Nothing. For those who don’t understand the significance of that, the iPod, loathe as I am to admit it, is instantly detected by Windows XP as an external hard disk. Oh well, so much for using it as a portable hard drive without also carrying around a CD with drivers.
So I load up the drivers and the Media Source software. Though not intuitive, the software did do a decent job of managing my MP3s, and even allows ID3 tag editing. There is a program called ‘Nomad Explorer’ to use the Zen as a portable hard drive, which defeats the purpose, as you’d have to load it on every computer you plan on using it on.
After loading up my music, I decided to test it out. The buttons and ports on the Zen are straightforward. The scroller button on the right side of the unit presses up or down for scrolling, and in for selection. If you have big or uncoordinated fingers, good luck with that. I plugged in my tasty Sennheiser PX100 headphones (the absolute best price-to-performance I have ever seen for headphones), and listened.
To be honest, it’s pretty good. To me (and I know this is highly subjective), the sound is better than that of an iPod.
But would I recommend this piece of tech to someone else? To be honest, probably not. There are far smaller players out there now, including other offerings from Creative. If you just need a player for the car, this will do a good job. As long as you plan your playlists ahead of time and aren’t trying to use the tiny scroll button on the road. Also, it’s inability to be used as a standard portable hard drive makes it almost useless in that arena.
The last straw is a lack of music service, something Apple and Dell have a pretty good handle on with their respective music services designed for their players. Can you use Napster or the like with it? Yes. But I highly recommend knowing what you are doing before installing multiple programs and doing this. And let’s face it, the ratio of people who know how an MP3 player and its software works to the number of people who own these gadgets is pretty small.
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I think you have touched upon why some people choose the iPod over other devices with similar tech specs. There is more to an MP3 player beside the amount of storage it offers. The iPod has an intuitive interface, it is small, it just works, and there is a plethora of aftermarket products for it. Anything from addidng FM radio capability, to wireless remotes, to docks that turn it into a movie-player, to fancy ways to carry it around. One will not be without reason to spend money on iPod accessories. And for these reasons, people are willing to pay a premium. It is not only Apple fanatics purchasing iPods, but PC users as well.
Also, I would like to point out that Mac products are not terribly difficult to upgrade. My PowerBook is not more difficult to upgrade than similar notebooks from Dell. The Apple PowerMac is no more difficult to upgrade than most desktops. True, the iMac, Mac mini, and eMac are a bit difficult to upgrade, but so are many similar small-form-factor PCs or all-in-one devices.
But, to wrap up. I can see why some people who just want a simple device to hold their music and play it in a car might choose the Zen. Let me also point out that when buying my PowerBook, I was able to pickup an iPod for only $69. Sweet deal, to say the least.
need a pro repair for my zen any addys ph numbers etc thanks
Hey geek anyone know where I can get a creative vision m player fixed in beantown