![Sandisk Sansa e280-8Gb MP3 & Video Player]({"https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/I/41Z3MkP-2fL._AC_.jpg":[431,315],"https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/I/41Z3MkP-2fL._AC_SY355_.jpg":[355,259]})
Finally, I took the plunge and decided to buy an MP3 player: and after a lot of deliberation and reading reviews of various makes and models, I bought the E280 and so far I've not been disappointed. I wanted to steer clear of the higher capacity players that use miniature hard drives because in my experience hard drives and physical shocks don't mix!! So the E280, being a flash memory player, took my eye.
The unit is sturdy, small and compact and fairly easy to use. I do agree up to a point with other reviewers regarding the menu system not being the easiest to navigate, but hey! if a fifty-something duffer like me can master it, then I reckon anyone can!
The sound quality is really good - even with the "bud" earphones supplied. I've read conflicting reviews regarding the sound being either too loud or too soft with this player and I think I've worked out why this could be happening! I think it all depends on the shape of the ear canal which to an extent will determine how well the "buds" fit into your ears. If they fit well, the sound can be on the loud side, but if they're a poor fit then the sound can be quiet. I've not had any problems with the sound being either too loud or soft so I guess I'm lucky! I'm going to buy a set of noise-cancelling headphones to use with this unit, and I guess it's the only accurate way to measure the sound level.
Having said that, there are two independent means of adjusting the sound levels: 1) with the thumbwheel while the song is playing, and 2) further increase/decrease can be obtained by selecting the "custom" equaliser option and increasing or decreasing all 5 sliders by equal amounts.
The E280 has played everything I've thrown at it so far - including speech MP3 files encoded at 24kbit/16kHz (the manual says the E280 will only go down to 32kbit). The lithium-ion battery is supposed to be easily replaced if necessary, and it looks like you have to simply unscrew 4 small screws on the back and remove it to get at the battery. The battery life when fully charged is supposed to be around 20 hours, but I haven't used it that much yet, but reviews reckon the average is around 18-19 hours from a full charge.
One important thing that isn't listed in the user guide are some of the minor specifications such as the maximum size of Micro SD card that the E280 will work with, but I've found out the unit won't work with the 64mB size or lower as these sizes use the FAT12 filesystem and the E280 will only work with FAT16 or FAT32 file systems. I do know it will work with a 1gB Micro SD (formerly known as Transflash) card though.
I haven't tried using photos or videos yet, but this looks a little less straightforward than simply dragging and dropping the MP3 files into the MUSIC folder on the player using Windows Explorer (with the E280 in MSC mode) as the images & video must be converted with the supplied software to a proprietary format and then downloaded to the E280.
The E280 relies heavily on Windows Media Player to create playlists which is probably why it needs V10 or higher, and it's not a complicated process, but has to be done in MTP mode not MSC mode. And as no mains charger is supplied, a USB port on the PC capable of supplying the full 500mA of power is a must (preferably via a USB hub with its own power unit) in order to charge the battery from the USB port. This also means you need to power up your PC to charge the battery AND you can't listen to any music whilst the E280 is attached to the PC. So a mains charger is strongly recommended. Amazon sell at least one type of charger suitable for the E280.
So to sum up:
The Pros:-
Versatile navigation buttons.
Well-featured menu system.
Excellent sound quality.
Sturdy build quality.
To date the largest solid state memory MP3 player.
Memory expandable with a Micro SD card. (to at least 9gB)
Small size.
Has both MSC and MTP USB modes (selectable via settings menu).
User replaceable Li-ion rechargeable battery.
The Cons:-
Menu system can be somewhat confusing at first.
Proprietary video/photo format.
Somewhat limited range of audio formats supported (i.e. no FLAC,APE,AAC or OGG support) although MP3, WAV, and WMA (incuding the DRM version) are supported.
Limited operating system support (only Windows XP SP1 or higher at present).
Limited processor support (must be Intel Pentium or higher)
Needs Windows Media Player 10 or higher (or some similar software) needed for MTP transfer mode for creating playlists.
No mains charger supplied.
The FM radio is only present in the US version.
Comclusion:-
Whilst there are as many cons as pros, if it's solid-state capacity and sound quality you're looking for in an MP3 player, the E280 is about as good as it gets!
Edit 29/3/17: My E280 is still functioning and the (original) battery is still holding plenty of charge. I have used it for around an hour and a half each day and the only problem I have with it is the scroll wheel has become very "noisy" electrically, which means the volume can shoot up or down by barely touching the wheel. Apart from that, no problems, and I'm still using the Sandisk OS rather than RockBox.
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