Rating: 
Summary: A great player for the price.
Review: Summary: Lots of flaws, but exceptional sound quality, HD size, and price make it a good buy. PROS: Excellent Sound - I found the music reproduced faithfully through the Jukebox. There was no distortion and it sounded great, especially with EAX Environmental Audio enabled.
Transfer Through Windows Explorer - Windows recognizes the Jukebox as an additional hard disk, so it allows you to simply drag and drop files from Windows Explorer to a folder for the Nomad. I found this to be a much easier method of transferring my music to the Nomad than using their software. However, it doesn't register instantly as a hard drive like other players. You have to install the software to the computer you're transferring to, instead of just connecting it with a USB connection. This would have been much easier. The Nomad can hold any type of file, not just Mp3, so you can use it as a portable hard disk. I found it very useful for transferring large files to another computer. This almost made it worth the price alone. I was able to easily copy 2Gb worth of video files from my computer, and then transfer them to a friend's. Huge Storage Space - Even at 320Kbs, you can store a ton of songs on this thing. 30Gb is more than enough for most people.
Having USB 2.0 makes for very fast transfers. It only took me about 10 seconds to transfer a 200mb file. It took maybe 15 minutes to transfer 1000 songs. CONS: Navigation system - The Zen Xtra uses Id3 tags that are embedded in the Mp3 files to organize your songs. This is great as long as all of your music have Id3 tags, and if you've downloaded your songs off the Internet, many probably don't. It would have been much easier to use a Windows Explorer style navigation system. You can't simply open up a folder from the player and play all the songs in it. Whe you transfer your songs to the Jukebox, it dumps ALL of them into a single folder, and then sorts them by the ID3 tags.
FM Receiver - It has none. I would be nice to have a simple FM Receiver so I could pick up local stations. That way I could get rid of a walkman alltogether. Cheap Construction - They should have made the player out of hard plastic and put some rubber on the corners. The player feels VERY delicate, as if I'm holding an actual hard drive. I'm not sure if it would survive a fall from 3 feet. As a portable player, it should feel a bit more durable. The top of the player is a thin metal piece that covers up the battery and is removable. I could crush this thing in half with two fingers if I wanted to. This is not a player you can take jogging.
The songs don't play one after another like on a CD. You have to add them to the Playing List. I can't simply bring up my entire list of songs, click play, and then hit next. You have to add all the songs to a play list. There is probably an easier way to do this, I just haven't found it yet.
Software - The software is crap. I use it for ripping CDs, which it does a pretty good job of. Otherwise, it is difficult to figure out and awkward. Like most people, I don't want to read the instructions, I just want to use it. Even after reading some of the instructions, it's still hard to figure out. I would recommend replacing the existing software with the "Notmad Explorer," which is simpler to use and can be found on the Internet.
No Line Out Jack - As I said, there is none. The headphone jack acts as a pseudo line out jack. So you can plug your Nomad directly into your stereo or use a car adapter, but you don't get the quality from a true Line out jack. It sounds decent, but I would estimate you get maybe 80% of the quality that you would from a true line out jack. Controls are a bit awkward. The controls definately took some getting used to. It wasn't as easy to fast forward or pause a song than it was with a regular walkman. When I first had it I kept finding myself having to look at the Nomad to figure out where the skip button was. A sliding old fashioned volume knob would also have been easier than the digital version that was included. I want to have instant access to the volume, not have to hold down a button and have to wait a half second for the player to register it. Crappy headphones. The included ear buds were uncomfortable. I would replace them with some better sounding and more comfortable phones. Difficult navigation - I won't necessarily say "difficult," but I don't enjoy the scrollwheel to navigate. It is a bit cumbersome, and I can't get to the songs I want as quickly. I think this is it's biggest flaw. I would much more have preferred a keypad-type navigator like found on DVD remotes. Up, down, left, and right would have given me better control. If you hold down the scrollwheel too long (which is common if you have a lot of songs to sort through), it will get "stuck" rapidly going through the songs and won't stop until several seconds after you let your finger off of it. Case - The Nomad comes with a leather holding case. It would have been much nicer if it had a window so you could see the screen, and if the button didn't cover up the AC jack. That way I could keep it in the case all the time. As it stands now, the case is pretty useless unless you're packing the player up for travel, or if you load up all your songs beforehand. You can cut up the case a bit with an Xacto knife and make it useable though. Overall, I feel that it's a decent buy, and am happy that I own it. I am willing to overlook it's problems to get superior sound quality and low price, although I feel the player has a lot of room for improvement.
