There are three main types of MP3 players, which differ mostly in terms of their method of data storage. Each has its own pros and cons.

Digital convergence is one of those irritating buzz phrases used to describe things like an Internet fridge. But every so often a product that epitomises the concept actually appears.

This is not the first CD-ROM-based portable MP3 player from MPZOO Indeed a previous model was reviewed in February of this 2001

The DAV310 from A-MAX Technology circumvents this limitation by being able to play MP3 tracks straight off a CD - just like your PC can.

The SlimX imp-550, from iRiver left us speechless in terms of the quality and design of this MP3 CD Player/FM tuner. Being possibly the thinnest CD/MP3 player on the market, this is also one of the more feature-packed.

The idea behind a MP3 CD player is probably a little ahead of its time. We first looked at the M3PO a few issues ago (issue 30, p95) and found some criticisms to go with the unit. Those criticisms remain, and we toss in some more with this second look.

The 20-30GB Nomad Jukebox Zen NX is Creative's latest hard disk-based MP3/WMA player; an evolution of predecessor, the Zen. The model we reviewed was a 20GB unit, which equates to around 667 hours of 64Kbps WMA encoding, or 333 hours of 128Kbps MP3 encoding.

As a portable music player the E-Sounds is a performer of the highest calibre across all styles.

The Fujifilm FinePix 40i is one of a new breed that will perform both still and video capture as well as accommodate playback of MP3 digital audio

It may be pricey, but Sony's Walkman is a fine MP3 player and a good alternative to everything Apple

Samsung has made some noise recently about its MP3 players and this example is at the forefront of this product family.

When Sony released its first 'Walkman' back in 1979 the feature it pushed most was 'pocket-sized'.

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.

It is perhaps understandable that mobile phones should be the real leaders in the techno fashion stakes; after all there are close to one billion of them in circulation and the number is growing daily

Good to have WMP compatibility, but it needs better sound.

With solid-state media still expensive and offering limited capacity, MP3 players with hard disks seem like the perfect solution.

Despite the wailing and gnashing of teeth that emanates from the bowels of music industry boardrooms, technologies and devices that enhance the portability of music continue to grow in popularity. The concern is not over the proliferations of the gadgets themselves, it's about the files that are loaded onto them, which have flooded peer-to-peer networks, cardboard boxes under flea market counters and the hard drives of computer users across the world.

Napster began life in 1999 when collaborators Shawn Fanning and Sean Parker released a program that combined a search engine, a chat program and a peer-to-peer (P2P) file sharing program onto the Inte

Once you’ve mastered the touch-screen you’ll have plenty of fun with this great effort from LG

An excellent player from Samsung, combing outstanding innovation with great sound and picture clarity