THE REAL 411 ON THIS PLAYER
343825
This player is absolutely amazing. You have to be out of your mind to pick another mp3 player for the Mac platform.
PROS:
-Marvelously designed.
-Very small :like a deck of cards.
-Durable: I dropped my from 3FT on to the floor and still works.
-Backlit and very readable at night or in daytime(backlight off)
-inconceivably large storage size (10GB in this size? amazing)
-Pretty intuitive Interface.
-Really lasts 10 hours.
-Decent earbud headphones included.
-Really cool charger (uses same firewire port on device)
-The best navigation buttons i've ever encountered.
  (specifially the scrolling wheel)
Really dynamic sounds: RICH BASS, CRISP TREBLE.
THE AMPLIFIER IS ACTUALLY LOUD ENOUGH!!!!!!!
CONS:
-NO CASE (and for 500$ I think you should get one)
 preferably a soft or rubber case to protect it from drops.
-Firewire port on player is exposed, should have a cover.
-Scratches easily. (The device looked scratched out the case)
-Does not work with PC(which does not bother me, but I do
 wish that it would read WMA encoded content.
-wish there was a car mount device, because this thing is a godsend for long road trips.
Bottom line: This player is worth getting even at the high price, and anyone who says otherwise is either jealous  or can't afford it. One notable point of mention is that the bundled earphones while decent, is not adequate for me. I used a pair of Sony MDR-V300 reference headphones (20-30 bucks) and the sound is amazing. You should plan on forking out the dough to get a decent carrying case. There is a place on the web that has a really good case deal which includes a car charger and other stuff. Search with google.
3220591
Before I found this, I thought I may never be able to replace my Zune. I tried players in the <$100 range, but they all ended up being junk. This is an amazing player. It does everything I want, and I had some very specific requirements.
-There are tactile buttons on one side with raised nubs. This is great if it's in your pocket, or if you're using it in your car and don't want to look down. Other players in this range have odd radial menus like an old iPod, that are useless unless you're looking at them. There are capacitive touch buttons on the screen if you are looking at it that allow you to navigate around and open specific folders, genres, artists, etc., make playlists on the fly, change EQ settings, loop parts of a song, etc etc.
-It has a tremendous battery life.
-It can play and charge at the same time (unlike players in lower price ranges, like Sansa Clip Zips, Jams)
-There is no 2000 song/file database limit (like Clip Zips, Jams, everything by AGPTek)
-It has massive internal memory and an expansion slot for a micro SD card.
-It has no moving parts, in case you drop it.
-It can drive larger headphones to get more from lower frequencies without an amp.
3607869
Fantastic show.  Monster players that are legendary in their own right and this disc shows why.
267811
A PHENOMENAL PLAYER THAT HAS NEVER GOTTEN THE WIDE RECOGNITION HE DESERVES RIGHTFULLY SO, JUST HEAR FOR YOURSELF AND YOU BE THE JUDGE!!
3269177
I really love this player - best portable player I've ever owned! But there are so many thousands of reviews of this I'm not going to add yet another raving review.

I just wanted to give you some advice on saving money on this. Don't waste an extra $23 on the 8gb player! Buy the 4gb player, which at $34.95 will be $.05 short of free shipping. Then add a micro SD card of whatever size you need to get the total capacity you want in your player and free shipping for both the player and the card. I bought an 8gb Kingston micro SD card for just $5, so I got a 12gb player for only $40 vs. an 8 gb player for $58. I can tell no difference in quality or speed of access between the tracks stored on the internal 4gb chip vs the 8 gb external card.

Of course, you can get a higher capacity card for not that much more $. The only reason I would want more than 12gb is to be able to load lossless FLAC songs onto it vs. the mp3 tracks I usually put on it. I can get about 1000 mp3 tracks on the 12gb player. I can't imagine needing more than that unless I was traveling for an extensive time. I've tried loading lossless songs on it. Although the Clip+ has good quality sound, it's not high enough quality for me to be able to tell the difference between lossless FLAC and lossy mp3 (at 160 kbps (v4 vbr) or higher), and I've a very discriminating music listener.

