SanDisk Sansa m240 1 GB MP3 Player (Silver)
by SanDisk
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Our Price: $99.95 Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days Buy Used: from $39.99 (click here) Category: Network Media Player See more product details |
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Digital Cameras Photo Reviews of SanDisk Sansa m240 1 GB MP3 Player (Silver)
Customer Review: An Excellent Little Player
Summary: 5 Stars
I've had my Sansa (the white one, with a pink silicone case... very cute) for about a month now and I couldn't be more pleased. I've had several players -- an Archos, an iaudio 'u2' -- and though both had their quirks, especially the Archos, ultimately the problem with both was the same -- their rechargeable internal (non-CHANGEable) batteries wore out and wouldn't hold a charge anymore. In contrast, the Sansa takes one AAA battery. Such a simple thing, but what a joy, I'll have the player long enough to see if it wears out normally from use! It comes with a battery, and I haven't had to change mine yet.
Radio reception seems rather good. It doesn't have line-in recording, as the iaudio did, but I didn't use that very much and haven't missed it. Has voice recording, which I haven't tried. Mounts right up on WinXP without any need for extra software. I've never wanted an ipod, because of the nightmarish software required to negotiate with them.
The Sansa's supplied ear buds sound very good, but are a trifle large (which is probably why they sound so good to me), noticeably larger than ipod ear buds; but are a little too large for my ears.
One more thing, I am pleased with the Sansa's interface -- there are enough buttons to comfortably handle all functions. The 'u2' had only a few buttons, a tiny display and no manual to speak of, and was a little frustrating to use. The Sansa is much clearer, has a very readable display, and very straightforward function selection and settings. Cleverness and simplicity is all well and good in a gadget, but take it from someone whose vision is not terribly good, if you can't see it, you can't use it. I'm glad I got this one!
UPDATE - More than two years later, I'm still using this device and am still very happy with it. Whenever I need another mp3 player, I'll definitely get another Sansa.
Customer Review: Fine for music, not so good for audiobooks
Summary: 3 Stars
This player is easy to use, has decent sound, and comes with a plastic case and armband. The AAA battery is convenient and lasts pretty well, and NIMH rechargeable cells work fine.
It's a very basic player, in that it doesn't have a lot of options, but does all the basics such as sorting your music by artist, album, etc. Simple drag and drop works fine for transferring wma and mp3 files, and it also synchronizes with Windows Media Player, if you prefer things being done automatically. I'd say for playing music, this is an excellent player.
However, if you intend to use it for audiobooks, there are things to know in advance. It does play DRM-protected media fine. While it resumes playing where you left off, if you plug it in to a computer, it loses its place and starts over. This is compounded by having no bookmark feature, and the fast forward is VERY slow if you are going through several hours of audiobook to get to your spot. It would be a real nightmare on NetLibrary files, which are one file for the whole book. A simple bump of the skip-fast forward button will take you to the next file, so in theory you could spend a good hour holding that fast forward button down searching for your place. Even with the smaller ~1 hour Overdrive media files, it can take a long time to get to a certain part of the file.
All of these players seem to have their glitches, and this one's lack of bookmarks and poor fast forward are the main ones. The "skip forward" button can't be set in the menu to only skip a minute ahead...it goes to the next file, which is fine for songs, but really bad if you're in the middle of a book and accidentally bump it. If you want it for playing music (4+ stars for that), you should enjoy the player; for books (2 stars), keep looking. Beats an iPod, but there are better players with many more features available.
Customer Review: Wanted a reason to buy an iPod
Summary: 4 Stars
I really thought I wanted an iPod or one of those Creative Zen Vision players, but when I took an honest look at what I wanted a player for, I just couldn't justify the cost or the necessity of a large hard drive player. My first choice for a flash player was the Creative MuVo.....but I couldn't find one in any local stores. Circuit City had the M240 on sale for $69, so that sealed the deal for me.
When I first opened the packaging, I tried to plug the unit in to the USB port on my PC......no go. Finally figured out that I had to change the USB setting on the unit to MSC to have windows recognize it and show up just like any removable hard drive.
