Does Anyone Love Their MP3 Player? Need Advice Please!

I have an IPod Nano. It can use songs from Limewire. I use it while walking, lifting weights, riding a stationery bicycle, and best of all, on the back of our Harley. My husband is a giantic Nascar fan and sometimes I would rather listen to music on our Sunday rides than the race. We have eight children ranging from 28 yrs. old to 9 yrs. old so I really enjoy my stress-free Nano.

1 mom found this helpful

I have had good experiences with RCA MP3 players.

Hi there,
I have a Sansa c250. So far it has been great.
You can check gottadeal.com for best advertised prices, and also check out frys.com (downers grove). You can order online. I got mine as a refurbished for $30. Though it did not come with a manual, but I downloaded one from Sansa.

I have an Apple IPOD Nano and I love it because it is thin and lightweight. I slip it into my ISnug armband and hit the gym all the time. Never falls out and stays put on my arm. Yes you can download songs from limewire onto an IPOD Nano.

Hi, My husband bought me one for Christmas this past year and i like. He bought it at Meyers for about $80. It holds 900 songs. It is still a lil confusing, but i like it also because i can listen to the radio also. The headphones it came with are long enough to put in pocket or hold while u r running or walking. It is a philips brand. I can download music from limewire. Its the only site i have heard of. I use it too when i am sittn here on the computer. Good Luck
C. M.

Hi E.,
I love my iPod. Between the 5 members in my family, we have had about 8 iPods and have loved them all. (The children keep upgrading theirs.) If you buy an iPod at the apple store, or on their website, I think the warranty is 1 year. (At least the last iPod nano we bought there was.) As for downloading songs....we use our iTunes library which is filled with songs we have purchased from iTunes, songs from hundreds of my own CD's and songs from Limewire that my children drag from Limewire to iTunes. My friend has a generic mp3 player and says it is just the opposite.....you can not use iTunes for mp3 players. My iPod holds a ton of songs. The good thing about that is I can load my iPod with each of my family's lists and I don't have to worry about running out of space. I take my iPod and docking station everywhere we go and we always have music. I would go with an iPod anyday. Enjoy!!

I started with a little iPod shuffle but wanted the click wheel, so my husband bought a 4 gig Sandisc mp3 player. It's not so much the hardware but the software--iTunes is so intitutive and has such clean & clear organizing, it's a breeze to use, download, purchase, and organize. I absolutely hate the system that my Sandisc uses. Also, Sandisc clickwheel if very loosy-goosy feeling that you skip past what you need. Buyers remorse. I should have spent the money to get what I wanted.

Hi E.!
I have an ipod nano and I love it! It's really small and compact and holds about 500 songs which is perfect for me! I do download songs from Limewire without a hitch. Hope this helps!

J.

My husband is a computer geek and an expert on MP3 players. My oldest daughter saved her money and purchased her own IPOD - you are right - you can only play songs downloaded from one or two sites and they are more expensive. There are advantages to some IPODS because you can watch videos and they have tons of bells and whistles on them which my daughter loves. I do not need all this.

My husband bought me a SANSA. It is WONDERFUL! I can go anywhere and download songs. We have a large music collection, so put lots of CDs on the SANSA. My sister has one and gets her music from the public library. You can plug it into the computer to charge it. My Valentine's Day present was a special kit for the SANSA that has extra chargers so I can plug it into the car to charge it too. A year ago I got a cover for it that's hot pink leather and has a clip I can hook onto my sweats when I go jogging.

Generally speaking, the SANSA can hold a lot more songs than the average MP3 player (except the IPOD, which has enormous quantities of space for songs), it is cute and shows a picture of the CD that's playing. I love it!

You also might be interested in something else. My husband also bought me something called "SOUND CANCELLING" headphones. They are great when you are working in the office and want to shut all the sound out and concentrate on computer work. It makes the office sounds be quieter and the sound on the MP3 player sound fabulous.

