iPods & MP3 Players

If you’re a music enthusiast, then portable MP3 players will be quite indispensable for you. If you’re looking to buy MP3 players, then we recommend that you read through our MP3 player reviews. You can easily compare MP3 players from different leading brands such as Apple, SanDisk, Creative, Philips and decide on a model that complements your style and requirements. Our buying guides will also help you in your buying decision. We’ve plenty of listings for portable MP3 players from leading online retailers across the board. Amazon, Crutchfield, newegg.com, and Best Buy are a few names in the huge list of US retailers listed with us. We can help you compare and buy MP3 players at low rates that’ll have you jumping in joy. ... View more - View less

View the iPods & MP3 Players Buyers Guide

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- Apple iPod Touch (32 GB, 2nd generation)
- from $275
- Available from 1 retailers
- from $275
  
  Memory size: 32 GB • Generation: 2nd generation • Memory type: Integrated • Weight: 115g • Audio/Video formats: AAC, AIFF, Apple Lossless, MPEG-4, MP3, WAV, MOV, MP4, M4V, H.264
  - $278.97
  - $275.85
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- Apple iPod Classic (160 GB, 6th generation, Black)
- from $229
- Available from 1 retailers
- from $229
  
  Memory size: 160 GB • Colour: Black • Generation: 6th generation • Memory type: Hard Drive • Weight: 157g • Radio: Without Radio • Audio/Video formats: AAC, AIFF, Apple Lossless, Audible, MP3, WAV, MOV, MP4
  - $229
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- Apple iPod Classic (160 GB, 6th generation, Silver)
  Rated 4 out of 5
- from $229
- Available from 1 retailers
- from $229
  
  Memory size: 160 GB • Colour: Silver • Generation: 6th generation • Memory type: Hard Drive • Weight: 157g • Audio/Video formats: AAC, MP3, AIFF, Apple Lossless, Audible, WAV, MOV, MP4
  - $229.99
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- Apple iPod Touch (8 GB, 4th generation, Black)
- from $188
- Available from 1 retailers
- from $188
  
  Memory size: 8 GB • Colour: Black • Generation: 4th generation • Memory type: Integrated • Weight: 101g • Radio: Without Radio • Audio/Video formats: AAC, AIFF, Apple Lossless, Audible, MPEG-4, MP3, WAV, MOV, MP4, M-JPEG, M4V, VBR, H.264
  - $188
  - $272.95
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- Apple iPod nano (8 GB, 6th generation, Graphite)
- from $119
- Available from 1 retailers
- from $119
  
  Memory size: 8 GB • Colour: Graphite • Generation: 6th generation • Memory type: Integrated • Weight: 21.1g • Radio: With Radio • Audio/Video formats: AAC, AIFF, Audible, MP3, WAV, VBR
  - $119.99
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- Apple iPod Shuffle (2 GB, 2nd generation, Red)
- from $46
- Available from 1 retailers
- from $46
  
  Memory size: 2 GB • Colour: Red • Generation: 2nd generation • Memory type: Integrated • Weight: 15.6g • Audio/Video formats: AAC, AIFF, Audible, MP3, WAV, VBR
  - $46.97
  - $46.97
  - $46.97
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- Apple iPod Touch (64 GB, 3rd generation, Polished aluminum)
- from $397
- Available from 1 retailers
- from $397
  
  Memory size: 64 GB • Colour: Polished aluminum • Generation: 3rd generation • Memory type: Integrated • Weight: 115g • Audio/Video formats: AAC, AIFF, Apple Lossless, MPEG-4, MP3, WAV, MOV, MP4, M4V, H.264
  - $397.77
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- Creative ZEN (16 GB, Black)
- from $89
- Available from 1 retailers
- from $89
  
  Memory size: 16 GB • Colour: Black • Memory type: Integrated • Weight: 89g • Radio: With Radio • Audio/Video formats: AAC, Audible, MPEG-4, MP3, WAV, WMA, WMV
  - $89.99
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- SanDisk Sansa Clip (4 GB, Silver)
- from $47
- Available from 1 retailers
- from $47
  
  Memory size: 4 GB • Colour: Silver • Memory type: Integrated • Weight: 45g • Radio: With Radio • Audio/Video formats: MP3, WMA
  - $47.97
  - $47.97
  - $47.97
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- SanDisk Sansa Fuze (8 GB, Black)
- from $73
- Available from 1 retailers
- from $73
  
  Memory size: 8 GB • Colour: Black • Memory type: Integrated • Weight: 89g • Radio: With Radio • Audio/Video formats: MPEG-4, MP3, WMA
  - $73.99
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- Philips GoGear Vibe SA2VBE08K (8 GB, Grey)
- from $39
- Available from 1 retailers
- from $39
  
