Creative Zen Style M300. My story.

Question

Hello to all,
The following is a list of features that, in my humble opinion, every decent MP3 reader must have:
1) Must be SMALL. Images and video must be avoided because they increase screen size: MP3 reader is for playing music, I use it during jogging and I need to hold it in a single hand. If I want to see images and videos I use my smartphone.
2) Must have a great capacity even if you play only music. I usually buy 8 GB players and expand it with 16 GB SDHC card. 24 Gb is enough for me.
3) Must have a battery duration of, at least, 15 hours.
4) Must have a processor fast enough to have a good response time.
5) MUST support browsing by folder.
6) Must have FM radio.
7) Buttons must be responsive and placed in right places in order to be easily accessible with a single hand.
8) The output must be sufficiently loud.
9) Must support MP3 and WMA.
10) Must have a good SNR.
One year ago the only player that fits all these requirements was Sansa Clip Plus. A very well designed MP3 reader (in terms of features). BUT, my first Sansa Clip Plus battery dead after 6 months. At the time no other valid alternative exists... so I buy a second Sansa Clip Plus. After some months, it stop to works with apparently no reason. How sad. Look like that battery and/or power system of Sansa Clip Plus is very poor. So I have tried to find a valid alternative. I have tried the Creative Zen Style M300. But it lacks some important features. Referring to the previous list:
1) The size is acceptable.
2) OK
3) OK
4) Not fast and responsive as the Sansa Clip Plus but could be accepted (Sansa Clip Plus is very very fast).
5) This feature is absent and IMHO is a totally wrong decision. I have tons of MP3 organized in folders and now I have to reorganize they differently. In addition the reader come with no software and I don't know how to edit ID3 tag.
6) OK
7) Touch buttons are a really bad choice for a MP3 reader. They are not very responsive and badly located (hard to be handled by a single hand). To be more comfortable the volume buttons should be placed on the left side (usually managed by forefinger and middle finger of the right hand).
8) Volume is poor. Equalizer have no effect if your volume is near the maximum level (31), because the output power is limited. Look like Creative limit power for European models. Sansa Clip Plus also limit power, but you can choose your country in the configuration menu and if you select a country outside Europe, you can overcome that problem.
9) OK
10) OK
I wish to report my experiences hoping that Creative designers can read it.
- A disappointed customer

Answer 1

Hi,
Most music (classical) is from ripped CD's, some albums from eMusic. If needed I use Mp3tag.
The problem is that the pics seem to show up or not at random. It's not a big deal really, just odd.
I don't have this problem with my Zen X-Fi 2. Only problem there is pics for .flac files.
Gilles