The Creative Zen MX MP3 player is a pared-down version of the popular Zen model, adding “incredible value and convenience of use” to the old player’s feature set.

Just like its predecessor, the Creative Zen MX is an extremely portable player. It weighs in at less than 70g and is compact enough to fit comfortably into most pockets. It features a 2.5-inch glossy QVGA display which can display 16.7 million colours.

It’s a flash memory player, so to use the Creative Zen MX you simply connect it to your computer using the included mini-USB cable to transfer you music, video and photos. If the internal memory (8GB or 16GB) isn’t enough, it’s expandable by SD/SDHC card.

Unfortunately file format support is one of this player’s weaknesses. The only audio format supported are the standard MP3, WMA, WAV and Audible 4. Creative’s proprietary CMV format is the only video format supported.

Thankfully, Creative has equipped the Zen MX with some extra features to make up for the lack of extensive file format support, including an FM radio with 32 preset stations, voice recorder, alarm and basic organiser features.

The Creative Zen MX MP3 player is on sale in Australia now with a recommended retail price of $119.95 (8GB) or $159.95 (16GB).

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By Caroline Warnes

The Creative Zen X-Fi2 is the latest in a long line of rivals to the iPod Touch.

And Creative has made a worthy attempt with the Zen X-Fi2 - while it may not be quite the MP3 player that the Touch is, it does come close.

As the name suggests, the Creative Zen X-Fi2 is an update to the X-Fi MP3 player, with a few notable upgrades. There’s a larger screen this time around (3-inches with 400×240 resolution), and this time it’s a touchscreen - Creative’s first. Unfortunately, this shows - the touch interface is nowhere near as intuitive or responsive as Apple’s.

The Zen X-Fi2 also offers support for a wider range of audio formats. This includes the Free Losslesss Audio Codec (FLAC), which many audiophiles consider to be the ideal format for digital music, and iTunes Plus (unprotected AAC format). Then of course there is support for all the standard audio and video formats, including WMA, WAV, WMV9, XviD3 - to name just a few.

Audio quality is where this player really shines. Creative claims X-Fi technology restores audio to high levels of clarity and simulates audio from high-end speakers by intelligently moving the earphone stereo source away from your ears. In any case, most people will find audio quality to be superior to that of any iPod. The excellent included earbuds also help.

Rounding out the package, Creative has also equipped the Zen X-Fi2 with an Fm radio and voice recorder as well as an RSS reader.

Storage options and pricing are 8GB ($154.50), 16GB ($199.95) and 32GB ($272.68).

Buy a cheap MP3 player on sale in Australia

By Caroline Warnes

The Philips GoGear Vibe is the manufacturer’s brand new entry-level MP3 player, the highlight of which is an excellent colour screen.

The 1.5-inch colour screen is something of a rarity in budget MP3 players, but the Philips GoGear Vibe does it well. It excels in displaying photos and video as well as album artwork. The player’s navigation pad sits below the screen.

Despite the inclusion of a fairly generous screen, the GoGear Vibe isn’t an overly large budget player. It will fit into the palm of most hands as well as most pockets.

In terms of music, the player supports just three formats: MP3, WMA and Audible - support for AAC is a glaring omission. Sound quality is more than reasonable for an MP3 player in this price range.

Rounding out the Philips GoGear Vibe’s feature set are voice recording and an FM radio. A mini USB connection and 3.5mm headphone jack are also included on the player’s base.

The Philips GoGear Vibe comes in two capacities: 4GB (Australian price $119.95) and 8GB ($149.95).

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By Caroline Warnes

Apple has unveiled the latest updates to its iPod range, with the most significant change being the addition of a video camera to the iPod Nano.

iPod Nano

The new iPod Nano has a video camera, microphone and speaker so you can shoot video and view it on the 2.2-inch colour display then transfer it to YouTube. Also included is an FM radio with live pause and pedometer. It comes in nine colours - silver, black, purple, blue, green, orange, yellow, red and pink.

Available now, the 8GB model sells in Australia for $199 and the 16GB for $249.

iPod Shuffle

The third-generation iPod Shuffle has experienced a price drop, with the 2GB Shuffle now costing $79 in Australia and the 4GB costing $109. Both models come in silver, black, pink, blue and green.

iPod Touch

The iPod Touch has also dropped in price - $269 for 8GB, $399 for 32GB and $549 for 64GB.

iTunes 9

iTunes 9 also launched today with several new features, including Home Sharing (easily transfer music, movies and TV shows among up to five computers in your home and view up to five iTunes libraries on your home network) and Genius Mixes (automatically generates up to 12 endless mixes of songs from your iTunes library based on the results of over 27 million music libraries).

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By Caroline Warnes

The new iRiver B30 is a DAB+ MP3 and video player that is expected to prove extremely popular now that digital radio has had a widespread launch in Australia.

In fact, at this stage the iRiver B30 is the only player on the market that can display images that are broadcast digitally, giving it an automatic headstart over other DAB+ ready MP3 players.

