Portable Entertainment's Friday Pick: SanDisk 512 MB Digital Audio Player

The SanDisk 512 MB Digital Audio Player has been receiving good consumer reviews in online shops and word of mouth for its combination of easy to use features and low price point. It is the middle level unit in SanDisk’s relatively new line of budget players.

This particular model fits lightly and easily in the palm of your hand, measuring 2.96” x 1.28” x .28” and weighing a mere 1.4 ounces when a AAA battery, which provides up to 15 hours of playback, is inserted. The 512 MB of memory, which SanDisk says can hold up to eight hours (120 songs) of MP3 music files or 16 hours (240 songs) of WMA (including DRM type files), uses flash memory instead of a hard drive. This is useful for working out with since there are no moving parts to potentially make the music skip.

Music is transferred from your Windows based computer to the blue colored player quickly through support of USB 2.0. Information on the songs you are playing is displayed on a multi-line LCD which is very easy to read. Volume control, song selection and navigation of the player’s on screen menus are handled through a joystick and three buttons.

SanDisk’s 512 MB player, in addition to playing music files, sports a built in voice recorder which can be used to capture your thoughts on the road. These recorded files, like the music, can easily be transferred back and forth between your computer by dragging and dropping to the appropriate folder when the two devices are connected. Support for storage of any other type of file is also included.

Like other great flash memory players of this kind, the SanDisk provides an integrated FM tuner for those times when you tire of your digital music. Up to 20 of your favorite local stations can be preset.

Accessories included in the box are a carrying case with armband, stereo headphones, AAA battery, USB 2.0 cable and software.

Compare prices and shop for the SanDisk 512 MB Digital Audio Player.