Don't lie.

I had to shoot out to work and knew that, by the time I got home, there'd be a couple of replies. The problem with Google is I don't know where to start looking for an MP3 player in terms of brand, generation etc. I know what I want and all that but not if what's on the market in the first place (I can't be ringed spending hours on review sites).

Craig...

Should I stick with an MP3 player that has a hard-drive memory rather than just flash memory or does it not really make a difference?

Also, are the refurbished iPods/Zens out there actually just broken MP3 players with dog shit inside or will they work? There are a fair few 30GB Zens going but they're refurbs.

The refurb Zens you see (I assume you're looking on eBay) are Zen Vision:M's - I had one of these and sold it to Lev when I upgraded to my new Zen. The newest ones are just called the "Zen" and come in 8GB, 16GB and 32GB sizes (not 30GB). I wouldn't trust refurbs from eBay anyway as you just get DoA warranty and that's it with a lot of them.

I'd go for flash rather than hard drive MP3s, they tend to have longer battery life, and they won't break if you drop them because the drives have no moving parts. Just about the only thing you can do to it is smash the screen.

If you do get a Zen, I'd definitely recommend getting a skin and screen protector for it, as they are very nice and very shiny, and because they're black they'll mark and the very first opportunity. I made the mistake of leaving it in a bag with my keys while watching Maiden at Twickenham after only having it a week. I wasn't impressed.

I have a 16GB iPod Touch which I love. Got it for about £170 from eBay. I used to have the newest incarnation of the classic iPod for a few months before deciding I wanted a touch. The WiFi function can be very useful as I found today when I was having computer problems and used a Messenger application that supports my MSN username to contact my Ubuntu-savvy mate

Steve wrote:I have a 16GB iPod Touch which I love. Got it for about £170 from eBay. I used to have the newest incarnation of the classic iPod for a few months before deciding I wanted a touch. The WiFi function can be very useful as I found today when I was having computer problems and used a Messenger application that supports my MSN username to contact my Ubuntu-savvy mate

Like you know how to wisely spend money.

Oooofff.

Yeah mr Blaster, you can make playlists on Itunes then drag and drop whatever you want and the playlists upload to your player automatically. I've got a cheese feast list, a UK thrash list, a demo list for album 2 and a list of songs I have to learn (which is pretty much the same as the demo list!).

S'very handy.

I do that on iTunes but was wondering if you can do that on the actual iPod.

At the moment I'm considering getting a 3rd or 4th Generation 8GB iPod Nano. I'm used to having a 6GB and really can't see myself keeping a lot of photos or videos on an iPod, so 8GB for music should be alright.

What's the verdict on them?

Yeah you can create an playlist on an iPod which will upload onto iTunes next time it gets updated.

And fuck you Sam!

You can also do the same playlist-wise on the Zen, but it's probably a bit more fiddly. I tend to have one "Favourites" playlist, sometimes I combine multi-disc albums into a playlist but that's generally it.

If you're looking at the smaller capacities, there's an 8GB Zen on Play.com for £83 posted.

Interesting...

The one thing that is stopping me from going for a Creative is that I've used iTunes for, like, four years and have become attached to it. I notice the 16GB one is only £100. Yet more interesting. Only thing is, they seem to get slated...

WAAAAAAAAAA!!!!!!

All I want to do is listen to music.

Creative Zen.

Amazon are selling those 8GB Zens for £71. I'm close to getting one.

I could sell you my Zen V Plus 8gb for £50.

Is that your hand? If so, it's quite reptile-like.

Just in the process of buying a 16GB Zen from Amazon, however.

Iain has made the right choice.