Very versatile MP3 player!

I have been nothing but impressed, with this little MP3 player by Creative! Shopping around for MP3 players these days can seem to be a very daunting task with so many on the market. Trying to compare size, features, and price took me weeks. I finally decided on a Zen due to the compact size (about the size of a credit card), and the fact that you can get even more space from the addition of a SD card. The sky's the limit with this one! Also handy when showing off quick pictures of the kids or vacation, without taking up too much of my space reserved for music and audiobooks!

What really has amazed me with this unit is the sound and video quality, along with the battery power! Since purchasing it earlier last week, I have finally had to break down and recharge - almost after a week of frequent use (mostly music, zen-casts and audiobooks)! Creative did an excellent job with this one!

I have found the player to be easy to load with music, zencasts, pictures, and more. Installation of the software takes minutes and gives you an easy format to track and organize your favorites. Creative has a site for "Zen-casts" with thousands of programs to download, something for everyone and all of them free of charge. The audiobooks site also has thousands of books available for downloading for a reasonable price, and offers many samples for free, your first book being free of charge for a trial membership. I really love the various educational language programs!

The only issues I have found so far that have been a problem, is that the product is very new on the market and it has been hard to find accessories such as cases, cables, etc. in stock anywhere. I have been able to find a few parts (silicone case) on ebay, but don't expect the really great pieces out just yet - those you will need to find online through creative. Also this unit will not come with a normal wall adapter/recharger, only a tiny USB cable that will charge it up. Also when you break it out of the package for the first time, the battery will need to be charged for something like 4 hours, so don't get too eager to play when you get home. Mine took about two hours to full charge, with my laptop plugged into the wall.

Other than that, no real complaints. When speaking with the sales associate during the purchase, I was informed to expect the unit to have an average lifespan of about two years, that being the norm for most MP3 players. The only warning with this one I was given, was to keep it from hitting the ground. It has been shown to be a bit sensitive to falls (as with anything I am sure). Part of the reason I purchased the silicone case along with it, I am not the most graceful!