Rating: 
Summary: Great Player
Review: Have had the player since Xmass and love it!
Pros: Great sound, very long battery life (I routinely play it for 12+ hours), very fast recharges rate, removable battery, storage size, nice screen, firmware updates, and great price.
Cons: Short warranty (3 months, so I got the extended warranty at Best Buy), occasional freeze up (easily fixed by popping out battery), somewhat flimsy navigation wheel.
Neutral: I didn't even try the included software. I just bought Notmad manager ($25) and file transfers are easy drag and drop, songs stored by ID3 tags not by folders, needs to have software on computer to transfer files, no window on case (nice case otherwise.
Rating: 
Summary: Good for the price
Review: I have had mine for a month now and have to say I have enjoyed it. The Pros:
Price! Almost half what an ipod would cost you! I don't care how it looks and I always drive so the size is not important to me.
Sound quality is wonderful, I really like the smart volume sound normalization. Yes the included earphones suck but everyone replaces them anyway. I quickly got to use to the interface and can find any song/playlist etc fast enough. I also liked the fact that you can save custom playlist you made on the player not just the computer!
Cons. Creative software stinks. It's horrible. redchair software makes nice software that allows you to do everything you would want to and more! The front cover can pop off easily but I always have mine in the case so I didn't notice after first day.
Rating:
Summary: Easy to use, massive storage space, sounds great.
Review: And also, it's priced very affordably. With 40gb of storage I have about 7,500 songs on the player (everything music file I have is on there) with room for about 2,500 more. A similarily priced 15gb Ipod wouldn't have been nearly enough room. Having my entire music collection is great when travelling (both on plane and car trips) and I don't have to decide what to bring or copy onto the player--it's all there. Having to copy/delete files would be time-consuming and is rendered a non-issue with 40gb of storage. The software interface supplied was very easy to use but I went ahead and got Red Chair's "Notmad" software because of some advanced features I wanted. The sound is great even with the supplied earbuds--but I find earbuds uncomfortable so I use different headphones. On planes I use a splitter so two headphones can be plugged in for two people and the sound is equally good. Sound settings can be adjusted for personal preference. Accessing files by artist and album (I mostly look things up by artist) is easy and intuitive. Possibly the biggest advantage this player has (if price wasn't enough) is the fact that the user can replace the battery him/herself by opening the lid and popping in the new battery. Since batteries do run out on everything, this will also be a big money-saver since Ipods, Irivers, RCA, Dell, all have built-in batteries that need to be replaced by a technician (Apple charges 100 bones for the battery replacement). Try before you buy if at all possible: although I am a Mac addict now for over a decade and everyone I know has previously bought an Ipod, the Nomad Zen Xtra was a far better value and is just as easy to use with regards to both hardware and software interface. I personally am not crazy about the looks of either the Ipod or the Nomad. The Ipod's white plastic look/surface doesn't suit me. I like the Nomad's color better, but it's not terribly flashy. The mini Ipod's look the best to me--but with only 4gb there's no way I would ever buy any mp3 player with a measly 4gb of storage. My advice to mp3 buyers: consider how much storage space you will need, then try and listen before you buy--mp3 players can only fully evaluated by holding and listening to them.
Rating:
Summary: Not Macintosh compatible?
Review: Having read a number of reviews that refer to this unit as the "iPod Killer"... Having used Creative Products with my Mac previously... Having bought Creative products from the Apple store... According to Creative Labs, this unit is NOT MAC COMPATIBLE.I have news for you: it IS Mac compatible, but Creative Labs doesn't seem interested in supporting it. The odd thing is that I got a driver to make it work from Creatives website - and it was a lot of digging, as there is nothing that links to it. You're going to have to search some forums, but you can find a driver. Now I love this thing. The Big question? Why don't they support Macs? Is it a alck of interest on Creative's part, or is it a licensing issue? Ask them!
Rating: 
Summary: The honeymoon is OVER
Review: I have had this thing for about 4 months, and despite a few idiosyncracies I have LOVED it....until NOW that is. Suddenly, and for no apparent reason, the headphone jack has gone wonky. This player has spent it entire life inside the protective case, has never been dropped, and has only seen use as a car player where it sits in a dashboard cubbyhole that fits it so well its practically womb-like. I have unable to contact Creatives customer support (it's President's Day today so they are closed.....no mention of this in their voice-mail que, you just get randomly disconnected for no apparent reason and with no warning), but being that the unit is JUST over warranty (only 3 months, which is weak in the extreme) I am not very hopeful. After reading this and a few other review sites, it appears that I am not alone, as many other users seem to be having the same problem.
I am trying to avoid trashing the product completely, at this point, but this is unacceptable. $500 for this thing, and because they used a 5 cent jack instead of a 10 cent jack, its almost useless. I have found enough other users complaining about this same thing that it appears Creative a serious design flaw here, and while I have been willing to live with, forgive, and even praise some of their other design choices, this is WHACK.
Rating: 
Summary: Awsome... for 2 days
Review: This is my second Zen. They are so awsome they deserve a chance i thought. The first one (second gen) was dropped out of my pocket while on a movie vehical, still worked. Stepped on it, still worked. After 5 months, it stopped charging and totally crapped out at around 9 months. I thought "hey, i treated it like crap i must of broke it" so i got the Xtra. I totally loved the thing for the 2 DAYS that it worked. I was just sitting, listening to my jams and the sound just... went off. The headphone jack randomly crapped out on me. I sent it back and im getting my cash back... i dunno what im going to do now... iPods are too much and they have sucky battery life. Maybe i'll get a cd player... or a portable record player...
