SanDisk Sansa m250 2 GB MP3 Player (Black)
by SanDisk
|
List Price: Our Price: $59.95 You Save: $90.04 (60%) Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days Category: Network Media Player See more product details |
|---|
Customers in the UK,
Buy this product at amazon.co.uk
for British Pounds
Digital Cameras Photo Reviews of SanDisk Sansa m250 2 GB MP3 Player (Black)
Customer Review: Disappointed
Summary: 1 Stars
I hate to bash anything and I have to consider how little I paid for this but I have not had very good experiences with it. Regardless of how much you pay for something, you expect it to work and at least do what is advertised, this is not the case with the one I have. The first problem I had was with Napster To Go, when I plug the device in, Napster does not recognize that it is plugged in at all even though it is listed as a compatible device so I couldn't upload the 500 songs I just downloaded. The funny thing is, I also have a Sandisk Cruzer that Napster recognizes when that is plugged in but it is not a compatible device. The second problem that I had with it: it would just turn off for no apparent reason. I started noting the times when it would shut off: while out jogging in the cold, when the battery was low, when it was in the complimentary armband carrying case, and when I would listen to a particular album or artist. This happened a lot less with a fresh battery and when I carried it in my hand but still happens nonethess. Also, I have not had much of a problem since the weather has warmed up. The third problem is that the directions state you can create playlists by holding the white button in the middle, not so on mine. I hold it for the recommended two seconds and nothing happens. Finally, my brother bought one without talking to me first and his wouldn't even power on initially.
I don't want to mention all of my problems without listing some pros. I found it easy to upload all of my tracks onto the device using WMP 10, even if it does jumble the tracks and artists. This can be remedied by using the listen to a particular artist/album. I think the sound is pretty tight for such a small device and the low cost.
One more thing I ought to mention is that I haven't taken it back, I guess I am content with complaining about the disappointing one that I have. Maybe I will check out best buy's return policy on no receipt or packaging. At any rate I would recommend NOT buying this, unless you like being disappointed.
Customer Review: Inexpensive, but annoying for file transfer
Summary: 4 Stars
I was looking for an MP3 player with voice recording that had the largest capacity for less than $100, and I decided on this one.
As far as the MP3 playing capabilities go, this is quite normal. Decent sound quality, recording quality not so bad.
BUT, the biggest annoyance I've had is in transferring files to this device. If you only plan to use one PC to transfer files to this MP3 player, you'll be okay. But if you plan to connect to more than one PC, and if the PCs have different operating systems, you may get as annoyed as I am. In my case, I have Win2000 professional at work, and Win XP at home. Win XP does not see this device as 'USB mass storage', but rather as a 'Sandisk m250' media device. That's okay, you can still transfer files by drag-and-drop, etc. However, when I connect to my PC at work (Win2K), it shows up as a 'USB mass storage' device - and, all my files that I transferred with WinXP disappear! In other words, the two file systems are different and I can't copy files (MP3, data files, etc.) between my work and home PC using this player. I thought there was a work around - a single sub-folder called RECORD showed up with both operating systems, and if I copied files to that folder with one OS, the other OS could see it. But it doesn't seem to work all the time.
Other factors: It is quite inexpensive, and has that cheap plastic feel to it. However, they do provide a clear case cover that fights tight around the player (you'd have to remove it to change the battery) - with that case, it feels a lot better, and safer (it won't get scratched if dropped, etc.).
Bottom line: If you want to use this as a flash drive and transfer files, you may want to buy something else. As a flash drive, I'd rate this a 3 star. But since this really is supposed to be an MP3 player, and as an MP3 player it works fine, I figured it deserves a better rating. Also the price is quite unbeatable. So, even though I can't easily transfer files between my two PCs, I still think it deserves a 4 star rating.
Customer Review: Maybe mine ceased to work due to crummy quality control, but...
