SanDisk Sansa Express (1 GB) MP3 Player

I've always liked Sansa players. Usually they pack incredible sound quality, a good number of fully functional features and options, and are simple to use. I was wholeheartedly disappointed in this shiny, mirrored rectangle that claims to be an mp3 player.

Let's start with DESIGN.

The player is beautiful, flat out. Similar to the first generation iPod Shuffle, this player contains a snap cap that hides a USB port that plugs directed into your computer like a thumb drive. Now, the player is very boxy, so Sandisk planned ahead and threw in a bonus cable in case the device cannot fit into your port. It has a small microphone, a hold switch on the side, and a volume rocker on the bottom. The power button is on the top, and it never really gets in the way of operation. The buttons, though small, are easily used and pressed with minimal annoyance, so kudos to Sandisk.

The screen on the Sansa Express is small. I do feel like they could have made it a little longer considering its size; however the LCD screen on the player is vibrant and can be read easily at night. During the day, though, forget about it. Expect to be covering the screen with your hand if you plan on ever using this thing outside in the sunshine. Not the best player for daytime runners.

20/25%

Next up, MENUS.

The menus on this player are a bit of a nightmare. The controls aren't as intuitive as they could be, and there is definitely a learning curve when using this player. When you turn the device on, you are greeted with the Music option. You can also chose Settings, Radio, etc. The giant center button does what it's supposed to do: it selects your choice, but after that it's more or less downhill. Pressing certain buttons will take you to the last menu you were in. Pressing others will take you to a playing options menu, and then, when you think you've got the player turned off, you find that you've accidentally chosen the entirely wrong menu. Please note that the player does not remember what option you left off on. So, if you have a lot of artists on your player, and you go back a menu, the Sansa Express will not remember that you were going to chose that artist. It sounds like a minor annoyance, but it can really obnoxious when you find yourself pressing the incorrect button, directly screwing yourself over.

5/25%

What's a player without COMPATIBILITY AND FORMATS?

The Sansa Express is a very universal player. It can be used on both Macs and PCs with ease without any software. Plugging it into a Windows-based PC will bring up the folder, while plugging it into a Mac will allow it to pop up on your desktop. Just drag and drop and you're set to go.

However. Next comes a real annoyance that I've seen on quite a few MTP (Mass Transfer Protocol) devices: you can not edit the files once they are on your player. Sure, you can organize things, but you can't actually change the ID3 tags. If you, by mistake, put on both "Alanis Morissette" and "AlanisMorissette," you have to delete the song from your player, rewrite the original file's tag on your computer, then retransfer. It's obnoxious. This was an issue on the Creative Zen Touch, but Creative also had software available to rectify the issue.

Please note that this player, much like Samsung's line of DAPs, does not come with a wall charger. You have to use a working USB port or nothing. Thanks a lot, Sandisk.

This player supports MP3, WMA, WAV, Audible, Protected WMA (DRM), so there is definitely a wide range of options for you to choose from. It would have been nice to see .aac, but really, this is all you need. Sandisk also through in a MicroSD card slot, meaning that you add additional memory to the player, which a great touch that scores this player some more points.

15/25%

Lastly, let's look at SOUND QUALITY AND GENERAL PERFORMANCE.

This player sounds like crap. There's really no way around it: the sound quality lacks feeling, depth, and bass. Also, volume is a major issue. No matter what the quality of your music (whether it be a V0/VBR file or a 112k file), this player lacks. I have cassette players that have better sound quality. Basically, if you like having no connection to your music, this is a great player to buy.

And as for general performance, I couldn't believe all the trouble it gave me. The worst aspect is that it likes to randomly restart. This would usually happen after the player failed to fully recognize my entire library, and would then reboot. For example, I would add a song to the player, eject it, turn it on, and the artist would be listed, but not the track. And if I went to another song, the player would turn off, turn on, and there the song would be. Ridiculous.

I should also mention that the player doesn't even turn on anymore. Two weeks into having it, the player just didn't work anymore. Oh, well. I'm glad I only spent 40 dollars on this. Go with the Sansa Clip instead.

0/25%

Overall score: 40 out of a possible 100. That is below average, below satisfactory, and a failure.

F