You might also want to buy an accessory kit for it that includes a gel case (aka "soft skin") to protect it. Mine also came with an Auto Charger, Travel AC Charger, USB Data Cable, 3.5mm Audio Cable, and Smart Headphone Wrap. Gel cases come in different colors so you can match the color of your player. Since it covers the player but is translucent, I wouldn't recommend a contrasting color because the combined colors will probably not look very attractive. For example, I bought a blue player and got a light blue gel case for it. They look great together.
4950011
I love, love, love this small and easy to use player. The value is amazing. There are more functions than you would expect for this price. Also, the additional storage space that you can add with a mini micro chip (about 11 dollars) is outstanding.
3627754
In terms of size, looks and "slickness", this player takes the cake. It has a rare combination of features that are not found on any other smaller flash memory player. I use it to "discreetly" carry music to work and record meetings. Except for the earphones it is indiscernible to others. At present I  only use the built in 128 MB of memory and have 50 songs stored in WMA format (64k) with room to spare for voice recording.
PROS:
* Great features: 128 MB built in memory, MP3 & WMA support, voice recording, FM tuner with presets, expandable memory slot (add an extra 128 MB of storage)
* Great size: very small and light, fits nicely in a shirt pocket.
* Ni-mh rechargeable battery: good for about 12 hours of music
* AAA Battery pack to use while charging the main battery (good for about 8 hours - hence the 20 hours promised by Samsung)
* Belt clip case is very small and slick, great as an inconspicuous player carrier
* Controls are handy (once you learn them). Can access song lists, equalizer and voice recording mode all with the touch of a button.
* Great Sound - Good volume; nice clean mid's and high's with strong dynamic bass(in DBB mode)
* Supports USB 2.0 (up to 480 mbps)
CONS:
* Does not include an AC adaptor (instead it provides the battery pack to use while charging the main battery)
* Supports WMA (windows media format) but does not allow a direct copy over from the media player (this is a problem more with WMP than the 700 - WMP support should be coming though).
* yepp audio software does not often recognize song info on existing music files, only reads them accurately when recorded from CD directly to yepp software (a hassle for internet audio files)
* When using the player in the carrying case with headphone, you cannot close the case, unless you plug the headphones into the remote and the remote into the player (weird oversight on Samsungs part)
* Included ear pods sound okay but are not very comfortable.
NOTE: The case closure and ear pod comfort problem can be addressed with a new set of "low profile" earphones - a standard "L" mini-jack will not work - I recommend Sony Fontopia model# MDR-EX70LP, they are small enough and sound amazing.
# This player is ideal for folks who:
- Want a small discrete player
- Want voice recording capability
- Use WMA format
- Want FM tuner
- Want a rechargeable Lithium-ion battery
# This player is not so good for folks who:
- Want to take a large audio collection with them
- Like MP3 format (at 128k) and don't want to change or tweak (compress) their files.
- Want data storage in addition to music
- Want seamless integration between music sharing activities (i.e. bearshare, limewire) and their player.
Summary:
This is slick portable WMA device with a radio and voice recording capability.
* Hardcore MP3 audiophiles who want a small player with mega storage will probably want to look at the I-pod player and Xplay as a better solution.
3863350
An excellent lighweight and cheap player with a decent receiver. The earbuds are not worth mentioning - I recommend e.g, the a cheap and comfortable Sony MDR-A35G S2 Sports Headphones, that one can wear for hours without getting sore ears.

