Creative Zen 32GB

...suggest definitely installing the provided Creative Media Explorer software before use. Surprisingly I really like the Creative software which has many options to manage the player and media files, including managing playlists. I mostly use the Creative Media Explorer to manage the player's libraries and add files to the player, which works on a standard drag and drop basis.

Windows users can also use Windows Media Player to make ...
...interface that comes with the Creative manager software. I suppose this comes down to personal preference but the Creative software is provided so please try it out. I was pleasantly surprised by its ease of use. Alternatively you can drag files to the Zen as though adding files to a usb memory stick, negating the need to use either the Creative software or Windows Media Player.

I have also been using the 'rip CD' function that comes ... more

In short this is without a doubt THE best mp3 player I have owned. I would recommend this product to a fellow technophobe like myself; if you are looking for a palm sized, simple to use gadget to store audio, picture and video files, view/listen to them AND have remarkable audio and visual quality from such a small device, consider a Zen.

WHY I DIDN'T OPT FOR AN IPOD

Two broad reasons :

1) Far too many bad reports from friends who have tried the various ipods on offer but have ended up trading them in for mp3 players;

2) I really don't rate the ipod's sound output when compared to other mp3 players I have owned.

THE ZEN

The Zen can play videos, act as a photo viewer, even has an FM radio function and its own in built microphone but I mainly use it as an mp3 player. Given its internal memory of 32 gb and the option of using a SD memory card (much the same way as you use one for a digital camera/mobile phone) and expand the available memory at your fingertips even further, theaverage price for a 32gb Zen is a good investment in my opinion. I paid the same price for a top of the range Sony 8gb mp3 player in 2007 so I personally feel the current price of a 32gb Zen is good value for money.

DESIGN

Definitely a palm of the hand sitting gadget and I would agree that it is credit card credit sized. The Zen is just ever so slightly wider than a Sony Ericsson W910i phone, a few inches shorter and slightly less thick than the phone. The photos of the Zen to be found on the internet do the product justice if trying to gage the size and design.

The plus side to the Zen's width is that there is a fantastic 2.5 inch screen which is far wider than the average sized screen on most mp3 players.

The Zen is of plastic construction and still feels solid enough to withstand the odd accidental drop. The back of the Zen is a fantastic matte plastic which should with luck mean it takes a lot to scratch it whereas the front (screen side) is comparatively glossy and though this does attract the annoying finger mark problem, this is easily remedied.

Next to the screen are the control buttons and whilst light to the touch they do feel like substantial buttons. At the top right hand corner of the player are two buttons : to the left of the topright hand corner there is a return to menu/back button (indicated by the 'back' arrow icon) and next to that is the options button which has a very unique looking icon - a sort of arrow pointing down next to an odd shape.

Below these buttons there is a large almost joystick like pad (the direction pad) with a more pronounced button in the centre (the ok button). The direction pad looks a bit like a joystick and it enables you to scroll up and down when browsing the library and when on the now playing screen to fast forward, rewind and skip forward and skip back.

The 'ok' button does what it says on the tin and is the button you press to select a particular option, for example to select a particular file.

Below the direction pad/ok button is the play/pause button on the bottom right hand corner with the surely by now infamous play/pause icon (the triangle next to two lines).

To the left of the play button is the 'my shortcut' button which has the same icon as a shortcut does on a PC. I have yet to use the shortcut button for performing basic functions.

On the right hand edge of the player are the important headphone socket, followed underneath by the on/off flick switch which you can only flick in one direction to either turn on/off (nice and easy) and below that is the USB cable 'sync' socket that you use to put the sync cable i

The Zen instantly wins my approval by its "use of a more standard USB 2.0 cable" than most 'sync cable' devices. The Zen uses the same type of USB 'mini B' cable that you normally get with a digital camera and I have been using the same cable I had with my Canon Powershot as a sync cable with the Zen because the cable you get with the Zen is a little bit short. I am very impressed because replacement USB cables of this type are easily sourced at most electric shops or over the internet at far more competitive prices than say a Sony Walkman sync cable often is (I write this from personal experience.)