  Memory size: 8 GB • Colour: Grey • Memory type: Integrated • Weight: 38g • Radio: With Radio • Audio/Video formats: FLAC, MP3, WAV, WMA, APE
  - $39.98
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- Creative Zen (8 GB, Black)
- from $59
- Available from 1 retailers
- from $59
  
  Memory size: 8 GB • Colour: Black • Memory type: Integrated • Weight: 65g • Radio: With Radio • Audio/Video formats: MP3, WMA, MP4
  - $59.99
  - $69.99
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- Philips GoGear Vibe SA2VBE04K (4 GB, Grey)
- from $45
- Available from 1 retailers
- from $45
  
  Memory size: 4 GB • Colour: Grey • Memory type: Integrated • Weight: 38g • Radio: With Radio • Audio/Video formats: FLAC, MP3, WAV, WMA, MP4, APE
  - $45.87
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- SanDisk Sansa Clip (8 GB, Black)
- from $67
- Available from 1 retailers
- from $67
  
  Memory size: 8 GB • Colour: Black • Memory type: Integrated • Weight: 27g • Radio: With Radio • Audio/Video formats: MP3, WMA
  - $67.97
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- Generic MP3 Player 2 GB
- from $33
- Available from 1 retailers
- from $33
  
  Memory size: 2 GB • Memory type: Integrated • Radio: Radio is optional
  - $33.88
  - $33.88
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- Archos 3 Vision (8 GB, Brown)
  Rated 3 out of 5
- from $96
- Available from 1 retailers
- from $96
  
  Memory size: 8 GB • Colour: Brown • Memory type: Integrated • Weight: 56g • Audio/Video formats: MP3, WMA, MPEG-1, MPEG-2, MPEG-4, WAV, OGG
  - $96.75
  - $99.99
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- Sony NWZ W252 2 GB
  Rated 4 out of 5
- from $55
- Available from 1 retailers
- from $55
  
  Memory size: 2 GB • Memory type: Integrated • Weight: 43g • Audio/Video formats: MP3, WMA
  - $55
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- Cowon iAudio S9 16 GB
- from $205
- Available from 1 retailers
- from $205
  
  Memory size: 16 GB • Memory type: Integrated • Weight: 80g • Radio: With Radio • Audio/Video formats: FLAC, MPEG-1, MPEG-4, MP3, AVI, WAV, WMA, WMV, MP4, OGG, APE
  - $205.39
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- Apple iPod Shuffle (2 GB, 4th generation, Orange)
- from $46
- Available from 1 retailers
- from $46
  
  Memory size: 2 GB • Colour: Orange • Generation: 4th generation • Memory type: Integrated • Weight: 12.5g • Audio/Video formats: AAC, AIFF, Audible, MP3, WAV, VBR
  - $46
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- Apple iPod nano (8 GB, 6th generation, Silver)
- from $119
- Available from 1 retailers
- from $119
  
  Memory size: 8 GB • Colour: Silver • Generation: 6th generation • Memory type: Integrated • Weight: 21.1g • Radio: With Radio • Audio/Video formats: AAC, AIFF, Audible, MP3, WAV, VBR
  - $119.99
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- Creative ZEN 4 GB
- from $39
- Available from 1 retailers
- from $39
  
  Memory size: 4 GB • Memory type: Integrated • Radio: With Radio • Audio/Video formats: AAC, MP3, WMA, Audible, MPEG-4, WAV, WMV
  - $39.99
  - $49.99
  - $49.99
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- Bush MP3 8 GB
- from $37
- Available from 1 retailers
- from $37
  
  Memory size: 8 GB • Memory type: Integrated • Weight: 29g • Audio/Video formats: MP3, AVI, WMA, MP4
  - $37.97
  - $70.69
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- Cowon J3 16 GB
- from $207
- Available from 1 retailers
- from $207
  
  Memory size: 16 GB • Memory type: Integrated • Weight: 88g • Radio: With Radio • Audio/Video formats: FLAC, MPEG-1, MPEG-2, MP3, WMA, OGG
  - $207.40
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- Samsung YP Q2 16 GB
- from $117
- Available from 1 retailers
- from $117
  
  Memory size: 16 GB • Memory type: Integrated • Weight: 209.8g • Radio: With Radio • Audio/Video formats: MP3, WMA, FLAC, MPEG-4, WMV, OGG
  - $117.99
  View all 1 offers

MP3 Players Buying Guide

Kelkoo.com

Brushing Through the Basics

Perhaps one of the most popular gadgets amongst teenagers and adults alike, MP3 players are perfect for music on the go! They’re an ideal companion whether you’re jogging in the park or relaxing at home. If buying an MP3 player is on your shopping list, then read through our MP3 player buying guide, to learn more about them and to pick up helpful tips on how to choose the right one.

