Creative Zen Stone 1gb MP3 Player - Black

An excellent choice, and good value. I endorse all the previous reviews.

The Stone is a tiny thing, much smaller than I was expecting. Check the dimensions!

The short USB lead is great. The Stone is so light it can dangle quite happily in mid-air on the end of the lead if your USB socket is not at table level.

I've not bothered with the Creative software. You can transfer music easily (to or from the Stone) using Windows XP Explorer. Windows Media Player 11 works flawlessly with it too.

Tip 1: The Stone has a built-in battery which recharges via a USB port, so you will need a USB mains charger if you are staying somewhere without a computer.

Tip 2: Remember to organise the music into folders so you can use the very handy "skip to next folder" control.

Tip 3: Don't try to perform other file operations on the computer whilst transferring music to the Stone or you may get "i/o error" messages.

Tip 4: Always use the Windows "Remove Device" routine or again you may get error messages.

Tip 5: You can read and write any file you like to the Stone and use it just like a USB pen drive, e.g. to transfer files between computers.

To be honest, the Zen Stone's main rival was always going to be the Ipod Shuffle. Neither player has a screen, both have a 1gb memory and both come in a variety of colours. The controls on both are quite similar and whilst the shuffle uses itunes , the Zen Stone uses Windows Media player. It is worth mentioning that this player is also compatible with Windows Vista.

The sound quality on the Zen Stone is more than acceptable but you may want to think to upgrade the headphones in the longterm. The plastic shell of the player means it does feel slightly lighter than the aluminium used on the shuffle. What does annoy me about this player is that creative should have thought of a better way to charge this player - the lead they provide is very very short. They also don't include a clip like the shuffle has so you can clip it on your clothing. You will be more than likely be putting it around your neck as it will be getting lost in your pocket among your keys and loose change.

And by buying this player, you will have quite a lot of loose change. This could be the player that will finally kill the awful cheap trashy MP3 players that provide nothing but are still purchased. There are plenty of players which are ugly, have a poor battery life, unreliable software, unresponsive controls which are purchased simply because they are cheap. You deserve better - upgrade and don't look back...

At this price you are gaining not an ipod shuffle killer as Creative was hoping but you are gaining a player that is providing minimalistic, simple brilliance. You are gaining a player that is truly portable, fashionable, backed by a named compnay and a player that is not going to humiliate you.

Worth buying at this low price, most certainly. If your friends have shockingly poor MP3 players - point them towards the Zen Stone - they will thank you for it.

Compared to the 2GB Stone Plus, this player lacks a screen as well as other functions like a FM receiver and dictating recorder, none of which are essential for the core function of playing music, and from what I gather are of dubious quality. As for the 1GB capacity on this one, it is perfectly adequate and takes a dozen albums at 192Kbps. With battery life of up to 10 hours you'll just about get to play ten or twelve albums before a recharge is required via the supplied USB. At this point you'll probably be updating the music on the player anyway, so higher memory capacity is a bit redundant.

I chose the black version and it is the typical glossy plastic, piano black type of finish, which is very smart but will collect scratches if not handled with care. The optional silicone skin would help here, but the player would be hidden away, and it really ought not to be.

File transfer is straightforward with Windows Media Player 11 or the downloadable Creative Media Lite. Transfer speeds are good. Albums can be transferred in their folders, meaning you can skip an album using the slide control on the player. The regular play/pause, fast forward/rewind, change track all work a treat. The LED flashes, stays steady, and changes colour to indicate various states of charge and use, and the lack of a screen is not a problem here.

The sound quality is superb and I cannot fault it at all, although this is when listening with Sennheiser HD202 closed back headphones. The supplied in-ear earphones are uncomfortable and have very poor sound; rendering everything tinny, indistinct and very unpleasant. You will not be doing the player justice without good ear/headphones.

If you're contemplating this or the 2GB Stone Plus, I'd advise that unless you really need the additional functions and capacity, choose this 1GB model and spend the difference on headphones or music.