Full Review

I recently decided to join the 21st century and purchase an mp3 player. Not being one to rush into things, I hunted high and low for an affordable, but not cheaply made player. Along the way, several friends recommended the Sansa e200 series. Again, after much deliberation and comparison with models such those made by Sony, I purchased the Sansa e260 (4gb). I bought mine as a refurbished unit for $42.00, but new it is still an affordable $90.00 at stores such as Circuit City.

Being that this was my first player, I wasn’t really sure what to expect, how to download music to it, etc. Much to my pleasant surprise, I found that it was easier than falling off a log (where did that phrase come from anyway?). But first things first.

The player itself is 3.5 inches long by just under 2 inches wide and approximately half an inch thick, compact enough to fit in your pocket. The screen size, for those wishing to look at photos or videos, is 1.5 by 1.25 inches. Personally, this is just a tad small for viewing videos, but each to his own, I guess. Since I purchased the player for listening to music and audio books, I don’t plan on trying out the video option since I like my eyesight just fine, thank you very much. The screen is also rather scratch prone and gets marks on it quite easily. Another feature that some may find handy is the built in FM tuner. However, in trying it out, I’ve found that it doesn’t get that great of a reception. If you’re buying the Sansa for this option, prepare to be disappointed or spend your listening hours waving your arms about searching for the radio wave sweet spot.

When you first take the player out, the key lock might be turned on. This useful feature is great for someone like me who likes to fiddle with the turn dial without torturing my ears by turning the volume up and down.

After unwrapping the player and plugging it in to my computer, at first I thought I had bought a dud – my computer didn’t recognize it! Great, I thought. However, after a bit of research, I discovered that this may a result of the USB Mode setting. After switching it from MTP to MSC, the player introduced itself to my computer and they are now getting along like best friends. I’m pretty certain that the player should have been recognized with either setting, but hey, it works now – all is well.

Getting the music onto the player was as simple as dragging and dropping the albums on my computer down to the Sansa player. Click, drag, plop, done. Many plops later and I had all my music on the player. Admittedly, my music library probably isn’t as large as some and comprises of only 450 songs (so far, but I’m working on it!), which takes up about half of the memory. If additionally memory is needed, the Sansa has a micro-SD slot on the side; but as with the video option, I haven’t used this feature and can’t opine on it one way or the other. All I can do is basically say, yup, it’s there. Deleting files is simple – click the file, hit Delete. Unfortunately, though, you can’t delete files without being connected to a computer.

Battery life seems pretty good. I’ve used my player almost every work day for the past month and haven’t had any problems. I can usually go for two or three days before the little battery meter indicates the battery is low, but even then it could probably go for a few more hours. The one complaint I have about charging it by connecting it via the USB chord to a computer is that you can’t listen to music while it’s charging. A minor point, perhaps, but since I basically sit at a desk all day, it would have been nice not to have to use the battery at all.

The scroll wheel is very easy to use (and way too fun to play with, but anyway…) and navigate through the menus. At first, the wheel is a little stiff, but it loosens up after a few drinks-er, days of spinning. However, the buttons are a little small/too close to the wheel for my tastes, even though I don’t really have large fingers.

So, I’ve put music on the player, fiddled with the buttons, tried out the different menu options. Now what? Time to listen, of course (duh)!. You can play your music by genre, artist, album, your top rated songs, individual songs, or playlists you create yourself. Since I have the attention span of a gnat, I like to play mine randomly by song. This way I don’t get too bored listening to the same artist or style. Some have complained about the earbuds that come with the player, but honestly, I thought the sound was fantastic. Plus, it has several EQ options, including one where you can customize your own setting. Oh, my phone’s ringing. Stop the player, answer the phone. Fifteen minutes later, turn the player back on and – hey, presto! it starts back up exactly where I left it.

In short, I love this player. Now I can’t imagine life without it. In fact, I liked it so much, I bought my wife one and she likes it, too. For price, you can’t beat the quality and durability of it (yes, unfortunately, I’ve dropped mine a couple of times, but so far no permanent damage).