Buying Guide for MP3 Players

The portable digital entertain­ment market in world is growing by leaps and bounds. In this plethora of products, it's really difficult to decide what is to be bought. Let us see some common guidelines below, but ultimately the most important thing for you to consider is what makes you happy as you listen to your tunes. So, the best thing is - go and physically check at least a few pieces, then considering your budg­et decide finally.

Remember, if the player is too complicated, you will really not feel good to use that. That is where the following guide will help you.

Connectivity
This means the way your digital audio player talks to your computer so that it can transfer music files. Though a few players offer the ability to wirelessly trans­fer files, you try to go for either a USB or a FireWire port. USB is the more commonly found port today. However, it is somewhat slower in regards to how quickly it transfers music from your computer to the player than the FireWire.

Display
The display screen on most digital audio players these days is tiny. Using the screen is a must though if you want to see what music is playing, as well as navigating through options like volume control, song shuffling and the equalizer.

The main things to consider here include making sure you can see the display under all conditions, includ­ing being outdoors when there is a glare, as well as being able to read the characters on the screen without going blind.

File Types Compatibility
When music is copied onto your computer from a CD or downloaded from a Web site, the type of file it is saved as may vary. While it will often default to the .mp3 format, which is the most widely handled by digital audio players today, it could also end up as a .wav, .aac, .wma or some­thing else. The important thing to know from all of this is to check what types of music files your player supports.

Software
How you get your music onto your digital audio player is important to consider. Most players ship today with some type of soft­ware which will allow you to com­pile play lists and copy files.
See the following things: Does the software provide guided instruc­tions, or are you left to struggle with a cumbersome help file? Is the inter­face easy to navigate, or a cluttered mess of buttons and words?

Storage Type
Do you plan on taking your player jogging, or using it as a supplement to your home entertain­ment system? Flash-based models are small and sleek, usually slipping into your pocket with no problem.