Sandisk Sansa E 280 8GB

...a grey brushed metal, which SanDisk claim is more scratch resistant than other materials. So far I have one very small scratch on the back but the front is still devoid of scratches. The front also has four buttons around a scroll wheel (which is mechanical unlike the iPod's) and another inside the scroll wheel with one more in the bottom left corner as an on/off button. What I really like about this scroll wheel is that whenever you touch any button ...
...neon blue colour. Other than this there is a headphone jack at the top of the player and other buttons that I shall come to later. At first this does look like a rip off of Apple's iPod nano, particularly with the scroll wheel. However the differences in styling and functionality are noticeable when actually using the product.


NAVIGATION

The main way to navigate the various menus is via the scroll wheel on the ... more

I have had this mp3 player for a little over a week now and have so far been very impressed with it.

As soon as I pulled this player out of the box I was instantly struck by its sleek design. The front fascia is done in a glossy black which looks very cool and the back is made of a grey brushed metal, which SanDisk claim is more scratch resistant than other materials. So far I have one very small scratch on the back but the front is still devoid of scratches. The front also has four buttons around a scroll wheel (which is mechanical unlike the iPod's) and another inside the scroll wheel with one more in the bottom left corner as an on/off button. What I really like about this scroll wheel is that whenever you touch any button or turn on the device the scroll wheel shines a neon blue colour. Other than this there is a headphone jack at the top of the player and other buttons that I shall come to later. At first this does look like a rip off of Apple's iPod nano, particularly with the scroll wheel. However the differences in styling and functionality are noticeable when actually using the product.

The main way to navigate the various menus is via the scroll wheel on the front of the player. However if you don't like this method you could use the up/down/left/right buttons although this method is far slower and more awkward. When you want to open a folder you simply click the button in the middle of the scroll wheel. Whenever you want to go back to the previous folder you press the back button. This is an effective way of navigating the player and it is easy to pick up. The on/off button can also be used to access the main menu if you click it once (you have to hold it down for a few seconds to turn it off)

This is the main feature of the player so it is imperative that it is a good feature. Adding music to the device is done simply by using a 'drag and drop' method or by synchronising the device with Windows Media Player (more on this later). When you open the music folder on the main menu you are presented with a series of subfolders. Among these there are the usual folders as well as one for any recordings you have made and one for options when playing the music. These include options for shuffling the music, repeating it and one for the EQ setting you want - These are settings that alter the way that music is played back to you e.g. if you selected the rock EQ the music would be played back to you with more bass than normal. When actually playing the music a picture of the album appears at the top of the screen (if you have included one with the song) along with the name of the artist, song, and album below it. To play and pause songs you use the top button and to skip between songs you use the left and right buttons (which also fast forward and rewind through songs if you hold them down). To bring up the music settings again, you press the down button. Altering the volume is a simple case of turning the scroll wheel. Pressing the centre button brings up a graphics equaliser followed by either a full screen picture of the album cover (if you have one) or the name of the next song. Overall I am very impressed with this layout and find it easy to control. The only problem I ever have when playing music is with the playlists. If there are a large number of songs in the playlist then it can sometimes take several seconds to open the folder. For modern technology this can be quite annoying at times.

The video feature is quite a nice feature to have but owing to the size of the screen it is difficult to watch videos for longer than about 30 minutes as it strains your eyes. However it is very good for short clips or some short television programs as the colour and sound quality are both very good. There are no subfolders for the videos showing that this is not the primary feature of the player. There are also no options for playing them. But again this does not matter so much as because of the size of the screen this will always be just a nice feature rather than a reason to buy the player. In order to get videos onto the device you have to use the software bundled with it to convert the file to a QuickTime format.

This is a good feature on the device and less of a gimmick than the video feature. This is because the screen displays good quality, bright pictures and has a big enough screen so that you can see them properly. When you open the photos folder you are presented with three further subfolders. These are to view the photo list, view thumbnails, and to change slideshow options. The first displays full sized pictures, with the second displaying thumbnail versions which change to full size when selected with the centre button. The slideshow options let you change the shuffle and loop options as well as the amount of time each slide is displayed for. It also lets you select the option of playing music with the slideshow. Navigation is similar to music with the exception that the scroll wheel has no function unless the music option is selected. Photos are also added to the device by using a simple drag and drop method.

The other main features this device has are being able to make recordings and add further memory. The microphone produces good quality recordings, which can be made by clicking on voice in the main menu and then clicking 'recordnow' or by clicking the record button on the left of the device. You can also add further memory to the device via the MicroSD expansion slot. This could come in very handy if I ever run out of space on the player, although this is probably more helpful with the other Sansas in the e200 range which offer less memory to begin with. FM radio is offered on the U.S. models but due to there being extra tax on FM devices in Europe this feature has been switched off on the European models to reduce cost. The settings folder on the main menu offers the settings of all the other folders plus a few more specific to the device itself such as whether to use the backlight and date & time settings.

Adding media to the device is normally a case of using the 'drag and drop' method. However for music and videos there are alternative options. As I use Windows Media Player and already have a large library of music with different playlists and ratings for songs, I prefer to synchronise my device with WMP. This can be a little tricky at times though. When first connecting the device to my computer it took several attempts before my computer could find the right drivers for the e280, but I do not know whether this is because I have Windows Vista or whether it is the device itself. However I have had problems connecting the device since and have now realised that my computer will only detect the device if you connect it to the computer when it is already turned off. If it is turned on when you connect the cable it will only charge the device. Once this problem was solved the synchronising option was very easy to use; all you have to do is click 'start sync' under the sync tab in WMP and the whole library will be added to the device in a few minutes, depending on its size. However the e280 will only work with WMP 10 and above, which are free to download online if you do not already have them. Videos are also added to the device in a different way. In order for the e280 to play the videos they must be converted into a format the device can play by using the Sansa Media Converter software that comes bundled with the e280. This is easy to use and simply a case of adding files you want to put on the device to a list and clicking convert. They will then be converted and automatically added to the device.

Along with the player itself there are a few bundled extras. These are a USB cable, earphones, protective case, lanyard, quick start guide, and CD. The earphones are in my opinion of good quality compared to others such as the iPod earphones. The protective case is a very handy feature and has probably contributed to the lack of scratches on the device. I do not use the lanyard but it would probably be a nice extra for some people. The CD contains the bundled software which is mainly the media converter but also includes a user guide.

I have been very impressed with this mp3 player and can find very few faults with it. The e280 is very easy to navigate, looks gorgeous and comes packed with extra features all for a very competitive price - the player is almost half the price of the equivalent iPod and comes with a bigger screen and more options including the ability to play videos. The only problem I ever have with this device is a small wait when playing a playlist. However compared to everything else the device offers and the quality of the music it plays this is a very small problem and I would definitely recommend this mp3 player to prospective buyers.

Playable Formats: MP3 WAV WMA
Video Playback: Yes
Memory Type: Internal
Connectivity: USB
Colour: Black
Weight: 75g
Width: 1.7 inches
Length: 3.5 inches
Thickness: 0.5 inches
Display Size: 1.8 inches
Display Type: LCD
Software Provided: Drivers and utilities
Battery Life: 20 Hours
Type of Battery: Lithium-Ion Rechargeable
Storage Capacity: 8 GB 

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