SanDisk Sansa e280 8 GB Flash Portable Media Player

Ipod alternative

Strengths: Sound quality, 8GB, transflash slot, FM radio, voice recording

Weakness: Buttons. Charging only through USB (unless you get an adaptor).

This is a little thicker than the Ipod Nano, but some people prefer it as they feel the Ipod is too thin. I was using a Lexar mp3 player so it actually seems big in comparison. With the Lexar I was able to keep it in my backpack with an extra AAA battery and never have to connect it to my computer. With the Sansa you need to charge it through the USB cable unless you get an adaptor. Get a...

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SanDisk Sansa E280

Strengths: Small, expansion slot, FM radio, Voice recorder

Weakness: Jog dial is loose, side buttons are very close to the dial, no wall charger

I was looking for an Ipod alternative, and I found the sansa e280 is a good candidate since I already have the 1 GB MP3 player sansa also. This one is not as light as IPOD nano, but it is lighter than expcted. Easy to use and navigate through the different menus. Also, with the software that come with it, it is easy to convert different media files to it.

Music to my ears!

Strengths: Small, lots of space, expandable storage, works great with my Yahoo! Unlimited To Go subscription, handles video/music/pictures, great sound

Weakness: Lowest volume setting is a bit loud, raised scroll wheel can get in the way of the buttons, only power cord in the box is a USB cable

My husband gave me this little beauty as an early Christmas present, and he's still laughing at the huge grin that was on my face. This is a great alternative to the iPod, especially if you're into a track "rental" subscription like Yahoo! Music. (I had to update the firmware before it was recognized by YMJ as a subscription compatible device, though) The player is tiny, about the size of a small...

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good sound quality, good value, but a few quirks/bugs

Strengths: sound quality, custom EQ, user replaceable battery, features not found on main competitor (Nano): video, FM radio, voice recording

Weakness: small navigation buttons, some minor bugs as noted below

I upgraded from a Sansa e140 and am very satisfied with this player. In terms of sound quality, there's no comparison between the two. I was using Etymotic 6i earbuds with both, not the earbuds shipped with either player, so the sound quality difference is definitely attributable to the player. While the e140 was certainly satisfactory, the e280 sounds very good with well encoded mp3s: a nice,...

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By member: yongoh - Nov 17, 2006

Sansa e280 is better

Strengths: cheaper than ipod, large capacity (relatively), features galore, FM radio, video playback, crisp screen

Weakness: buttons hard to press, video playback only 10min intervals, no video bookmark, need to upgrade firmware out of the box

Let me first start by saying that most of the weaknesses that people find in the e280 can be worked around. They just need to do some research on the internet to find some good forums that discuss this player... I've been searching for literally YEARS for my first MP3 player. I never got into the iPod scene and never really saw a need for an MP3 player in general until I started taking public...

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Great player, HUGE flash drive

Strengths: Biggest flash drive on the market, easy to use interface, bright display, removable battery, good battery life

Weakness: No OGG capability, doesn't come with standalone charger

This is the largest flash drive MP3 player you can get. For the price of the 8GB Sansa player you could get a 4GB IPod Shuffle. You can't have a review of Mp3 players without comparing it to the IPod. It is a little shorter than the Shuffle, but it is a litte thicker. The player also plays video and has photo capability, but you must use a proprietary format for these. Sansa provides a CD that...

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Solid Player

Strengths: Huge screen size, wheel is easy and intuitive to use, FM tuner is a good addition, context menu button is handy, MicroSD slot good if using the device for stuff other than music, good battery life

Weakness: The 4 buttons on the outside of the wheel are small and hard to press, tuning to a particular FM station requires using the left and right buttons - using the wheel would be much easier

Overall, this is a solid player and a very good alternative to the iPod. The 8GB version is more than enough for purposes of the average audiophile, but the extra space and MicroSD expansion is nice for those who like to use their MP3 players as portable hard drives. The wheel is easier to use than the iPod, and the screen size is excellent. A drawback is that there are much fewer accessories out...

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Great Mp3 Player for the Money

Strengths: Price compared to Ipod, Good screen with video playback, FM Radio and voice recorder included, replaceable cell phone-type battery, MicroSD Slot means virtually unlimited storage space, if desired.

Weakness: Rather long boot time as device fills with files, moderate FM station sensitivity.

After researching the new Mp3 players to replace my old one (I had an old Sandisk 512 Mb player which served me adequately), I narrowed my choice to the Sandisk Sansa e280 and the Apple Ipod Nano. I ultimately decided on the Sandisk, which was less expensive and included an FM radio ( a requirement for me), video playback, and a MicroSD memory slot to add more memory. So far I've been very...

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sansa e280 rocks

Strengths: large flash player, drag and drop interface, large screen, small size, quick shut-down, built-in fm tuner

Weakness: proprietary usb cable, slow boot-up time, keys aren't glowey (only the wheel glows)

this mp3 player is an awesome player for its price. the worst thing about it is the slow boot-up time (takes about 10-15 seconds). it would be cool if the keys glowed when you were pressing stuff like they do on the creative zen vision and micro, but it's not needed for usefulness; it's pretty obvious which button does what. the proprietary usb cable limits it a little bit, but sandisk has had a...

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Sansa e280 8GB MP3 Player

Strengths: 8gb, FM radio, FM/MIC recording, movie play back, good sound, easy drag and drop mp3s.

Weakness: The wheel, and the button

I would buy this any day over a ipod nano. It is slightly bigger, but as we all know, bigger is better, and this statement definitely holds true for this player. Again, it is slightly bigger, and you gain many things such as recording lectures (if your a student) or FM recording, it has movie playback thing, where you can watch movies on it, 20 hours of battery life, which is supposedly user...

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