Rating:
Summary: Great player, Great Sound, Has flaws however
Review: Alright, well i read alot of these reviews, and i read alot of bad AND good things about this player. Well to say, i had a very bad history with players. One broke, one got stolen, and then i bought the Riovolt sp - 350 . IF YOU ARE PLANNING TO BUY THAT PLAYER, DO NOT! THAT PLAYER IS A COMPLETE PIECE OF SH***. I returned it once, then i sent it back, and IT IS CRAP. Now getting back to this. I ordered this player for christmas, and so far i have it for only 2 Weeks. Now as others said, so far this player is an awesome player, there are flaws.
Cons :
1. The display is awesome, you can see everything you want and read it clearly
2. Huge storage space, i loaded my entire collection of music, which isnt that much , 400 songs, and still have 26 GB , out of the 28 provided to you. (28 not 30 because software itself takes space). And those songs mostly are 320 kbps.
3. The sound is awesome, but if u put it too loud, depends on yoursound quality, the sound might crack.
4. With EAX on, you can modify your sound , with 4 different presets, which is pretty good, you can get different variations with it.
5. If you use software correctly, put in all the ID3 tags, you will get an awesome database collection, from which you can EASILY access your songs. You can also search for your song, which is good.
6. I dont know what other people are saying, but the software is awesome. you can easily access ur files, and easily fill in the ID3 tags, which can take a while with a big collection of music, but if your not lazy, you will do it without a problem. And i read today that you can also have online fill out the ID3, so its not a problem.
7. Battery recharge, is an awesome thing, because it recharges in only like 2-3 hours.
8. When you turn on your player, the player turns on REALLY fast, and the music continues to play, as you left it when you were turning it off.
9. You can manage your profile, change the contrast of backlight, make different type of display, either list or tabbed. You can do other different things with it such as choose what kind of "now playing" interface, you can see the interface as Modern or Classical. There is an alarm, i still havent used it yet, but it should be good. There is a Clock, and Date, which can get helpful.
10. The player has firmware, which will remove the glitches, if there are any.
11. The music plays awesome, NEVER skips, even if u run for a bit, so you can listen to music without interruption.
Cons : 1. The one and most major thing that i was dissapointed with, in this player, is the battery life. The Product Manufacturer promised me 12- 14 hours, And what i recieved was 6-8.5 hours max.
i did it like this
EAX on : 6 hours
EAX off: 8.5 hours
2. The panel seems like it will come off very easily as other people have said.
3. You need the software to actually transfer files
4. The player has its minor glitches like for example when i turn it on, 60 percent of the time, it sais, SHUTTING DOWN, which means i have to turn off, and turn it on again, which is not to my likings. Also, the player sometimes freezes, not a very big problem, but can also be annoying.( but as any hard drive, all of them freeze at certain points) Well thats about it, and as people said in earlier previews that the headfone jack gets messed up, stil havent happened to me, and i hope it doesnt.
Rating:
Summary: Software problem
Review: I bought the player this week and I like it by far.This is my fourth MP3 player (Creative Nomad Jukebox2 and 3, Rio Chie, and this one), and my third player from creative. Here's something you have to know before you considering about buying this one. PRO: 1. Removable and cheap battery- a Li Battery usually works properly for 1-3 years. My friend has an I-pod for about 2 years and the battery has so so messed up. His I-pod can only play for a couple of hours with a fully recharging now. 2. Value: comparing data storage with price. 3. Size and style: The appearance is okayed (at least not ugly). The size is small (just a little bit bigger than an I-Pod.) 4. Easy to use: a lot of reviews has mentioned about this Con: The software, MediaSource, cannot work on my PC. (Laptop, Intel P4-2.0, XP OS). A tons of reveiws has reported this problem and the same here. In fact, each of my creative MP3 players had software problem in the first place. However, the creative Lab did come out new update to fix their software problems. I am crossing my finger and wish they will fix the problem. PS: (Mediasource provides similar functions with MS Mediaplay such like Cd ripping, tagging , music database managing, music file transfering, and more) Now I use MS mediaplayer, Musicmatch(free downladed), and "explorer/ My computer/grab files from disk C or D into the player" to replace the Mediasource. In short, this player is good at size, value, Hardware design but really bad at its software
Rating:
Summary: Good for a little while, but....
Review: Sure, this thing is definitely more cost-effective than an iPod. But with a low price, comes lower quality. Our special friends at Creative gave this thing good sound quality, great features, long battery life, and an unbeatable price. The catch is it's built like a piece of crap. It lasted about 1 1/2 weeks. I didn't abuse it, I charged it every day, but the headphone jack just sort of fizzled out. I tried re-setting it, I tried just about every pair of headphones in my house (10 pairs), and nothing worked. So I contacted customer service at Creative, but they said, "If the product seems broken, we cannot help," or something to that effect. Wow. Don't get me wrong, the thing was like heaven for about a week. If you want a quality mp3 player, splurge on an ipod. If you really need to save, buy this thing on Amazon, they eventually gave me a full refund. I bought myself an RCA mp3-cd player, and I'm happy with that until a cheap, worthwhile mp3 player coomes out.
Rating: 
Summary: Hard Disk MP3 Players
Review: 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.
|
