Arrrrrrrrrrrrgggggggg!

[nfpgasmask]

:madp: :madr2: :madg: :madp2: :madg2:

I dropped my Creative Zen Micro Photo this morning and now it is FUBAR.

$200 down the drain.

So I am in the market for a new MP3 player, any suggestions welcome.

Here is my criteria:

1) NO I-POD
2) CAPACITY of at least 4 gig
3) DURABLE

I really liked the Creative player, but it had 2 major problems. Firstly, this particular unit has virtually NO available accessories, and this contributed to its ultimate demise (no rubber protective pouch to hold it in). Also, it suffered from a bad connection in the head phone jack, which I found out today is a very common problem with the Creative devices. So I don't plan to buy another Creative MP3 player, I'd like to try something else, but we'll see.

I don't really mind the I-POD as a device, but I absolutely refuse to let I-Tunes penetrate even 1 byte of hard drive space on my computer. So I-Pods are out, and don't try to convince me otherwise unless you have found some rock solid, free, 3rd party software that lets me use an I-Pod with no I-Tunes whatsoever.

Yes, I'm angry at the moment.

Bart

[cyronman]

Bart

what do you (or anyone else) think of those new Zunes?

-cy

[Dumke]

I say Iriver. No its not ipod cousin and friend always calls it and ipod and it pisses me off. I lvoe it 20 gig. uses windows media file which is super easy. get windows media 10 andrip cd and plug mp3 player up and sync it to mp3 player and whola ur done. I have droped this thing quite a bit. It comes with a "condom" i dunno just what someone told me it was so I am going with it. Its a rubber pouch that incases mp3 player. It has fm transmitter (which is reason I bought over ipod for whne I ride my bike) you can record the radio and listen to it later. You can also record voice as well if you wanted.

http://www.iriver.com/html/campaign/h10/cah0_index.asp

This isnt exact one I have I guess they trying to go up with ipod with the whoel picture. but mine cost me about 299 or less @ bestbuy. Sorry its been soo long.


The wheel in middle is like ipods scroll wheel. U run ur finger up and down it to move through list. U however dont press it to enter menu u press right button under screen to move forward and left to move in reverse.





EDIT: Iriver has other sizes and alot of thiers comes with fm tuner so I guess just check it out.


Oh and zunes is a microsoft thing. I guess they want thier hands in everything LOL

[nfpgasmask]

I haven't heard of Zunes, I will look them up.

Thanks, Bart

Bart

what do you (or anyone else) think of those new Zunes?

-cy

[nfpgasmask]

Well, I guess I left out the little fact that I have 260 GIGs of MP3s already ripped to my hard drive, and I also loathe Windows Media Player. And if the player wants to convert my MP3s to some other format, that is no good either. What I need is Plug in device, device pops up in Explorer, drag MP3s to device, unplug device, play MP3s.

Its seems however that this is asking too much of most of the devices out there.

I may be stuck buying another Creative player in the long run, but...

Bart

I say Iriver. No its not ipod cousin and friend always calls it and ipod and it pisses me off. I lvoe it 20 gig. uses windows media file which is super easy. get windows media 10 andrip cd and plug mp3 player up and sync it to mp3 player and whola ur done. I have droped this thing quite a bit. It comes with a "condom" i dunno just what someone told me it was so I am going with it. Its a rubber pouch that incases mp3 player. It has fm transmitter (which is reason I bought over ipod for whne I ride my bike) you can record the radio and listen to it later. You can also record voice as well if you wanted.

http://www.iriver.com/html/campaign/h10/cah0_index.asp

This isnt exact one I have I guess they trying to go up with ipod with the whoel picture. but mine cost me about 299 or less @ bestbuy. Sorry its been soo long.


The wheel in middle is like ipods scroll wheel. U run ur finger up and down it to move through list. U however dont press it to enter menu u press right button under screen to move forward and left to move in reverse.





EDIT: Iriver has other sizes and alot of thiers comes with fm tuner so I guess just check it out.

[Bulldoggie]

I just bought a couple of iPods for my Windows friends, At first I heard all the complants about iTunes vs. jukebox ect...
But the new generation of iPod Nano's, come in 2, 4, & 8gigs. More scratch resistant than ever, stonger case, picture slideshows to any playlist, unlimited playlist combinations of the songs loaded, auto syncing with address book and your choice of playlists, and more....

My PC friends have stopped complaining, and keep asking me to get them more for theirn friends and family. One in peticular, after seeing my friends, dosen't have a PC to load, he just bought it already loaded with my friends songs, and uses a radio to charge it, So my friend went without one till I made my next trip to town.

Short of a blackberry, there is NOTHING COOLER than a new Nano!

iTunes lets you import mp3 as well as acc. it lets you burn your entire library, if you want, across multiple discs,(if neccissary). Mp3 music CDs, Aiff music CDs, Mp3 DVDs, Data DVDs or CDs = all your music on 1 or 2 DVDs, that can be read on ANY computer.

You can turn off the links to the music store if you choose.

And yes, there are third party software / freeware, that allows plenty of features and plug-ins to do most anything with your iPod.

