Great Basic MP3 Player So Far.
588796
Just got the product and was a little worried after reading the reviews about the lack of shuffle ability. It does random shuffle and play without delay in between songs. You have to use the the repeat function to go to random. (I couldn't figure it out initially so a quick google search did the trick) Works great. I bought it because I wanted an inexpensive MP3 player for the boat. It is so inexpensive that if it only works for a few months it would be worth it but so far so good. It is very basic but that it what I bought so I didn't expect it do be equivalent to an $100 MP3 player. If you want mega-features and speed you have to pay for it. As Advertised.
2915104
I got my very first MP3 player, the Creative Nomad 2, like eons ago. It used Smartmedia which at that time was very cool. The M300 has an inboard 4 gigs of storage, which is the entry level in the Zen line, but you can upgrade it easily up to 32G microSD (You need to supply your own microSD card as it doesn't come with one).

Aesthetically, the M300 is sleek. Has Bluetooth which can stream music up to 30 feet distance if you pair it with a Bluetooth speaker or Bluetooth headphones. It also plays FM radio. I am worried of the microSD cover as it feels very flimsy, this can be made better if it was made with a silicone cover.

The face of the M300 is a touch panel (but not like the Nano where you can swipe your fingers around - it just controls a few arrow buttons). You can navigate through your music via playlists, albums, artists and genres. The DJ feature works like the equivalent of Genius in iPods. You can record with a pinhole microphone located on the left side of the unit.

The USB slot at the bottom is the standard USB connection, I have another MP3 player which uses a different more proprietary cable that I can't use now because I lost the cable. I don't have that problem here as I have around five more USB cables with this type lying around the house.

Pros:
+ Inexpensive
+ 4 gigs of memory to start with, and additional memory with microSD up to 32gigs
+ Bluetooth, FM radio and microphone
+ Can play photos and audiobook, and surprisingly, movies.

Cons:
- Interface is not bad but not as easy and convenient compared to a Nano. Very easy to accidentally press the controls at the front panel.
- I hear occasional clips and drop outs during playback
- Bluetooth did not connect with my Logitech Bluetooth headphone
639379
I'd never used an MP3 player before purchasing this unit; I found it to be very easy to set up and use. I was even able to download a couple of movies into it without a problem, and if I can do it, so can you! The interface and software is very straight forward. I would recommend buying the plastic screen protectors and better headphones however; these are both available from Amazon as well. Considering it has twice the capacity of the 8BG Ipod and costs less I am very pleased.
4381299
Considering that the price of this 4GB player is just a few bucks more than a 4GB thumbdrive and you get a pair of cheap headphones and the ability to listen to mp3's, i'd say its a pretty good bargain.  The sound quality is slightly better than i expected, so long as you use good headphones instead of the cracker jack ones that are included.

That said, don't expect an iPod like experience, but if you use windows media to manage your library, syncing the device is easy.  Overall its a good value for its low price.  I'd recommend this to anyone looking for a very cheap mp3 player.
4456746
I'm not an IPod snob, so this mp3 player is good for my needs.  It holds enough songs for my needs.  I usually keep it in my pocket when I'm walking around at school and that doesn't cause any discomfort.  It does occasionally stop in between songs for no apparent reason.  That's about the only problem I have with it.  I don't really use the radio or recording feature, so I don't know much about that.  I think that the sound is good.

