of them they are as big as a nano but do every thing the ipod and is cheap same as a nano price and you dont need to install software unless you whant videos
IPOD
by e.hayles - 11/27/07 8:03 AM In reply to: Buying my first MP3 player, advice needed! by Lee Koo (ADMIN)
The iPod has to be the one for you... not only is it easy to use and has a great look, it is small, reliable, and can hold all your Beatles/Elvis tracks, pictures of your kids and much more. There is a new feature for people who are into walking, which is the Nike sensor which is a wireless sensor that you put on your shoe, whilst you walk or run it is costing how many miles you have done and how long it is taking you... you can also upload this information to the net and use a type of social networking space to share you times and other info! How Brill is that?! I didn't actually buy the iPod Nano I own... my Grandmother did but it has been a faithful player of mine for around 2 years now and has never had a fault. I do want to update it... if I were you. I would buy the new iPod Nano as it is the perfect size!
Best wishes in your search!
Emma
MP3 available on new model cell phones
by bpratt4645 - 11/27/07 11:25 AM In reply to: Buying my first MP3 player, advice needed! by Lee Koo (ADMIN)
Assume you own a cell phone, who doesn't now days!
Many of the newer model of cell phones have camera and MP3 built in as a feature. Music and pictures can be saved on an external memory card (MicroSD), which is inserted into the phone to extend your memory capacity. Cost varies depending on amount of memory you need, 1G is approx $30.
If your cell phone has these features, I'd start from there. The downfall of using your cell phone as a MP3 player is it drains the battery a lot faster than normal.
Selecting a MP3 Player
by forkboy - 11/27/07 1:22 PM In reply to: Buying my first MP3 player, advice needed! by Lee Koo (ADMIN)
Nancy,
Selecting a MP3 player can be a daunting task in today's market. The choices are staggering and it can lead to quite a bit of mental overload as one tries to wade through the myriad of options. I myself have been through the process of purchasing a MP3 player three times in the past three years and hope that some of my experiences will help you.
First, iPod is just one of many choices available to you. My first MP3 player was an iPod and I found it to be quite sufficient for my needs at that time. The current models are, from what I have read, quite competent music players and any one of the Nano models sound like they would meet your needs in that they are small enough to be carried around easily, will store and show pictures, and can hold your music collection with room to spare. In addition, the click wheel interface device is very easy to use and makes working with the Nano (and other Apple MP3 players) very simple. As you are a novice to the MP3 world I think you will find iTunes (the software needed to interact with the Nano) to probably be the best and easiest software with which to work. Not that there is anything wrong with the other options, but regardless of folks feelings about iPods (or Apple in general), iTunes has a solid reputation for ease-of-use, which would be good for someone with your lack of MP3 experience. Keep in mind though that Apple MP3 players must be used with iTunes - you cannot use their MP3 players with other software. Apple uses a closed system to ensure reliable performance between the requisite software and the MP3 player. This is neither good nor bad, but important to understand up front.
However, Apple isn't the only manufacturer of MP3 players and other companies make very good products as well. I'm particularly partial to Creative Lab products and currently own two (a hard-drive based unit as well as a flash-based one). My flash-based player would also serve your music, photographs and portability needs quite readily (it is the Zen V Plus). However, I am not as happy with their bundled software, which must be installed for use with their MP3 players. However, you do not have to continue to use their software if you simply want to load music & pictures onto your player. Other media player software options are available, including the well known Windows Media Player. Personally I don't think Windows Media Player is as intuitive as iTunes, but it's not difficult either. It is, in my opinion, simply not as polished. However, and as previously stated, you are not locked in to using the software which came with the player or with Windows Media Player. Other software is available on the Internet and much of it is free and will work quite fine with most any MP3 player other than ones from Apple.
Of course, there are other companies such as Microsoft, Archos, Samsung, Toshiba, SanDisk, Cowon, iRiver, and Rio just to name a few. And many of these afore-mentioned companies make very good MP3 players, but some simply lack name recognition in the market place. Searching for reviews on sites such as CNET can go far to helping provide you with an idea as to whether or not they meet your wants and desires.
