Nice little MP3 player

I wanted a device that could play MP3 files and record my voice for quick memos. The MuVo V100 does both. It's a very compact unit -- when plugged into its L-shaped cradle, it's a little bit larger than a cigarette lighter.

It takes 1 AAA battery, which fits into its cradle. The stated average battery life is 18 hours, which is plenty of playing time. A rechargeable AAA battery can be used, but it must be taken out of the cradle to be recharged.

The MuVo V100 has 4 controls -- two buttons for volume, one for play/pause and on/off (when held down for 5 seconds), and a wheel to select the various modes.

To load files, it unplugs from its cradle into a USB port of any computer. The MuVo acts like any removable flash drive when plugged in, so transferring files to it is relatively easy. With a 2 Gb capacity, it can store an entire library of songs or data.

Included with the MuVo is additional software to facilitate the transfer of files, Windows Media Player 10, Creative's own media player and ripper, and Audible Reader.

The voice recorder doesn't do a bad job, but the tiny microphone isn't powerful enough to pick up sounds from a distance. Even when spoken into at a distance of 6 inches, it recorded, but I had to boost the volume to hear the replay.

One caveat: Creative's customer support is bare-bones -- an online knowledge base and email. I had trouble using the MuVo from my desktop computer. Even after following the instructions given in the relevant knowledge base article, I still couldn't get the computer to recognize the drive. I sent an email message using the link provided on their website, and I received a friendly message pointing me to the knowledge support article I have previously read. I then tried using the MuVo on my laptop computer and it worked.

I also noticed that there are very few accessories available for the MuVo. Creative offers an arm strap, but that's it. There are no docking stations with speakers that I've been able to find.

It's also my understanding that the MuVo cannot play tunes downloaded from proprietary services such as iTunes and Zune.

Overall, it's a good little MP3 player and voice recorder. It's less expensive than other MP3 players, but I believe I'll be using this device for years to come.