Best MP3 player?

[Pollux]

I'm looking for an MP3 player with solid-state memory for around $100 (or less). What do you guys recommend?

 

[AFG34]

you mean flash memory? check out sansa disk..they make cheap mp3 players with decent quality.

 

[Mr. Roboto]

How much memory do you want?

 

[nookuwn]

looking for any fancy feature in particular?

I'm no expert in mp3 player, but I did bought one with one feature in mind.
I got a very basic player, this particular one http://www.canadacomputers.com/main.php?do=ShowProduct&cmd=pd&pid=015574&cid=MP.29

Notice the difference between this and almost all the other ones? well it uses 1 AA. Cheaper to buy and last longer than AAA. I don't really care for lithium battery, you have to recharge it and if it dies, you have to send it back.
My player lasted about 30hrs on a cheappy battery (less than a quarter for one). It'll probably last 42hrs as claimed if I use a Duracell or an Energizer.

Anyhow, something you might want to consider.

 

[Enablingwolf]

Cowon U3! It is loud and sounds really nice. It will support most major music formats, and can play video too. The only drawback for that $100 or so. It is just 2 gigs, but it makes up for it in so many ways.

It powers my Grado(80 &125) headphoens alright and I really do not need an amp. Other smaller phones I never found out how loud the U3 took them unamped. It was just too loud.

I am not a fan of Cowon, but it is a good player for the price. I have to give credit where credit is due. It a a good player, and I do not need any software to do music. Just convert videos to the proper size. (Hint: on the iaudiophile forums. There is a drag and drop converter.) The player works great under any OS I used so far.

The other player I would recommend is the (Dane-Elec) Meizu. Screen is a tad larger, but not as loud as the U3. It has good-excellent sound quality like the Cowon's. Just not as loud.

 

[hafa]

Mwave has refurbed Sandisk e250s on sale for $49.90. 2Gb with an SD slot, so you can add 4 Gb more for around $50. Color screen, great San Disk quality and 90-day warranty...

 

[ou_phidelt]

Keep an eye on woot.com as well. They tend to have the sandisk players on quite frequently, I would not be suprised if there is not one on today during the woot-off.

 

[mcoleg]

if you look for good sound than Cowon (whatever is in the price-range), Sony A818, Toshiba MET400 are probably the best bet for what you are willing to pay. you also should consider what headphones you are planning to use with the player.

spend a bit of time reading here, it might help narrow down the choices:

http://www.head-fi.org/forums/f15/

 

[ou_phidelt]

buy.com has the e250 for $38.99 today.

 

[djrussell]

Keep an eye on woot.com as well. They tend to have the sandisk players on quite frequently, I would not be suprised if there is not one on today during the woot-off.

yup, had the e260 refurb for 49.99.

 

[Bender]

Check out the Iriver S10, its the size of an Ipod Shuffle but has an FM tuner, FM Recording, an OLED LCD, plays mp3, ogg, and flash just to name a few. I got a 2GB last month brand new on eBay for $63 shipped.

This is not exactly exciting but it is informative.

 

[Old Thrashbarg]

The Insignia Pilot is really nice, pretty wide format support, SDHC slot, replaceable battery and a standard mini-USB connection. Sound quality isn't bad either, although it's not quite up with the Sony S610/A810 series. It's over $100 at normal price, but they go on sale pretty frequently.

Cowons are good too, as are the iRivers. I'd stay away from the Creative Zen... the hardware is pretty nice but the firmware is terribly buggy.