Hey guys, been a while! Reviewing can be time consuming, hence I havn't got around to going any other reviews. But I simply had to, for this wonderful little machine!

These MP3 players are a far cheaper alternative to the iPod. A 16GB iPod Nano is a sizable £145, whereas this is just under £100. Impressive. But for those who couldn't fill those up, there are cheaper versiona going under £60, so it's so easy to find the right one for you and not overspend!

If an MP3 doesn't have good sound quality, forget it. I won't touch it, and I certainly would never buy it! The first MP3 player I had was a Samsung YP-K3, and the sound quality was outstanding. Then I bought the iPod Classic 120GB, and to my surprise, it was nowhere near as good as the Samsung. I then bought a Creative Zen X-Fi, which was good but not as good (And may I add the player broke on the 6th day of me owning it. Avoid it like the plague), and the Samsung YP-Q1 (The MP3 player being reviewed right now. Pay attention!) surpassed each and every one of them. I mean... Wow.

1. The Equaliser (This controls which sounds of the song stand out, so you can make the bass stand out in dance tracks and the treble in jazz and so on)
2. 3D Sound and Bass (3D sound is how the song goes around your ear, this is best used with In-Ear Headphones. And bass is the bass, quite obviously)
3. Concert Hall (This is very clever, you can make every song sound as if it is live, realisticly!)
4. Clarity (I don't recommend using this, it's meant to make the songs clearer, but it doesn't do a good job)
   So with the top 3 settings (Don't use clarity!), you can make an amazing sound quality! Even on the loudest settings, the songs don't crackle or jump. It's something i've never, ever seen before. Ever.

Ease of Use

Look and Design

1. When you're starting out, the "Left" key is far too close to the "Back" key. This will take some getting used to, and it can be a pain.
2. The On/Off/Lock key is FAR TOO FLIMSY. Whenever I use it I'm afraid i'll snap it off.
   The lighting effects on the arrow keys are amazing. I've never, ever seen ANY gadget do it as well as the Samsung does. I'm really surprised no brand has caught onto this, because it's genious. You don't have to Press anything, you just put your finger on it. Which is of course healthier for the fingers, and it's utterly silent. Every time you press one down, the lights make the effect as if you were literally pressing it down. Every time I use it, I say nothing except "ABSOLUTELY AWESOME!!!", and when you press the middle, all the arrows do the effect. It really is amazing. Insignificant to the MP3, but amazing nonetheless.
   I don't like the new shape of it. The YP-K3 was a complete rectangle, and amazingly thin. This one has curves and is thicker. I can understand it being thicker, because it has more stuff on it. But the curves make it look "Behind the times", but one look and use of the keypad and all worries will be wiped away in a blue light of joy.
   However, I do kind of wish you had the option for the Menu and Back key to light up. But to be honest, you don't really need it. Once you've used it once, you'll know exactly where to press. It doesn't raise a problem, but I wish it was an option.
   I gave Look & Design 4/5. It has some amazing stuff, and certainly will impress people more than the look of the iPod, but the niggle about the Back key and the On/Off/Lock key does set it back.

Range of Features

1. Music (Obviously...)
2. Videos (This is the ability to view Videos on your player. The resolution is great, and the picture is sharp. Nothing else to say, it's excellent)
3. Pictures (Obviously, viewing pictures on your Player. The picture is sharp, it's quick to load, and you can use any picture as your background for the player. Excellent again.)
4. Texts (This is something no other player has ever done, you can view text files on your samsung player! So if you want to copy and paste a story on it and read it whilst listening to music, you can! Not something I'd ever use, but for the bookworms out there, you may appreciate it.
5. FM Radio (Obviously enough, a radio built in. The reception is satisfactory but can sometimes be glitchy, and you probably won't get a good reception when you have it in your pocket. Which is a shame, but not a lot can be done about it)
6. Datacasts (I don't know anything about this, because I've never used it. You have to use Emodio (The software that comes with it), and I don't like it. See further on in the review)
7. Games (You can play games on your player! The games are "Bomb Bomb", "Bubble Smile", and "Chicken Runaway". These are well made games, but again. I wouldn't use it, because it's not what I use an MP3 player for. I'm sure you can get more games, probably from Emodio, but i'd never bother.)
8. Voice Recorder (Yeah, you can record voice and replay it. You can also upload it to your computer and use it. So if you want to do an audio diary, you can. You can also record friends to humilate them, but again. I wouldn't use it)
9. "Subway" (This is very new, this shows all of the train routes in the UK. It's accurate, but a bit useless for a 16 year old unless I was planning on taking a trip)
10. Settings (You can change almost anything in here to make the player unique to you, it's awesome and easy to use)
    All in all, it's one of the most flexible and richly usable MP3 players I've ever seen. It certainly rivals the iPod, which is hard to do.

Value for Money

1. Sony - Their player most similar to this at 16GB is nearly £130. (I tried one out, and they were good, but not great)
2. Creative - Their player most similar to this at 16GB is nealry £150. (AVOID LIKE THE PLAGUE, Unless you have £150 to spend every 6 days. Because they break after the 6th day!)
3. Apple - Their player most similar to this at 16GB is £145. (The iPod Nano has a massive range of accessories, but it's sound quality lets it down.)
4. Samsung - Theirs reigns surpreme at less than £100. (This is very expensive over the internet, buy it from Argos for £100!)
   The Samsung is the cheapest of the range and also the best i've tried. No brainer.

Durability

What Comes In The Box?

1. USB Cable (A strong and easy to use cable, which is just the right length. Though more length on it would be welcome)
2. Headphones (Uh-oh, Audio Junkies beware. They're good-ish, but nothing can recreate pure In Ear headphones. I recommend buying a pair of Sony headphones, they're great quality and they compliment the Samsung very well.)
3. Instruction leaflet (It isn't even necessary with how easy it is to use)
4. Installation CD (Not necessary, but it includes Emodio)
5. Warrenty cards etc.

It's all packaged in a lovely box that folds out like a book. It's easy to open, and everything is safe in there. Theres 2 little compartments. One containing the leads, and the other, the cards, leftlets, instructions, and the installation CD. I use the compartment for the cards and leaflets for my reciept, just in case something goes wrong. They use the shape of the keypad as a fashion accessory, as it's printed all over the box. It's the thing that really stands out. Overall, it's well packaged.

Emodio

BBC iPlayer