Factors to Consider when Choosing MP3 Portable Players Beginners Guide

mp3 portable players

By Anne Ahira

Visit the portable music area of your favorite electronics store and you’ll find a number of great choices available. In fact, you may find there are almost too many choices.

While you can always find cell phones that combine music listening features, if you really love music your best bet is to purchase dedicated MP3 portable players. Here are some factors to keep in mind while looking into your purchase.

Battery Type

With MP3 portable players, you should always think about the batteries. Battery life is going to determine how long you enjoy your player without interruption. A longer life means you’ll be able to take the player on the go more frequently and for longer periods of time. However, you also need to think about the different types of batteries that power these units.

Some of the flash memory MP3 players use regular batteries. The drawback is you could end up spending a fortune replacing them if you love your player. The upside is that when the battery life runs down you just change the batteries and your music is back on the air.

Most hard drive MP3 portable players use rechargeable batteries. These batteries only have a life expectancy of three to four years but that’s not a major concern because most people replace their players fairly frequently as newer models hit the market.

These batteries are recharged by plugging it into your computer or using a dock (these can be found on stereo systems, alarm clocks, and in cars). The charging process can take a little while if the battery is dead but you won’t have to purchase new batteries every time you turn around.

Wireless Synching

Another newer feature you might want to look for on your MP3 portable players is known as wireless synching. Synching is the process by which your player adds or removes the songs based on the playlist you have created for it on your computer. As you can imagine, this process requires that the two systems communicate.

In the past, this communication was only possible through wires which were included with the player you purchased. Today, some of the newer MP3 portable players can do this same feat without the benefit of wires.

The advantage to this approach is that you have one less thing to find a place for around your home. And let’s face it most of us have plenty of wires to keep track of already. The other advantage is that you don’t have to remember to do the synching while you’re at the computer. You can have the player somewhere else entirely and still make the synch.

Of course, the wireless synching technology is not full-proof yet. And you won’t find it on that many models currently. However, this is probably the future of MP3 portable players so be on the watch for units which include this useful feature.

Here's MP3 Portable Players Selections:

Coby MP620-8GBLK 8 GB 1.8 Inch Video MP3 Player wi...	Customer Review: Click Here for More Info	$58.99
Coby MP620-4GRED 4 GB Video MP3 Player with FM Rad...	Customer Review: Click Here for More Info
Coby MPCD471 Portable MP3/CD Player with AM/FM Rad...	Customer Review: Click Here for More Info	$34.99
DB Portable Foldable Speakers for Mp3 Players - Bl...	Customer Review: Click Here for More Info
Coby MP620-4GBLU 4 GB Video MP3 Player with FM Rad...	Customer Review: Click Here for More Info