Let me just say this: A couple months ago, I accidentally left it along with the ear buds in a pair of pants that I threw in the washer.  Boy was mad at myself when I pulled the clothes out, because that is not like me to do something like that.  Anyway, it acted weird at first and wouldn't respond to buttons I pushed and whatnot.  However, after a day of letting it dry out, it works perfectly fine.  I haven't had any problems related to that little incident since.
2946180
Does what I need, holds over a few hundred songs, and is easy to use compared to iTunes, can upload pretty much any downloaded music, an the buttons/ screen are well laid out. For 20 bucks can't beat this mp3
4918191
I purchased this MP3 player for my 8 year old daughter.  It was very easy for her to use.  The size is larger than some small players (Creative Nuvo).  I did not need to use the included software, as our WIN XP computer picked up the extra drive just fine.  It does hold more songs than listed if you save at a lower-quality sound setting.  This is a good choice for someone not yet ready for a better quality and high capacity player.  One drawback is that the music is saved in one folder, and you have to scroll through all the songs to get to a particular favorite.
4102979
I have owned Ipods and many iRivers previously. This Cowon player pretty much is the best mp3 player available at this price and the capacity.
Decent sound quality, on par with iRiver and way better than iPod. Battery life is decent if not close to factory tested 60 hours (you can easily get above 50 hours of music). Not recommended for the video although player is capable (screen is just too small for serious video playback). I intend to use it as a basic mp3 player and FM player so I am not so concerned about the video quality.
Player is made in Korea (expect good build quality). Decent sounding Ear phones are bundled. although I would recommend an upgrade to good quality ear phones (I am using Monter turbine copper edition).
You can overcome the 4000 files limit by upgrading the firmware (current one is 1.18).
The only downside is the over sensitive touch controls.
Menu and other controls are quite similar to iRiver T60 which makes me feel at home. Overall I would highly recommend this player for the decent sound and storage capacity. Bonus is the voice recording and FM player and direct line-in recording (which is missing on the other similar players).
4339577
I purchased this as a gift for my little brother, it was simple to use as far as uploading music and navigation on the device itself. The battery however doesn't last a long time like name brand MP3 players. As a first MP3 player this is a great choice (or even for a little kid). I would purchase this item again if the need for another cheap but decent quality MP3 arises.
1442898
This is my first MP3 player, but I have used others before
I just got this Mp3 player, and it was player my favorite tunes in just 5 minutes.  I have to say, that the software is much easier than I though it would be, based on the reviews, but all you have to do to get songs on your player is to click on the song, and click transfer, and thats not hard at all!
  Also, the headphones aren't that uncomfterble, if you wear them correctly.
 The one thing that could improve is the belt clip, but that's not incredibly important to me, but it would have been nice with a better clip.
  All in all this is a great beggining player, and well worth the money.
2187768
Awesome little MP3 Player at a great price. It comes in a box that includes the player, headphones, a charging cable, and extensive instructions.

How to navigate the menu with the buttons is very confusing at first. You do have to thoroughly read the instructions to understand. The menu button is used as the enter button, and to change the volume you have to long press the center button. The instructions do mention that there is an SD card slot on the device, however this is not the case. With 16 GB storage though, it's not really necessary.

This is a great player for kids, it's sturdy, and if they do lose/break it, it's not a big cost out of pocket. You'll just have to spend some time with them going over how to use the buttons. You can upload music, videos, photos, books, and they have four games. This is a great introductory electronic device.

All in all, it's a great device to have music on. It takes a minute to get used to the buttons which is why I took one star away. Everything else works great! The color is also very vibrant. Great stocking stuffer for the music lover! I did receive this product at a discount in exchange for my honest thoughts.
3741523
This is a great little mp3 player.  It's physically smaller than I expected, but feels very sturdy and the clip feels very solid and is nice and large.  The interface is clean and intuitive.  It's painless to add music - no tacky PC software, just drag and drop into the device.  You can organize your files however you like.  The device will organize them by each track's meta data (artist, album, etc).

I'm glad I got the 4GB version, because there's a microSD slot which lets you add up to 16GB of additional storage.

The FM Radio is a huge plus, and the audio quality of it is great.

The included earbuds are actually not bad - comfortable and good balance.

Overall, just a great product.
1029932
This unit is functional. So far, it has nicely converted some of my old cassette tapes to MP3 format. I purchased a couple of records that were not available on CD. One was an old 45 rpm single (7"), the other an album. Both played well, and I was also able to convert them to MP3 files as well. The sound quality is alright, but not exceptional on the built-in speakers. I have not tried yet to hook this unit up to my bigger speakers, but likely this will improve the sound. For the money, this unit was a good deal and works just fine for my needs. If you are a real audiophile that is looking for some great sound and conversions to MP3, one would have to pay more than this. But, as I said, it is satisfactory for me.
3685160
Got this on sale for [...]  with a free accessory pack, so I couldn't pass it up.  It's very simple for my 8 year old to use.  There is just play, pause, fast-forward, and reverse.  Differs from more technological mp3s in that you can't see the songs you would like to choose - you just have to keep pushing fast forward or reverse until you get to the one you want.  My daughter is happy with it and, for the price, it was a good buy.
3649201
I purchased this player based mainly on product features and Amazon customer reviews. I've been using it daily for a few weeks now, and the reviews hold true - it's a great little player!