GOOD LUCK!

S.

Everyone I know has iPods, so i don't have anything to compare them to. But we all love ours and haven't had problems putting anything into our iTunes programs.

I have an ipod nano. They're pretty cheap (well, relatively - maybe $150) and very small and easy to use. I have downloaded lots of sogns from emusic.com without any problem. Haven't tried any other sites, but as long as you have it in an mp3 format you can load it into itunes withouth any trouble. I'm really happy with mine, though I may try and custom-fit the earbuds because they're not quite shaped right for my ears.

We have an ipod - and have used mp3s from Limewire on it, I like the way the iTunes software works. I also have a Creative Zen Micro. It was pretty eaasy to use, and small enough - but it doesn't have the best battery life... but that might just be because I didn't use it for a long time, so now the battery just won't hold the charge for very long. It had software that was pretty easy to use (drag and drop like Windows Explorer). I'd imagine that if you used it regularly the battery would probably be better.

There are a lot of choices out there when picking an MP3 player. My husband and I both have and ipod and we chose that brand specifically because it has the lease amount of software conflicts and is the most reliable on the market. Yes you do have to use their software, but you can import songs from any program. (Limewire included) Personally I have an ipod shuffle. It is a tiny MP3 player that clips to your clothes if you want to go jogging. It is very easy to use and holds up to 240 songs. (12 hours of playback) The only drawbacks to the shuffle are that there is no display screen if you want to pick out a specific song and you cannot have more than one playlist on it at a time. If you are looking for a little bigger and a few more features check out the ipod mini. It holds up to 1500 songs and has a small screen display. Hope this helps. :)

First yes you can put music on the ipod from limewire just as well as itunes

I had a lot of trouble with my original MP3 player and know others who never really figured out how to load songs on thier MP3 player.
I suggest an IPOD - since they are very easy to use - and if you have any specific questions - I'd drop by one of their stores or call them - and ask them.
When I go on a vacation - I really rely on my IPOD to distract me and help the time go faster - so even if you think you only want it for working out - you may find it helps you in other ways too.
ALso - I am able to copy DVDs that I have - into my IPOD - with the help of a software I bought and downloaded - CUCUSOFT. I even have some TV shows from ITUNES also.

Hi E.,

I have 2 mp3 players that I really love. The first one is a 20gig Iriver (I think it's an H10 model) - I've had it several years and it is very easy to use. Windows Media player easily downloads music and playlists onto the mp3 player. One of the features that I like is that it has a voice recorder. I meditate, so I can record a guided meditation and listen to it later. It also has an FM radio, so at the health club, I can tune into the frequency for a tv show I'd like to watch. One of the drawbacks it that it is little bulkier than the ipod (which my husband has). I don't mind, I just clip it to my waistband of my pants and don't even realize it's there. Unfortunately, Iriver is not easy to find in stores. I purchased mine from a store on Amazon.com.

The other mp3 player that I have is 1 gig and is WATERPROOF! If you like to swim, it is fantastic. My husband gave it to me for Christmas and purchased it from Walmart.com. The brand is Freestyle Audio. When I swim laps, using this mp3 player really makes the time fly! It comes with 2 sets of headphones - waterproof and regular, so it can be used either on land or in water.

I have two less common mp3 players and couldn't be happier with either one. Whatever brand or type you purchase, enjoy!
With twin girls (CONGRATS!), you need and deserve some time to yourself and having music you enjoy and exercise help... I know, I also have twin daughters who will be 5 in April!

I have an iPod and love it. I do not think you can download from most sites other than iTunes, but I have downloaded from Limewire successfully. I personally like mine better than other MP3s because the downloading process is extremely easy.

