What media player should I get?

db2450

db2450

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Jul 25, 2007
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I know there are other threads, but they are starting to get outdated.
Most importantly, I would like to keep the price near or below $250.

So far, I have been looking at the 32GB ZuneHD, but I was hoping to have a larger variety of choices and I know that there are a decent number of audiophiles here :p, so I was hoping someone might be able to help me out.
 
It's a bit above your budget, but the iPod Touch 32GB is $300.

That $50 extra is worth it though as it's basically an iPhone without the phone and GPS. It's a little computer that can browse the web, install all those fancy apps, etc. Although I suspect a new iPod Touch will be coming out this fall/winter.
 
If you fancy an iPod then I would actually go against Viper and suggest one of the classic ones, assuming that all you want is music you will have way more storage for less coin. (250 for a 160GB)
If on the other hand you don't want an iPod and would like a bit more functionality.
This is a good resource to take a look on.
http://www.anythingbutipod.com/
 
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While the ZuneHD is top sexy in my book, if your'e thinking you want advice from audiophiles, you should be looking at Cowon and possibly the Sandisk Sansa line. For pure funtionality, sound quality, and portability, you can't beat the Sansa Clip+.
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For $60 you can get a player with among the best sound quality, good build quality, good battery life, tiny size, 8GB onboard storage, and a microSDHC slot allowing for up to 40GB of space. It's not real pretty and doesn't have apps, but as a media player it's really tough to beat if you ask me.

EDIT: And I double prizrak abi recommendation, they have a ton of reviews and useful information.
 
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I have a thing against iPods just from past experiences - I know most people don't have much trouble, but I would like to avoid them. And the ZuneHD and
I am going to take a look at http://www.anythingbutipod.com/, thanks prizrak.
Asfor the Sansa, I'm kind of wanting something that can play videos even though that means that the music player might not be as great. And I don't thing I would be able to live with a media player that isn't too pretty. I have been spoiled for the last 4 years by my Samsung YP-T7.
 
Cowon J3 might be what you want then. About the same price as the ZuneHD, actually looks a bit better, and will have Cowon's superb sound quality.
 
That Samsung of yours looks quite a lot like the Sansa Clip

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Since you want video on your next player, then the Sansa won't do.

It's a shame you're against iPods; the touch has the best compromise of quality, wifi, storage, functionality and price.

I have the 32 GB 3G touch and I got it for $280 brand new (retails for $299 + tax = $340).

I would say the closest media player to the touch is the Archos 5. It comes with Android (similar to iPhone OS, with apps and all) and wifi internet. The 16GB version costs the same as 32GB touch, but you do get a 5" screen (vs. 3.5" on the touch).
 
I'd stay away from Archos, the Android OS on those devices is locked down and you have to pay out the ass for everything.
 
smib said:
Cowon J3 might be what you want then. About the same price as the ZuneHD, actually looks a bit better, and will have Cowon's superb sound quality.
Click to expand...

The Cowon was actually my first choice before the Zune, but as I don't have a smart phone, I wanted to have WiFi for when I'm on college campuses (I have a desktop, not a laptop). And even though I will probably get a smart phone anyway (next year most likely) I just found a Zune for $206 through Bing shopping. So I don't think I can turn away from that. I can't find a Cowon J3 32GB for lower then ~$284.
So thanks for the help everyone :), but price kind of out weighs most other stuff for me at the moment.
 
Why not just use your phone. I have a zune but most of the time I just end up using my cheap($100 about a year ago) phone with the music on a 4GB card.
 
I tried that once, it made my ears cry. Cheap phones have very cheap hardware.
 
My current phone has relatively decent sound quality (for a free phone), but it wants proprietary headphones (stupid Samsung) and the jack for the charger is the same as the headphone jack, so its become loose with charging.
 
Well, I'm sure you can find an adapter on dealextreme so you can use regular headphones, and maybe even a replacement charging jack. If you can live with that, then I'd probably suggest just saving the money and sticking with that.

On second thought, I'm going to point you back at the Clip/Clip+ and say you should get one on refurb to use until you get the new phone, then keep around as a great little backup.
 
The Zunes have better audio quality than the iTouchs, however the itouch can run way more apps. I don't find myself using apps too much anyways (I would use apps like ebay and banking and pandora... but they only work at home when I'm near a computer.

Zune:
OLED has better color / contrast. Really cutting edge.
Nvidea chipset = more powerful
Better audio output (only noticeable on nice headphones I imagine?)

iTouch:
Apps Apps Apps
Still good for audio / video.
Your friends will know how to use it :)


personal anecdote, my itouch battery is now failing miserably after only 1.75 years or maybe a little less. I use it *somewhat* heavily so it's not like that's unheard of. I think I'll go for a windows 7 phone to replace that and my current generic text phone in november. I imagine that's when my battery will be *totally* dead, and it happens to coincide the win7 phone release.
 
p51mustang23 said:
The Zunes have better audio quality than the iTouchs, however the itouch can run way more apps. I don't find myself using apps too much anyways (I would use apps like ebay and banking and pandora... but they only work at home when I'm near a computer.

Zune:
OLED has better color / contrast. Really cutting edge.
Nvidea chipset = more powerful
Better audio output (only noticeable on nice headphones I imagine?)

iTouch:
Apps Apps Apps
Still good for audio / video.
Your friends will know how to use it :)


personal anecdote, my itouch battery is now failing miserably after only 1.75 years or maybe a little less. I use it *somewhat* heavily so it's not like that's unheard of. I think I'll go for a windows 7 phone to replace that and my current generic text phone in november. I imagine that's when my battery will be *totally* dead, and it happens to coincide the win7 phone release.
Click to expand...
Windows mobile 7 is really heavily focused on social networking(facebook etc) but is kinda lacking in apps. Android is the best way to go right now imo.
 
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