Customer Reviews

SanDisk Sansa m240 1 GB MP3 Player (Silver)

5 star:		(388)
4 star:		(244)
3 star:		(66)
2 star:		(58)
1 star:		(189)

 

 

I hated my iPOD Mini so I tried a small flash player that was OK but hard to read & use. Then I found the Sansa M240 (1GB) for only $87 (Circuit City) and I'm thrilled with it.
Sound quality is very good with the supplied earbuds and using the Custom EQ. Without the Custom EQ I might not be so happy. A neckstrap with the earbuds would be nice but can be added. There's a hole to add a lanyard.
These 55 year old eyes found the Display easy to read even in the dark with a large, bold font and good contrast. The backlight is good but I'd prefer a lighter shade of blue for even better contrast. Very minor issue and really a matter of preference.
The controls are outstanding and one of the best features! The LARGE buttons are very easy to use and provide good tactile response.
Build quality is typical of similar products and seems well made with good fit and finish. Lightweight and handy size. Overall design is excellent in that they've put a large display and large buttons into a unit only slightly larger than a thumb drive!
I haven't gone through a battery yet but I do like the fact that it runs on a single AAA battery and doesn't need to be recharged with a cable or charger. I always keep a few AAA's in my briefcase anyway for "in-flight" replacements.
Connection to a PC is simple with the supplied standard mini-USB cable (same as for my phone and camera!). I like that there are no proprietary cables or connectors. I prepared my playlist with WMP and synched the M240. The M240 automatically sorts by artist, album and genre.
Although I haven't used it yet, the subscription compatibility is something I will probably use.
The FM Tuner receives even weaker stations and has 20 presets. With that many I can use different groups of presets for favorites in multiple cities. It would be nice to be able to record from FM as some units do but it's not a big deal.
There is a voice recorder funtion that might be handy but I don't really need it.
If you like simple & easy and eschew tiny, hard to use buttons and miniscule displays, you will like this a LOT - and it SOUNDS good.
Bottom Line: YES, I would buy it again!

My brother did a little more research than I did and gave me this mp3 player for Christmas, and it turned out to be far better than the one I gave him (oops). I have spent a little time with this since then, and have been downloading large amounts of music to the player with no sign of it having major problems. The sound quality provided by the earbuds is a lot better than I expected, and the easy controls make this pretty simple to appreciate and use.

Included with my package was an offer from two third party companies worth checking out. The first was from audible.com for audiobook downloads (be warned that a lot of them are larger unabridged offerings) that has a huge selection to choose from, and the other was for Rhapsody, offering an $80 rebate if you subscribed for 6 months to their service. I have had a problem getting the Rhapsody website to accept the UPC number from my player required for preregistration, so be aware you might have a problem.

I am planning on taking this lightweight one-AAA battery player out on the ski slopes to have something tolisten to, and think that this will more than capably do the trick. I strongly recommend it if you have never gotten an mp3 player, because until I got this one, I hadn't had one, and using the USB connection and armband plan to get a lot of use out of this player.

I bought the Sansa SanDisk M240 2 months ago and I've been very pleased with the purchase. Here are all the reasons I bought it and like it:

-I needed an mp3 player to use during workouts (both at the gym and runs/walks outside). It comes with an adjustable elastic arm band and a plastic protective sheath for use with or without the armband. This unit is perfect for working out.
-Reasonably priced (around $75)
-Large-ish capacity (1GB) flash drive which also functions as a jump drive to store non music files on as long as you have your usb cord with you
-Runs on 1 AAA battery (!!!) (they say 16 hours of play time and that's about right)
-Features an FM radio
-Hold switch to keep unit on or off
-It's small, lightweight, and quite attractive.
-The display is easy to read.
-It has a microphone but I have never used it so I can't comment on that function.
-Comes with headphones that are probably the best of the 3 pairs I own
-Simple drag and drop file transfer to load/unload music (but not compatible with Windows 98)

The only issue I had was on the first day that I got it, it wouldn't let me drop more than 125 songs on the player. When I called customer service they immediately suggested that I create a folder on the player and drop the files into the folder (instead of directly onto the drive). That solved my problem and I was able to load up almost a full 1GB of music onto it. I was impressed with how knowledgeable and helpful their customer service was.

