SanDisk Sansa Express (2 GB) MP3 Player

This is the second Sansa MP3 player I have owned. Purchased it after my original one, which was several years old at the time, just crapped out and suddenly quit in the middle of a gym session! I wasn't looking to spend a lot of money on an MP3 player, but still wanted some basics - display the song being played, easy controls, etc. I purchased this at my local Staples store for $35.

Some of the pros of this player: It's compact size is very nice! It's literally about the size of a pack of gum, so it's easy to use at the gym (with separately purchased sport band). I only have dialup internet at home (!!) so when I need to download some new tunes I go to a friends house - this thing just slides right in my jeans pocket and off I go.

The built in USB connector is a plus. My old Sansa had a separate cord that half the time I'd forget, get all the way over to the friends house to download some tunes, and then have to go all the way back home because I left the stupid cord there! Having the USB connector on the end of this player (there's a small cap you just remove to reveal it) makes it just so much easier to use, so much easier to re-charge, everything. That's a big plus.

The battery life is QUITE good. The previous Sansa I'd had was operated by AAA batteries, and I was frankly a little leery of a re-chargeable unit. But those qualms were quickly put to rest. I use this for about 30 minutes a night at the gym, 5 nights a week, and I routinely go about a month and a half before I even think of sticking it in my computer to recharge. If you download music routinely, it's even less of an issue, because anytime you stick the USB thingee into your computer to download music it is also recharging the unit.

The controls are pretty intuitive, which for a 40-something year old user is a plus! I like that it's very easy to toggle between tunes, if for instance I'm doing intervals and I get to the intense part and want to skip the slow song, it's a one-touch toggle right on the face of the player - easy. Has a nice display for such a small unit, showing the song, artist, place in the song, etc.

Some things worth mentioning, that could be pros OR cons, depending on how you use the players: If you turn the unit off in the middle of the song, it's the middle of the song that will start playing when you turn it back on the next day at the gym. Depending on your preferences, that's a good thing or a bad thing. The unit has an automatic shut off - I'm not sure the actual timer on it, but if for instance someone walks up to you and wants to talk, and you press pause on the song, if your conversation goes very long at all your player shuts itself off. Actually I'm okay with that. The player does not have a "fast forward" or "reverse" function - you can toggle back and forth from one song to another, and from the middle of a song to the very beginning of a song, but you can't fast forward or reverse WITHIN the song.

Sound on this unit is very good, though I have found (of course) noticeable differences depending on the ear buds I'm using. The ones that came with it were good sound quality, but the foam that surrounded the buds didn't stand up very long to gym use so I ended up replacing them by trying out several different types of buds. Buy the best buds you can afford, though on a $35 player I'd be hard pressed to put really expensive buds on them.

If you're a true music-geek, I don't know that this is the player for you - it doesn't have nearly the bells and whistles of an IPOD or some of the other top notch players, including some of the top of the line Sansa players. But if what you need is a TRULY dependable, there when you need it and easy to use player for the gym or for other use, it's absolutely PERFECT. Small, easy, great battery life - it'll get you through the toughest workouts no problem, and for $35, what more do you want?