For storing audio books and various music files MP3 players are apt devices. The term is used generically to represent any digital device which is portable. There is a slight difference present between PMP, also known as Portable Media Device, and a MP3 player. Even though all PMPs are capable of playing audio files, video files cannot be played in all the MP3 players. Many such examples can be cited like SanDisk Sansa Clip, Creative Labs Zen Stone, and iPod Shuffle which are not capable of playing video files.
Among the various brands present in the domain of MP3 devices, an iPod from Apple happens to be a popular choice. But many other dependable brands are available and your choice would depend to a large extent on your budget and your requirements. Brands which fall in this category are Cowon, Coby, Archos, Creative Labs, Samsung, Philips, Toshiba, Sony, etc. The MP3 players are also categorized into different types like memory-based players (flash), and hard-drive based players. This classification is done on the basis of how the digital data is stored.
The storage capacity of hard-drive based players is significantly more than the other kind. These players are also heavier compared to the memory-based players (Flash). Examples of such players would be iPod Classic 160 GB, Zune 120 GB, iPod Classic 120 GB, etc. The drawback that is associated with these players is that malfunction often occurs when these gadgets are exposed to elevated temperatures or when they are dropped.
On the other hand, a flash memory-based MP3 player is smaller and lighter. No mobile parts exist in this kind of players and 100 to 8000 songs can be easily stored. Examples of such players would be Apple iPod Nano, Apple iPod Touch, Creative Labs Zen PMP, etc.
I hope this has given you some insight into the mp3 player market. If you are looking to buy, check out my website for great deals.