As far as sound is concerned, that is always a matter of personal preference and can be very much impacted by the headphones that come bundled with whatever player you ultimately purchase. I think most persons would agree that purchasing an after market pair of headphones will do the most to improve sound quality as most players, across manufacturers, generally sound good to great, but that the bundled headphones are typically rather mediocre. Naturally, a feature that may be of interest to you would be the ability to modify the sound by using an equalizer, which would allow you to boost or attenuate a relatively narrow band of music frequencies. Some players include pre-set equalizer settings, while others include both pre-sets and the ability to allow you to create your own special setting (and to save it for use again and again).
Lastly, pictures are really nothing more than a different type of file when compared to music files. You can transfer picture files as readily to most MP3 players as you can music files. Again, the software you use will be important because some software is easier to work with than others. You shouldn't have any difficulty loading your player with pictures of family and friends, but be certain to look carefully at pictures that are preloaded on many MP3 players so that you can compare and contrast the quality of the image between players while you are looking them over before buying.
I sincerely hope any of this information helps you in your research and best of luck selecting a player.
Play & Play Power
by kantzler - 12/1/07 12:24 AM In reply to: Selecting a MP3 Player by forkboyTo me, Apple’s proprietary system gets the nix. Try to avoid too much licensing and use restriction, for which Apple is the worst. If you buy it, you should be able to use it where and on whatever you want. It is true that, given equal memory and features, the software and online interface is the most important, and players adapted for recognition by Windows can be used in Windows Media Player, which is quite substantial, supporting play lists and all kinds of source music files. A player that is Windows compatible and where the source is also interfaced with Rhapsody online is probably the best choice for flexibility and variety, since Rhapsody is well established, has a diverse subscription service used by many major sales outlets, and is used by most major manufacturers. But one of the most important considerations is the battery. The new Sansa player, View, does not have a replaceable battery, odd enough, since their lower category models do, which means that after a year or so, it’s a throw away. Don’t buy any player that does not have removable battery!! Some only allow you to return the unit to the manufacturer or a service facility to have the battery changed, but this will cost more than one where you can remove the battery and exchange it yourself. I just bought an 8GB Insignia Pilot ($140 at Best Buy) that has a nicely sized screen (a nice feature), user removable battery (it has a compartment access door) and that has a very user friendly interface with a flying-saucer lighted wheel for navigation. It has the mini-plug, so can use any earphones with that plug you already own, as can any other unit. The Rhapsody software is adequate, though none I have heard of place proper emphasis on play-list management and importing, which, to me, is second only to the actual music files, more important that the online “radio” stations, or any other features. If you can’t make and manage your own play-lists, you’re nowhere. Most software packaged with most players will allow you to create play lists on PC and import them to the device, even though they have no or inadequate import provisions for whatever play lists you already have resident on your PC. So, my bottom-line advice is to make sure you have at least, good play-list creation and management, and replaceable batteries.
WMA protected tracks are protected as well
by BigGuns149 - 12/1/07 1:02 PM In reply to: Play & Play Power by kantzlerIf you think Apple is the only proprietary system out there than you haven't noticed that most major non-Apple players aren't USB mass storage devices. In other words, unless you have Windows XP or Vista the player can't be used as a player. You can upload information to the player, but the player won't play any files that you didn't upload using Windows Media Player. All of those playsforsure devices are useless on Mac, Linux, or other versions of Windows.
Furthermore, while not officially supported iTunes is not the only program out there to upload music or video to an iPod. Just because you haven't heard about it doesn't mean it doesn't exist. There are some advantages to using the official iTunes client, but to say iTunes is the only client you can use with an iPod is bunk.
"Don’t buy any player that does not have removable battery!!"
Just because it doesn't use AA or AAA batteries doesn't mean that the battery can't be removed. The ipod has a user replaceable battery. It is a little more time consuming to replace, but you can pick up an ipod battery at your local Fry's for about $30-40. If you don't mind waiting there are a number of places online that sell ipod batteries. That being said I wouldn't be as concerned about the removable batteries. While they decrease the cost a bit up front. Replacing the batteries will cost you a lot unless you can recharge the AAA batteries at lot. Furthermore, unless it is a high end player $150+ I wouldn't be too concerned about having to replace it in two years.
