Creative ZEN 16GB MP3 Player

 

 

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This is an amazing MP3 player that is much better than the equivalent iPod Nano for so many different reasons:

1. Sound Quality: To be fair to iPod, the Zen is just as good in this department as both devices have excellent sound quality.

2. Video Quality: The Zen display is excellent with crystal clear images and is just large enough to allow you to become immersed in the TV-Show or Movie that you are watching. Much better than the iPod for image quality and size. The only downside is that movies need to be trans-coded to play on the player with either the application Creative provide or a Third Party tool which does take a long time. But the range of support for different video formats is good and again better than the iPods.

3. Extra Features: The Microphone, FM Radio & Organiser are all nice touches although I have never used the organiser on any of Creative's products. Since the iPod doesn't have a Microphone or Radio the Zen wins again even though the iPod does have games, which I have no interest in.

4. Photos: Both devices display your photos adequately but again the Zen wins due to its larger clearer display.

5. Expandability: The iPod has no expansion capability but the Zen has the SD slot which can also take SDHC cards. I personally have a 8Gb SDHC card in my player (giving me a total of 24Gb of space) and it is an excellent feature that allows you to fill up this great player with more media. Some people do not like the fact that it doesn't integrate the content on the SD card with the players own internal memory in the UI but to be honest it's no big deal given the expandability that you get!

6. Looks & Build Quality: Even though I am a long time Creative fan I have to admit that Apple have always produced great looking devices, Creative aren't far short with this sexy looking player. The iPod also wins in the build department as some might complain about the Zen's flimsy controls and lightweight plastic case but so far I've found the Zen to be quite sturdy as I've dropped it several times until I got a decent skin for it.

7. Use-ability: Both devices are very easy to use with excellent menu navigation to your media. Although the iPod has the still innovative slider the Zen does just as good a job but without the gimmick.

8. Size & Weight: The Zen is the same size as a credit card but almost 10mm thick but it's still really small. It's also really light which is great for sport. The iPod is smaller and slimmer but given that both are so small I prefer the Zen as you get the bigger screen.

As you can see the Zen is a great player and a worthy adversary to the iPod nano, if not in fact a better choice on the whole for your portable media player.

Also get your player upgraded to the latest firmware (1.20.02e) and you can copy from the SD card to the Zen's internal memory.

Finally, a real bug-bear of mine about this player had been the lack of remote control for it when you are running or in the gym. The remote I had for my old Microphoto didn't work with it. But on a recent trip to Singapore I went to the Creative shop and they provided me with a remote which looks exactly like the one they have for the Microphoto. It's part number is DAA-WR0006 for those of you who need this feature.

Another excellent iPod kickin' player from Creative!

I have been searching for some time now for the 'perfect' MP3 player. I found the Zen Vision was too big, I didn't like the controls on the Zen Micro and I couldn't live with the poor sound quality of the iPod Nano.

I have been using this player for a week now and I find the sound quality is *very* good (with Shure SE420 earphones). I can get a very good selection of MP3s at 256kbits/s on 16GB and I have added a 8GB SD card for videos.

The player is a good size and weight and fits very nicely into a shirt pocket.

My only complaint so far is that I would like more control over the playlist editing under the media explorer.

I think Creative have done a very good job with the ZEN.

I purchased this player as a replacement for my Sony NW-A3000 (20GB HDD), a player with fantastic sound quality, but it was slow, large, heavy, and is totally reliant upon the incomprehensibly bad SonicStage software. I wanted something that was small, light, fast, with good storage capacity, decent software/transfer options and wasn't an iPod. The Creative Zen 16GB generally meets these requirements.

The software could be improved upon, but is infinitely more reliable and less cumbersome than Sonicstage, and there are several transfer options including a windows-style media explorer (my preferred method) and it is compatible with Windows Media Player. It's not bad looking, it's certainly small and light, the screen is crisp and bright, but the build quality feels a little cheap. The battery life is good (around 20 hrs), and there is a built in FM radio that seems to work okay. An added bonus is the expandable storage capacity, although this is currently an expensive proposition.

The sound quality is above average but not amazing, and nowhere near as good as my old Sony. I certainly expected better from Creative. Rather bizarrely screen quality/size, and the ability to display videos and photos seem to have take precedence over audio quality in the MP3 player market.

The accessories are appallingly bad. There is no supplied mains charger (optional £15) - turning on a PC is an extremely inefficient and inconvenient way to charge a player. The supplied USB cable is only 10cm long, meaning my player is hanging from the front of my computer. The headphones are of poor quality. There is no supplied carry-case - a must have as the player's exterior is easily marked and scratched (conspiracy theorists would argue this may be deliberate). And there is no supplied Mp3 codec (only WMA) for ripping CDs, this must be purchased for $10 from the Creative website. Having just spent £180, I find this insulting and poor value for money. Furthermore, to add insult to injury, the player comes pre-installed with photos and videos of Creative products/accessories and the box is plastered with adverts.

Overall, I am happy with this player as a replacement for my Sony, but I expected better. If Creative want to capture a bigger share of the portable audio market then they need to offer excellent features as well as good value for money. This player still falls short of that.

If you don't want an iPod or have to use Sony's appalling software, then I would recommend this player. But it's definitely worth waiting until the prices drops (probably after xmas).

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5.0 out of 5 stars iPods? A Joke!
I got one of these for Christmas and so far have had no problems, the audio quality is great, the screen is as good as you'll get for watching videos (including BBC iPlayer... Read more

Published 19 months ago by Matthew Jones

1.0 out of 5 stars Constant problems with Zen Creative
Although my 30GB Creative Zen is now 1.5 years old and has caused me a considerable amount of trouble, I persevered with it because of its superior sound quality compared to other... Read more

Published 22 months ago by Fraser

4.0 out of 5 stars Very impressed
The zen came with everything that was advertised, in good condition. I'm happy to have it and feel it was well worth the purchase, thankyou.

Published on 11 Oct 2009 by Deborah Sumner

3.0 out of 5 stars Creative Zen 16GB
liked it but it was quite hard to figure out how to make playlists and name them. not very straightforward software! Read more

Published on 2 Aug 2009 by heatwave happy

4.0 out of 5 stars Pleased
Having purchased one for myself and i have now bought another three for other members of my family. Quiet easy to use and seems reliable (so far - had one for just over a year).

Published on 30 July 2009 by Clarke

5.0 out of 5 stars 5 stars
I've had this for 1 and a half years now (4GB version with 4GB SD card). I wasn't sure at first, but this is one of the best purchases I've ever made. Read more

Published on 21 July 2009 by Titan 3000

5.0 out of 5 stars Creative Zen
Excellent product easy to use. Connecting it to upload movies and music is a breeze although converting movies can take a long time. Battery life is good. Read more

Published on 20 July 2009 by N. Wilson

4.0 out of 5 stars Good solid product
I've had the creative zen 16GB MP3 player a month now, and it seems totally reliable and solid in operation. Read more

Published on 12 July 2009 by Carole J. Webster

5.0 out of 5 stars Great so far.
Others will be more thorough than I, so I'll just say as an average PMP user that this is thus far working just fine. Read more

Published on 1 July 2009 by Mr. P. R. Dyte

5.0 out of 5 stars Great player
I looked through all the reviews before buying a music player and I'm glad I did - I have had no problems with the Zen. Read more

Published on 22 May 2009 by D. Harrington

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