MP3 Player help.

[Archibaldo]

I'm planning on getting an MP3 Player but the only problem is I don't know what amount of MB is sufficient and what amount isn't. So what's like the minimum amount of MB for a decent MP3?

[phattonez]

MB? lol, you want GB. I have a 10 GB iPod and I have tons of free space. I'd say the minimum is 5 GB and the maximum depends on how much music you have. Actually, both depend on how much you have. How many songs are you planning to store?

[Pangolin]

Quite. You most certainly do not want MB. The highest amount of MB there is is 512. That'll get you 250 WMA max. So don't do it. They may be small and jog resistant, the MB ones, but they suuuck.
This Christmas I got a Creative MuVo2, 4GB series. Thats 2100 songs, on a tiny, tiny machine.
Then there is the Creative Zen micro. 5 GB, touchpad. Nice, but for 1 GB less you may as well spend a fortune less too.
If you're thinking about an ipod FORGET it. They suck. They don't play WMA, and the battery is non removeable, so when it finally cops it, you have a useless ipod. Creatives are removeable, and battery life is huge too.
If you want a large amount, like, HUGE, then go for the Creative Zen touch or Zen Xtra. Ipod size, but better again.
Check out amazon.com for more info on all of the worthy MP3 players.

[Archibaldo]

Thanks for your help guys. I'll look in to it about how much GB I need.

[phattonez]

If you're thinking about an ipod FORGET it. They suck. They don't play WMA, and the battery is non removeable, so when it finally cops it, you have a useless ipod.

You could get a convert the music, but you do lose quality. Don't forget about how good it looks.

[goKi]

The battery is what really kills the iPod. Also their warranty service. The battery, as previously mentioned by Pangolin, is internal... it cannot be replaced without sending the entire unit to Apple (or maybe not at all, i don't think its covered under warranty). Their warranty service is also pathetic. We had a customer complain to our managent regarding their warranty service. It involves not the retailer, but the customer obtaining all the repair forms from their website, and paying a $20AU postage cost, regardless of whether it is under warranty or not. iPods suck, i agree with Pangolin's choice of Creative.

[Monica]

I have a 2GB Philips GoGear, it serves me pretty well, but I think it has less than 5 hour battery life, but it's good enough.

[Raichu86]

The battery is what really kills the iPod. Also their warranty service. The battery, as previously mentioned by Pangolin, is internal... it cannot be replaced without sending the entire unit to Apple (or maybe not at all, i don't think its covered under warranty).
Do it yourself... (http://ipodbattery.com/)

I must agree, though, the iPod is a very inferior product. Let's look at the pros:
Pretty design with single-handed use
Easy-to-use interface
"Smart" dynamic playlsts
And the cons:
Expensive
Pretty design won't last because it scratches like crazy
Nice input (click wheel) is very easy to mess up; I often press multiple buttons when I don't hit the button I want head on, and there's no physical distinguishment between buttons
Weak on-the-go playlist support and other annoying interface issues
Crappy battery life (12 hours advertised, I wouldn't expect more than 8 out of mine, EQ off)
No custom equalizer, all the presets screw up the audio
Too weak to play Ogg Vorbis, as if Apple would ever add support for it
My iPod was free. I'd be pissed if I'd spent $300 on it. Get a better player.

I was very happy with my Creative NOMAD Jukebox 2 that I used before I got my free iPod. It's a great value, but bulky (think CD player size). Measure your music library's disk use and make a choice. I'd recommend considering the Rio Carbon or Creative Zen Micro, both of which blow the iPod Mini away in many, many ways.

[linkofzelda1]

I'm strongly on the iPod side here. I've had to send my ipod in once to get the headphone jack repaired, and I didn't pay a dime. Not even shipping. I can hardly see how that is inferior.

Not to mention the fact that I have been using iTunes since it came out, so if I started using another player I'd have a huge collection of worthless music.

[Raichu86]

Not to mention the fact that I have been using iTunes since it came out, so if I started using another player I'd have a huge collection of worthless music.
And that's why I'll never pay for music downloads. It costs less to just buy the CDs, and then you're free to use them in any CD player and rip them to play on any music player. Or you can pay more to get lossy music in a proprietary format that you can listen to with one player on three computers. :shrug:

[theplustwo]

This Christmas I got a Creative MuVo2, 4GB series. Thats 2100 songs, on a tiny, tiny machine.I don't see where you'd ever need 2100 songs with you at any given time. I think the whole portable music thing is kind of retarded. If you can carry an hour or two with you that's good enough. Nobody is going to listen to four and a half days of music while being entirely away from home. If you can take a couple hours with you, then you can just listen to CDs (or music from your home computer) when you get back.

Having that much music with you at one time isn't worth the time and effort it takes to rip all the songs and transfer them to the device.

[Drunken Tiger]

theplustwo, its not about needing 2100 songs, its about having the power to actually have 2100 songs at your fingertips.. I agree that its a bit pointless, but heck, more is good.. Ive been wanting a small mp3 player with HUGE storage for ages.. considered teh ipod's but theyre far too expensive..

Anyways back onto Archibaldo's question.. It really depends on how youre planning to use the mp3 player.. If its just for short trips or jogs.. a MB player shouldnt be a problem.. If youre like me.. and use it for absolutely EVERYTHIng! Then minimum 4gb.. ;) But for now i got myself an Iriver IMP-350 its a cd/mp3 player.. A bit bulkier than the others.. but still serving its purpose.. :)

DT