Small 1GB mp3 players are the latest craze. Though Apple rules the roost, there are lot of other good options in the market. When I visited US, I started hunting for a good Value For Money mp3 player, one which gives most bang for the buck. I normally dont buy a Gizmo because "its in" or "its hip" etc., What I was searching for was a good product with the max features.
After searching the market I found a couple. A 2GB Sandisk player for around 120$ and this nano for around 75$. The 2GB had a proprietry cable, so that was ruled out, I wanted one with Universal one. So that left the Nano.
Frankly speaking, I was amazed with the amount of punch and features this thing packs.
To start with, let me rattle off the features
1. mp3 player : Well thats what it is
2. FM radio with around 32 preset capablity. The headphones work as an antenna
3. Voice recorder
4. Direct line in recording
5. Works as a USB drive, so no HDD necessary
6. 4 Band Graphic equilizer
7. A bright display(Something lacking in the shuffle)
8. Armband
Now coming to the real part.
mp3 : Great sound, with good trebel and above average BASS. However, I suspect that if I use higher quality headphones the sound is nicer. But the problem is that good headphones come for around 15-20$, so they could not have bundled them with this unit. Moreover, these headphones compare appreciably with the competition. The equilizer is good and really useful too. This device is definately a good mp3 player and since you can use random etc., functions its great!
The FM radio is also pretty good, but the reception is sometimes not good. The reason is the shape of the headphones cable. Keep it straight for the most part and it will be a good antenna, otherwise you may get some hiss. But for 75$ having both these features is amazing. It also lets you record the FM station directly to mp3! Now thats what I call feature. Packing so much into a small device.
Apart from that you can record direct to mp3 with inbuilt mic, and also record from any music source by using the supplied line in cable. Since the line in jack is a standard 2.5mm jack, you can make one for yourself too.
With so many features packed and the wonderful build quality this was a no brainer decision. Since the maker is Creative, I had full faith in them as they are not like the countless fly by night companies which have jumped into making mp3 players for low prices.
This is really a better option to the Apple camp. The only thing lacking in the device is "Apple badge" which some need to appear "cool" to the crowd. It comes in 10 colors too!
Now lets get to the bad part, if it can be called a bad part
1. Jog dial takes little time to get used to, but once you get the hang if it, its a breeze!
2. To activate the hold function, you have to go through the menu, no dedicated hold switch
3. Creative software sucks. So its better to use some other music management software. Its like a USB disk, so any other software like musicmatch, itunes will work fine. Just treat it as a separate disk drive!
But, none of these "negatives" are strong enough to deter a purchase decision. If you dont want a mp3 player "just to look cool" and want most bang for your buck, go for this unit. Sandisk is a worthy competitior, but their flagship model(2GB) spoils the party by using a proprietery USB cable. But that can take in SD cards and display thumbnails, so you can choose how important is a universal cable to you.
To sum it up, Its a thumbs up. Simple amazing gizmo, and a must have for those who desire a good small capacity mp3 player.
After searching the market I found a couple. A 2GB Sandisk player for around 120$ and this nano for around 75$. The 2GB had a proprietry cable, so that was ruled out, I wanted one with Universal one. So that left the Nano.
Frankly speaking, I was amazed with the amount of punch and features this thing packs.
To start with, let me rattle off the features
1. mp3 player : Well thats what it is
2. FM radio with around 32 preset capablity. The headphones work as an antenna
3. Voice recorder
4. Direct line in recording
5. Works as a USB drive, so no HDD necessary
6. 4 Band Graphic equilizer
7. A bright display(Something lacking in the shuffle)
8. Armband
Now coming to the real part.
mp3 : Great sound, with good trebel and above average BASS. However, I suspect that if I use higher quality headphones the sound is nicer. But the problem is that good headphones come for around 15-20$, so they could not have bundled them with this unit. Moreover, these headphones compare appreciably with the competition. The equilizer is good and really useful too. This device is definately a good mp3 player and since you can use random etc., functions its great!
The FM radio is also pretty good, but the reception is sometimes not good. The reason is the shape of the headphones cable. Keep it straight for the most part and it will be a good antenna, otherwise you may get some hiss. But for 75$ having both these features is amazing. It also lets you record the FM station directly to mp3! Now thats what I call feature. Packing so much into a small device.
Apart from that you can record direct to mp3 with inbuilt mic, and also record from any music source by using the supplied line in cable. Since the line in jack is a standard 2.5mm jack, you can make one for yourself too.
With so many features packed and the wonderful build quality this was a no brainer decision. Since the maker is Creative, I had full faith in them as they are not like the countless fly by night companies which have jumped into making mp3 players for low prices.
This is really a better option to the Apple camp. The only thing lacking in the device is "Apple badge" which some need to appear "cool" to the crowd. It comes in 10 colors too!
Now lets get to the bad part, if it can be called a bad part
1. Jog dial takes little time to get used to, but once you get the hang if it, its a breeze!
2. To activate the hold function, you have to go through the menu, no dedicated hold switch
3. Creative software sucks. So its better to use some other music management software. Its like a USB disk, so any other software like musicmatch, itunes will work fine. Just treat it as a separate disk drive!
But, none of these "negatives" are strong enough to deter a purchase decision. If you dont want a mp3 player "just to look cool" and want most bang for your buck, go for this unit. Sandisk is a worthy competitior, but their flagship model(2GB) spoils the party by using a proprietery USB cable. But that can take in SD cards and display thumbnails, so you can choose how important is a universal cable to you.
To sum it up, Its a thumbs up. Simple amazing gizmo, and a must have for those who desire a good small capacity mp3 player.