In a nutshell, digital radio offers you improved sound and features, as well as more stations, and the B30 does a reasonable job of taking advantage of these benefits. It comes with a telescopic aerial to assist reception as well as a range of sound settings.

Aside from the digital radio functionality, the iRiver B30 also offers support for a range of audio and video formats, including MP3, WMA, WAV, OGG, DivX, WMV… and lots more. Rounding out the package: a built-in speaker for sharing your music with friends, video subtitles and a microSD slot for expanding the on-board memory.

The iRiver B30’s Australian price is $299 for the 8GB version, with a 16GB version also on the way.

Buy a cheap iRiver MP3 player on sale

By Caroline Warnes

The iRiver T6 is a budget MP3 player that still manages to include some decent features in addition to audio playback for a basic MP3 player.

The iRiver T6 is a sleek and slim unit, featuring a glossy black finish, six touch-sensitive control buttons and a 1.8-inch LCD screen.

Its 4GB of flash memory is capable of storing around 1000 songs in either WMA or MP3 format (the only two audio formats supported) and iRiver rates the T6’s battery life at around 28 hours of continous music playback. It’s also capable of displaying photos, however the screen is not particularly bright so it doesn’t do a great job of this. Rounding out the feature set is FM playback and voice recording, both of which perform reasonably well for an MP3 player in this price range.

The iRiver T6’s audio quality is pretty good for a budget player, especially when you upgrade from the basic headphones included in the box. If you’re looking for a cheap MP3 player with good sound quality and a couple of extra features thrown in, the T6 is worthy of review.

The iRiver T6 MP3 player’s Australian price is $99.

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By Caroline Warnes

There was some confusion in the Lasoo office this morning when we heard the details of Apple’s new iPod Shuffle.

Apparently the third-generation Shuffle can “speak” to you via the VoiceOver feature - song titles, artists and playlist names are spoken aloud to you.

The point of this function wasn’t exactly clear to any of us at first, but apparently it is useful when your Shuffle plays a song or artist you can’t remember - and with the press of a button you can find out.

Since the Shuffle can only hold around 1000 songs, the likelihood of having a song on there you don’t know that well is probably not that high.

The better selling point is the Shuffle’s size. It’s smaller than an AA battery yet holds up to 4GB - that’s double the size of the largest capacity second-generation Shuffle. It’s available now with an RRP of $129.

Click here to find offers on iPods from retailers near you.

By Caroline Warnes

Sony has announced it will release the X-Series MP3 players in April, intended to rival the Apple iTouch.

The X-Series will be the first line of MP3 players from Sony to feature a three-inch LCD touchscreen. YOu use the touchscreen to perform most operations - although buttons are included for volume, noise cancelling and there is also a hold switch.

The X-Series players also come with WI-Fi and a web browser, as well as streaming for YouTube. Each player ships with EX Monitor headphones.

This series of players is very slick to look at - complete with black and chrome finishes and glass surfaces. Size comes in at slightly smaller than the iPod Touch.

Two players will be released in the X-Series in April, with either a 16GB or 32GB capacity. Pricing will be available closer to the release date.

Click here to find offers on Sony MP3 players from retailers near you.

By Caroline Warnes

If you like your MP3 players small, then the Samsung U4 is bound to appeal to you.

Measuring in at 8.3cm x 2.7cm x 1.3cm, the U4 is not quite as miniscule as the iPod Shuffle, however it’s still one of the smallest around. Carrying a recommended retail price of $99, the Samsung U4 has a 4GB capacity, which is twice as much as the 2GB iPod Shuffle, which only retails for $10 less.

The U4 is a touch-sensitive player - everything is operated via the touchscreen on the left, with the exception of one mechanical button. However this one button performs a wide range of functions.

The U4 boasts a stunning design, with glossy surfaces and rounded corners. The choice of colours is to die for and includes Crystal Rose (pictured here), Navy Purple and Ocean Blue. It’s a USB-based player so you simply press a button to extend the USB plug, which can then be inserted into your PC to load the player up with songs.

Given that the Samsung U4 is a small player, it’s to be expected that the feature set is not as comprehensive as higher-end players. For your $99 you get an FM radio with recorder, a file browser and voice recorder.

Click here to find offers on Samsung MP3 players from retailers near you.

By Caroline Warnes

Samsung released the YP-P2 late last year as a competitor to the Apple iPod Touch, with mixed success.

The comparisons between the two music players are obvious: they sport similar designs, capabilities and capacities, although the P2 is distinctly more affordable (and lighter!) than the new version of the Touch.

The P2 has some nice functionality, including stereo Bluetooth, video and a large 3-inch touchscreen. It only offers support for MP3 and WMA music files (not AAC), with MPEG-4 and WMV support taking care of video files. You can also view JPG photo files.

As well as being a very stylish-looking MP3 player, the Samsung P2 is also very easy to use and offers good quality sound. Although the lack of support for multiple files does hold it back somewhat, it does make a decent alternative to the iPod Touch.

Click here to find offers on Samsung MP3 players from retailers near you.

By Caroline Warnes