Budget and value for money are important considerations for almost everyone. Many of us would focus on branded MP3 players, but then there are plenty of models available in the market and we somehow need to narrow down our selection and make a suitable choice. For instance, if you’re mulling over a Samsung MP3 Player and a Panasonic MP3 Player, rather than going by which is more popular or budget-friendly, you must focus on which of the two suits your music or entertainment needs the best. A compact MP3 player may be ideal for someone on the move, but a touch screen MP3 player with a plethora of features may be the right pick for a musician who loves to do a lot with his tracks.

Here in this MP3 player buying guide, we hope to cover all these factors and help you choose from the best MP3 players available in the market. Compact MP3 players are widely popular and help you enjoy your favorite tunes while commuting, traveling, and working out. You can even listen to audio books, save files, record audio or voice, watch your favorite videos, and much more. They come in a range of forms and sizes, have different types of memory, and support different file formats.

MP3 players aren’t restricted to playing only MP3 file formats. Let’s take a look at the working of an MP3 player and how it is different from a CD player. The major disadvantage of a CD player is that you’d have to carry along a bunch of your favorite CDs. As against the moving parts of a CD player that help interpret encoded data on a tape or CD, an MP3 player uses solid-state memory that makes use of a software application to enable the transfer of MP3 files into it. In addition, you can also copy music from the radio or the Internet onto the device. Some of the other important parts of an MP3 player include data port, memory, microprocessor, digital signal processor (DSP), display, playback controls, audio port, amplifier, and the power supply. The microprocessor reads the input and sends directions to the chip telling it how to process the audio file. It also displays information about the track on the LCD panel. It accesses the memory and pulls the song out, decompressing the encoding, and converting the decompressed version into sound waves. The analog song is then amplified so that it can be heard audibly. In this ever changing field of technology, MP3 players are constantly undergoing a lot of changes and they’re bound to become quite sophisticated devices.

Capacity and Storage

Be it a compact MP3 player or an advanced Bluetooth MP3 player, storage and memory capacity are the foremost thing on the user’s mind. To hoard all your favorite tracks, the more memory you have, the better it is. An MP3 player is able to compress the files and is, therefore, able to store more number of songs within a small capacity. In this section of the MP3 player buying guide, we’ll discuss about the various kinds of storage facilities available for these mini devices, and how to go about choosing from them. Predominantly, two types of memory are used in MP3 players and that categorizes them into two groups. There’re hard drive MP3 players and flash MP3 players in the market.

Hard drive MP3 players have a huge capacity and are ideal for a vast collection of music and even high-resolution videos. But then, they also tend to be comparatively large in size, heavier, and prone to damage due to accidental hits and drops. So, if you’ve a smaller music collection, it is better to go for flash MP3 players. In addition to being lightweight and convenient to use, you will notice that the batteries of flash MP3 players last longer. Standard AA or AAA batteries are the norm for these players and you can go for the rechargeable version.

Storage capacity can range from 2GB to 160GB. The greater the capacity, the more it will cost you. It is here that you need to make a decision on how many songs you will be storing on your portable device. An 8GB MP3 Player can hold about 2000 songs. If you are looking to store an even larger selection of songs, a player such as the Sony 32GB MP3 Player is a great choice, which has the advantage of extended battery life as well. To avoid the situation of empty gigabytes of memory, make a fair estimate of how many songs you generally keep in your playlist at any point of time. For an avid music listener, around 4GB of memory should suffice.

Now you even have the facility to expand your player’s memory due to the provision of additional memory slots. Shop for an additional memory device and add to the built-in memory of your MP3 player, and you will never have to regret your decision of buying a device with a small memory capacity. These additional memory cards are not heavy on your pocket either.

Screen Size, Design, and User Interface

When buying an MP3 player, especially in case of a video MP3 player, look for a conveniently large screen size and resolution. It is also where the track name, number, length, artist, and other useful song information are displayed. You need to be able to clearly view the playlist and the font size should not strain your eyes. An LCD screen with backlight is a great option.

Navigation is also an important aspect you shouldn’t overlook. You should be comfortable with the way you access various menus and controls of your device. Your MP3 player, more often than not, isn’t restricted to just playing songs. You can do a lot more with it. Get a feature rich, compact MP3 player, such as a Bluetooth MP3 player, Video MP3 Player, or a touch screen MP3 Player and you’ll be able to explore a lot with this highly entertaining gadget. Video MP3 players are ideal for those who love to keep their favorite music videos at hand. Screen sizes of about 3 inches should allow for comfortable viewing. Touch screen MP3 players are also very popular as they provide navigation at your fingertips!

A Bluetooth MP3 player is a gadget that lets you enjoy instantaneous, wireless entertainment. Listen to your music sans any wires using a Bluetooth headset or a Bluetooth speaker. If you’ve the facility of Bluetooth-enabled car audio systems, then you can wirelessly stream music stored on your player through your car stereo system. You can even answer calls via your MP3 player while you’re driving.

