[geeks] mp3/mp4 player questions

[Sridhar Ayengar]

gsm at mendelson.com wrote:
> My wife is planning on buying an MP3/MP4 player in the states and having
> it brought here as a "gift".
> She is not technical at all. An Archos 5 was suggested to her as the ideal
> unit. I'd like to hear any comments or questions people have.

I don't know...  the Archos is pretty fiddly.  For non-techies, I 
usually suggest the iPod Touch.

> An iPod would be too small, an iPad too big.

In what way, the screen?

> She showed me a link from NewEgg, are they any good to buy from?

Short answer, yes.  Longer answer, they are good as long as you don't 
need to return something non-defective because you don't like it.

> Are the refurbs worth it?

They usually work fine, and lack major scratches, but might have minor 
swirl marks, etc.

> To me the $100 or so more for a 500g unit versus a 32g unit makes it
> worthwhile,
> or am I missing something (like the 32g is NVRAM versus a disk?)

The 32G will be flash, the 500G will be disk.  There are durability and 
weight issues to consider.

Peace...  Sridhar