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362 of 371 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Zen versus iPod, January 6, 2004
I just got a 40GB iPod to replace my Zen (a 20GB model). While the iPod's form factor is much nicer, here's where the Zen is better.Software: A lot of people complain about the Creative Software, but I actually find Creative MediaSource Organizer to have some strengths over iTunes. First, the Zen lets you sync to more than one computer. The iPod is a one way only machine - from computer to player. The Zen is an outstanding way to shuttle music between sources, you can't do this on the iPod (except for a cumbersome work-around using the iPod as a hard drive instead of a player). Second, the "automatic" sync on Creative lets you review the songs before it begins its transfer. Since the iPod lacks this review feature on its auto-sync and it only allows one-way transfers, the first time I connected my iPod to my laptop, I wiped out the 20GB of music I had transferred from my desktop to the iPod. If the hard drive on your computer should fail, better have your music backed up somewhere or its gone! The Zen serves as a back-up device as well as a player. Third, Creative software allows you to keep two windows open to look at both the content on the player and the computer. Only thing missing from Creative is a CD burner. Lastly, iPod/iTunes will not play WMA formatted songs. If you have a lot of those, be prepared to convert to MP3. iTunes does what Apple is famous for, makes software that works for the less computer saavy. For those of us that like to tinker, I think Creative offers some advantages. Player controls: Here's where the iPod drives me nuts. The player controls are too easy to hit accidentally. If you happen to push the wrong button, you can wipe out the order of songs you had put in. The iPod also does not let you see what's coming up next on the player. Zen allows you to scroll up and down the song list selected on the player. It also lets you remove songs from the play order. If you bring up an album, but absolutely hate some of the tracks, the Zen will allow you to delete that from the playing order. You have to skip to the next track when your hated song comes up with the iPod. Lastly, you cannot manage anything on the iPod itself. While you can create a temporary playlist, you can't store it permanently, delete songs, search very easily, etc. None of these features are available because of the iPod's 1-way transfers - you cannot make changes on the iPod that are premanent. Again, the iPod is a beautiful thing to look at and touch, player controls are less functional. I think the iPod versus Zen typifies differences between Apple and Win machines. Win software can be a little cranky, but much more easier to customize to your needs. With Apple, you get a good product, but you get it the way Apple wants you to have it. If I had to do this again, I might get the 40GB Zen. Its ability to serve as a back-up for my music collection is a huge plus.
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358 of 377 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Review for Folks new to mp3s, January 13, 2004
I purchased this mp3 player just last night after doing some scouting around. Here's a basic run-down from what I learned: Flash card memory vs. Hard Drive ( i.e. Why does a 256 mb player cost $$$...and a 40 GB (40,000 mb) player only cost $...?) mp3 players have either flash card memory or a hard drive in them. The flash card memory is more expensive but is very light and compact. That's why you have these things that can be keychain size. Tiny! mp3 players of this kind of memory are typically small and light and have between 64 mb - 1.5 GB of memory. I am averaging 4.5 mb per song, to give you an idea of how many songs you can get by the amount of memory. (1 GB = 1,000 mb) Hard drives (this is what most iPods have - and just about all mp3 players over 3-5 GB of memory). Cheaper to produce, holds a lot, heavier and has moving parts which means it's a little more prone to damage from being banged around. That said, they are pretty sturdy machines and I wouldn't let this dissuade you from getting an mp3 with a lot of memory. Just be aware of it. This explains why you see what appears to be such weird pricing on mp3 players. A 256 mb player (roughly 60 songs for me) is about X amount of dollars But a 30 GB (30,000 mb) player (roughly 6,650 songs) sells for only slightly more. It's because the 256 player uses flash memory (smaller/lighter) and the 30GB uses a hard drive. That's the first thing to understand. So consider what you're going to use the device for. If you're a jogger and you want to strap it to your arm, I'd recommend flash memory. If you want to listen to tunes while you travel, I'd get a hard drive because you can put so much on the thing - including audio books. REVIEW OF ZEN XTRA - 40GB The device is larger than an iPod of similar capacity. This didn't bother me too much because it's still a decent size. It comes with a good case that fits it snuggly. The front cover (which you remove to take out the battery) feels flimsy but when snapped on, the device still feels pretty solid. As some other reviewers noted, after it was connected to the computer for a bit, it somehow stopped reading the player so I had to replug it. It did not lock up my computer or require a reboot. The software lets you pop in a CD and then scans the internet to name the artist, track name and album name. Extremely convenient. Then it rips the tunes into mp3s and puts them on your computer. You can even skip that step and rip them directly from the cd to the player. (won't leave copy on your computer.) The pros and cons of it: Great price. The iPod costs more for the same amount of memory. I thought the software was decent enough - it wasn't complicated to learn at all. The scroll button is sort of annoying to push - a nice button would be nicer but eh, not a big deal. It also stores data so I can see myself placing some data files on here. It is slightly larger than an iPod, no doubt about it. For me, that was the only drawback. I'm really happy with this purchase. Also, when I installed the software, it said that Windows XP hadn't approved something with the drivers, etc - and that continuing it install may cause instability. If you're like me, that will definitely make you pause. After I reviewed the manual (a pdf file included on the cd), I felt better because they warned you about the message and said it wouldn't cause problems and, in fact, it hasn't. So if you have XP, be prepared for this and don't be alarmed. If you are out for an mp3 player with a lot of memory and do not want to spend a ton of money, I think this is a great purchase and strongly recommend it. I would have liked to have given it 4 1/2 stars docking that 1/2 star only for the size.