May I suggest that you buy a set of rechargeable AAA batteries and a charging unit (I like Rayovac) to help save our planet?

I would buy this product again in a heartbeat.

I've been using my Sansa for about a year now, and considering the current price, I'd say it's well worth picking one up if you're new to the mp3-player game. While it's far from perfect, nor is it iPod-pretty, it's cheap and functional... if you don't mind tweaking it a bit.

Out of the box, the Sansa (not to mention every other Sandisk mp3 player I've used) has an ugly user interface, a lot of hard-to-find features, and one huge, truly infuriating flaw: it plays songs out of order. Even if you put mp3s in specific album folders, the Sansa will jumble up your personal playlists.

I'll start with the interface. Compared to the Nano, which has a nice backlit, multi-line colour screen, the Sansa offers you four lines with scrolling titles and artists. And the scroll is SLOOOOOWWWW. Consequently, if you're trying to figure out the name of the song, you end up staring at the screen for 20 seconds just waiting - there's no way of manually scrolling. The Sansa assumes that everyone listens to mp3s the same way - with uniform id3 tags. It would be so simple to give the user the option to scroll the filename, but no. You have to deal with an excess of information and chances are you'll walk into a tree or something.

If you want to do anything besides listen to mp3s - use the Sansa as a recorder, or listen to the radio - first you have to find those features. The interface is highly unintuitive and requires a lot of fiddling before you figure things out. That said, the tuner and recorder functions are nice to have on hand, though I use them rarely. One of the best things about the Sansa m200 series is the introduction of an effective equaliser, with a set of powerful presets - definitely appreciated.

The Sansa is also a voracious battery drainer compared to other mp3 players on the market. It takes a single AAA, but if you listen to it for any longer than fifteen minutes a day, you're going to be replacing your battery once a week.

As for the matter of mp3s playing out of order... There's a solution at hand. See, all Sandisk players (for some UNGODLY reason) store and sort files according to FILE DATE. Once you realise this, it's just a matter of downloading a freeware program like SetFileDate and modifying the timestamp on all the files you want to copy to your Sansa. Problem solved. It's a truly idiotic flaw - Sandisk should incorporate an automatic file-timestamp when files are copied onto its players, or simply adapt the device to play according to file structure - but in the meantime, manually changing the timestamp works just fine.

Once you've whipped the Sansa into shape, the positive aspects become more obvious. The exterior casing is well-designed, and I prefer the rounded shape to the iPod's flat-card appearance; there are no enforced DRM or file-type limitations that I've found so far; the sound quality is reasonably clean; and once you figure out the various settings, you actually end up having a lot more control over the player than your standard iPod.

One last criticism I will make... The headphone jack on Sandisk players wears out like clockwork after about a year. This is quite a common issue with a lot of smaller mp3 players on the market right now, but it seems to hit the Sansa with frustrating regularity. Try to avoid pulling your headphones out of the jack as much as possible and your player should live a lot longer.

I had a weeklong experince with the IPOD shuffle - and was horribly dissapointed with it. The Shuffle is like a Yugo - while the Sansa - I guess is like a Toyota - great value with smooth performance.

Pros -
1) You get a 5 band user adjustable graphic equalizer - and there are presets too.

2) It can be set to connect as a mass storage device (in settings) and after that - simply use Windows Explorer to move songs in and out. It updates library automatically (within a second or two) after USB is disconnected and is then ready to play your tracks. What could be simpler?

3)Clear and sharp display - with plenty of pixels to display needed information. The display is backlit but the backlight seems to be disabled automatically when battery is low. Works for me! I see no need for a power guzzling color display in a device like this.

4) The headset was better than expected (surprise).

5) Great Radio (better than the Creative Zen) - it is set to Mono in Settings - but you continue to get good reception even after changing it to Stereo. I am really surprised at the quality of the radio - and it has 20 presets to boot - all very easy to program in.

6) Sandisk gives you a clear case and an armband - no need to buy one separately.

