Gift guide - MP3 players

by Staff writers on Nov 11, 2008

Whether you're after something small, portable and cheap - such as the Creative Zen Mozaic - or something more fully featured, we've got the latest and greatest in portable music on test. The benchmark they all try to meet is the iPod Classic, which at $300 for 80GB of storage and 45 hours of audio battery life is still the clear leader.

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	Creative Zen X-Fi 16GB $285 http://au.creative.com from www.techbuy.com.au Creative’s Zen X-Fi is a fully featured PMP – it plays music, video, has an FM tuner plus an external speaker – but it also boasts Wi-Fi support. Log into your wireless network and you can stream music, video and photos from any compatible media server, and download tracks over the air too. Sound quality is up to Creative’s usual high standards, while the menu system and strange, nine-button control are easy to use. It’s expensive, but an excellent pair of bundled noise-isolation headphones, and its high capacity soften the blow.

	Creative Zen MoZaic $85 http://au.creative.com from www.techbuy.com.au It’s tough at the bottom end of the MP3 market with so many cheap and cheerful products about. But Creative’s 2GB Zen Mozaic offers something a little different, at least as far as design is concerned. Its nine-button tiled panel looks great, as does the slightly sparkly matte-plastic finish. The Mozaic is also stuffed with features, including a 128 x 160 resolution 1.8in screen, an FM radio, a built-in speaker, clock alarm and PIM features. Creative’s excellent user interface makes it extremely easy to use, and sound quality is up to its usual high standards. It may not be the cheapest MP3 player per gigabyte, but it is one of the best.

	iRiver L-Player 8GB $160 http://www.iriver.com.au from www.cameraction.com.au iRiver’s MP3 players consistently impress with their solid design and decent build quality, and this latest L-player takes the range a step further. It features the unusual D Click system, which entails depressing the edges of the screen to navigate the player’s interface. The result is an incredibly small player – it’s just 60 x 13 x 42mm – that manages to squeeze in a bright, watchable 2in screen. Sound quality is excellent, audio file format support takes in Ogg and Flac as well as the usual WMA and MP3, and features include an FM radio, voice recording and video playback at up to 30fps. An excellent alternative to the nano.

	Apple iPod Nano $279 http://www.apple.com.au (16GB) from www.apple.com.au The new Nano keeps the same size screen as its predecessor, but it’s now rotated by 90 degrees. If you want to watch videos, you’ll have to flip it on its side, though it’s comfortable to hold in that configuration. The new Nano now shuffles your playlist if you shake it, and recognises tilting – useful for instant access to album browsing. It’s less versatile than the Zen X-Fi, though – there are fewer features, you’re locked to iTunes and video support is limited – and offers less value for money. If you’re in the market for an iPod, it’s a gorgeous gadget, and highly usable. Select your iPod nano from the Apple store now. Now with free laser engraving and free shipping.

read full review	Apple iPod touch $549 http://www.apple.com.au (32GB) from www.apple.com.au The second generation iPod touch is slimmer and now includes the volume control buttons and built-in speaker that – apart from the phone component – were the main features differentiating it from the first generation iPhone. In all other ways, it’s much unchanged from the original iPod touch: a beautiful interface, solid sound quality and access to all the games and widgets from the apps store. Battery life has been extended from 22 to 36 hours for audio (6 hours for video). At $549 it's a steep price for 32GB capacity, particularly when you can get the iPod Classic with nearly four times as much music for $200 less. read full review Select your iPod touch from the Apple store now. Now with free laser engraving and free shipping.