Tech Review

SanDisk Sansa View 8 GB MP3 Player

Once my wife found out how to make playlists in Windows Media Player (much harder than it should be), she was mostly happy with her Sandisk Sansa e280. Then, one day I introduced my wife to Audible.com and discovered that she was an auditory learner. I told her that I could put all of the books she liked on her Sandisk and could listen to them as she cooked or exercised. Unfortunately, unlike every other non-cheap mp3 player made in the last 4 years, the e280 didn't play Audible.com files (version 2 of the e280 does).

SanDisk Sansa View 16 GB MP3 Player

So, off I went to Best Buy for a replacement. I could have gotten her the hard drive based 80GB iPod, but she doesn't have that much music and she uses mp3 players while working out, a task to which flash-based players are more suited. Eventually, after much gnashing of teeth, I narrowed the choice to the Best Buy e280 which might also be the version 2 one capable of playing Audible files, the iPod Nano 8GB (pink), the iPod touch, and the new Sandisk View which, as it says on the box, is Audible capable. My thinking:

1. The e280 is old news. The only advantage it has over the View is its ability to function as an 8GB flash drive. This also means that you can fill it with music without using Media Player. My wife isn't tech-inclined and would never use it that way.
2. The Nano is the best-designed and probably the highest quality unit, but it costs $50.00 more than the Sansa and doesn't have a radio.
3. The iPod Touch is over-the-top. If you only want to listen to music, the Touch is an unnecessary expense.

**update: If you use Vista, you cannot use your Media Center TV Tuner with Sandisk Media Converter installed. You have to uninstall the media converter or learn to live without your TV tuner. Not a pleasant choice, but I'm sure it'll be fixed soon.

The e280 is on the left. The view is on the right.

I chose the View.

Good:

1. The View's a little bigger than the Nano and the e280, but its thinner than the e280. The View isn't metal, but the plastic is of a high quality.
2. The View's main design improvement is its navigation wheel. Unlike the Nano, the View's wheel is an actual wheel. It really turns and has the four-way selection buttons underneath. I think it's a big improvement over the e280's ring like navigation wheel. I'm not sure if it's better than the iPod's touch wheel. I'm inclined to think that it is. Sometimes the iPod's wheel doesn't pick up my finger brushes right away.
3. The View's "home" button makes navigation easier. It takes you to the welcome screen directly instead of having to touch "up" multiple times like on the Nano.
4. Unlike the iPod, the View divides Audible books into chapters.
5. The View has a radio and is cheaper.
6. Performance is fine.

The back of the View.

Not good:

1. No matter the source format, I have to use Sandisk Media Converter to play videos on the Sansa. You can't just download Media Converter, either (what if I lose the disk?). Apple is also picky about video, but most media programs, like Nero, can make videos iPod-readable.
2. My wife hasn't complained, but the headphone connector is on the bottom. I don't know why. If there's a good reason, let me know.
3. The screen is OK, but the Nano's is a little sharper.

Ao, the View is a good device. If you're not going to use the radio, I like the Nano a little better, but this one is fine.

Apple 8 GB iPod nano AAC/MP3 Player Blue (3rd Generation)

Apple 8 GB iPod Touch