7) For a small device - the buttons are relatively easy to press.

8) Works as a flash storage device for moving files around.. no problem. And costs almost the same as one!


So darn easy to use - have not had to read the manual yet.

Sound quality is pretty good.

Cons - minor really
Battery cannot be charged inside the device (this would have been most convenient).
The "Sandisk" "Sansa" names are written vertically - the device is supposed to be used horizontally. The industrial designers at Sandisk weren't thinking.
I don't like its rounded profile at the back. I think a dinky box makes for a better looking and easier handling device.
Cannot delete songs directly on the device - only possible using Windows Explorer.
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Between a Yugo and a Toyota - what would you choose?

Wonderful--put me in the category of finding this player great. Basically a no-brainer and intuitive menus. Two minutes after opening the box it was operational. Anything more look at the full manual in your CD or amazon digital locker. I have a notebook with windows media player 10 and it works flawlessly with this. I'd expect the same with the other compatible music services.

One thing I initially had a problem with was how to organize some of my files--for instance I have language CDs which are tagged inconsistently and wound up all over the place when I synched. Or you might simply want to rename or reorganize your files into groups. The other review with the how to didn't work for me so if you still need help and use Windows Media Player to synch here's all you do:

1. Open your Media Player and go to Library.
2. Create your list library as usual by placing music or files in middle column.
3. When your list is complete select all files you wish to organize or rename and right click. Select "Advanced Tag Editor".
4. Every track you selected will appear. Using a consistent organizing system go to "Artist Info" and name the Artist (1st Level), then go to "Track info" tab and name your Album (2nd level) with your title and track number. You can give it a Genre if you desire as well.
5. When completed start your sync. Sansa will recognize your system and will play files in the sequence you numbered your tracks.

Voila. You can batch tag some categories e.g., "Album" saving yourself some time if you have lots of files.

This is a great bargain for the money.

I really thought I wanted an iPod or one of those Creative Zen Vision players, but when I took an honest look at what I wanted a player for, I just couldn't justify the cost or the necessity of a large hard drive player. My first choice for a flash player was the Creative MuVo.....but I couldn't find one in any local stores. Circuit City had the M240 on sale for $69, so that sealed the deal for me.

When I first opened the packaging, I tried to plug the unit in to the USB port on my PC......no go. Finally figured out that I had to change the USB setting on the unit to MSC to have windows recognize it and show up just like any removable hard drive.

Second issue came about when I tried to upload over 400MB worth of MP3's on it. I kept getting an error saying that it couldn't write the file. Well, I ended up pulling the unit up on My Computer, and when I pulled up properties, I saw that it only had 400MB of the 1GB formatted. Don't know why a 1GB player would only have 400MB available from the factory. So, after formatting the thing, it finally had 1GB available, and then was able to reload all my files.

Other than those two minor inconviniences, the player has performed great. The headphones sound o.k. Not great. The backlight goes off kind of quick, but again, I finally figured out how to change that setting, so it's fine now.

The FM radio picks up all my local stations fine, and seems to hold the channels well while traveling too.

I haven't messed with the recorder yet. A brief look in the manual makes it appear to be a little confusing to set up, but we'll see.

In summary, I think this is a great value to anyone just looking to play MP3's, or audio books. It's small, light weight, and the buttons feel solid on it. Perhaps a new set of headphones are in order for people who are more audiophiles.

Several years ago I bought my son an Archos player. Last Christmas I got him a Video iPod. I knew both were too big and bulky for my needs. A few months ago I got an iPod Shuffle and loved it but there were three problems. One, the lack of any display, two, the controls were a bit small for my fingers and three, it can only charge off a USB port. I'm headed to Odessa, Ukraine later this week and won't have access to a computer's USB port so I wanted something that runs off good old-fashioned batteries. So I bought the Sansa m240 from Amazon while they were running the $[...] rebate. [...]
I've read the complaints of some of the reviewers and so let me say upfront that I don't need or ask much from a player. If I can load the songs that I want and then be able to listen to them, in sequence or shuffled, I'm happy. The Sansa lets me do exactly that. I spent last weekend loading my MP3 collection into Windows Media Player 10 on my XP SP2 Home machine and rating the songs to get 1 GB worth of music with 4 stars.

