Because I’ve been traveling and thus out of the loop, I’ve decided that it’s only fair to extend our HiFi contest and features by another week. We’ll be giving away two little devices that many of you are eager to get your greasy paws on: the Sansa Connect from SanDisk.
Make the jump for full details:
To enter, all you have to do is make as many compelling comments as you can possibly muster. We’ll select the best two commenters from the entire week and they’ll each receive a Sansa Connect from SanDisk. Winners will be announced next Friday (for reals this time).
You absolutely must leave your email address in the commenter info field. No comments without valid email addresses will be considered. I emphasize this, because there is always a great comment that I’d like to reward, but it lacks an address.
Thanks to SanDisk for providing the Connects for the competition.
I continue to debate with myself about the value of a mp3 player verses a CD. I still enjoy the art work in the CD case. When all is said and done, I want the music. Downloading is by far quicker and the thrill of being able to hear the music without waiting is some line is great.
Yeah, but good MP3 software (and I don’t mean iTunes) will find the cover art off of the internet for every album in your collection. Some portable players will display it too, but the downside of that is that you need to already have the cover art file on the player, since it can’t really download them itself.
Nothing will ever beat having the actual album. DAP’s are good for portability but for a true music aficionado nothing is better than having the actual CD or LP. My love affair with LP’s has been rekindled recently with the release of a few good USB turntables. We have a large collection of rare records, I can’t wait to pick one of those turntables up and rip some good music. Also… Records = no DRM.
Oh, drat, I need software for an MP3 player too?
Wow, I need to get started learning more about the next new wave of music.
But USB turntables sound interesting too. If I go that direction where would I find LP’s? Oh, what to do?
WiFi, friendly anime-looking with a cool antenna stub, 4 GB – I can’t find anything not to like about the Sansa Connect. The WiFi feature is great. It has two modes I think are cool: Sleep and Flight. For Sleep, press power for a couple of seconds and you’re there (it can zzzzzz for up to 2 weeks). For Flight, you turn off the WiFi radio and antenna, then you can play music from the library or view photos from the SD card while you’re on an airplane (and not screw up the pilot’s instruments). Free services for the Connect include basic internet radio stations, Flickr photo viewing and Yahoo! ID friends list. Being connected to Flickr and able to view my photos on the run is a terrific feature. A subscription gets you premium Internet Radio stations, direct downloads from Yahoo! Subscription, and downloading of recommended songs. Yahoo! Subscription – now that’s a great idea. Sounds easy and I like not having to be connected to a computer to download the music. It has 4GB on board and supports a 2GB microSD card – very nice, because those pictures are going to take up a fair amount of space. Plans call for a firmware update that will allow even bigger cards – like it! And soon they’ll add the ability to store to internal memory – like that, too! JPEG and PNG – my faves. Charging via either USB port or AC power – it’s nice to have options. Did I mention I like the WiFi? I also like the fact that if there’s no Internet activity, Connect’s WiFi will disconnect to save juice. Smart Sansa! I’m a SanDisk fan and think they’ve really done a great job on this one – nice to see that the physical design and the technical features are in alignment. A great device for music and a lot more.
The connect is what the zune should have been, but it is still light years away from being complete. Seems like a great concept if they could somehow integrate wireless downloads from your music library or other internet radio availability besides yahoo this could be the killer player. Only time will tell, but what we do know is that it is already ahead of the game when it comes to wifi players. What the future holds will will just have to sit back and see, but this has to get you pumped that the future is not far off.
You guys have been keeping everyone up to date with the latest and greatest reviews of the latest and greatest gadgets. Youv’e helped many readers make the right decisions when it has come to what to get. Keep up the great job guys! I would love to take the Connect for a spin and see what it’s made of. Please give me that chance and maybe we will “Connect” sometime again in the future with some recommendations for each other. You guys are the best!!!
Thanks!