My player started to shut down eratically and would not start on many occasions after about half a year, but simply installing a newer firmware fixed this problem: ([...]%20TX%20FM]%20Firmware%201.19.01)
4293057
You want a high capacity player great?  You are looking at it and a fine one it is.  Owning one of these could be the best alternative to an Ipod which I also own.  The only drawback to this particular model is that it is not the e280R.  That R stands for Rhapsody.  The R version allows you to work with Rhapsody softwares "channels" and other Rhapsody features which are well worth the little extra cost if your a music nut and got a subscription to the service.  If you do not require the Rhapsody service take this player for a spin you won't be disappointed.
1319334
I've owned this player for a few weeks now and am very satisfied. The upscaling picture quality, sent through HDMI, is excellent. I have the player connected to a new 46" Sony Bravia LCD HDTV. The player and the TV look perfect together, and I can use either Sony remote to control both units. While playing DVDs the player is silent. However, I feel as though I should mention the loading tray and motor are cheap and make a whirring noise when opening or closing the drive. Nonetheless, this is the best player, by far, that you can find for under $100. Setup with HDMI could not be easier and the upscaling makes a huge difference over our old player.
950888
I looked a long time before purchasing this player. Not all of the features are listed here, but are on other sites. First is, it plays the Euro standard PAL, which was one reason for buying this. Many of my burned disc are PAL and dual layer disc, which brings me to the second reason. DVD-DL. While I can split a disc into two DVD-R's, I don't need two discs laying around when one will do. Also plays every region I can throw at it too.

Some other positives. I'm able to change from 5:1 to 3:2 on the remote without going to the main menu which always irked me on my Sony stuff. I don't have an HD set yet, but I'm set for 1080P up scaling when I do get one. I wish this unit had an optical out in addition to the digital coax, but it's not a deal breaker.

Also, instead of just blindly buying this unit, I downloaded the manual, so I wouldn't start whining after I received the unit and found out that some desired features wouldn't work.

Manual link:

[...]

Discs I've used successfully.

Windata DVD  +R DL
Verbatim DVD -R
Windata DVD  -R
Sony DVD  +RW

Highly Recommended.
3500225
I bought this player on a whim.  I already own an iRiver iHP-110 (which I love), an ipod Nano (which I don't), and a Creative Zen M (which is my workhorse).  I was looking for a small MP3 player with adequate memory and great sound; video playback was not necessary but is considered a bonus.

When I bought this player, I was confident the audio fidelity would be excellent - and it is indeed.  Sony's default headphones, IMHO, are always better than the competition's.  (I use Sony's for all the players listed above just in case there was doubt as to comparisons.)  The NWZ-A728 contains equalizer options as do all players but best of all let's you customize one of the settings for your own tastes.

The UI is very, very intuitive and best of all, it has HARD VOLUME BUTTONS!!!  Why don't more manufacturers do this?  I don't want to have to do multiple soft button presses to get to the volume - I just want to go UP and DOWN.  Thank you Sony!

Video playback is very clear and the horizontal view is great eye candy.  I wish it supported more formats like XVid but hey, I'm not going to rate it down for that.  Battery life is very, very good as compared to my other players (with the exception of the iRiver).

I can't comment on the included software because I use Linux - Xubuntu 8.04 to be exact - and use freeware tools to manage my music and convert videos.  At first blush, Xubuntu didn't see the player (and I suspect that's the case for any Ubuntu or Debian flavor).  I ended up going over to the Kubuntu forums (kubuntuforums.net - look for a post by Jankushka) and you can follow his steps) to resolve the problem.  (Note:  Ubuntu 8.10 (intrepid) ships with libmtp 0.3.0 natively so this workaround won't be necessary once the release is stable.)