Music recording MP3 players or voice recording MP3 players help you record your favorite sounds, voices, songs, and even live concerts and enjoy them at leisure. Almost all these best MP3 players have an FM radio facility built into them. In addition to FM broadcasting, some players even enable music recording from the radio. You could also use an FM transmitter to stream music to your car’s stereo. Another useful feature available in some MP3 players is the option to store photos. A few image file formats are supported and your MP3 player can turn into a mini device which displays your favorite photos. Some MP3 players also offer Internet features enabling web browsing and e-mail connectivity. But keep in mind that these digital MP3 players with a host of functions will also be priced higher. So be clear about what features you will be using in an MP3 player, to make a cost-effective buying decision.

We live in an age where kids and teenagers are incredibly tuned into their favorite tracks 24/7. So, we’ve quite a few MP3 players, designed especially with kids in mind. These compact MP3 players are simple with easy operation. They are also rugged to withstand the rough and tough use by active teenagers. You even have the convenience of waterproof MP3 players for clumsy kids!

Compatibility and Support

Batteries and chargers: The battery life of any compact MP3 player is an important point of consideration. Long hours of use tend to drain battery charge. When selecting an MP3 player, check out the battery requirements and ensure it suits you. Battery life can range from a few hours to over 40 hours. Charging periods also vary in each case. Some may need to be charged via a battery charger, while others may need to be connected to a computer via a USB cable. Rechargeable batteries are a great option for those who travel frequently or go on long trips as access to power supply may not be available at all times, and they’re an environment-friendly option too when compared to disposable batteries. Built-in rechargeable batteries are by far the most common in hard drive players.

Compatible file formats: Following are some of the file formats, besides MP3 of course, that you may come across in MP3 players for storing different files. All or some of them may be compatible with various MP3 players:

Audible Audio (AA): This format is mainly used for audio books.

Advanced Audio Coding (AAC): Used quite often by Apple and Real, especially for downloading from their sites.

Audio Interchange File Format (AIFF): An uncompressed file format convenient for large files, it is mostly found on Macs.

Waveform audio format (WAV): This is an uncompressed audio format too and is mostly used on PCs.

Windows Media Audio (WMA): This format is a little better than MP3. It is a part of Microsoft's Windows Media framework.

In case of file storage and accessibility, you should understand about 'bit rate' and the type of compression used. The kind of compression will influence the sound quality and sizes of your music files. Higher the bit rate, better the sound quality, but this would translate to larger file sizes. Sound quality is also determined by the MP3 player’s frequency response. This term means the range of frequencies the player can actually output. Signal-to-noise ratio is another important aspect to consider. It is the ratio between useful and background noise. Higher this ratio, better will be the output quality.

Brands of MP3 Players

Samsung is a leader in the field of entertainment devices. You can take your pick of Samsung MP3 Players from an impressive range of widescreen, full video players to touch screen flash MP3 players. They even have Bluetooth MP3 players for great connectivity, be it viewing photos or watching videos. Their digital MP3 players come in a range of bright colors as well.

A Panasonic MP3 player can help you make a fashion statement too, as these digital MP3 players are both stylish and functional. Sony MP3 players are also well-known for great sound, user-friendly interfaces, and enviable designs. The Sony NWZ-X1061FBSMP 32GB MP3 Player from the Sony Walkman Series is an incredible choice that combines wide and clear 3.0-inch screen, built-in Wi-Fi, and video playback.

It’s not possible to conclude our discussion of best MP3 players without a mention of Apple’s range of portable audio players. In fact, it merits a complete article devoted exclusively to Apple’s famed range of iPods that are known for high fidelity and simple, yet effective design. Popular iPod models include the following:

- iPod Classic: It is a hard drive-based portable media player that allows for about 160 GB of storage facility

- iPod Nano: Very compact in size and uses flash memory for storage

- iPod Shuffle: It is ultra-compact

- iPod Touch: The latest arrival in the iPod category, it features the exciting touchscreen technology to provide for a fantastic user interface.

The highly user-friendly iTunes software, helps in easy and quick transfer of music files to the iPods. In addition, there is the facility of several open source alternatives as well. You can even transfer photos, videos, and other such information to the models having these features. It is for not for nothing that iPods have a large fan following. To let you into a little piece of information, Apple is said to have the most loyal customer base.

So, once you’ve decided your reasons and requirements to go for an MP3 player, every other aspect will fall in place. Ensure you get yourself an MP3 player that goes with your lifestyle and personality. We hope this MP3 player buying guide has been able to touch all the aspects required for you to make the best choice. When you’ve decided on a model, we can even help you compare prices across different online US retailers, so that you get your favorite player at the lowest price. Don’t wait anymore, and get an MP3 player right away to carry your music wherever you go!

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