Rating:
Summary: It's pretty good
Review: Read the instuctions - DO NOT plug the Zen into your computer until you have installed all the software onto your computer and rebooted it !! (I had no problems since I did this but there seem to be a couple of very bitter reviews further down - maybe they did not do this or maybe there are some very sad Ipod owners since they all recomend it instead). And have you seen the price of the Ipod extras that you need. Eg 60$ for a plastic box to hold 4 AAA batteries to increase the use time past 6-8 hrs (reviewers figures) I uploaded the drivers and new software in 15 minutes - no crashes or problems. Transferred the zens new software onto it in about 10 seconds. It is transferes a song in about 2 seconds. USB 2.0 - VERY FAST Yeah I agree the ear buds are pretty crap, replace them. But the sound is very good (and loud) and works well on my portable speakers. And for those that are intrested the recharger works anywhere in the world (and is quite small). It looks very cool, and seems quite small to me and very light. The scroll button seems ok, I have no problems with it.
I am very pleased so far. I had all my files already on my PC in WMA format (200 CD's). so far so good, no problems, no conversions. Very simple to use. The reason it does not get 5 stars
1) A spare battery would have been great.
2) No games - it has a cool screen - why not use it.
3) It does not work automatically like a hard drive when you connect it to your computer, like some players All in all suprisingly easy to use.
Rating: 
Summary: Awesome
Review: I'm very pleased with my ZX so here's a quick review. First there's the unit itself. It is small overall, bigger than the iPod, but keep in mind that this is because different, less expensive but not necessarily inferior technology is used in the ZX. The ZX boasts superior sound quality than the iPod, however it compromises a bit of the unit's size in doing so. The LCD is larger than the previous model, the NX, and has a bright blue backlight which illuminates the screen more successfully than the NX's green backlight did. The scrollwheel is easy to use and works great for me, however many have complained that the wheel is cumbersome and difficult to operate. The sound is excellent as one would suspect from a Creative product. The included EAX support is useful at times, especially when you listen to a variety of genres, as it will adjust the equalizer for you which can be a big hassle. The environmental audio, however, is almost completely useless and has made most of my songs sound worse than without it (I encode my songs at 192-256 kbps without variable bit rates.) The signal to noise ratio (the ratio of detectable, useful data to unusable garbage in, say, a radio wave; a larger STN ratio is better) is nice and high at 98 decibles, and it should be noted that Apple refuses to release the STN ratio of any of the iPods. The software hasn't been a hassle for me at all. I ignored the instruction booklet (as I do with any product) and figured out how to organize separate playlists within minutes. My sister was able to figure it out on her own as well, and she is of average computer competence. The less computer-saavy might find Apple's software a bit friendlier, though (I use it at a friend's house and it does do a lot more for you.) Lastly, the price is fantastic: I spent $269 for my 30GB ZX, compared to the $299 for a 10GB iPod and the also expensive iRiver iHP-120. For prospective buyers, I would warn of the following: 1) Purchase a better pair of headphones as soon as possible, as earbuds sound terrible and are terribly uncomfortable (this applies to earbuds in general,) and 2) make sure that your mp3s have ID3 tags on them, that when when they are loaded into the playlist they will automatically sort themselves. If you want great sound quality, don't want to spend an arm and a leg per-gigabyte, don't mind being something of an iconoclast among many iPod users, and are willing to sacrifice a few cubic centimeters of your personal space for a large discount, then I would suggest the Zen Xtra for you.
Rating:
Summary: Impressive with few flaws
Review: The Nomad Jukebox Zen Xtra is a very good mp3 player but the software is it gets hurt. I have no problem using the player itself and I feel it is a very good player. On my main computer the software did not work right. I had to sit on the phone with customer support for 2 hours and they did not help at all. I eventually gave up with customer support and worked on fixing the problem myself. I have the software working fine now and the mp3 player is fantastic. It seems that depending on the system the software might not work or might work, because it works on all the other computers I have. So once I worked out the problem with the software this mp3 player is worth the money it cost.
