iPod Alternatives

[stray]

What's the best non-Apple MP3 player, with a 40-60GB hard drive? I'm out of space on my 20 gig iPod, and don't really feel like paying $400 (and then some) to upgrade to 60GB.

Does anyone here have a Creative Zen (NewEgg has a 40 Gig model for $215 and a 60 Gig for $269). Almost all of my tracks are plain vanilla mp3, so moving to another player shouldn't be a problem.

[cevik]

What's the best non-Apple MP3 player, with a 40-60GB hard drive? I'm out of space on my 20 gig iPod, and don't really feel like paying $400 (and then some) to upgrade to 60GB.

Does anyone here have a Creative Zen (NewEgg has a 40 Gig model for $215 and a 60 Gig for $269). Almost all of my tracks are plain vanilla mp3, so moving to another player shouldn't be a problem.

I have a Creative Nomad Zen Xtra 40 GB.  If you just want a mp3 player and don't care about ease of use (i.e. you are technical enough that it doesn't matter), then the Zen Xtra is perfect.  I also have a 30 GB iPod, and it feels a lot more polished, but you could never tell the difference when listening to them, and as far as playing features they both have all the standard playing features (playlists, play any song, play by genre, album, song artist, etc).

I do recommend buying a copy of Red Chair's Notmad.. though I haven't tried the Creative Software in years, so it may be much better by now..

[Trippy]

Does anyone here have a Creative Zen (NewEgg has a 40 Gig model for $215 and a 60 Gig for $269). Almost all of my tracks are plain vanilla mp3, so moving to another player shouldn't be a problem.

I have the first version of the Zen (has both Firewire and USB) and it works fine. Bigger and heavier than an iPod because it uses a 2.5" drive instead of the 1.8" in the iPods but that also means it's less money.

[Viin]

I got the iRiver 20gig because it plays OGG files and was a lot cheaper than the iPod. Looks like there is a new version that has a color LCD and can show pictures too:

 http://www.bestbuy.com/site/olspage.jsp?skuId=7161741&type=product&id=1110265594499

[edit: er yah, I meant ogg, not oog, doh! - also didn't notice he wanted more than 20 gigs - wtf do you do with more than 20 gigs?]

[ahoythematey]

Yeah, but he already has a 20gig and is looking for a 40-60gig, otherwise I would have suggested a Rio Karma if you can find one, since it also supports ogg vorbis.

[Abagadro]

I have the Creative Nomad Zen Extra.  30 GB. Love it.

[stray]

Cool, thanks y'all. I'll probably get the 60 gig Zen, I think. That's almost $150 cheaper than what Apple is pricing the 60 gig iPod. Wtf.

[Strazos]

My 20gb Rio Karma was a godsend in Europe. Used the thing damn near every day. And I have you guys to thank for that.


Awwww! 

Seriously though, Apple overcharges for it's stuff, I don't even like their touch interfaces, and it plays less media formats.

[stray]

wtf do you do with more than 20 gigs?

..and I thought I had a small mp3 collection. I've only got about half of my albums in digital format too. Most tracks are 256kbps. 20 gigs isn't going to cut it.

[Sky]

Hell, I've got 15GB just in stuff I've bought since I started this job, and that's after weeding out some stuff. I rip to 192Kb AAC. I estimate about 40GB total, and I'd need headroom for new stuff (and data).

Not to mention I'm considering a music server at home, with stuff ripped lossless...

[Shockeye]

I'm going to re-rip everything I have in a lossless format and then generate 192k MP3s for portable music.

[Strazos]

My taste in music didn't mature until very late, so when I finally got a player, I didn't have a whole lot to rip; My entire collection on my PC is about 2.5gb, with a large portion of that being in Ogg format.

My 20gb Rio Karma should last for another 15 years.

[schild]

I'm going to re-rip everything I have in a lossless format and then generate 192k MP3s for portable music.

Waste of time when you don't have the speakers or headphones to make that worthwhile. Hence the reason every mp3 is sitting on my computer at 128kbps ripped with iTunes (pre-copy protection iTunes, they REALLY want me to update). If I want to listen to music on my home stereo, I'll put in a CD.

[Shockeye]

Not a waste of time. On cheap headphones I can easily hear the differences between 128k and 192k. 192k and 256k is harder on crappy headphones, but it can really stand out depending on the music.

[Strazos]

Not a waste of time. On cheap headphones I can easily hear the differences between 128k and 192k.

