i got my creative zen micro player a few days ago, and decided to post a review of it since it seems like not many people have it yet...
i'll mainly be comparing it to the ipod mini since that's its main competition and i've had a fair amount of time using the ipod mini.
SOUND
the creative has very good sound quality. i previously had a sony cd player and this blows the doors off it. i can hear many details i never heard before. the ipod mini also had pretty good sound but nothing like this IMO. this is the nicest sounding player i've heard so far. the headphones are very comfortable and sound AWESOME. now, i'm not an audiophile by any means, so it may not sound as nice for people like gsferrari as it did for me
INTERFACE
the interface is pretty good. it's all touch, there's no click buttons to be found. there's a vertical scroll pad you can use to scroll through the menus. other controls are a play/pause button, a button to go back, a menu button, and the forward/backward track buttons that can also be used to fastforward or rewind a song. compared to the ipod, imo the ipod has a simpler interface. however, the creative's is still very simple to figure out; after 5-10 minutes of fiddling with it you should easily figure it out.
SOFTWARE
the software that comes with it is probably the worst part of the package. it took me a while to figure out how to transfer music to it, and once i did, i realized that all of the music i had already ripped and encoded in anticipation wouldn't work with the software (or at least i haven't figured out how). once you get the hang of it, it's fairly simple, but not simple like itunes is, which is one of the most intuitive program i've ever used.
OTHER STUFF
i have to mention the size. when i first pulled it out of the box i thought that it was a dummy model. absolutely TINY. i don't have an ipod mini to compare to, but it's about the same width, shorter, but a bit thicker. also very light. another very nice feature is the removable battery. with ipods you have to send it in to apple or an aftermarket company to get the battery replaced. speaking of which, i haven't personally tested it, but creative says that it will get about 12 hours on one charge, which IMO is very good. it also comes with an fm radio. a nice feature, if not very well executed. it can be a bit clumsy to use, and doesn't get very good reception with some stations. still a plus in my book. also comes with a voice recorder which i have no use for, so i haven't tested it. a nice touch is that it syncs your contacts and appointments with outlook if you tell it too. no games like the ipod has, however.
VALUE
i think that this is one of the best values in the mp3 player market right now. it has the most features out of any player i've seen in its class, 5gb hd (compared to 4gb ipod mini), and i got it for only $235 from amazon.com. if you need more storage you can get the zen touch for about $10-20 more.
overall, it's highly recomended, and i would take it over an ipod mini in a second (and i am an apply lover). if you are into fashion, the earbuds look a lot like an ipod's from afar.
if you have any other questions just ask
i'll mainly be comparing it to the ipod mini since that's its main competition and i've had a fair amount of time using the ipod mini.
SOUND
the creative has very good sound quality. i previously had a sony cd player and this blows the doors off it. i can hear many details i never heard before. the ipod mini also had pretty good sound but nothing like this IMO. this is the nicest sounding player i've heard so far. the headphones are very comfortable and sound AWESOME. now, i'm not an audiophile by any means, so it may not sound as nice for people like gsferrari as it did for me
INTERFACE
the interface is pretty good. it's all touch, there's no click buttons to be found. there's a vertical scroll pad you can use to scroll through the menus. other controls are a play/pause button, a button to go back, a menu button, and the forward/backward track buttons that can also be used to fastforward or rewind a song. compared to the ipod, imo the ipod has a simpler interface. however, the creative's is still very simple to figure out; after 5-10 minutes of fiddling with it you should easily figure it out.
SOFTWARE
the software that comes with it is probably the worst part of the package. it took me a while to figure out how to transfer music to it, and once i did, i realized that all of the music i had already ripped and encoded in anticipation wouldn't work with the software (or at least i haven't figured out how). once you get the hang of it, it's fairly simple, but not simple like itunes is, which is one of the most intuitive program i've ever used.
OTHER STUFF
i have to mention the size. when i first pulled it out of the box i thought that it was a dummy model. absolutely TINY. i don't have an ipod mini to compare to, but it's about the same width, shorter, but a bit thicker. also very light. another very nice feature is the removable battery. with ipods you have to send it in to apple or an aftermarket company to get the battery replaced. speaking of which, i haven't personally tested it, but creative says that it will get about 12 hours on one charge, which IMO is very good. it also comes with an fm radio. a nice feature, if not very well executed. it can be a bit clumsy to use, and doesn't get very good reception with some stations. still a plus in my book. also comes with a voice recorder which i have no use for, so i haven't tested it. a nice touch is that it syncs your contacts and appointments with outlook if you tell it too. no games like the ipod has, however.
VALUE
i think that this is one of the best values in the mp3 player market right now. it has the most features out of any player i've seen in its class, 5gb hd (compared to 4gb ipod mini), and i got it for only $235 from amazon.com. if you need more storage you can get the zen touch for about $10-20 more.
overall, it's highly recomended, and i would take it over an ipod mini in a second (and i am an apply lover). if you are into fashion, the earbuds look a lot like an ipod's from afar.
if you have any other questions just ask