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56 of 56 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
Hard Disk MP3 Players, February 10, 2004
If you read reviews for the 4 main contenders in this market - the iPod, Creative Zen, Rio Karma and iRiver iHP - you'll notice that each has their pros and cons; none are perfect and you should decide whether you want to take to take the plunge now or later. If your view in life is that you are going to pay $x00 to get a device then it must be near ideal - ruggedly constructed, fault proof, good product support, easy to use software - then do yourself a favor and don't buy yet. All the products have drawbacks and are not mature yet; if you expect value and reliability then wait a while. If you are OK paying $x00 for something that can be used now, but is likely to both get better and cost less in the future then try to determine which device is the lesser of evils for you. iPod clearly has the most buzz. Great design and looks cool. Most people love the appearance and praise the touch sensitive buttons. It has a hold button to deactivate the buttons to avoid accidents; however, enough reviewers have complained that the hold button is easily broken and then the device can't be used. Some of the more geeky (non-Apple type) reviewers complain that the scrollwheel is annoying after a while and they resent being forced into this Apple-like interface. Everyone complains about the non-replaceable battery, yet this is the price of sturdy construction. iPod can be used as an external disk, and apparently stores files without problem. However, the music and data are apparently not separated; iPod reviewers complain about "white noise" in random feedback mode that comes from appointments / contacts created on the iPod during synchronization. Synchronizing music among computers, if you have more than one, seems to be an issue; research this before buying if you have multiple computers you want to be synchronized. Reviews for sound quality are generally (but not universally) positive. Reviews of Apple's support are generally poor; they seem to address issues in warranty, which covers a short time after delivery / pickup of item. After that it seems like you're on your own. iPod has no stop button; when new users mention this iPod veterans call it "unnecessary" and "so 20th century". Creative Zen feedback suffers from construction quality, poor product support, difficulty of using the scroll wheel and reasonably consistent feedback about problems with the headphone jack. Construction quality is a difficult item. The Zen has a detachable face plate that allows the battery to be replaced. What is added in functionality (battery replacement) detracts in build quality as the face plate is prone to popping off. Drop if just a few inches on a hard surface and the faceplate pops off (but not if it's in its case). Many reviewers say the faceplate simply didn't fit well so they returned the Zen. Feedback on Creative's product support is universally poor; this is not limited to the Zen, it applies to all the company's products. The scroll wheel is finicky; it works most of the time but there is a learning curve for pressing it just right; new users say they have 50% - 75% success rate; some find it so frustrating that they just return the device. The Creative software is awkward / difficult to use and just plain doesn't load on some computers. Enough people have reported that their headphone jack doesn't work after a month of using the device to believe that Creative has some inbuilt manufacturing or quality control problem. The Zen doesn't support folders so it is not really a storage device; even with third party software that "creates" folders, documents and programs can't be launched from the Zen, so it is not a hard disk, it's a storage device at best. Reviews for sound quality are generally (but not universally) positive. The Zen has no stop button. Veteran Zen users have explained how to stop if that's what you want. The Rio Karma feedback suffers from sensitivity in the hard disk. It seems like movement, even small movement, causes skipping in playback and even the device freezing. If you plan to carry the device around (it is a mobile device, right?) then this is something you might want to think about. Karma gets consistently good reviews for sound quality and connectivity from its docking device, which has RCA output jacks and Ethernet jacks for connectivity. Usability (button usage, feature selection, menu structure, display size and quality) also has good feedback. Repair seems to be an issue; some say the repair don't exist - you just have to buy a new player. Perhaps because of its smaller user base there is also a lack of accessories. Like the Zen, the Karma does not support folders and is not designed to be a data storage device. It only comes in 20Gb; enough for most people, not for those with large collections ripped at high sampling rates. The Karma does have a stop button. There aren't many reviews for the iRiver iHP. Those that have it like it. The only complaint seems to be that the disk rotation is slow, leading to longer delays in some functions (playback and even a slow display of the menu?). Otherwise feedback seems to be good. No comments on reliability, warranty, repairs, accessories. No-one mentions whether there is a stop button, but the photos don't show one. None of these are perfect. If you have the appetite choose the one that you think has the least deficiencies or is best suited to you. Accept that there will be better devices (or new generations of these ones) in a year or two that will cost less. If that is for you then pay the money, learn from the experience and you'll be a more informed buyer when you buy device #2. If you aren't into paying $x00 to learn and experiment, or the cons outweigh the pros, then wait a year or so.
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