I pretty well convinced that kantzler is a Best Buy employee. Rhapsody is not doing very well so the only reason I could see someone recommending them is if they had a financial impetus to do so (Best Buy has a special deal with Rhapsody). Furthermore, I can't imagine anyone recommending a Best Buy brand product that wasn't a Best Buy employee.
There are a lot of reasons not to buy an ipod I just think this guys answers aren't one of them. If I were going to get a non Apple player I would be looking at a Sandisk Sansa or the Zen Stone on the low end. there are a few high end PMP like iAudio that I would consider on the high end, but I doubt a first time buyer would be interested in the high end. I give kantzlers post an A for effort, but a F for inaccuracies and not really answering the original question. I can't believe CNET actually considered this decent.
Tell more of what you don't know.
by kantzler - 12/1/07 9:54 PM In reply to: WMA protected tracks are protected as well by BigGuns149The Insignia Pilot doesn't use AA or AAA, but the rechargeable battery is user replaceable, and no matter what you say, that's a primary consideration, and I repeat, don't be a fool to buy a player like a Sansa View (which Best Buy sells) that you can't even get the manufacturer to replace the battery when it dies or becomes invalid. And why even settle for a player that the manufacturer wants to rip you off by having you send it in to them or a service center for replacement?
And with the price of players falling, your taking light of a $30 to $40 battery charge isn't in the interest of a prudent buyer. That's expensive.
I never said anything about iTunes being best for anything. They're restrictive and monopolistic and I prefer devices that are generally playable of anything, especially MP3, and that don't tie you down to source or or use restrictions after you buy a track.
And while I'm not a Best Buy employee, I generally find I know more about the things I buy from them than they do, and Best Buy is only one of the many outlets that are licensed with Rhapsody, besides their own RealRhapsody, which also include Comcast, Charter Communications, Direct TV DSL, Cablevision's Optimum, Roadrunner (TWC), Sprint, Lycos, HP, Viao, Gateway, Verizon, Listen.com, Downbeat, Jam base, Music Club, Audio Galaxy, among others, all of which have the Real Rhapsody player customized for their branded Rhapsody service. So you seem more like an electronics department-store employee who's just putting in time and not knowing what he says. All of that equals a whole lot of customer base, and a significant market share opposed to Apple, not including the other stand-alone services. Any player that is mated with Rhapsody is tied to this diverse market base. But the down side is that the Rhapsody software is more prioritized for the streaming and downloading capability and experience they sell to those who elect to step up from the free basics to the monthly paid subscriptions, and even some of the most basic software capabilities have been ignored of sloppily put together, like the play list importing I mention in my first post, and another is the inability to designate drives you don't want the software to recognize, which means it wastes its time and yours scanning your memory sticks and some other drives, which forces you to remove them, and to me a failure to provide a basic user setting control to exclude drives of choice from appearing as sources, and to provide a varied play-list import suite is inexcusable and toy-store programming. The software also takes a lot of time to do its scans, and it has other bugs, like sometimes locking up when trying to transfer a huge number of files at the same time. Until they get their software straightened out they can't claim superiority over Apple iTunes or anyone else, but they are more flexible and the software is workable, despite the frustrations, and it will work on a whole lot of different manufacturers players. But you go on ahead and buy new units or pay for expensive batteries every year or two if you want, and restrict yourself to the iTunes monopoly. For some that's a fit, and for most, who only want to do the basics and don't care about drive recognition and play-list import, license and use restrictions on what they buy, either will serve their purpose. I only know that the Insignia Pilot I wound up with plays its songs through Windows Media Player and the faulted Rhapsody Music service software, and they allow me to at least create my play lists and play them, using any music I have, licensed or otherwise, MP-3 or WMA, and use a player that has user-removable/replaceable batteries, and that's as flexible as it is today. I recommend that anyone buying today shoot for the cost advantages of user replacement for power source and flexibility in music source in whatever player they finally decide upon.