Summary: 2 Stars
I got the Sansa M250 for Christmas. It was really neat at first. It was neat to just plug it in and be able to drag and drop. I ended up having no choice but to use the included headphones because my well-broken in ones from high school finally died. The little cover that was included was alright, but the arm-band was goofy. It didn't adjust well to my arm at all. Anyway, everything was good until the second day I had it. I listened to it on the way to work and put it in my purse inside my locker. I wanted my boyfriend to hear Patti Smith's cover of "Because the Night" when he picked me up from work, so I turned on the mp3 player, and waited, and waited, and guess what. It wouldn't get past the welcome screen. This is alright. I realize about 10% of all new electronics are doomed to fail. But then I called customer service. First off, there's no choice in their automated menu for the M series Sansa. So I just picked one of the other choices and hoped for the best. I was directed to a representative who could barely speak English (thank you, outsourcing), and I was really surprised she even knew what a computer is. Upon explaining my situation to her, she told me it was because I wasn't using the correct operating system (which has nothing to do with it; this all happened a whole day after the last time I loaded songs onto it, and I was able to do so using ME as well as 2000 on a different computer, by the way). Sadly, I packed up all of the stuff that was included with the player, and sent it back to my Dad to send back, and decided that, alone, the Sansa's failure would have been okay; I could just get a new one, but because of the crappy tech support, I didn't want another Sansa. I just got the Creative MUVO V100 2GB today. It doesn't come with a carrying case, and it doesn't have an FM tuner, but it feels much sturdier and looks a lot nicer than the Sansa. I'm still waiting for the two day mark though, to see if this one craps out on me, too, but somehow, I don't think it will.Customer Review: A screaming deal that will probably also give you a headache
Summary: 2 Stars
Sandisk is discontinuing this model, thus the 80% price break. While that's not necessarily a mark against the unit, the software glitches I've experienced from Day 1 certainly are. A quick check of the Sandisk discussion boards reveals that a number of people (including myself) have experienced freezing of the unit right after a file transfer. This can be fixed by plugging in the drive to the USB port with the "hold" button turned on (ensuring MSC mode, which makes the unit behave like a flash drive) and formatting the drive with an FAT32 format. Why, after multiple firmware upgrades for this model, this is necessary to do so is beyond me. That procedure does seems to have fixed it for the moment. I am disappointed to note that there is no way to play all of the files loaded onto the unit as a group unless you create a playlist and transfer your files with MediaMonkey or Windows Media Player. If you use straight drag and drop to transfer your mp3s as a folder to the unit, the player will show you each artist, album, or song individually but has no provisions to play all of the music arranged in a particular folder. Also, be aware that the photograph above is quit misleading. The angle obscures the rounded back of the unit and its much thicker than you think (about an inch at its thickest part). I bought this unit to replace my beloved but limited-capacity Creative MuVo. Those are also being discontinued and the 2 GB version is coming down in price. If you have the opportunity, check out that one instead.
Sept '08 Update: Stay far far away from this one, guys. I tried giving this as a gift and I've been feeling bad about it ever since. It just doesn't work very well at all. The software freezes more often than not and it's so much work just to load it with songs that you'll find yourself just doing without most of the time. Get something by Creative instead, even if you pay a little more. Those people know how to make mp3 players easy to use!
Customer Review: Excellent Little Player
Summary: 4 Stars
This is a good little player. The menu is not as appealing to the eye as an iPod but just as easy to use. In addition to playing music it also plays FM radio and takes voice memos.
The battery life is good and on top of that the battery is replaceable. The FM radio reception is also excellent; my house gets poor reception for many FM stations but they all come in cleanly on this player.
The main downsides here are the fact that to transfer music you have to use Windows Media Player (Napster, Musicmatch, etc. can also bu used). By default WMP transcodes MP3s to WMA and changing this setting is buried in a location wihtin the player that isn't the first that most people would look. The player itself, without a case, feels a little fragile.
One big beef I have regards the playlists for the player. The documentation that is available for the player (either the paper one that accompanies the player, the one available online or any help files on the SanDisk site) is very incomplete. It only outlines the basics, and not very completely at that. There are two access modes for the player and those modes control how music and playlists are stored on the player. If you want to have playlists created along with music added to the player then you have to have the player in Auto Deetct mode. The player will stay in this mode but can be switched out automatically by the likes of the Audible player when it transfers tracks and will stay in MSC mode until switched back manually. How to work with this has been posted on my blog (which is a reposting of the response I received from the SanDisk tech support).
http://crichton007.blogspot.com/2006/01/sandisk-sansa-m200-series-mp3-player.html
I recommend this player, especially if you're looking for an alternative the more expensive iPod but be prepared to sacrifice some intuitive enhancements that you would get with an iPod for the money you will save.