[soloz2]

I've been considering upgrading my mp3 player. I currently have a ZMP 8Gb and love it. My wife has a ZM and she likes her's too. but I would really like a DAP with a line output so that brings me to either the ipod or ZVM.

I like that the ipod is compatible with more formats and lossless where the Creative is pretty much stuck with either mp3 or WMA but my whole music collection is in mp3 format anyway, so I'm not sure that would really be an advantage.

I know for a fact that the Creative players sync well by just dragging and dropping files, but how does the ipod fair like this? Can you still make playlists with just the basic driver install? I am not a fan of itunes (and yes, I have used itunes before)

From what I hear SQ is similar, so I'm just looking for some more information to help me decide. I'm sure there are people who have used both. And I'm not looking for Apple Fanboys to just tell me how great they think the ipod is.

 

[Dominat0r]

zvm all the way unless you want a ton of accessories....if thats the case, go with ipod.

 

[zip22]

you need to use some sort of software with the ipod, but you don't need to use itunes. there are a handful of alternatives including winamp and mediamonkey.

 

[soloz2]

Quote:

Originally Posted by zip22 /img/forum/go_quote.gif you need to use some sort of software with the ipod, but you don't need to use itunes. there are a handful of alternatives including winamp and mediamonkey.

so you can't just drag and drop?


the way the Creative software works, you install the drivers and then you plug in your DAP and it shows up as another drive. Then you can drag and drop, or you can go into a little software deal that allows you to add/delete tracks and to edit play lists.

so, the ipod has nothing like this?

 

[Dominat0r]

Quote:

Originally Posted by soloz2 /img/forum/go_quote.gif so you can't just drag and drop? the way the Creative software works, you install the drivers and then you plug in your DAP and it shows up as another drive. Then you can drag and drop, or you can go into a little software deal that allows you to add/delete tracks and to edit play lists. so, the ipod has nothing like this?

The ZVM doesnt work like that...well it sorta does. It uses WMP to transfer music to it. You can use the Media software that comes with it. However it doesnt show up as another drive. You can set it to use a certain amount of space as a drive, so you can plug into any machine just like a jump drive. You cannot use music you put on that drive, unless you move to your pc then back to the player. Most DAPs now have made the move to MTP device instead of UMS. Sucks, cause UMS (simple drag and drop) was the best imho.

 

[zip22]

the ipod is UMS, but it is not drag and drop. it needs some sort of software to make a database file that the ipod reads. what software do you use to play music on your computer? i am pretty sure there is even a plugin for foobar.

 

[soloz2]

I play music with Foobar


here is what I'm talking about with my ZMP

 

[zip22]

yeah, the zen vision:m will be just like the micro photo. they are both MTP.

 

[apnk]

I had the same issue a few months ago and I chose the iPod because of the millions of accessories and it's easier to find line out docks for it than it is for the ZVM.

 

[aaroncort]

I have both an ipod and zv:m. I like some things about the ZVM more than the ipod and some things I like less than the ipod.

First what i like about the ZVM over the ipod. the zen has far more options in the firmware to customize the menus to your liking. I find this very handy for getting to my music fast. There is also a programable button that lets you go to any screen with one press. Its a great idea and is really handy. There is a info button that brings up a list of commands like: Delete, track details etc that the ipod doesn't have. Drack details I use frequently to see what bit rate a song is encoded in. I tend to blame compression for artifacts so it's nice to if I'm correct or not and if i need to re-rip a cd in a higher bit rate. The screen is much better than a ipod video as well not to mention that you can choose a custom wallpaper and the color of the visual interface. You can also use a lot of programs to transfer files to you zen. I prefer using windows media explorer to drag and drop my album folders to the player. It's fast and not a resource hog like itunes is. I can transfer music and watch a movie without hardly any stuttering. I also got my player for 50 dollars cheaper than a 30gb ipod.

Things I like about the ipod more than the zen. The user interface is amazing on an ipod. The click wheel works so well and much better than the scroll bar on the zen. In order to select something on the zen you glide your finger up or down to select the desired song and then tap the bar like you would the touch pad on a laptop. I fudging hate that type of interface. It never quite works 100 percent of the time. either it doesn't register or you accidently tap it and select the wrong thing. Very annoying at times i must say but not a deal breaker.

Both the ipod and zen have proprietary docks which is as lame as it gets. The zen 1-ups the lameness by needing the docking dongle as well as a not supplied dc charger to charge away from the computer. I haven't yet, but am sure that I'll loose that dongle at some point and have to buy a new one for 8.00. I also won't be able to charge it at all because the dongle is the only way to hook up a USB cable for charging and transfering, while waiting for the new dongle to ship to me since finding accesories at a local store is impossible.

Over all I'm happy with my zen in spite of these problems. it's a cute little player with better transfering options, more customizable and to my ears, doesn't have better sound, but more enjoyable, musical presentation than my standby ipod.

 

[terrymx]

i'm interested in getting the zen m vision 60gb for watching videos. for those who own it, how you like the video playback and what is your average battery life for it? the main deciding factor though is, does it have any battery pack accessory?

 

[Morph201]

For the LAST TIME! If you plan on using a gazillion accessories and bypass the internal amp then it's IPOD! Otherwise CVZM!

 

[Dominat0r]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Morph201 /img/forum/go_quote.gif For the LAST TIME! If you plan on using a gazillion accessories and bypass the internal amp then it's IPOD! Otherwise CVZM!

Ohh, didnt know you were thinking about doing the iMod...if soo, then i completely agree with Morph...

 

[soloz2]

well I wasn't really planning on doing the redwine imod to an ipod if I got it. I'd be going from using the headphone out of my ZMP so I think the audio line out would be a good enough upgrade for me (for now)

 

[GSTom1]

Quote:

Originally Posted by terrymx /img/forum/go_quote.gif i'm interested in getting the zen m vision 60gb for watching videos. for those who own it, how you like the video playback and what is your average battery life for it? the main deciding factor though is, does it have any battery pack accessory?

It really depends on how the movie was encoded but most Divx/Xvid movies I have downloaded or have encoded myself from DVDs look great. You should probably get around 4-5 hours of video play backtime, but I have never watched movies for that long. I think a 2 hour movie I recently watched used about 1 battery bar.