Today I connected my newly arrived Sansa m240, copied my four-star listing to the sync playlist in Windows Media Player and downloaded the music to the Sansa without a hitch. It couldn't be simpler. I set the Sansa playback to shuffle and life is good.

Someone commented on the lack of documentation but the user guide available on the mini-CD or from the Sandisk website seems more than adequate. I've also heard the arm band and case is a bit cheesy. Perhaps, but it does what I want it to do which is hold the Sansa on my arm (the iPod Shuffle lived at cord's length in my pants pocket).

Finally, someone complained about the size. Well I'm not sure if there's anything smaller than the iPod Shuffle and I don't consider the Sansa much bigger. Given the display and the ability to swap out an AAA battery on the road, I'll take the Sansa over the Shuffle anyday.

The Sansa m240 is perfect for my needs, which are to have my music on the road in a light package, be able to see what's playing to appease my occasional curiosity and be able to use easily replaceable batteries. That's why I give it 5 stars.

[...] It's also great because it comes with a floppy plastic holding case and armband- Apple would charge fifteen bucks for an accessory like that.

PROS:
PRICE- just a fraction of the iPod.
SIZE- it is small, portable and lightweight.
FM RADIO- Nice to be able to switch and listen to TV shows broadcast on FM in the gym or listen to programs broadcast on the radio.
THE CABLE- if you lose your cable, most electronics stores carry this universal kind which is commonly used for digital cameras.
STORAGE ABILITY- it holds a lot, and I'm betting you can take this player to a friend's computer and swap songs since it doesn't have the same restrictions as the iPod does with iTunes. You can just drag and drop if you prefer, or use another media player to sync.
AAA BATTERY- it's nice to have the versatility to just pop in a new battery instead of having to recharge at a computer, or pay $30+ for an AC adapter. iPod batteries also need to be replaced about once a year, and they're a pain to replace so this feature is good for longevity. Battery consumption on this model is quite good.
MICROPHONE- Haven't used this myself, but it's nice to know it's there.

CONS:
FILE TYPES- This player only takes .wma and .mp3 formats, so files you download off iTunes (.m4p format) won't work, along with other file types, depending on how you got your music. You may be able to get a media converter off of CNet to fix this problem.
CONNECTIVITY- This player gave Winamp fits. The media player couldn't always recognize the device. Transferring files with Windows Media Player was pretty error-prone too. Crashed if there was an unsupported file type. Transferring seems slower than with an iPod. Many files had artist listed as 'unknown' despite already being defined.
SCREEN SIZE- Pretty small. Doesn't let you browse files easily
ACCESSORIES- Many iPod accessories (like the iHome collection) won't work for this puppy, but I'm still planning on using my cassette adapter for long car trips.

Overall, a well-engineered device. Great for working out. Connectivity and file support issues can be solved if you run into them!

I listen to podcasts and bought this for a trip, so I could have lots to listen to while on the long flights. The unit was great; SMALL, LIGHT and HELD MANY HOURS OF PODCASTS, AUDIOBOOKS.

But podcasts are, by their nature, short-lived; you listen and then delete, then load the next day's or week's episode. This player DOES NOT have a DELETE function when you're listening to it in stand-alone mode.

The other quirk: the FAST-FORWARD IS NOT VERY FAST. On many models, if you keep pressing fast-forward, the unit picks up speed after a few seconds. This one does not do that, so fast forwarding through an hour of material takes too long. This becomes a problem if you accidentally touch the fast-fwd or reverse buttons too quickly and they simply skip to the end or beginning of a recording. (You have to press and *hold* to engage fast-fwd or rewind).

One more minor issue.. the PLASTIC COVER that becomes a belt clip and that also connects to the arm strap is VERY LIGHTWEIGHT & CHEESY

In summary, USABILITY IS MEDIOCRE BUT Otherwise I love it for what it's best at: HIGH VOLUME STORAGE AT A GREAT PRICE