Are there any 100GB+ alternatives to an iPod on the market? Most MP3 players seem to be of the lower capacity. I have 100GB+ of music (currently Apple Lossless) that I would like to keep in the car all the time. Unfortunately my car has just a 3.5" input rather than a USB connection. I currently use an iPod Classic 120GB but it is getting near it's limit, and want to look at upgrade paths - is it just a 160GB iPod or are there alternatives?
Cowon do the X7 which comes in a 160gb flavour and with a big touch screen. No idea if it is any good. Archos do PMP tablets but they're pretty large. I imagine both of these options will be more expensive than a classic. Sadly I don't know of anyone doing a large hard drive mp3 player rather than a more PMP type thing. EDIT: This lot are selling the X7 to give you some idea what it is. EDIT the 2nd: A few reviews Engadget, What Hi-Fi and Trusted Reviews. Seems it is decent but rather large.
Yeah spotted the Cowon X7, but it is similar price to the iPod and same capacity - would have swung it if it was just a bit bigger. Just looking at the Archos 48 - which has a 500GB hard disk for around £200 at PC World, just trying to find some reviews...
Not certain but I think the 48 is just an Archos 5 with the GPS taken out so maybe look for reviews of the 5. Their product pages on the Archos website are identical bar the paragraph on GPS.
Simple... Microsoft Zune 120 - 120GB. This MP3 player features a dedicated sound card chip.. it does 1 thing and 1 thing only, plays music. (It has like 4-5 games, and can play videos... but low SD resolution... due to the old old screen). It has the initial Metro UI interface... not as nice as Windows Phone 7, and Zune HD, but nice none the less, with easy navigation. Like the Zune HD, it features a scratch resistant screen, wireless sync (no web browser... basic web browser on Zune HD), and uses a fantastic music management program that really makes you explore music, and discover new artists based on your tastes. For a few dollars per month, you get unlimited music download in the U.K, and in the U.S you have the same service, PLUS 10 songs that you get for free for ever, DRM free, in super high quality. All Zune marketplace musics are in very high quality. The provided earphones are very good (for earphones that comes with the player). I would normally say to go with the Zune HD, as it's MUCH newer device, despite being many years old, as it's thin, more power (Nvidia Tegra), more programs and games (but still countable with in hands), 1080p video support, and attaching the Zune to a TV with the dock (via HDMI) makes your TV a mini-media center, controllable with a simple remote (dock sold separately, remote comes with the dock, if I recall correctly). All it's missing to make it kick-ass, is to be able to make the Zune HD fetch video/music from a Windows PC... so basically making your Zune a Media Center (without TV, and custom codec support.. but for the price difference between a computer and a MP3 player... worth the downsides)... Maybe Zune HD 2?! One can only dream (Oh and sell it OUTSIDE of the U.S! (well maybe the U.K has it now... I mean the Zune 120 and Zune HD))
Zune would be nice... ...but it is only 120GB (I already have a 120GB iPod and was looking for an upgrade) and it is tricky to get hold of in the UK. Otherwise, it is a nice device
have you tried the site, anythingbutipod.com? They've got quite good reviews on a variety of players. Out of interest why are you using apple lossless as opposed to FLAC, as doesn't that only work on ipods which can't produce that higher quality sound anyway? As far as music quality goes, i've got a Cowon D2, and the step up in music quality comparing my friends ipods to the D2 is quite noticable, it adds so much more to music. My friend had an older Archos, and although the size was great, the quality of the music was a bit lacking, but this was about 3 years ago.
Thanks, will have a read around that site. As for AAC over FLAC, its basically because I have been using iTunes and an iPod. The iPod Classic and a set of Grado SR80 headphones is a fantastic combination, and I am really happy with the sound quality I am getting. The difference between AAC and a high quality MP3 was immense, and made me rip my entire music collection again. Maybe one day I will have to do that again but with FLAC.
