buying an mp3 player

dbnavan

Hi all,

The missus wants an mp3 player for christmas, not an ipod, we both have a thing about brand names, paying for the name etc, anyone know of any good deals out there? either online or in shops.

D

Goodshape

Not sure about good deals, but iRiver make good mp3 players. Better than iPods in almost every respect.

[edit]
iRiver h10 6GB
iRiver h10 20GB

cormie

This is the best mp3 player available at the moment and you wont find a better price delivered unless you order from the US/Ebay which you risk import taxes etc by doing. If that's a bit pricey then give a bit more info of what your willing to spend, what storage you want, where you will be using it, do you care for video or just music etc etc:)

cormie

Goodshape wrote:

[edit]
iRiver h10 6GB
iRiver h10 20GB

Much cheaper here and that price is including delivery. Advancedmp3players.co.uk (amp3.co.uk) are quite dear, they are popular alright and probably provide a good service, but I have never seen mx2.co.uk beaten on price for anything. Their service is fine too and ordering is a breeze!

Goodshape

Cool, cheers.

I notice it's saying 'XP Only' on the iRivers.. do you know have they introduced the need for special software on these? Thinking about getting one myself but I probably wont if I can't simply drag & drop my files (and preferably in linux).

I know this was possible in the older models. (the iAudio also looks nice. bit pricey though).

Cabaal

archos.com make some nice mp3 players and media players

cormie

Goodshape wrote:

Cool, cheers.

I notice it's saying 'XP Only' on the iRivers.. do you know have they introduced the need for special software on these? Thinking about getting one myself but I probably wont if I can't simply drag & drop my files (and preferably in linux).

I know this was possible in the older models. (the iAudio also looks nice. bit pricey though).

I don't know a lot about the H10 besides that iRiver are getting more and more sleek and simple and branching away from what made them so good in the first place. Perhaps their next release will improve, I don't know. I wouldn't go buying a H10 myself though. iAudio have cheaper players, check here

sprinkles

I got a 60 gig Ipod and I'm disappointed i it. I had a 20 gig zen touch beofre that and I found it far superior in nearly every way. There are new Zen videos out, check them out, they look nice.

Nala

Rio Carbon 6gb, €170 in Dixons. Easy to use, looks good, works with drag n drop.

http://reviews.cnet.com/Rio_Carbon_Pearl_6GB/4505-6490_7-31354901.html?autoplay=true

cormie

I think one of the best value basic MP3 players is the Zen Touch, 20GB for €199+€10 delivery here. 40GB version available on same site for an extra €60!

muckwarrior

Goodshape wrote:

I notice it's saying 'XP Only' on the iRivers.. do you know have they introduced the need for special software on these? Thinking about getting one myself but I probably wont if I can't simply drag & drop my files (and preferably in linux).

They're now using MTP firmware to make them compatible with Microsoft 'Play for sure'. Means you have to use media player to transfer music. Big mistake IMO. iAudio is your best bet if you want plug and play like the old iRivers. The intro 20gig model is reasonably priced.

cormie

muckwarrior wrote:

They're now using MTP firmware to make them compatible with Microsoft 'Play for sure'. Means you have to use media player to transfer music. Big mistake IMO.

Jebus iRiver, what the hell are they at? I used to be accused of working for iRiver so many times here because I recommended the H1XX so strongly over anything else at the time, and I was right to and I still rate it highly over anything else, I still think it's the best audio player out there, and it is. But since that, iRiver have just gone mad. If it wasn't for Cowon/iAudio I'd be losing faith in the DAP industry big time.

astec123

Suggestions
iaudio x5 (l version for loads of play time)
iriver h300s
iriver pmp100s
zen vision M
zen touch

Dont bother with the ipods (total crap if you want features). Dont get a rio they have features but always tend to break very quickly. Archos do good players but are always expensive compared to others www.dapreview.com www.pmpmaniac.com www.misticriver.net and www.iaudiophile.com are all places to visit to get the latest on the DAP market.

A

muckwarrior

cormie wrote:

Jebus iRiver, what the hell are they at?

I dunno Like I said before, they seem to be turning their back on everything that set them apart from the crowd. It used to be that people who knew nothing about DAP's bought iPods and people who did bought iRivers. Now the educated people are switching to the iAudio, and rightly so. This leaves iRiver scrambling for a share in the ipod market, a fight which they'll undoubtedly loose!

Creamy Goodness

that's just shocking really, they are really dumbing down iriver to make them more "ipod friendly". what can be more simpler than...

my computer
iriver drive icon
copy paste mp3's
done

Goodshape

muckwarrior wrote:

They're now using MTP firmware to make them compatible with Microsoft 'Play for sure'. Means you have to use media player to transfer music. Big mistake IMO.

That sucks.

Guess I'll get an iAudio then so. Cheers for the heads-up... guess it's time to stop recomending these things (iriver's) to people.

Stark

You can upgrade MTP iRivers with UMS firmware. It's just like when they used to come with the iRiver manager firmware by default and you could upgrade.

I have noticed though that the H10s, sexy as they are, aren't as feature packed as you'd normally expect an iRiver to be. For one thing, they don't have OGG support. They're based on the same chipset as the 4th generation iPods. Hopefully iRiver will release AAC enabled firmware to compensate.

dbnavan

Please can we stay on original topic

cormie

I've provided a few links for you hidden above in all the discussion:rolleyes: If you could expand a bit what kind of use the player will be getting?:)

Goodshape

dbnavan wrote:

Please can we stay on original topic

To be fair, the discussion is all about good players and prices. As cormie says - what are you looking for? There seems to be a lot of options.