EXCUSE ME???
by DannyD. - 12/1/07 12:57 AM In reply to: Selecting a MP3 Player by forkboy""" As you are a novice to the MP3 world I think you will find iTunes (the software needed to interact with the Nano) to probably be the best and easiest software with which to work. Not that there is anything wrong with the other options, but regardless of folks feelings about iPods (or Apple in general), iTunes has a solid reputation for ease-of-use, which would be good for someone with your lack of MP3 experience. Keep in mind though that Apple MP3 players must be used with iTunes - you cannot use their MP3 players with other software. Apple uses a closed system to ensure reliable performance between the requisite software and the MP3 player. This is neither good nor bad, but important to understand up front."""
Sir, what in the world are you saying? Have you checked the number of people online whose systems have major problems because of itunes? You must either work for Apple, be 13 years old or otherwise have no clue of what's going on. What if you decide to go with a different player after owning an ipod, are you going to purchase your songs all over again? Why not go with a player that allows simple drag and drop file transfer and is seen as another drive by your system? I guess that's too simple for some people... Last but not least, ipods are popular for the exact reason that Brittany Spears is popular: every kid 7 to 18 years old wants and buys one!! How is that for popularity!!
Alternative iPod software
by dhc2424 - 12/1/07 8:17 AM In reply to: EXCUSE ME??? by DannyD.Hi,
I agree iPods are great. Maybe the best media player out there. I have 2 video iPods. But iTunes is not the only software you can use with iPods.
Media Monkey (www.mediamonkey.com) is a free program that allows you to transfer music, videos, pictures to an iPod. You can backup your iPod with it. You can organize your collection with it. I have lost hard drives with my iTunes installed on it. Media Monkey makes it easier to recover those lost media that you might not have gotten backup using the iTunes burner function.
There is a paid version ($19.95) of Media Monkey that gives you even more features. Both versions work with any mp3 player.
Media Monkey has saved me more than once this year.
On choosing the best music player, research the software interface
that you have to use with the player. My daughter has Windows Media
Player based mp3 device. From my experience with this device compared with iPods, iPods using iTunes (and Media Monkey) are less problematic. Windows Media Player (WMP) at first glance seems to be a good interface but has too many glitches in transferring your media. You have to download plugins to make your device be recognized by WMP. These plugins don't always work properly with WMP.
The device tech supports told me there are problems in the way that
WMP works that make it tricky to get the WMP based device to transfer your media to the device. For a novice that is a very difficult thing to figure out. For me iTunes is the best and easiest to use.
There are a lot of players out there and everyone has their favorite,
good luck on choosing the right one for your needs.
excuse me too
by johnrf - 12/1/07 12:04 PM In reply to: EXCUSE ME??? by DannyD.the ipod is the best, easiest to use, most reliable and the nicest to look at. Itunes is easy to use, compatible with several formats. For the purest they have 2 lossless formats. Be careful of the ones that have a monthly fee. I've got 8,000 songs on my 160 including a bunch of live concerts in lossless formats, some videos, 150 photos and I still have over 60 gigs free space. Don't be deceived by apple haters, they are probably in a bad mood trying to get back to windoze after vista ruined their weekend.
But if you just want to listen to some Dean Martin tunes get one of those ugly ones. Not everything that is popular is bad. And is Brittany Spears still popular? I didn't know...
So sorry...
by forkboy - 12/1/07 3:11 PM In reply to: EXCUSE ME??? by DannyD.I don't work for Apple (currently I don't even own an Apple product and my Shuffle was my one and only Apple product thus far). I'm not 13, but 42. I do have a clue.
Plenty of folks have troubles with iTunes. Sure. Plenty of folks have trouble with WMP. No doubt some of that trouble is inherent in iTunes and much is probably the end user's computer being trouble-ridden already because they don't really know how to take care of their computer.