This player will end up replacing my Zen as my default device and the Nano is being retired permanently.  If it had Ogg xupport and dynamic (custom) playlists like the Zen, I'd be in heaven but all-in-all, it is quite excellent.  Highly recommend.
4204951
I first learned of this player while researching for players that support lossless audio files. After checking out the company's website (COWON), I instantly fell in love with the look of the player, so,  after I read up on some reviews (which were very positive) I went to J and R Music in New York. I was expecting to spend about $249.00 for the M5 (Audio player)and found that they had the X5 Audio and Video for the same price so I grabbed it. Since opening  and learning how to use this player, I never put it down. Though this player isn't as user friendly as it's rival ((IPOD) this player far surpasses IPOD in built (Aluminum shell),player features(supports FLAC,OGG,WAV,WMA,MP3,MPEG4 for video), has FM radio,supports digital pictures,voice recording,variable equalizers, and text files.  The software that come with this player is jetshell that supports music playback,CD ripping,and audio/video converting. The one thing that IPOD has that Iaudio CURRENTLY doesn't have is, "To Go" music support (I tunes for IPOD),but this will change. I read that Play For Sure will be launched in July for I audio and a free upgrade will be available for this service.
The biggest negative about this player is the use of the joystick.
It can be very tedeous to navigate from file to file, but once you get used to it, you will have no problems. Another small problem that I have is, sometimes I forget to use the lock feature and accidently press the record button and it stops my music and immediately begins to record. Though this is avoidable, it is a nuisance. Another minor nuisance is the USB connector. Since I use a rubber protective cover (made by Z Cover) for my player, the connector tends to disconnect easily while I'm charging my battery or loading music. What I love most about this player is that it allows you to transfer music to it by highlighting the song file  selected ,copying them and pasting them to the I audio drive.
The 20 gig player can hold up to 5000 song in MP3 format @(4 MB), however if you choose to use FLAC or WAV only about 1000 song will fit.
The battery life after a full charge is about 15 hours for straighy through music playing but less for video playback.

 I would recommend this player anyone looking to purchase an IPOD and has the patience to learn how to use this player.
3743129
After having a nightmarish experience with the Panasonic CV50, I decided to go with a different brand of player.  I couldn't have made a better choice.  This player delivers all it claims and more.  I found CD-R, MP3, and DVD's all play flawlessly on this player.  It even plays CD-RW's, although Toshiba dosen't recommend it.  I found layer changes to be almost seamless, and the player "warms" up quickly.  The remote is easy to understand, and the player will even beep to let you know you've pushed a button on the remote (this can be turned off, if you wish).  Anyone out there who is considering trying to save themselves fifty bucks or so by buying a cheaper player should think again...the Toshiba is definately a bargain at under 200 dollars!
3354345
Disregard all the misleading statements in the Amazon product site and customer reviews.  I spent a good day on this and confirmed with the Digitalway tech support: this player will only play MP3.  The firmware is not upgradeable.
Quality is excellent, even on the lower bitrate MP3s and the volume is very good.  It will block outside noise even at half the maximum.  The neck strap and earbuds cord is pretty short, but it is designed specifically to reach from the arm or the neck to your ears.
One problem with the setup is that the belt clip (which is designed to stay on the included armband) will not hold the player securely.  You can easily shake the player out of the clip.  But, when you wear the clip on the armband, unless you are doing flips, it will stay.
One good thing is the point where earphones connect to the player is secured with a part of the neckstrap, so there is no chance of messing up that fragile connection.
For software, I recommend checking out FPIO at [...] which removes "the file upload back to PC" restrictions and adds a very nifty WinAmp plugin.  Also has volume normalization.  (Once again, don't worry about any of the WMA features; this player will not play it).
Real One Player support was shaky; I had to restart several times to configure the download.  But the good thing is that Real One Player will re-encode your playlist to a lower bitrate as you download it to the player.
4093021
I love this player.  It's skip-free (no moving parts), durable (I keep dropping it and it refuses to quit) and tiny (about the size of a pack of cigarettes, and almost as light).  My only complaint was that my son kept using it, so I finally had to buy him one of his own.
This model comes with 128 Mb of onboard memory, which will hold about 35 MP3 files.  That may be plenty for most users, but there is a slot in the battery compartment that can accept up to 128 Mb of additional SmartMedia memory.  (Look around for a good deal.  I just bought a 128 Mb card for $... after rebate!)
I looked at a bunch of players before I bought this one, and it is the best value I have found.
3113313
One of the best players made.  Super Wi-Fi gets a great signal, and even a good one from the farthest point in the house, upstairs or down.