Second issue came about when I tried to upload over 400MB worth of MP3's on it. I kept getting an error saying that it couldn't write the file. Well, I ended up pulling the unit up on My Computer, and when I pulled up properties, I saw that it only had 400MB of the 1GB formatted. Don't know why a 1GB player would only have 400MB available from the factory. So, after formatting the thing, it finally had 1GB available, and then was able to reload all my files.
Other than those two minor inconviniences, the player has performed great. The headphones sound o.k. Not great. The backlight goes off kind of quick, but again, I finally figured out how to change that setting, so it's fine now.
The FM radio picks up all my local stations fine, and seems to hold the channels well while traveling too.
I haven't messed with the recorder yet. A brief look in the manual makes it appear to be a little confusing to set up, but we'll see.
In summary, I think this is a great value to anyone just looking to play MP3's, or audio books. It's small, light weight, and the buttons feel solid on it. Perhaps a new set of headphones are in order for people who are more audiophiles.
Customer Review: Great little player!
Summary: 5 Stars
This is the sixth .mp3 player in our household. Between the four of us, we have a Zen Nomad 60 Gb (me) and 40Gb (my son), a Zen Nano 1 Gb (me), an iPod Nano (wife), and iPod 30Gb (step-daughter).
The fairest comparison, of course, is between this SanDisk and the Zen Nano: both are 1Gb in capacity, both run on 1 AAA battery, and both load nicely via copy-and-paste in Windows Explorer. The SanDisk is roughly twice as big as the Zen Nano physically, but still quite small; and has a built-in FM radio (as does the Zen Nano Plus). The larger size makes the SanDisk easier to use, and as its best feature, it has a much larger. more informative, and easier-to-read display. It also has a much more substantial battery cover than the Zen Nano's little one-tooth wonder (its worst feature).
Other reviewers have called the Sandisk a battery-eater. Mine operated for three days of nearly constant waking-hour use on a single battery, just as my Zen Nano does. (I might suggest that top-grade alkalines be used. They last longer and are cheaper in the long run.) Some have claimed that the SanDisk filled up awfully quickly. Well, I listen mostly to classic jazz, and I can get between 16 and 18 albums (I'm old) on it at a time. Some reviewers mention the "cheesy" case provided along with an arm strap. I don't intend to use the arm strap (not my style), but the heavy clear soft plastic case seems well-enough made, and nicely protects my player from my pocket change.
Don't get me wrong: I still love my sleek little Zen Nano, and will probably use it on long walks in which I just play through albums without having to change from one folder or file to another. If I had to choose between the two, however, or could afford only one small player, I would go with the SanDisk hands down. Bottom line: it's a great little player and a bargain to boot.
Customer Review: Well designed. Great Value. WORKS WITH SUBSCRIPTIONS!!!
Summary: 5 Stars
In an age where half of the Made In China junk you buy needs to be returned, I'm happy to report that the M240 is truly a great product (even though this too is Made in China!)
To start out with, I was looking for an MP3 player that works with subscription music. Buying CDs or even download music is a waste of money for me because I get tired with most music after about 3 plays. Subscription music is great because you can download almost anything, then delete it when you get bored and download some more! I don't know why this hasn't caught on more. I'd think more people would feel somewhat the way I do.
I've been making the rounds of free trials on the subscription services, starting with Napster. Now I'm with AOL. The Sandisk works flawlessly on either of the two I've tried, though Microsoft and AOL can be kind of quirky.
The 128k WMA that AOL provides are just right. I can load up about 10 albums and only half fill my m240 1gb model!
The sound from this thing is great. I replaced the earbuds (fall out of my big dumbos) with $10 Sonys and they sound great together. I also purchased a Belkin Tuncast II (about 33 bucks) for my car, and these also make a great pair.
I also went out and bought a pack of rechargeable AAA batteries. Because the unit does go through alkalines pretty quickly.
The unit is rich in features. You can access your music by playlist, album, genre or artist. The FM radio sounds great. I've yet to use the voice recorder. The backlight works well too. The display provides a great deal of information, but is a bit small. I guess it has to be on such a small unit. That's another great thing about it. When I hop out of my car, I slip it in a pocket and can plug it into my head phones at work or home.
Overall, A great product!