This delivers nice value, although maybe I want more

Author's Rating:

Pros: 8GB of space for under $80, good sound

Cons: small, possibly fragile screen; terrible included earbuds

The Bottom Line: 
It's a great value and I'm enjoying it, but I am eyeing some netbook and WIFI units to get a lot more space and display.

Author's Review
I had originally had a 1gb sansa MP3 player, which worked adequately after a replacement, but didn't hold that much, had no video screen and the navigation was difficult.

I saw this unit on Ebay for less than $80. It had the features I wanted, including high storage for my own recorded music and the files I download from Rhapsody and it also played videos. So, I purchased it.

Setup was easy, using the installation software contained on the unit the included usb cable. The unit was plug and play, connecting through a USB port. Rhapsody recognized it and the included desktop software made it easy to transfer my non-Rhapsody files on to the unit. I have several hundred songs and a couple of videos on these and there is no shortage of storage.

The software that resides on my computer is easy to use and easy to update. I did find a slight degredation of system performance as it seems to be a memory hog, so I'm not keeping it resident any more.

I found navigation to be simple. There is a wheel in the middle of the unit that is used to cycle through the different menus and then I select the target.

Sound quality has been excellent using my Bose Triport Consumer Headphones in the mini plug. It's been quite good using the aftermarket Skullcandy Earbuds. I'm very fussy about how my own recordings sound and this unit has delivered them well. The included earbuds didn't fit in my ears at all. I gave up trying after about a half an hour. They're just worthless. So, if you get one of these, you will have to supply the headphones (mini-plug interface) or earbuds.

I really like the video display. I only have two videos on the unit, both concert videos of myself, both with high-0fidelity sound tracks. Yes, the 2" 176x220 resolution is small, but it's ok for a lower cost unit.

Generally I have this hooked to the computer for downloads and plugged in so it charges continuously. I've had it away from the computer for several hours and the batteries have hung in very well.

The light weight (2 oz) and small size (approx 2" x 3" x .5") makes it very easy to carry. Those dimensions also make it very easy to lose, although I've managed not to do so yet.

I have not used the microphone for voice notes other than to test it and it worked fine. Same thing with the FM player.

The screen was very glossy and beautiful, but I was afraid that it would be scratch prone with any sort of use. I put a screen protector on it that I bought on Ebay and it's been fine ever since.

While I think this unit deliveres a lot of features for the money, it would still be nice to have a bigger screen. I've been thinking about some of the Archos units for wifi because I'm playing $40 a month for data service using the Blackberry storm, which has a nice browser but is not a particularly good phone or organizer. If I go with the Archos unit, I would then stop using this and maybe transition the Storm to a unit more suited to my organizer needs. The Fuze is here for now, but the idea of a lot more powerful for a lot more money has some temptation for me.

4 stars

Here are specs from one of the sellers:

Color     Black
Height    3.1"
Width     1.9"
Depth     0.3"
Weight    2.1 oz.

Storage
Memory Type           Flash Memory
Memory Capacity      8GB
Expansion Slot         Micro SD/SDHC

Screen
Display Size         1.9"
Display Resolution 176 x 220

Support Formats
Audio Formats MP3/WMA/OGG/FLAC/Audible
Video Formats MPEG4/WMV
Images Formats JPEG

Controls
Control Type Button
Button Locking Yes

Recording
Audio Recording Voice

Data Transfer
Connection Type USB 2.0
Compatible Operating Systems Windows XP/ Vista/Mac OS/Linux

Connections
Headphones Jack 3.5 mm Stereo Jack

Battery
Battery Type Built-in Rechargeable Lithium-Ion Battery
Battery Life(Audio Playback) Up to 24 hours
Battery Life(Video Playback) Up to 5 hours

Audio Properties
Microphone Built-in

Radio
Tuner Bands FM
Radio Preset Station Qty 40

Extra Features
Headphones Included Yes

Minimum System Requirements
Peripheral(s) CD-ROM/USB Port
System Requirements Details  Windows Media Player 10 or 11
 
Thanks for reading. God bless!

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