Stark

Will she need the MP3 player for long trips or will she need it for exercising/gym etc.? The iPod nano could be a good one to get her. Lots of flash memory for a reasonable price and chicks really love it. Pity I don't love them.

rubadub

Goodshape wrote:

As cormie says - what are you looking for? There seems to be a lot of options.

exactly, cormie first linked to a 60GB player, most people do not have 60GB of songs though, unless they rip at very high quality. There are 6 versions in the range, I would go for the 20GB X5L myself, has a very long battery life.

http://www.mx2.co.uk/prodpage.asp?type=prod&sub=MP3IA

lomb

dbnavan wrote:

not an ipod, we both have a thing about brand names, paying for the name etc

lol, i dont think u realise if the ipod nano had a Bang And Olufsen name on it it would be 1000 euros and not 270, there is many many many many millions of dollars of design in the nano, apple only make 10% which is industry standard anyway, u will be paying no more than 25 euros for the name, a figure dwarfed by the millions of dollars of design and r+d in it that no other player has because they dont have the experiance or the market share. run with the nano u wont be dissapointed, its one of the few players u can use everyday because its so small and light. i also hear its very strong and twith the flash the hard drive wont fail and the battery life will be good...

Bard

Hmm... have to disagree with you there lomb. I'd be very disappointed with the iPod Nano as it gets scratched very easily, is too small and fiddly, has a crap set of features (no radio, recorder, text viewer, microphone, etc.) and no, the battery life isn't particularly good.

It's also far too expensive (at 259 euros) for a player that only plays 1,000 songs and doesn't support WMA, OGG, or other compressed music formats.

Goodshape

Have to agree with Bard. Nano is a nice looking little player with a nice idiot proof UI, but there it stops tbh. Very fragile and very underfeatured for the price.

OP - I do think iAudio is the way to go. Aside from the 20 - 60gb models, they also have a range of smaller machines (256mb - 2gb) which I think are quite nice. Have a look on the mx2.co.uk page as this seems to offer the best deals.

lomb

Goodshape wrote:

Have to agree with Bard. Nano is a nice looking little player with a nice idiot proof UI, but there it stops tbh. Very fragile and very underfeatured for the price.

umm i dont think u have seen this!
http://arstechnica.com/reviews/hardware/nano.ars/3
its made of bulletproof plastic! with a nice flip case on it u cant go wrong.

what with 10s of millions of dollars spent on design and u reakon its underfeatured? it does what 99% of joe soaps want to do, agree about formats but lets face it how many 'normal' people have even heard of ogg?

its Very reasonably priced imho, but for people who place value in formats that are rarely used, video, picture display etc then i suppose its no good. but i dont think thats the average customer tbh. the fact is large mp3 players get left at home and remain unused. the nano will be used thats the key...

lomb

Bard wrote:

and no, the battery life isn't particularly good.

14 hours isnt too bad and the fact its flash means it should be reliable, hard drives can and do fail under daily usage. i suppose u pays ur money and takes ur choice, but my money would be on a nano.

Stark

Bard wrote:

It's also far too expensive (at 259 euros) for a player that only plays 1,000 songs and doesn't support WMA, OGG, or other compressed music formats.

It plays AAC which is on a par with WMA and OGG. This is the default format if you rip a CD to your iPod using iTunes. You're also paying for flash memory rather than a hard drive. When you take that into account, it's actually quite good value.

Goodshape

lomb wrote:

umm i dont think u have seen this!
http://arstechnica.com/reviews/hardware/nano.ars/3
its made of bulletproof plastic! with a nice flip case on it u cant go wrong.

It still scrathes like a mofo. I've used one, had it my pocket all on it's own (even used my jacket pocket, as that's got softer lineing) - still managed to scratch the damn thing.

Anyway, the OP specifically said no iPOD.

rubadub

still have to know more about what she wants. I got a mp3 phone and a 2GB card for about €320 in total, they have dropped in price about €50-60 since then new, also has a 1.3mpixel camera. I do not use my iriver too much since I got it. I always have my phone and it is always turned on, no finding and booting up the iriver if I am just nipping down the road for a minute.

secret_squirrel

Goodshape wrote:

lomb wrote:

umm i dont think u have seen this!
http://arstechnica.com/reviews/hardware/nano.ars/3
its made of bulletproof plastic! with a nice flip case on it u cant go wrong.

It still scrathes like a mofo.

Both of you are correct. The sad fact is that whilst polycarbonate is very impact resistant (bullets etc) its not at all scratch resistant (keys in pockets).

Its a very subtle and important distinction that even the Nano designers didnt get. Lomb you are overdoing the 10millions of dollars of research stuff. Most of the research would have been done in getting the size and cost down. There are no new features and even the screen should really have been OLED. Moving to flash about a year before anyone else planned to was the main genius.

Its a great little player and if Apple or someone else add WMA support (snowball in hell tbh) then I will probably get one.

Lets not pretend any mp3 player is the 2nd Coming eh guys? :rolleyes:


BTW as regards RIO's didnt they pull out of the market a while back? - therefore any player of theirs is obsolete or thereabouts.