Agreed.

[Hanzii]

I'm with Schild.
It makes no lick of diffrence with cheap headphones. I'm playing around with Shure's E5c headphones, and for the first time ever do I hear the faults with 128 Kb MP3.
Good thing, though. I might consider buying these lovely (but ugly) headphones, but re-ripping 25 Gigs of music turns me from the idea ... well, that and the ridiculous price.

[Sky]

If I want to listen to music on my home stereo, I'll put in a CD.

That's what Sky is trying to avoid. Sky is also looking ahead to when Sky has his own house, and a network of cheap computers to stream stuff all over the place.

Also, what Hanzii said. Sky don't have great speakers on his home theater now, but Sky doesn't want to get stuck re-ripping everything down the road. And Sky will be getting some nice headphones, since Sky loves to play drums (badly) along with music...and getting up to change cds would be a drag. Much better to control streaming music from a file server with a wireless laptop or something.

Sky's home studio is going to be quite cherry in Sky's own opinion, if a bit ghetto on implementation...

[Shockeye]

Behold, the nano.

[stray]

Pretty nice. Display screen + 2/4 Gigs. If I was the type looking for something smaller, I'd get that before the Shuffle anyday.

[Furiously]

So looks like they are killing off the mini - shame - I liked the surface finish that didnt get scratched to hell in gone in 5 minutes.

[Righ]

How could anybody consider anything other than the official Hogwarts iPod?

[Sky]

So looks like they are killing off the mini - shame - I liked the surface finish that didnt get scratched to hell in gone in 5 minutes.

Phew! I thought for a second you meant the Mac Mini...that thing kicks ass imo. Finally got the library to ditch emacs, now we have some nice lcd monitors and those nice (hot) little minis.

[Strazos]

I thought he meant the Shuffle....

How could anybody consider anything other than the official Hogwarts iPod?

Oooo, a premium price for a color 20gb iPod with a stupid emblem on the back, which will get scratched to hell in 4 days.

[Signe]

Yes, but for only $250 more, you can buy all the audio Harry Potter books.

ALL of them!!!

[stray]

Yes, but for only $250 more, you can buy all the audio Harry Potter books.

ALL of them!!!

Who reads them (the voice acting on the audiobooks, I mean)?

[Strazos]

Yeah, because I JUST CAN'T GET ENOUGH OF HARRY!!


Oh wait...

[Signe]

Yes, but for only $250 more, you can buy all the audio Harry Potter books.

ALL of them!!!

Who reads them (the voice acting on the audiobooks, I mean)?

Jim Dale.  He was in all those nutty "Carry On" films.  He wrote the lyrics to "Georgy Girl".  I shouldn't think anyone knows who he is, anymore. I had very nearly forgotten him, too,  until I googled your question since you have broken fingers and everything.  Evidently, he's won all sorts of awards for reading stuff.

[stray]

until I googled your question since you have broken fingers and everything

Actually, I use my toes.

And yes, they're broken (with bone spurs on my feet to boot).

[Signe]

(with bone spurs on my feet to boot).

Spurs?  Feet?  Boot?  What sort of twisted message are you trying to communicate to me?

Oh, my head!  My head!

[Sky]

He's an undead cowboy.

[Righ]

[Hanzii]

Yes, but for only $250 more, you can buy all the audio Harry Potter books.

ALL of them!!!

Who reads them (the voice acting on the audiobooks, I mean)?

Jim Dale.  He was in all those nutty "Carry On" films.  He wrote the lyrics to "Georgy Girl".  I shouldn't think anyone knows who he is, anymore. I had very nearly forgotten him, too,  until I googled your question since you have broken fingers and everything.  Evidently, he's won all sorts of awards for reading stuff.

Wot?
On my iTunes it says 'read by Stephen Fry' - I almost bought them just for that, but $101... just for one of the books!

[Righ]

Go to the bottom of the page and choose 'USA' from the pulldown menu. That's right, the big media companies don't like free trade. Different store, different products. British muggles have to wait another month for their engraved techno bling.

[Hanzii]

I don't understand your post. Yes the engraved iPod isn't out here yet, so...
I was replying to Signes post about Jim Dale being the narrator, when Stephen Frys lovely voice is reading the books, that I can buy on my iTunes. Did they exchange one Englishman with another for the US books? Why?

[Shockeye]

See the insides of the nano.