User talk:Scythe/MP4

Myself, I have no interest in video, but I'll give you my current mp3 player setup for comparison (and because I'm bored):
 * Hardware
 * Sansa clip + (4GB) - with expandable media (currently 2GB SD card, but thinking about upgrading to 8-16)
 * Durable, fits in the pocket, clips onto trouser pocket easily, I've had a few players (been Creative up to this point, they suck - they're not built well and break easily) - no issues after a year of heavy use.
 * Headphones: Koss KSC75
 * Seriously, these headphones rock, the bass is great, and the price is much cheaper than others, (I bash them around in my pocket and break headphones) - these are the most durable headphones I've had, and they only cost me £11.
 * Software
 * Duel booting the Open source RockBox firmware.
 * For audio playback, this kicks ass (not sure on video as I have an audio-only player). Seemingly more battery life (havn't benchmarked) - more "fiddling" with the sound quality, bass, treble settings, pitch, metronome, this does everything - the default firmware is good, but this is better. Video playback may be worse though, but I can't comment.
 * To me, Apple products suck, they seem more expensive, and for no good reason. Plus, you need to install QuickTime and iTunes, i've tried both of those, they suck too. I don't need a touchscrean. Out of your own choices, I'd advise against Zii just because I've had a bad experience with creative products in the past, they might have better build quality than other creative products, but to my experience, Creative's build quality just sucks (seriously, I had one model sent back twice within warranty, the 2nd time they sent me 2 by mistake, and both of them had broken within 6 months (out of warranty then). This might just be me and bad luck.
 * You're looking at more of a video player, I wanted the cheapest solution after my creative died (another point against creative products, they really needed video encoded in a native resolution, and didn't really like resizing, and the Zen series' battery life went down the toilet when video was played. My dad has a Sony (albiet a year older and a few models down from the one you're looking at) - the UI isn't perfect (havn't spent much time fiddling though), but it seems reasonable. No experience with Cowon, but they look good - [obviously, you'll get less choice of apps if you're not on iPod, but you have the huge advantage of not using an iPod.
 * Overall, I'd recommend that you try them out in shops before you buy, to see if you like the UI and the build quality of the players. When I did a search back in January (when I got my Sanza) - I considered video players, but they were too expensive, and my bad experience with players dying after 3-6 months lead me to not buy them. If you're looking at players with expandable memory, have a look at exactly how that works (some players have a separate libary for expandable media, whilst others integrate it into the main library) - integrated is almost certainly better. Expandable storage is better (you'll always want more songs than you can fit on there, eventually), but only if it works well. This is really big, and you probably know it anyway. Good luck. --  Random Time  23:33, November 29, 2010 (UTC)
 * Oh, and don't buy before Christmas, January sales and the like. Although you might want to wait for new models, technology is a vicious cycle like that. Good luck again --  Random Time  23:33, November 29, 2010 (UTC)
 * Currently I think I'll end up getting the cowon, it has the lowest % of negative reviews (criteria: 1-2 star) and seems of good build quality (made of metal, not plastic). I've never seen an AMOLED screen, and am interested in the contrast/brightness they produce for xyz amount of power.  My problem is also that my local bestbuy (only other option is staples, lol staples) doesn't have anything but the massively marketed brands (ie: MS, Apple, and moterolla/LG etc for phones).  My parents would never drive 4hrs to the closest large one just for a chance at finding what I want so that's kinda a moot point.  If I get the cowon I would most likely just blank out my old iPod (read: not reformat, just drop the music or something to tone down it's current bloated state to try and get some old speed back) and use that for web browser.  As for headphones, I already have that ready, using Bose IE2s (Bose does base differently, I prefer the sound of Bose to the sound of Sennheiser, so don't rage that if you're reading this).  I find them very comfortable and of excellent build quality, though the in connection feels a bit sketchy, it has never appeared close to breaking/tearing out.  The in jack is even gold plated to pick up extra frequencies that you might be missing with a different product that uses copper or silver plating.
 * thanks for the tidbit on a video player, that will certainly help with searching :D I've had a Sansa before and found the plastics they used to feel cheaply made, and more of a children's toy than a serious media player. The battery life was also pretty horrendous, and the thing would drain if it sat, even when turned off.  I'll search some more and see if I can find anything of good size, build quality, and playback quality with some different queries (also working with multiple search engines, DuckDuckGo, Google, BestBuy Search, and Amazon search) we'll see if I find anything else. &mdash;  Scythe   23:52, 29 Nov 2010 (UTC)

gold plated
gold plated to pick up extra frequencies -- please do not retweet the bullshit the audio industry is feeding you; contacts are gold plated because gold is a noble metal that doesn't oxidize, and thus ensures clean electrical contact even with use. If your contacts aren't gold plated, you could just clean them from time to time (but then, who does that?) and they'd be just as good. Of course it doesn't do to mention cleaning your high-bred customers ("Are you implying I let my player get dirty?!"), so the audio sellers chose a less contentious pitch, but that doesn't mean you have to adopt it when you're not selling high-end audio hardware. -- ◄mendel► 08:23, November 30, 2010 (UTC)
 * Thanks for that Mendel, I had no idea why "gold=better" was being pushed, and just didn't look into it further. I'm willing to bet Scythe did the same. --  Random Time  19:43, November 30, 2010 (UTC)
 * this is true. Mendel: stop knowing so much about everything one day your head is going to explode ;o &mdash;  Scythe   20:35, 30 Nov 2010 (UTC)