Rating:
Summary: Perfect Purchase
Review: I received this item for Christmas and it has met and exceeded all my standards. Naturally I did quite a bit of review before purchasing (I recomend www.nomadness.net), and price-wise Zens are unbeatable. Compared to other leading HDD mp3 players, the value per GB is the tops. -Price: See above. -Sound quality: Excellent, everything you would expect from this company. -The unit is easy to use and intuitive. It took me about 5 minutes before I had mastered the controls. -Uploading music is quick and easy. Although the supplied software can be annoying at times, on whole it is excellent. I have uploaded about 3,000 songs now with very minimal difficulty. (It's fast too!) BTW, be sure to have your mp3 tags labled correctly, as this will ensure a great organization. -The unit itself its well structured, with just the buttons you need and none you don't. As often mentioned, the scroll tab is average, however, not difficult to use or horrible. Structurally, everything is secure and it won't fall apart on you. The screen is large, defined, and easy to read, and the silver unit is naturally cool. There are lots of interesting features included such as EAX, and customization. -The replacable battery is great since once it eventually wears out (as all lithium batteries do), you will be able to buy another easily. iPod users have to send theirs back and pay $100 for a replacement. Also, the Nomad's 14 hours of battery life versus 8 is handy. -Equipment included is average, but that isn't a big deal since thats not what you are buying it for. The case is strong and stylish, but unfortunately lacks a window (now a big deal). The headphone earbuds are average, so just use your regular pair instead. Conclusion:
This player is an ideal purchase. There isn't need to get in details again, but just remember it rocks because: price, sound, ease of use, and features. I would recogmend this player to anyone I know, and you will not be dissapointed.
Rating:
Summary: Great MP3 Player
Review: I just bought this player today and I already love it. It has a few inconveniences: one is that the songs do not automatically play one after another like on a cd. Another irriation is that if you hold the scroll button down for too long, it keeps going past the song you may have wanted to stop on. Otherwise, this player is awesome! It has a clear blue light that allows you to see everything on the screen easily. The volume range is great, so you can blast it if you want. Overall, this player is awesome and I definately recommend it.
Rating: 
Summary: Don't buy it.
Review: I bought the Zen Xtra 30G as a gift. What a disappointment. The software failed repeatedly. I couldn't load more than one song before the software crashed. Creative Labs Customer support website is useless. Software downloads on the site crashed my pc. Creative tech support Operators work 9-6 p.m. weekdays - as if I had time during work hours to spend time on this. Don't buy this thing.
Rating:
Summary: Got to get an iPod!
Review: Wow... This thing is trash. Want the laundry list of reasons why? Of course you do! a)feel cheap-- the plastic is feels like it would break very easily, and it definately wouldnt survive a drop
b) the screen is hard to read-- the cover hides it an already annoying poorly lit display
c)the scroll bar is a travesty-- enough said
d)software is another great misfortune-- hard to operate, crashes frequently, screwed my music library up, doesnt work with mp4s, the list goes on and on
e)the case is too small-- it took me like a half hour just to get this monstrosity to fit in its cage
f)it doesnt look pretty-- spending this kind of cash, you want something that has the asthetics bit down, of course So... Im taking mine back tomorrow morning, and getting a nice shiny new iPod instead. Don't waste your time, engery, resources on this thing, just spend a little more for a far more functional iPod.
Rating:
Summary: Creative Thinking
Review: I just purchased this player and I have to say that I love it. The sound is excellent, the battery life is excellent, the fact that the battery is replacable is excellent, and finally the price, $200 cheaper than the 40gb Ipod, is excellent. The only thing the Ipod has over the Nomad is the style, size, and ease of use. The Nomad is not ugly, it is not that big, it comfortably fits in my pocet, or heavy, and the controls are not hard to get used to. So far I have no complaints and I recommend this to anyone who wants quality over appearance, also anyone who wants a harddrive based mp3 player and wants to pay next to nothing. I only have one question, when I add tracks to my Nomad, via Nomad Explorer, they are automatically put in alphebetical order, rather than album order. Is this possible to fix, if so how, if not does Notmad Explorer from Red Chair Software do this? I would like album order for my live albums and was just wondering. Thank you very much, and go out and get yourself a Nomad!
Rating:
Summary: Unmatched quality and beyond cool
Review: Originally I wanted the iPod. Most people probably wanted the iPod before realizing that a vast array of full-featured viable alternatives exist. I like the way Apple is innovative, but let's face it - they can't be the only one with an idea to enclose a 2.5" HD within an aluminum case in a stylish package for long, especially after the buzz is out of their little techie pod. The 30gb Zen Xtra rocks my socks, spills my beer, but doesn't wash my car. So what? I can do that myself. Longer battery life, greater accessibility to online music services, and PC compatibility are the sensibilities.
The visceral teases include the case, the sound quality, and the capacity. I haven't checked the resilience of my xtra yet, and don't plan to. However, if anyone has participated in violent or extreme sports while using their Zen, please share your experiences. I'm considering using mine as a distraction to winter boredom in the paintball fields. It can get pretty lonely out there.
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