Which is the best MP3 player on the market today and why?

I would like to buy a good one, with lots of memory, and at the same time reasonably priced.

Thanks!

ZEN


ZUNE


IPOD

I have the Zen Sleek. I got it in 2005. I really do like it. I went with that bacause the Ipods were out of stock when I went to buy one and I needed it right away. It was about $250.

I have a 20g and it has no video. They have updated versions now that compete with the Ipod w/ video. Video was not that important to me.

My computer skills are intermediate and I can basically get through setting up electronic products. This was not terribly difficult to install. I subscribe to Yahoo Music service where I get my downloads. I pay about $130/year for this (unlimited). With the Ipod you have to pay $1 per download and that was not affordable for me. Most of my music came from cd's but I have over 1000 downloads from Yahoo that would have cost me $1000+. Sometimes I just want one song and not the whole crappy cd, especially old school tunes.

Yahoo customer service sucks. It is durn near impossible to get a personal response. Most of them are canned, formulated responses that take forever to get back to you and may or may not help. I know they had a crap load of complaints about this the past 2 years and luckily I have not had to contact them in a while but I hope that it has been resolved. The customer support for Zen is somewhat better and they have a user board where members can help you as well.

I have friends and family with all three mp3's and various subscription services and everyone has complaints about them. Best advice I got was stick to either Ipod or Creative (no Zune at the time) and buy one with the most gigs you can afford. It's easy to under-calculate your music collection!!!!

I absolutely love my Zen!!! It keeps me exercising because I always want to listen to what I like. When it's time for a new one, I'll probably get another Creative.

HTH!

Ivy:

I didn't realize when I recently signed up for Napster that I only have the songs for as long as I pay my subscription. Get rid of the subscription and lose the songs. Does yahoo music work the same way?

quote:

Originally posted by FAMU CLIFF:
Ivy:

I didn't realize when I recently signed up for Napster that I only have the songs for as long as I pay my subscription. Get rid of the subscription and lose the songs. Does yahoo music work the same way?

Do you mean that you'll lose the downloaded songs???

quote:

Originally posted by TechRattler:

quote:

Originally posted by FAMU CLIFF:
Ivy:

I didn't realize when I recently signed up for Napster that I only have the songs for as long as I pay my subscription. Get rid of the subscription and lose the songs. Does yahoo music work the same way?

Do you mean that you'll lose the downloaded songs???

Apparently so. I have only rented them as long as I have my subscription.

So, I'm thinking that there is code written into the song MP3 or IPOD software that doesn't allow you to save it permanently. You probably need an IPOD hack program.

Yeah, you are technically renting them and they can't be "saved." But you can buy them for like $1 or less.

With over 1000 rented downloads, I had hoped to gradually buy them but that's a lot of money for music vs. the $120/year I pay to "rent." I won't be leaving yahoo anytime soon so it's working for me now.

You also want to make sure that your music service is compatible with your player, which usu isn't a problem if you stick with Ipod, Zen or one of the other top brands.

One other thing I didn't realize at the time is that yahoo limits the number of players that you can put the music on. It might be like 2 or 3 but I'm not sure.

quote:

Originally posted by TechRattler:
So, I'm thinking that there is code written into the song MP3 or IPOD software that doesn't allow you to save it permanently. You probably need an IPOD hack program.

Hmmmmm....please expound!

TechRattler:

Get your butt back in here.

Does anyone have any info on Zune?

I have the Zen M w/ video and wouldnt trade it for a free Zune or Ipod.

I subscribe to Rhapsody (like Napster and Yahoo music). I use it mainly for it's online streaming at work but you can download ("rent") unlimited music for $5 a month. To buy a song it's $.89 per song.

I'm sure there are hacks for DRM encoded mp3s. Just havent had time or cared to look for it. There is also software that will record any sound you play on your computer and save it as an mp3 file. Essentially any song you stream on your system can be recorded, whether it's from rhapsody, napster, yahoo, xm, or any other online radio station. It will even find the artist and title for you to name the mp3. I've used one of them, dont remember the name but they are pretty good.

quote:

Originally posted by famu ivy:
You also want to make sure that your music service is compatible with your player, which usu isn't a problem if you stick with Ipod, Zen or one of the other top brands.

iPod isnt compatible with Napster nor Rhapsody. I dont think it's compatible with Yahoo Music either. That was the main sticking point as to why I didnt want an iPod.

For those interested in "keeping" the music on napster and yahoo if you cancel you subscription. For a small investment some software called tunebite, you don't have to worry about losing your music.

This message has been edited. Last edited by: ctunder77,