MP3

Coby 4GB Flash MP3 Player with FM and Color Display (Black)
$49.99
I bought this player when my old 2 G player finally quit on me. I was looking for something inexpensive and reliable with good sound quality. I mostly use it for listening to my MP3 collection at work.

The sound quality is excellent. The charge lasts a long time. I was concerned when I read a few reviews that stated that you couldn't listen to it while it was charging. I found that I can use the player when I am charging it with my Motorola phone charger. I have not tried listening while it is charging from the computer. The menus are easy to find and navigate. My only complaint is that it does not have a shuffle feature. I have discoverd, however, that loading it full with MP3s from different groups and just selecting "Play All" what you get is almost as good as having a shuffle, as it sorts the files by title. It also rememmbers the mode and last song you played when you stopped using it. This is great so I don't have to always start from the beginning of my playlist every time I turn it on. I can resume where I left off the previous day.

I have not used the video playing feature. I did not buy it for this use so I cannot give any review on how well that part of the player works. I just wanted it for listening to MP3s. I would recommend this to anyone looking for a good player who is on a tight budget. I find I-pods ridiculous and a waste of money and I refuse to buy one. One doesn't need to when there are good products like this one available on the market - unless you are one of those materialistic types who equates having lots of expensive stuff with being a good person.

Coby MP305-2G MP3 Player with 2 GB Flash Memory FM Radio, USB Drive and LCD - Black
$44.99
I have a fancy 30G iPod that I love, but it's not "gym friendly." I just wanted something to listen to at the gym, small, light and if I drop it, I won't freak out that I just broke a $300 iPod! I love it! It's prefect. The AAA battery is perfect because I can just keep it in my gym bag without having to worry about remembering to hook it up to the computer to charge. I love that you can change the color of the display screen, but maybe I'm just easily ammused! FYI, it has a hook for a lanyard, but doesn't come with one. I was amazed at how great it is for being so inexpensive. Great buy!!

SanDisk Sansa Fuze 4 GB Video MP3 Player (Black)
$79.99
Last night screen did a white out when I attached it to my PC to download songs, & wouldn't turn off. After a few minutes it went black. Only place I really used it was at work, and kept it in it's leather sleeve the whole time. Don't have any major gripes other than the FAIL after one month part.. functions as it's supposed to. Would prefer a 'street mode' (compressed audio) in the playback options. On/off switch is problematic as well, not designed for much wear. Windows Media Player generally recognizes the unit without any problems, which is nice because the Rhapsody media service they try to slip you in the (unnecessary) "installation" disk is another media player conflict/media rights usage mess... no thank you! Trying to return now for refund or replacement. It might me worth mentioning that in the warranty info it says 'SanDisk's products are not warranted to operate without failure'. Caveat Emptor.

Touch Screen 4GB 2.8-Inch TFT MP4/MP3 Movie Music Personal Media Player
$249.99
I bought this as a gift for a friend, with the intention of pre-loading some music for her to enjoy. I was pleased with the overall features and capabilities, but quite surprised to find that it didn't support one of the most basic functions of an MP3 player - the playlist. Reading the Product Description details on the Amazon page, it DOES state that there is no playlist function. It's rather buried in the text - being a techie, I tend to gravitate to the bullet lists of techical & product details. Fortunately, I was able to use MediaMonkey to convert and rename the files with a 3-digit sequential prefix so they appear in the file list in order. Kind of a poor-man's playlist.

Pros: Bright & good screen, light weight, FM Radio, upgradable memory, good touch screen, fast customer service response, external speaker

Cons: No playlists! Doesn't support FLAC, no storage slot for stylus, plastic case *seems* like it might easily break, only one (cheesy) game

All in all, I'd probably spring for the 8GB model, as it apparently has the playlist function built in, according to the descriptions on Amazon (which I read closely now!)

Here's the link to the product I purchased: http://www.amazon.com/Ebiz-Video-Player-2-8-inch-Touchscreen/dp/B000RLWFI2. The link at the top of this review is not exactly the same and doesn't have the playlist issue in the text - perhaps they've released a new bios that fixes the problem?