There is a reason that they are #1.

[etlsport]

so what does fubar mean? i was just thinking it about your post when my boss came in and dropped some plans on my desk and said FUBAR!!! (but seemed happy enough..)

ive got a Rio that im very happy with, mine is 1.5 gigs but i know they make a 4gig version now.. ive had mine for about 4 years.. dropped it out of my vx at least 10 times.. its been landed on by pool balls.. stepped on.. still works great

[cyronman]

F'd
up
beyond
all
recognition

[kpaske]

Bart,

You would likely be pretty happy with a lot of "generic" mp3 players if you shop for features rather than name brands. I used to have an iRiver MP3/CD Player that was GREAT and I wouldn't hesitate to purchase another iRiver product (if I were in the market) because they tend to offer more whiz-bang features for your hard earned dollar. They are based out of Korea.

Now I have a Rio "Cali" and what you describe is exactly how I use it. I never use the bundled software, and have never really decided on a player for my PC - what i need is quick and dirty drag and drop capability from windows explorer and NO DRM. The "Cali" model is pretty durable - I wouldn't hesitate to drop it two stories onto concrete and I suspect it would suffer little more than a cosmetic ding - try THAT with a iPod.

The biggest thing that sold me on the Cali is that it has an SD Card reader, so i never have to worry about filling it up - I just keep a handful of cards around with different selections of music - and you can use a variety of readers to drop music on the card so you don't even have to plug in your MP3 player to organize your music collection.

The only thing better than an MP3 player with an SD slot, IMO, MIGHT be an MP3 player with a big hard drive built in, but it would never be as durable as my Cali, and it would cost A LOT more. I got mine at Best Buy about 2 years ago for about $120.

[nfpgasmask]

Hmmm, this Rio sounds interesting. Personally, If I could get away with NO SOFTWARE AT ALL, I would be extatic. I hate the fact that most these devices are really nothing more than a stick of memory or a hard drive, and yet you STILL need to load some idiotic software to organize and "synch" your music. Plug in just about any portable flash memory or hard drive into a PC, and Windows can handle it. Why can't MP3 players do the same thing? The only software needed should be MP3 decoding software on the device itself!!! I don't need to "synch" anything. I am not an idiot and I don't need software to tell me where my music is stored and how it is organized.

And yes, DRM is my MAIN concern when it comes to iTunes and Windows Media Player. DRM is FUBAR, and it will probably keep me from ever upgrading beyond XP, if the things I am hearing about Vista are true. I might just end up becoming a Linux nazi if things keep going the way they are going. But then again, everything gets cracked eventually

Anyway, back to MP3 players. My wife has a little Creative 1 GIG player, and it works EXACTLY the way it should, no software needed. I just want a device like this that has at least 4 GIG of space (that isn't pink like hers either). I would prefer something with at least 8 GIG, but I would settle for 4. I think I have seen 2 GIG SD cards...I wonder if there are ones that are even bigger?

I'm gonna look into this Rio thing.

Thanks - Bart

Bart,

You would likely be pretty happy with a lot of "generic" mp3 players if you shop for features rather than name brands. I used to have an iRiver MP3/CD Player that was GREAT and I wouldn't hesitate to purchase another iRiver product (if I were in the market) because they tend to offer more whiz-bang features for your hard earned dollar. They are based out of Korea.

Now I have a Rio "Cali" and what you describe is exactly how I use it. I never use the bundled software, and have never really decided on a player for my PC - what i need is quick and dirty drag and drop capability from windows explorer and NO DRM. The "Cali" model is pretty durable - I wouldn't hesitate to drop it two stories onto concrete and I suspect it would suffer little more than a cosmetic ding - try THAT with a iPod.

The biggest thing that sold me on the Cali is that it has an SD Card reader, so i never have to worry about filling it up - I just keep a handful of cards around with different selections of music - and you can use a variety of readers to drop music on the card so you don't even have to plug in your MP3 player to organize your music collection.

The only thing better than an MP3 player with an SD slot, IMO, MIGHT be an MP3 player with a big hard drive built in, but it would never be as durable as my Cali, and it would cost A LOT more. I got mine at Best Buy about 2 years ago for about $120.

[nfpgasmask]

F'd
up
beyond
all
recognition

Yeah, its kinda like SNAFU:

Situation
Normal
All
F'ed
Up

I believe these are old military anacronyms. Just like Radar and Laser.

Bart

[nfpgasmask]

Bulldoggie,

Even with the 3rd party software, don't you still need to load iTunes? And I know they technically work with MP3s, but doesn't iTunes have all sorts of DRM cr@p built into it? And doesn't iTunes convert your MP3s into some proprietary format? Like I said, I don't have a problem with the devices themselves, its the way they interface with the PC that I can't stand. And I bet the GOOD 3rd party software for iPods sure isn't free.

The other thing is, I want a MP3 player, not a photo viewer, movie player, address book, cell phone, toaster, microwave, or any of the other gadgets they are trying to pack into a single device. Its just not necessary imho. I like portable music, plain and simple.