I don't purchase music online so I don't have to worry about codec online music is encoded in and it sounds like Nancy, being a novice, isn't necessarily interested in purchasing music online, but simply moving her CD collection (and some pictures) to a player.
When offering folks advice you really have to try and read between their lines and determine what is their level of experience and their ultimate desires for the product. I stand by my comment that iTunes is an inherently easier application to use than is WMP (and I use WMP). I didn't say iTunes was less trouble prone and nor did I imply such.
Ultimately, I stand by my response and I think the fact it was selected (and is currently in first place I might add) speaks volumes for my advice.
Just to add on
by gctinyaz - 12/4/07 3:49 AM In reply to: Selecting a MP3 Player by forkboyThe important thing here is that you are a novice with regards these things. Therefore the simpler the gadget the better at first.
As rightly pointed out in the item above, some of the players are well polished but they can be a bit complicated when it comes to use.
I therefore recommend you stay away from media players that have their own software eg iPOD, Samsung and Sony to name a few. Having experienced them, they were a bit challenging to handle, even though my skills are a bit above the novice level.
I currently have a Creative Zen which I found quite easy to use. The first time I plugged it into my computer, Vista loaded the software automatically and registered it in Windows Media Player. The only thing I had to do was respond to one question "Do you want to synchonise?". After responding it transferred all the music on my computer onto the player for me.
The good thing is it allows you to fine tune, edit, delete (if you want to) the music on the MP3 player, THROUGH Windows Media Player.
At the end of the day, that's the sort of MP3 player you need.
As with all things, there are compromises here and there. Like the Ceative, although the sound is still very good, Sony was a cut above it but very challenging to use because of their own software.
So I recommend the Creative Zens for you.
MP3 Players
by darrenforster99 - 11/27/07 11:58 PM In reply to: Buying my first MP3 player, advice needed! by Lee Koo (ADMIN)
Dear Nancy
There are loads of MP3 players out there to choose from, iPods are only a small minority.
The main thing that sells the iPod is the fact it looks good and it has a cool name (kind of like the Sony Walkman's), however loads more companies make their own version of MP3 players.
One other thing that helps sell the iPod is the compatibility with iTunes, if you buy your music from iTunes then it's either best to consider switching to a website that supplies the tunes in alternative formats such as WMA or MP3 (like AllTunes (this is a Russian website, the legality of buying MP3s from here is debatable, it's kind of similar to the Radio Caroline argument of the 60's), eMusic (legal), or eMule (illegal unless you have the artists permission) or to get an iPod
One final thing to also consider with iPods is the cost, iPods are alot more expensive due to their fashion image than other MP3 players, in the UK I can get an iPod shuffle, which is the most basic iPod for £50 from the Apple store, from Asda/Walmart I can get their clone of this with the same amount of memory for just £10 and it also has voice recording function on it. You could go and buy loads more mp3s from eMusic for that £40!
Now if you also want an mp3 player that can show pictures as well, the iPod version is about £100, it's also called an mp4 player when it plays pictures not an mp3 player (as mp4 is the format you need to turn your pictures into. One thing to bear in mind when going for an mp4 player though is that they are alot bigger than an mp3 player due to the screen and they also run the batteries down alot more.
You also mention you would like to store all your Elvis and Beatles CD collections on this mp4 player, along with music. Depending on the size of your Elvis and Beatles collection (if you mean every Elvis and Beatles song then your looking at about 4gb, maybe more if you want to include photos).
