Best MP3 that is not an I-pod

[clarabelle]

Any recommendations? Something easy to use and less expensive.
I really like my I-pod -but I am asking for my sister who may not be able to afford an I-pod.
She will be using it primarily for listening to recorded books
My whole family is into apple products -so I am not familiar at all with other brands
Thanks!!

 

[INDISMOM]

My daughter has a Sony Walkman MP3 and loves it.

 

[dismom2]

I've been told that Zune was a good brand, but it's more expensive than some of the others.

My sister bought MP3's for her kids and they had problems right away, so she replaced them with other brands, and again, soon they had issues, weren't keeping a charge, or quit working altogether. Not sure what the brands were, but she said they were between $40 and $90 (off-brands).

You can go online and read reviews for different brands. We only have Apple brand, but I would like to be able to pay less to get more, so I'm interested in hearing the reviews myself. Good luck!

 

[ICF]

Have had very good luck with Sansa products.

 

[clarabelle]

Thanks everyone
Sansa gets decent reviews on amazon

 

[janette]

Creative MP3 players typically have a bookmark & sleep function; very good to have for audio books. Their older models get better reviews than the newer versions and I'm not sure the older versions are still available, I was able to find a new older version when I replaced my last one and I really like it 32G and tiny - holds several books and compatible with audible.com

 

[clarabelle]

Thanks
Audible compatible is important

 

[MomofKatie]

Thanks everyone
Sansa gets decent reviews on amazon

My first MP3 was a 2G Sansa (SanDisk c250, available at Amazon.com for less than $30). I had it for 2 years before DH got me a new Zune. DD used it for a year, and then we passed it on to my brother, who has now had it almost a year. It is still going strong!

My 74 year old mom, who is frightened of most modern technology, has the same brand and model and loves it because it is so easy to use. It also recieves FM radio, has a micro SD slot so you can up the memory, and has a simple drag and drop sync for adding music from the computer.

 

[ladyhawk14624]

A few of us in my family have iRiver products. We all really like them alot! Work great and are pretty sturdy.

 

[clarabelle]

I'll check them out thanks

 

[Pigeon]

In my family, we have three Sansa Fuzes and an iPod nano. The Fuzes do just about everything the iPod does at a fraction of the cost. They are easy to use, and hold a charge for a very long time. The memory can easily be expanded by inserting a microcard. The "iPod" name was important to my 13 year old, but I think the Fuze is a better product, and certainly a better value.

We got all of our Fuzes refurbished and have had no problems.

 

[Barbossa]

MP3 players by Cowon/iAudio (http://www.cowonglobal.com/) are the best sounding MP3 players on the market. They're not necessarily inexpensive, but are easy to use and are way more versatile than iPods. They sound incredible with customizable EQ, bass boost, and other audio enhancements. And they have plenty of power to drive inefficient headphones and/or to pump up the volume.

 

[bumbershoot]

My husband LOVES his Cowon.


Check out anythingbutipod.com for good info on players other than ipods!

 

[browneyes106]

Thanks
Audible compatible is important

If she has an account to audible.com check out the list of compatible devices on this page.
http://www.audible.com/dc

 

[clarabelle]

Thanks everyone!

 

[Bell30012]

If there isn't an apple on the back, it's just an MP3 player...

 

[clarabelle]

I don't understand your comment
I asked about MP3 players

 

[Barbossa]

If there isn't an apple on the back, it's just an MP3 player...

...that actually sounds good.

 

[crazelion]

Sansa is realiable good mp3 player. I would check out buy.com and woot.com they have some excellent prices on them.

 

[suzanna1066@comcast.]

5 years ago I had a Creative MP3 player that I really liked. However, it died before it was a year old. I called Creative and they told me my best option was to buy a new one. So I did----except this time I got an iPod that still works perfectly.