BASIC FUNCTIONS/EASE OF USE

Incredibly easy to use. The 'quickstart' instruction guide that comes with the player is fantastic for explaining basic functions although you will need to read the far more comprehensive user guide that comes with the included installation disk for more complex tasks. I wouldn't have minded having a paper copy of the instruction guide as well but having a far more detailed instruction guide on the included installation disk seems to be the norm with mp3 players from my experience.

SCANNING THE LIBRARIES

I find the scrolling through the library function incredibly user friendly. In music mode for example you can search by playlists (which "can" be compiled on the go), by artist, genre, album name and 'all tracks.' Though this is relatively common for most mp3 players, the Zen wins by delivering a further means to make scanning the libraries easier.

Whilst scanning through one of the above search library options, you can make use of the convenient alphabetical bookmarks function which you will see on the side of the screen when searching the library. To get to these bookmarks you simply use the friendly direction pad and press right to then access the 'bookmarks' which enable you to search the files alphabetically. Use the up and down buttons on the direction pad to find your chosen letter (for example 'T'). To then return to the main library listings after finding your bookmark, as if by pure logical thinking, you press the 'left' button on the direction pad to go back.

I have probably made it sound complex but the Zen's search functions are advanced in terms of user friendliness. My old Samsung did not have a bookmark function and made trying to find files comparatively tedious at times. The bookmarks make searching a completely different ball game.

Like most mp3 players, you can use the direction pad to skip, rewind and fastforward with ease by simply pressing either left or right depending on whether you are skipping back or forward or depress left or right and continue to hold until the file has been rewound or fastforwarded to user's satisfaction. I sometimes enjoy rewinding, particularly to listen to a fantastic solo again although the skip function is ideal at times as anyone who has owned a piece of audio equipment in the past 20 years will know.

SOUND QUALITY

Quite simply excellent. You would not notice a meaningful difference to CD quality unless listening to a really compressed file. I do not use the EQ at all although there are some 8 presets to choose from (including the usual pop, jazz and classical ones) and a spare EQ for the user to customise to taste. I personally leave the EQ off on the Zen because I find the default setting more than satisfactory (a rarity for me.) The provided in-ear phones are comfortable and produce a reasonable sound output - definitely akin to mid-range priced earphones on the market. They have a full and rich sound compared to the often faint and weak output from the in ear phones supplied on aeroplanes for example.

I would say that the Creative's audio output when plugged into other stereo equipment, including through my mixing desk and out of professional powered speakers, and out of IPOD/MP3 player speakers is excellent compared to that of the IPOD. I cannot criticise the output for sounding too compressed or tinny - most ears would not notice any major loss of sound quality. I personally place the Creative's audio output along the same lines as my Sony mp3 player which has exceptional audio output.

WHERE'S THE VOLUME SWITCH?

Surprisingly the Zen does not have a designated volume switch "as such" although from a design perspective, given the screen dominates the front of the player, a further button on the side or front of screen would have left the Zen feeling a bit crowded. The volume however is easily accessed by pressing another of the main buttons on the front of the player, namely the options button found in the top right hand corner of the player. If you press this button, you are presented with the options menu and you simply use the direction pad to scroll down to find the word 'volume,' press the ok button on the direction pad and then use the up and down scroll function on the direction pad to turn the volume up and down as required. The options button combined with the minimal use of the direction pad really make the options button a volume control in all but name in my opinion. I honestly believe anybody will become accustomed to this within hours.

VIDEO AND PICTURE QUALITY

The screen on the Zen is magnificent for a device that is so small. I have made use of the picture viewer to look at the album artwork which tend to flash up on screen if you have ripped audio files from a legitimate CD for example! I have also transferred some .jpgs over to test the photo viewing features and considering that you can rotate the images and zoom in, combined with the impressive colour screen, the picture viewing functions are incredible for such a device and along the same lines as using such functions on a digital camera, although don't expect the picture viewing to be exactly the same standard as a top of the range Canon!

