[EightyEight]

After reading all the praise this forum has of the Zen Micro, I ordered the Black Zen Micro for a total of $197 USD at MWave.com
I've been debating on whether to get the zmicro or the H10, and I guess i bit the bullet and finally went with the zen. I've ordered it under "overnight shipping" so I should be getting it soon in the mail so I'll update again on my first impressions with it.


EDIT: IT CAME!

Let's start off pictures
the box

outside the box

on the neat stand

ill post more pics during the day...very bad lighting right now...

Okay so moving on
amazingly, the stock buds are actually decent. I'd say they're much better than the ones that come with the ipod. I'm currently playing with the EQ and it comes with 8 preset EQ settings and you can customize one yourself too.
The scrolling gets a little getting used to because all the buttons are sensitive. Gosh the glowing blue lights are so sexy...everytime i push a button, or when it sits recharging (glows a blue lit dim->bright->dim->bright) drool::
okay well im just rambling and not giving you even a decent review, so ill update after im done studying for my APs

 

[mr.caliente]

Congratulations! Trust me, you have made the right choice.

I've had my Micro since December and couldn't be happier. It's a great little player with powerful features, and you're going to love it.

 

[Cyclone]

Quote:

Originally Posted by mr.caliente Congratulations! Trust me, you have made the right choice. I've had my Micro since December and couldn't be happier.

Ya, you wont be dissapointed. especially with the size, i wish i could have seen the look on my face when i saw the size of the micro.

I've had mine since November

i've even got the "old school" face plate.

 

[EBisky]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Cyclone Ya, you wont be dissapointed. especially with the size, i wish i could have seen the look on my face when i saw the size of the micro. I've had mine since November i've even got the "old school" face plate.

any advice for us newbie-micro users??

or things you've learned over the months?

I'm still having problems figuring out where to put it when I am walking around campus and what to do with my MD33's when I am not using it.

 

[odaen]

Yeah, appreciate the easy to use standby button. Let's say you need to speak someone, just reach into your pocket and find the button hold it for a few seconds and it pauses your song and puts it into standby. Hold it again to resume, you don't even need to take it out of your pocket!

If you can't get the 'okay' function on the touchpad to work, tap it for longer, not quicker. It's really intuitive once you get it right.

And seriously consider getting hold of a mint tin before you start to use it. It's the best case you can get!

As for the headphones, put them through the inside of an overshirt or jumper and hang them around your neck. This works best with the asymetrical cord lengths such as the Ex-71 which you can also attach together at the front in a sort of necklace thing. Really practical.

 

[dragonman111]

odaen- are u talking about the power button as the standby button?

 

[Tech2]

Quote:

Originally Posted by EightyEight After reading all the praise this forum has of the Zen Micro, I ordered the Black Zen Micro for a total of $197 USD at MWave.com I've been debating on whether to get the zmicro or the H10, and I guess i bit the bullet and finally went with the zen. I've ordered it under "overnight shipping" so I should be getting it soon in the mail so I'll update again on my first impressions with it. In the mean time, reassure me that I've made the right choice hehe

I've had one since January.

I sold my 1g 10gb iPod and bought a Micro because I liked the replaceable battery, FM tuner, and on-the-fly playlists. I was also lucky enough to get the free extra battery.

Impressions:

Navigation is not quite as simple as an iPod, though it is not difficult. I prefer the continuous circular motion of scroll wheel to the start-at-the-top-and-go-down-lift-your-thumb-and-repeat of the Micro. Not a big deal, just personal preference, I guess.

It sounds fine to me, with most of my songs ripped at 193kbps. I'm also using a pair of Shure e2c canal phones, which are a huge step up from the stock buds. I usually run it un-amped.

I like the custom equalizer function, which allows me to tweak the sound to my liking rather than just choose a preset, as with the iPod. I don't use EQ often, but it's nice to have.

Battery life for me, just letting it play and not skipping around too much, is around 10 hours. Which is slightly better than my old iPod.

The FM tuner is flat-out useless, IMO. I use mine at work, so maybe it's just the building I'm in, but reception is terrible. Believe it or not, I haven't even tried it outside.

My only suggestion to you would be to get a quality set of headphones. If you don't mind canal phones get some Shures or Etymotics. I made the mistake of getting some Sony canal phones (EX71) and while they are a step up from the stock buds, my e2c's are much better (I probably should have gotten the ec3's). I like them because they appear to be made to take much more abuse than the Sony buds. The Sony's have much flimsier wires and seem to be very delicate compared to the Shures. As for the sound, I've listened to the Sony's after having the shure's for a couple of months and the Sony's sound bad to me now.

Do your self a favor and get a decent set of headphone right away, you may spend more initially, but you'll save in the long run.

 

[Cyclone]

Quote:

Originally Posted by EBisky any advice for us newbie-micro users?? or things you've learned over the months? I'm still having problems figuring out where to put it when I am walking around campus and what to do with my MD33's when I am not using it.

A light jacket with pockets is a DAP users best friend. I use my North Face Denali alot because it has the vertical breast pocket and its very easy to take the micro in and out when i need it. As for you MD33's, i'd just cram em in your pocket with the player. If you really want to wrap them up or wrap them around the micro your welcome but i generally remove the headphones from the micro to keep any unneccesary stress off of the jack.

 

[gshan]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Cyclone A light jacket with pockets is a DAP users best friend. I use my North Face Denali alot because it has the vertical breast pocket and its very easy to take the micro in and out when i need it. As for you MD33's, i'd just cram em in your pocket with the player. If you really want to wrap them up or wrap them around the micro your welcome but i generally remove the headphones from the micro to keep any unneccesary stress off of the jack.

+1 Denali here. I use that vertical pocket everyday.

 

[odaen]

Quote:

Originally Posted by dragonman111 odaen- are u talking about the power button as the standby button?

Yeah, well it is.

It doesn't turn it off. it puts it into standby mode.

 

[EBisky]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Cyclone A light jacket with pockets is a DAP users best friend. I use my North Face Denali alot because it has the vertical breast pocket and its very easy to take the micro in and out when i need it. As for you MD33's, i'd just cram em in your pocket with the player. If you really want to wrap them up or wrap them around the micro your welcome but i generally remove the headphones from the micro to keep any unneccesary stress off of the jack.

how about in the summer when it's hot outside?

 

[gshan]

Quote:

Originally Posted by EBisky how about in the summer when it's hot outside?

Would you be willing to belt clip your micro and twisty-tie your md33s? Cargo pants/shorts would be pretty useful here, heh.

 

[DJ Mauler]

eh atm im waiting on another paycheck, because i had to pay rent and i bought like 6 albums but that ipod mini will be in my possesion real soon

 

[EBisky]

Quote:

Originally Posted by gshan Would you be willing to belt clip your micro and twisty-tie your md33s? Cargo pants/shorts would be pretty useful here, heh.

hmm, the belt clip situation might not work, but the shorts would..but I'd have to buy all cargo shorts lol

-fro

 

[Cyclone]

Quote:

Originally Posted by EBisky how about in the summer when it's hot outside?

Well it usually stays below 75 around here for the whole year except for about 3 months where it will top out at around 90. Im still in the light jacket season around here so i cant give you any tested and proven ideas. I will say im against anything like a belt clip cause it just feels like a fanny pack junior. If you want to know how i feel about fanny packs just google "fanny pack" and "adam corolla". that should give you a good overview. Anyways back on track, i'll probably just end up pocketing the micro in my pants/shorts. Although it sucks having my cellphone and my micro in the same pocket because it just feels bulky.