One of the best ways to do this would be to go for an MP4 player that accepts interchangable memory cards, the Sony PSP is able to play videos, show photos and play mp3s all from an interchangeable Sony Memory Stick and when you can pick up pre-owned for about £80 or new for about £100 this is probably a really good one to go for (plus you also have the added advantage of being able to buy UMD movies to watch on the move, or a games machine to play on the move!), and it has a really large (4.3") and wide screen
Or alternatively there is the Visual Land at Amazon with a 2" screen, 1Gb internal memory and this can then be expanded by SD memory cards, so with this you could have your Beatles on one 1Gb memory card and Elvis on the other (or get a 2gb memory card and put them all on the one!). This is quite handy as when you run out of space you can just go and buy more memory cards to enhance the space. Also just reading about the MP4 player it is only the size of a credit card, so it sounds like it would be ideal for your walks. It's available from Amazon.com for $38.99 here is the link:-
http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/redirect.html?ie=UTF8&location=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.amazon.com%2FVisual-Land-Screen-Player-Speaker%2Fdp%2FB000SOPKOO%3Fie%3DUTF8%26s%3Delectronics%26qid%3D1196235893%26sr%3D1-4&tag=thegamesshop-21&linkCode=ur2& camp=1634&creative=6738
Potential winning answers
by Lee Koo (ADMIN) - 11/30/07 3:20 PM
In reply to: Buying my first MP3 player, advice needed! by Lee Koo (ADMIN)
Here are the selected submissions grouped in one post. Read through them and place your votes in the newsletter poll.
Answer:
MP3 players
Hello Nancy:
I am at present also looking into buying a Mp3 player.
Depending on the amount of songs or video's or photo's you want to store you will have to determine how many GB of memory you need.
For example a 8 GB memory will store about 2000 songs (MP3's) of 4 MB each. (this is quite a lot believe me, I would estimate the total of more than 100 hours of music)
If you use if for 50% for songs the remaining 4 GB offers you at an average of 1 MB per picture space for about 4000 Jpegs.
If you want to use it for watching an occasional video and only use it for 75 % for music and pictures you have 2 GB left for may be 3 DIVX compressed movies.
Depending on your expected use there are basically two types of MP3 players as far as memory is concerned:
Those with flash memory and those with a small hard disk.
The ones with a hard disk are much cheaper per GB than the Flash memory types but are more vulnerable for damage.
I would only advise to buy one with a hard drive if you want to store a very large amount of data like movies etc.
Other things to consider:
-some have a built in FM radio
-overall size and weight
-screen size for viewing pictures and videos
-ease of use
-accessories available
-price
Once you start looking on the internet you will find that there are very many makes and types.
The Ipods are usually a bit more expensive than some equivalent or better makes/types but every make and type has its own advantages and disadvantages.
Also look at the user experiences which are sometimes available.
Good luck with choosing,
Cees
http://forums.cnet.com/5208-10149_102-0.html?forumID=7&threadID=272424&messageID=2636503#2636503
Submitted by: cees4u
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Answer:
Selecting a MP3 Player
Nancy,
Selecting a MP3 player can be a daunting task in today's market. The choices are staggering and it can lead to quite a bit of mental overload as one tries to wade through the myriad of options. I myself have been through the process of purchasing a MP3 player three times in the past three years and hope that some of my experiences will help you.
First, iPod is just one of many choices available to you. My first MP3 player was an iPod and I found it to be quite sufficient for my needs at that time. The current models are, from what I have read, quite competent music players and any one of the Nano models sound like they would meet your needs in that they are small enough to be carried around easily, will store and show pictures, and can hold your music collection with room to spare. In addition, the click wheel interface device is very easy to use and makes working with the Nano (and other Apple MP3 players) very simple. As you are a novice to the MP3 world I think you will find iTunes (the software needed to interact with the Nano) to probably be the best and easiest software with which to work. Not that there is anything wrong with the other options, but regardless of folks feelings about iPods (or Apple in general), iTunes has a solid reputation for ease-of-use, which would be good for someone with your lack of MP3 experience. Keep in mind though that Apple MP3 players must be used with iTunes - you cannot use their MP3 players with other software. Apple uses a closed system to ensure reliable performance between the requisite software and the MP3 player. This is neither good nor bad, but important to understand up front.