I have yet to use the video viewing functions but have had a taster watching some of the video files that are already prestored on the player before purchase. I would say that the quality is definitely more advanced than the pocket portable TV players of the 1990s and probably on a par with video playing mobile phones, if not a bit better than the quality one can expect when watching a video on a mobile phone. However, watching films will eat the battery life far more quickly than listening to music will do and video files tend to take up more room, although with its 32 gb and option to use SD memory cards, the player can cope with storing video files.

PROVIDED SOFTWARE

I would suggest definitely installing the provided Creative Media Explorer software before use. Surprisingly I really like the Creative software which has many options to manage the player and media files, including managing playlists. I mostly use the Creative Media Explorer to manage the player's libraries and add files to the player, which works on a standard drag and drop basis.

Windows users can also use Windows Media Player to make sync lists to transfer files but I find the Creative software transfers files more swiftly than Windows Media Player and I prefer the layout of the drag and drop interface that comes with the Creative manager software. I suppose this comes down to personal preference but the Creative software is provided so please try it out. I was pleasantly surprised by its ease of use. Alternatively you can drag files to the Zen as though adding files to a usb memory stick, negating the need to use either the Creative software or Windows Media Player.

I have also been using the 'rip CD' function that comes with the Creative Media Explorer because for some reason it works faster than Windows Media Player on my computers and you can rip files directly to the player with the Creative software, which is an added bonus.

THE RADIO FUNCTION

The Zen comes with a nifty FM radio option. I was led to believe that the provided earphones acted as an aerial to make the radio function work but after using a variety of headphones with my Zen to listen to the radio, I don't think this is the case.

You can easily select the options button after selecting the radio mode to 'autoscan' for you which will find radio station frequencies and tune them in automatically. However, I simply used the direction pad to find frequencies manually. Call me a traditionalist! You also have the option of naming the presets and are presented with a very nifty 'QWERTY' keyboard type interface for you to easily select letters and numbers with the direction pad. Quite cool!

The radio signal like all radios depends on the signal strength and in my house I am blessed with very good quality signal strength. I am therefore very impressed with the quality which sounds no less different to my portable cd player with in built radio which we have in the kitchen.

FINAL POINTERS

Whilst the Zen does not include a usb charger, such chargers can be bought separately and as usb mains chargers are pretty standard, you do not have to purchase a specific Creative charger to charge the Zen at the mains, thus you can potentially save money. For example, I have an old Argos own brand usb charger that was at least £10 cheaper than a Sony usb mains charger aimed to be used with a Sony mp3 player walkman. I can simply plugthe one end of the provided usb cable into this Argos usb charger and charge the Zen at the mains - ideal for travelling! Alternatively when at home the Zen can of course be charged by simply plugging it into a usb socket on your PC tower or laptop.

Apparently though the Zen does support SD memory cards as a means to expand the memory, files which are saved on to the card do not become part of the main library on the player when the card is in place. I am used to this when using an SD card with my mobile phone and can empathise with the 'is the file I'm looking for saved to the memory card or the player memory itself?' problem this brings. Considering I bought a 32 gb player I am hoping I will not need to expand the memory by using an SD card at all! However, there are other mp3 or portable media players which will allow you to integrate files stored on an SD card with those that are actually stored on the player's memory so if this minor piece of information is offputting, I suppose it would be wise to look elsewhere.

A final piece of advice I can offer is to consider investing in one of the many protective covers/cases that can be purchased separately for the Zen. One of my relatives kindly bought me a leather case for the Zen as a Christmas present and I will never have to take the Zen out of this case again with luck for the case has designated holes to access the headphone and usb sockets and the on/off switch located on the player's side. The protective cover also makes the player feel a bit larger than it actually is if that makes sense. 

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