PROS:
* It feels sturdy and seems to be pretty well made. I've dropped it (albeit onto carpet) a couple of times and it's been undamaged.
* The sound quality is much better than I was expecting. It actually has a pretty good bass level for such a small device.
* The back-lit LCD display is very nice. Such a feature should be standard with all such devices, but you'd be surprised how many don't have a back light.
* It has lots of repeat features, including "repeat folder".
* It has a full ID3 tag readout, so you can see the name of the song that's currently playing, which is very nice. Again, a feature that should be standard on any player but isn't.
* The battery life is much better than I was expecting! I've had it playing for about 7 or 8 hours solid and it's only used up about 1/5th of the battery's capacity.

CONS:
* The user interface isn't very intuitive, and you might end up stumbling around in there for a while. Quick tip: the repeat options aren't under "repeat mode", they are under "cycle mode"!
* I use mine with a 4GB SD-card. It works fine, but every time I turn it on it says "no disk in U-drive" (or something similar), which is a bit disconcerting. But then it starts playing just fine.
* I have no idea what the regular sized USB port is for! You sure as heck can't use it to plug in a thumb drive and play from there!

So there are a few flaws with it. But they are pretty minor. You get used to the user interface fairly quickly, and the USB port deal isn't a problem if you use an SD card. The fundamentals of this player are good, and it seems reliable (mine hasn't broken yet).
3481741
5 Stars...because it meets all of my needs and it is as described.  Its about half the size of a credit card and feels almost as light.  Its very intuitive, you don't need the manual to figure it out within 5 minutes, because its format is comparable with most all other mp3 players out there.

As for battery life, well it last, and last.  I listen to my player for at least 5 hours a day and it hasn't needed charging yet.  Its been 5 days running on one full charge.  The ear phones which come with the player is not the best.  The sound quality is not great but its good.  With a good pair of stereo headphones it all sounds quite good.  For the price don't expect stunning sound system.

What I don't like about this player is that there is no cord or hook to carry it.  Its weird, not sure where to put it when I don't have pockets.

If you are looking for a cheap, functional player to back use instead of your phone this is a good choice.  It's long battery life makes it stand out where it may be lacking.
2775340
I got this mp3 player mainly for working out and for background music when I study, and so far I'm very pleased with my choice. I knew I didn't have the money or need for an iPod, so I compared a lot of smaller players on Amazon before deciding on the Sansa; it seemed the best deal for the money, and people were generally very happy with their purchase. Fortunately, I made a great choice, because the player is great on price and functionality for what I'm using it for.

My only gripe is the organization of the music. I haven't figured out how to make playlists on the thing, and even if you make them on MediaPlayer they don't convert and play on the Sansa (and trust me, I've tried many different things). The "playlist" option is there and I can see my playlist titles, but when I try to play the music it says "no files found". And the instructions that came with the player are extremely basic (what buttons do what), so they are no help. So what I've had to do to combat this issue is make the artist name what I want the playlist to be (ex: random 80's songs have the artist name of "80s"). This works well, because you can play music based on artist/album/genre/etc, so you bypass the playlist issue completely. It can just be time-consuming to change the properties of all your music; an artist name has to written exactly the same in order for the player to group the artist's music together (ex: Elvis vs ELVIS vs Elvis Presley). But I imagine this is a common complaint of most players, so please don't think it's unique to the Sansa.

The Sansa will work fine without the organization, and many people might not care about how their music gets grouped once in the player. But I'm a type A, so I care and have taken the time to make sure things get grouped correctly. And if you do something like I wrote above, the organization is fine; it's just something I didn't anticipate having to contend with. So please don't let that personal gripe dissuade you from purchasing this player, because it's really a nice player for the price, so long as you don't plan on storing all music on it at once. I update my music every 1-2 weeks and the system has worked well so far. My only suggestion is if you have the extra cash, you might want to splurge and go for the larger 2 gb Sansa; I wish I had.