I think we are simply on different wavelengths when it comes to MP3 players, or in your case, PDAs. I hate Palm Pilots and I REALLY hate Blackberrys. Talk about unnecessary. The last thing I need is another leash connecting me to work.

Bart

PS - If I give in to an iPod, I might as well sell my VX and get a Jeep while I'm at it! lol

I just bought a couple of iPods for my Windows friends, At first I heard all the complants about iTunes vs. jukebox ect...
But the new generation of iPod Nano's, come in 2, 4, & 8gigs. More scratch resistant than ever, stonger case, picture slideshows to any playlist, unlimited playlist combinations of the songs loaded, auto syncing with address book and your choice of playlists, and more....

My PC friends have stopped complaining, and keep asking me to get them more for theirn friends and family. One in peticular, after seeing my friends, dosen't have a PC to load, he just bought it already loaded with my friends songs, and uses a radio to charge it, So my friend went without one till I made my next trip to town.

Short of a blackberry, there is NOTHING COOLER than a new Nano!

iTunes lets you import mp3 as well as acc. it lets you burn your entire library, if you want, across multiple discs,(if neccissary). Mp3 music CDs, Aiff music CDs, Mp3 DVDs, Data DVDs or CDs = all your music on 1 or 2 DVDs, that can be read on ANY computer.

You can turn off the links to the music store if you choose.

And yes, there are third party software / freeware, that allows plenty of features and plug-ins to do most anything with your iPod.

There is a reason that they are #1.

[Bulldoggie]

If you import your music as mp3's they stay mp3's.

The defalt import format is ACC but you get to choose. Unless you bought your tunes from the iTunes store, then they are ACC. You just have to burn your ACC files as AIFF(standard CD audio), then reimport them as mp3's.
The new Nano's are the smallest most portable up to 8gig for $239.
My PC friends first got hooked, when I visited them and in seconds hooked into there stereo's
Like you, I want a music player to play music, a cell phone to make calls on the road, and a real digital camera to take pictures.
I don't own a blackberry, but even my daughters have Nanos, but they were the older plastic nano's for less than $80.
iTunes shows a graph of what is loaded on you iPod, so you don't have to guess how much free space is left, and pictures are thumbnail size, along with contacts ect... is only a pencil thin line on the bar graph. it still holds over 2,000 songs, and the battery life is now over 20 hours. the quality, touch, and feel can't be beat, I do like playing the slideshow of my favorite vacation pictures to the music that I love, but you can just display album art with the song and artist info if you prefer. I shuffel my playlists so I never know what is coming up next.
My advice is to go to an Apple store and let them demo one for you. They can demo the software too.
And there is a large amount of freeware these days, I don't like to pay if I don't have to, and to top it off, Apples web site, has links to third party software.
I did give my friends Data DVD's of my entire library, but they still complain that they have to click and play a little of each song to import them from Data discs, WOW that sounds so painful, they don't even have to type one word.

[nfpgasmask]

OK, so, is there an option, out of the box (and with the help of some 3rd party software), that would allow me to use my existing 260 GIG of MP3 files, without ANY type of conversion or re-ripping, and without EVER installing iTunes, on an iPod?

Bart

If you import your music as mp3's they stay mp3's.

The defalt import format is ACC but you get to choose. Unless you bought your tunes from the iTunes store, then they are ACC. You just have to burn your ACC files as AIFF(standard CD audio), then reimport them as mp3's.
The new Nano's are the smallest most portable up to 8gig for $239.
My PC friends first got hooked, when I visited them and in seconds hooked into there stereo's
Like you, I want a music player to play music, a cell phone to make calls on the road, and a real digital camera to take pictures.
I don't own a blackberry, but even my daughters have Nanos, but they were the older plastic nano's for less than $80.
iTunes shows a graph of what is loaded on you iPod, so you don't have to guess how much free space is left, and pictures are thumbnail size, along with contacts ect... is only a pencil thin line on the bar graph. it still holds over 2,000 songs, and the battery life is now over 20 hours. the quality, touch, and feel can't be beat, I do like playing the slideshow of my favorite vacation pictures to the music that I love, but you can just display album art with the song and artist info if you prefer. I shuffel my playlists so I never know what is coming up next.
My advice is to go to an Apple store and let them demo one for you. They can demo the software too.
And there is a large amount of freeware these days, I don't like to pay if I don't have to, and to top it off, Apples web site, has links to third party software.

[Bulldoggie]

You do have to install iTunes to manage the music library on your PC.

The iPods have to be formatted for PC or Mac format (just like old floppies did).

You do NOT have to re-rip or ?

When you install iTunes it will ask you if you want it to look for music files on your computer, select yes and they will be automatically added.

It will ask if you want it to check, (balance) the sound levels of your files, and it will ask if you want Gapless added to your sound files(before and after silence removed).

It will ask if you want it to download album art if you want it to, You can look for artwork on the net and paste it into your files manually if you like.

Print this up and ask them to demo these features at an Apple store, if you have any doubts or questions.

When you have iTunes on your computer you can hook it up to your home stereo and have an awesome jukebox or listen to your music as you surf, I do. I also use it as my alarm clock