SciFi and Fantasy Book Club discussion

John, I hope my Sansa Clip never dies; I don't want to be in your shoes. I'll be watching this thread!

I'll be watching as well, since my son will eventually need to replace his and I am also strictly anti-Ipod/Apple.

I googled, and came up with only 3.5 stars for one model on Amazon:

https://www.amazon.com/AGPTEK-M20-8GB...

One option is to buy a cheap smartphone that takes expandable storage with a microSD card, not connect it to a cellular data plan, load the microSD card up with music and download a music player of your choice. Since most cheap phones run Android, I suggest PowerAmp.

This is a nice option because you get the additional utility and fluid user experience of Android, which is a lot more thoughtfully developed than most software for strictly audio devices. In fact, I suspect the scarcity of dedicated MP3 players on the market is largely due to consumers adopting this tactic.

If you're focused on audio quality and are willing to shop used, an LG V10 can be purchased cheaply (in the area of $100). This device supports microSD and features a 32 bit DAC that should deliver superior audio quality compared to most inexpensive phones.

I have a Ruizu bought on Amazon. The battery life is unbelievably long, at 40+ hours. I got rid of my Sansa because it always needed charging whenever I went to use it. It has 8 gbs but it also has a slot for additional storage. its tiny but I love it.

checking amazon, I don't see my model but there is one that includes bluetooth.

Mack wrote: "One option is to buy a cheap smartphone that takes expandable storage with a microSD card, not connect it to a cellular data plan, load the microSD card up with music and download a music player of..."

That's exactly what I did. I re-purposed by old Blu 4 Advanced phone by adding a 64gb SD card. It's not the best but IIRC I only paid $49 for it.

John wrote: "Wow, I was going through some of my boxes in the garage, looking for something else, and I found my old Zune HD. I thought I had given it away. It seems to be working fine, I originally stopped usi..."

Probably a good choice. I bought one of those cheap AGPtek mp3 players and I could never get the audiobooks to work.
1. Audible isn't available for those
2. Ripped cds won't work because there is no way to get the tracks to play in the order you want. I tried all sorts of naming conventions and playlists and it was virtually impossible

Hank wrote: "2. Ripped cds won't work because there is no way to get the tracks to play in the order you want. I tried all sorts of naming conventions and playlists and it was virtually impossible .."

I use a program called MP3 Merge to convert all those to a single file. For really long books (Wheel of Time) I merge them into 3 or 4 files and then manipulate the meta data to make them look like tracks of an album.

I love my old Santa Clip, which is still functioning ,it’s my 3. Sansa player, only problem I ever had with them was that the the ear plug connection got defective after a while. The last one I bought, which is still on sale has a Bluetooth connection as well so its pretty good and cheap as well.

As MP3 player has become a thing of the past (like minidisc and cassette players) the only alternative is to by a cheap smartphone and download a decent player like media monkey that supports audiobooks