anyone have suggestions on light MP3 players. Looking for the following:
Lightweight(obviously)
Long battery life
I would like a screen and radio.
Price(the lower the better)
I decided against a shortwave radio.
I already have an ipod shuffle 512mb. Looking for something a little better.
thanks in advance.

check out the samsung yp-mt6 1gb
took it on the jmt last year, never touched the second battery (takes 1 AA), if i remember correctly, i paid around $150 for it. lots of options, think its got everything your looking for.

Aside from the Shuffle, I haven't seen any iPods I'd want to take in the woods. It's a shame.

I like the Creative Zen Nano Plus. About 1oz and 1gig, flash-memory, 18hrs of play with a AAA, FM tuner. Pretty good sound quality and cool color options. The Plus models also come with an armband, I believe. I think it's one of the better values out there.

I've also been fascinated with the iRiver U10 for a while. 2.5oz, 1gig, flash-memory, 34hrs of audio, FM tuner. Pretty cool UI and also supports Ogg files, if that matters to you. Also might want to take a look at their T10 model, with a similar feature set and ~40hrs on a AA battery.

I'm not personally familiar with them, but Sony's mp3 products are reputed to be easy on the batteries.

If you can bear it, you can ring out more battery life by switching to lower bitrate riles, say mp3 files in the 96-112kbps range. You'll be able to get more from your batteries by avoiding audio files with DRM restrictions.
-Mark

Edited by mlarson on 07/06/2006 21:01:40 MDT.

I have a Samsung YP-MT6Z 1GB player because it is small, runs on 1 AA battery, and has a life of 40-45 hours on one battery. With a lithium, it weighs nothing and lasts 50-60hrs. I love it. It works perfectly for me.

Every piece of electronics I ever use runs on AA batteries: Headlamp, Digital P&S, SLR, MP3 player, GPS, Avalanche Beacon, Radio. While I rarely have more than 3 of these at a time unless skiing, Interchanging batteries = gnar.

Edited by Summit on 07/06/2006 21:16:56 MDT.

you want cheap? i just found the samsung on ebay for $10. lol

Check out the Muvo TX FM series. They have an FM radio and a voice recorder, and run on a AAA. The 1 GB version is about $70 on Amazon. My older Muvo NX model gets 10+ hours on an alkaline AAA, and weighs about 1 oz (without the battery). It also functions like a normal USB flash drive, unlike other MP3 players that require special software for file transfer.

The Samsung also functions as a normal USB flash drive and has an integrated FM receiver.

> i just found the samsung on ebay for $10

But I bet there was a $50 s/h charge, huh?

I personally feel the requirements for a trail mp3 unit would be:

lightweight
long battery life
lots of storage
fm receiver
voice recorder
sturdiness
ease of use with unfamiliar machines (for thru hikers)

I've used the Creative Labs Nano. I set it up for a friend. I like it quite a bit.

But I bet there was a $50 s/h charge, huh?

$6.00 s/h

Look at the Sandisk...they have a 4gig player which runs on one AAA battery and includes an AM/FM radio, voice recorder (for trail logs), and will hold lots of tunes. Check out Circuit City as they have been running the things on sale for $150 or less. Another good accessory for this is the silicone rubber protective sleeve which can be had for $10 on sale or $15 normally. Don't pay retail - go to the website and see if it's on sale...it usually is.

There's no rechargeable battery and the whole thing is about the size of two Ipod shuffles with a lot more storage capability. Drag and drop file loading and the thing comes complete with everything you need to use it and has no moving parts...oh, yeah..it runs 15-19 hours on a single battery and using an expensive lithium cell would shave a couple of grams off the weight...just keep it dry.

Edited by leebob on 07/07/2006 15:01:11 MDT.