However, Apple isn't the only manufacturer of MP3 players and other companies make very good products as well. I'm particularly partial to Creative Lab products and currently own two (a hard-drive based unit as well as a flash-based one). My flash-based player would also serve your music, photographs and portability needs quite readily (it is the Zen V Plus). However, I am not as happy with their bundled software, which must be installed for use with their MP3 players. However, you do not have to continue to use their software if you simply want to load music & pictures onto your player. Other media player software options are available, including the well known Windows Media Player. Personally I don't think Windows Media Player is as intuitive as iTunes, but it's not difficult either. It is, in my opinion, simply not as polished. However, and as previously stated, you are not locked in to using the software which came with the player or with Windows Media Player. Other software is available on the Internet and much of it is free and will work quite fine with most any MP3 player other than ones from Apple.
Of course, there are other companies such as Microsoft, Archos, Samsung, Toshiba, SanDisk, Cowon, iRiver, and Rio just to name a few. And many of these afore-mentioned companies make very good MP3 players, but some simply lack name recognition in the market place. Searching for reviews on sites such as CNET can go far to helping provide you with an idea as to whether or not they meet your wants and desires.
As far as sound is concerned, that is always a matter of personal preference and can be very much impacted by the headphones that come bundled with whatever player you ultimately purchase. I think most persons would agree that purchasing an after market pair of headphones will do the most to improve sound quality as most players, across manufacturers, generally sound good to great, but that the bundled headphones are typically rather mediocre. Naturally, a feature that may be of interest to you would be the ability to modify the sound by using an equalizer, which would allow you to boost or attenuate a relatively narrow band of music frequencies. Some players include pre-set equalizer settings, while others include both pre-sets and the ability to allow you to create your own special setting (and to save it for use again and again).
Lastly, pictures are really nothing more than a different type of file when compared to music files. You can transfer picture files as readily to most MP3 players as you can music files. Again, the software you use will be important because some software is easier to work with than others. You shouldn't have any difficulty loading your player with pictures of family and friends, but be certain to look carefully at pictures that are preloaded on many MP3 players so that you can compare and contrast the quality of the image between players while you are looking them over before buying.
I sincerely hope any of this information helps you in your research and best of luck selecting a player.
http://forums.cnet.com/5208-10149_102-0.html?forumID=7&threadID=272424&messageID=2640036#2640036
Submitted by forkboy
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Answer:
flash vs. hardrive
Nancy,
I have the pleasure of working in the electronics department of a local store and face this question quite often in fact, What it ultimately comes down to in deciding whether or not the Ipod is right for you is simply how you plan to use the device, as you said, you wanted enough room to store quite a bit of music while still having some pictures on the mp3 player. For all intensive purposes lets say that 1 Gigabyte can hold 225 songs and 100 pictures. while most of your run of the mill mp3 players tend to be based upon flash memory, which is generally limited in size to less than 8 Gigabytes. Almost Every single MP3 player that we sell in our store is limited to 2GB, and this is quite common for most stores. As far as others go the Ipod nano's are flash based and come in 4 and 8GB flavors. These are sufficient at holding 900 songs and 400 pictures , or 1800 songs and 800 pictures respectively with alterations based upon the number of pictures you put on the device; so the ipod nano's would seem to fit most of your needs on this subject. The Video Ipods are Hardrive based and can go up to 80GB holding plenty of songs for most users as well as photos, and unfortunately for the difference in capacities, the prices are that far from each other.The only downfall to hardrive based mp3 players are that the battery life doesnt measure up to that of flash memory based players and they tend to be bulkier while supporting larger screens. As it is i would either go with the ipod nano, or the Video Ipod mainly because the capacity is there for your needs and there just are enough quality competitors out there in my opinion. Anyway thanks and have a nice day...
http://forums.cnet.com/5208-10149_102-0.html?forumID=7&threadID=272424&messageID=2638011#2638011
Submitted by jpalmer2007
RE: jpalmer2007's post.
by Scottitude - 12/1/07 11:20 AM In reply to: Potential winning answers by Lee Koo (ADMIN)
The phrase "For all intensive purposes" is quite comical. I believe the poster was trying to say "for all INTENTS AND purposes".
Idiocracy is on the horizon.
Can't vote for this one or any other way too wordy post that tells Nancy to consider her specific needs, do a litle research, and buy the digital media player that suits her best. A good place to start, Nancey, is www.anythingbutipod.com.
Good luck.
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