My daughters each got iPods for XMas last year (the big ones also play video). You CAN play songs from Limewire and a bunch of other places on it, as well as copy songs off of your own CDs. Generally, anything that ends with an "MP3" in the file name will work; just drag and drop the mp3 file into the iTunes window and the song will show up on the ipod the next time you plug it in. Amazon also, for example, has MP3s for sale and download, and they work fine on the iPod, as well on any other player. MP3 is the "generic" form of downloadable audio; many will agree that it's not as nice sounding compared to the other forms, but it works everywhere and is easy to find.

Generally, the iPods have a nice interface that is immediately obvious and intuitive - changing songs, volume, etc. is very easy.

I would suggest that you ignore the player for a moment and consider the program on the computer that you'll have to deal with. Check out the options (iTunes, Windows Media Player, etc.) and look up THEIR reviews, since the program on the computer is how you'll put songs onto the player in the first place. Each of the programs will allow you to take MP3s as well as the player's own proprietary format (m4a or wma). Check out the "online store" and see what the selection is and see what you like. See how easy it is to make "playlists" of songs. Generally, I've found iTunes the easiest to deal with, Windows Media Player a close second, and many of the other programs a distant third (Sony's the worst). At my own desk, I have a rolling list of "podcasts" (downloadable radio shows that work on any player, despite the name) and old time radio shows. An occasional song sneaks in, too. I don't normally use a portable player and find the program that organizes the audio to be really neat.

About three years ago I took my wife's collection of 400CDs and put them into the computer one-at-a-time over the course of a few weeks. When I was done, I had over 4000 audio files (mp3) that could play on anything. Lately, I've also been taking any DVD that we own and putting a copy into the computer for later playback on the ipods - it makes the LONG car trips move faster. We also download about one song a week from the iTunes store, and have a 'subscription' to "The Daily Show".

Next time you're in public and see someone "approachable" with a player, ask them about it.

Where you tend to find "exclusivity" is among the players, the programs and the purchased songs; iPods only work with iTunes (the program). Songs from the iTunes store only work with iPods. Songs from the Microsoft store only works with the Windows Media Player program and the Microsoft Approved Players. BUT: they ALL play mp3 files.

I have a Cowan. I don't know that I absolutely love it-it's a bit complicated, but the the cool thing is that I can record to it, and it has an FM radio.

I have an account with iTunes, but I really am not crazy about it because you can only use the songs with a couple different machines, not unlimited, even though I bough them!

Good luck!

I don't have my own player, but my college student researched the issue and got a creative zen. he really likes it alot. much cheaper than the ipod. he got his for a graduation gift last june and has not complaints. our 13 year old got one for christmas. his is smaller, with less storage, (cheaper!!) and he is really happy with it too! when my older son got his, he had to order it online, when my younger son got his, they sold it at circuit city and i think we have seen them at walmart! hope this helps.

Hi E.!

My husband has an ipod and you can get an arm band that makes it perfect for jogging. He has been able to download from itunes and others(not sure exactly what ones) with no problems. We got my son a no-name brand for XMas and found out right away that he couldn't download from itunes and had to either copy from cds or go to a special store online, which gave him no selection. I don't know if this is the same for all brands, but from what I understand, you're better off going with an Apple Ipod.

My daughter had simple regular mp3 player and it was ok but one of the problems was we kept on having to switch the batteries like every 2-3 days. We just got her the ipod because it recharges when you plug it into the computer and it is so much nicer and you can download songs from anywhere onto it. We downloaded the itunes interface onto our computer which is free and from there you can put any songs into your library from your computer.Then upload them to y our ipod. We already had a lot of songs on the computer and had no problems putting them onto the ipod.I would totally recomend the ipod nano.

I've had a Sony player, Creative Zen and a Sansa player and they all broke before a year was up. I have had my iPod 30GB for almost 2 years and it's held up; even all the while bouncing around in my purse on a daily basis. If you want to just play up to 1000 songs then I think that the new gen iPod Nano is the way to go.

Read reviews about all the players and decide for yourself. I'm just giving you my experience with them.