Creative ZEN Stone 1 GB

...Then someone showed me the Creative Zen Stone and I rejoiced! This is the story of the little mp3 player that could.

===The Good Things===


---The Size---

It’s diddy. I’ve added a photo of it next to my thumb so you can get a feel for how diddy it really is (now that was a hard photo to take) and I should point out I haven’t modified it in any way, it really is that small. You can get about two ...
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Unlike certain other Creative products with strange touch sensitive controls that don’t work, this one does. It’s just 5 buttons on the front (4 in a circular shape for volume and track control, and one in the middle for pause/play) and a slider on the top to control the level on randomness. The buttons aren’t touch sensitive, they’re good old fashioned buttons which you have to push. The only problem is that you have to get used to which ... more

Hello all. First off, it’s literally been months since my last review (exams, don’t ask) but I’m back! I hope to be around a little more now I’m not pulling my hair out.

There’s always a story behind my reviews, this one’s a little sad. My lovely iPod died: 10 days after the warranty ran out. I was devastated as I really can’t live without music but for ages I went without. Then someone showed me the Creative Zen Stone and I rejoiced! This is the story of the little mp3 player that could.

The Good Things

---The Size---

It’s diddy. I’ve added a photo of it next to my thumb so you can get a feel for how diddy it really is (now that was a hard photo to take) and I should point out I haven’t modified it in any way, it really is that small. You can get about two fifty pence coins on it. It’s also very light – with my old 60GB iPod (which weighed a fair bit), if I dropped it the headphones would come out and the pod would fall to the closest surface below it (I do Physics, me). Apple included a lovely feature that the track would pause if the headphones fall out, but that’s not much use if the pod is in pieces on the ground. The Stone is so light that I can swing it round and round by the headphones with absolutely no worry that it’s going to fly off and break a window. In fact, it’s so small I believe I could swallow it without too much hassle.

---The Looks---

It’s so cute! I have the black one, which is highly glossy and just generally gorgeous to look at. It’s not over-styled like so many similar products nowadays; it’s just sleek and elegant without trying to show off. The controls don’t look complicated and the only writing on the front is the word “ZEN” is small white letters.

---Ease of Use---

Unlike certain other Creative products with strange touch sensitive controls that don’t work, this one does. It’s just 5 buttons on the front (4 in a circular shape for volume and track control, and one in the middle for pause/play) and a slider on the top to control the level on randomness. The buttons aren’t touch sensitive, they’re good old fashioned buttons which you have to push. The only problem is that you have to get used to which way round it goes (up/down, left/right) or you end up turning up the volume when you want to decrease it, or going back a track when you want to go forward. This doesn’t take long to learn.

---Money---

It’s cheap. Mine cost about £30 from Amazon with free delivery. This is a good price for what you’re getting.

---The Capacity---

It’s only 1GB. Wait, that’s also diddy, why is that good? Well, I realised with my 60GB pod (that could hold my entire music collection and then some) that I never listen to more than a few hundred songs. A 1GB capacity will easily store that, and it has the benefit of being cheap and light.

---The Software---

The software that comes with it is simple and easy to use, you just click and drag songs from your hard drive to the Stone, and it’s quite quick too being USB 2.0 (I didn’t intend for that to rhyme). The one thing with which I have a problem is the method of obtaining the software. You don’t get a CD in the package; you have to download it from the Creative website. What if I don’t have internet access? I may have an extensive music collection but live in an area with no internet access or perhaps I’m buying the cheap Stone because I don’t have the money to blow on things like internet or expensive mp3 players. Forgive the rant, that just annoyed me!

---Health and Safety---

Yes health and safety has reared its head again, in the form of a volume limiter. The maximum volume it plays can be set using the software, and can be turned on or off if you want. You’re not stuck with a tiny sound. I can see this being useful if you’re giving this to a child and want to protect their ears. To be honest I’ve deafened myself a few times without intending to, perhaps I should switch it on.

The Bad Things

---Charging---

While the battery life is good, the method of charging it is just irritating. The only way to power it is to plug it into a USB port in a computer which is switched on. The mini USB cable isn’t a standard mini USB cable so you have to use the one supplied. This essentially means if I go travelling without a computer I have about 10 hours of music in total – this is annoying and something I didn’t realise before buying. There may be some accessory available that allows you to plug it into mains, but I don’t think I should have to fork out the extra cash for it.

---Button Size---

I can’t think of that much to complain about, but there is one thing that stands out. If you have fingers of the chubbier variety, this is not the player for you. The buttons on the front are spaced rather closely to each other, so you’ll end up mashing volume and track buttons when you intend to pause it.

---Lack of Screen---

This is only a problem if you allow it to be. If you load only your favourite tracks and accept whatever comes along, then it’s fine. If you want direct control over exactly what the next song will be, get another player. On the plus side, everything in the directory on it is stored in folders, so I can have a “Queen” folder and then an “Alexi Murdoch” folder (if you don’t know the latter, read the review I’ll be aiming to write in a few days, you’re missing out!). It’s listed alphabetically, and once a track appears in a folder you want, you slide across the slider at the top to a different setting and it continues playing songs in that folder in order, no longer random. If you know all your songs you can also use this slider to skip to the next folder and get to the exact song you want like that. It’s not perfect, but it’s better than complete randomness.

Overall

I use my Stone at the gym – I can run with it, and since it’s so light it won’t jiggle around in my pocket. It won’t skip because it’s flash memory rather than a hard drive, and since there’s no screen the battery life is good and weight is kept down. I like it. For what it is it’s very good, but there are a few issues (not really with the Stone itself, but with Creative policy) that mean I can’t give it 5 stars, so it’s getting 4.

The photos are a little strange, I realise – I tried to capture the “spinning on headphones” thing. Trying to take a photo clearly whilst spinning it in front of me is not easy, as the photos probably show! (and my hand isn’t as broken, that’s just a very strange angle...)
If you want a music player that’ll keep you entertained for a while for only a little cash, this is the one. It even comes in different colours. What more could you ask for than Barbie Pink?

Thanks for reading.

Michael

http://uk.europe.creative.com/landing/zenstone/welcome.asp 

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