Looking For An Accessible Mp3 Player

Category: accessible Devices

Post 1 by Crazy train (Generic Zoner) on Monday, 09-Jun-2008 12:28:22

The topic says it all. I'm looking for an accessible mp3 player that has a nice amount of space and will allow me to transfer mp3s from computer to player. Recording capabilities would be nice too but not an absolute requirement.

Post 2 by chikorita (move over school!) on Monday, 09-Jun-2008 14:38:24

Hmm. What about the Iriver h100 or similar player? It's been discontinued, but it runs rockbox. Also there's IAudio x5, m5, m3 and a couple other IAudio models. Both of these have recording capabilities and with rockbox are quite accessible.

HTH!

Post 3 by GreenTurtle (Music is life. Love. Vitality.) on Monday, 09-Jun-2008 17:28:38

What about the San Disk? I don't know how accessible that is, but it's very easy to transfer files to, because I put a bunch of stuff on the one my boyfriend has. It also comes in 2 models, one holds 2000 songs and the other holds 4000. It's small and kind of looks like an Ipod, with the wheel in the center and everything, but according to my boyfriend it's not that hard to opearte (he has some vision though, and since something happened to it where the switch got stuck in the lock position, I haven't seen it in awhile.) I would be interested to know if anybody else (preferably totally blind people) has had experience with this mp3 payer, since it's promising for those of us ho have huge music collections.

Post 4 by faithful angel (I'll have the last word, thank you!) on Monday, 09-Jun-2008 20:18:11

How much memory do thes iaudio players have? Also, with the iriver, you didn't need rocbox at all. I had one for two years and never put that onit, and it was so easy.

Post 5 by chikorita (move over school!) on Monday, 09-Jun-2008 21:54:51

A lot. I think the lowest I've seen one go is 20 gb.

Post 6 by forereel (Just posting.) on Monday, 09-Jun-2008 23:53:51

Zen stone is a cheap way, but doesn't have recording, but is simple to work. Cost $39 and come in several colors. I Pods are also accessible, but you'll want one without all the video stuff. More money. For the zen www.creative.com Comes in 1 GB, os only holds about 250 tunes. Apples you can get major space. Lol

Post 7 by faithful angel (I'll have the last word, thank you!) on Tuesday, 10-Jun-2008 8:28:28

I'm looking at the zen 32 GB right now. It has recording and radio. It also has a flash card slot. We'll see how it works.

Post 8 by faithful angel (I'll have the last word, thank you!) on Tuesday, 10-Jun-2008 8:31:11

The only problem that I'm finding with the players that support rockbox is that they are all discontinued. At least, I'm having trouble buying one. As I've said before, the thing that I hated about my ipod is that itunes wasn't accessible with jaws. You have to buy scripts for it. 2, i kept getting lost, and changing languages, and almost locked my ipod, and I would have to have sighted assistance pretty often fixing these issues. It wasn't fun.

Post 9 by blw1978 (I'll have the last word, thank you!) on Tuesday, 10-Jun-2008 11:25:44

Hi, I have a Kobe 583. it's only a 2 G. It does have recording capabilities though, but I have only used them once. The player is pretty accessible, there is a menu, but the options are easy to memorize. The player is small. I have heard good things about Sansa's Sandisk player. These come in larger capacities, but I'm not sure what models have video. coby does make some larger versions of the player similar to mine. I may actually upgrade. All the mp3 players I have had are just plug-and-play, meaning you can hook them up to a usb port minus a cable and sync your songs. I love my mp3 players and go everywhere with mine.

Post 10 by faithful angel (I'll have the last word, thank you!) on Tuesday, 10-Jun-2008 14:34:26

the thing is that it is only two gig, and that really isn't a lot unless you really know how to make you files smaller.

Post 11 by BigDogDaddy (Help me, I'm stuck to my chair!) on Tuesday, 10-Jun-2008 15:00:48

I've had an ipod 80GB for two years now!
With rockbox it'ts sort of accessible. I use the little patch that allows me to have the eloquence speech rather than Sapi 4 and it seems fairly responsive. What I like about it, is it works as both an mp3 player as well as a mass storage drive. The latest builds of RB are much better than years past but still it can be frustrating at times.

I can carry all my music in separate folders ETC, and have another folder with just programs and EXE files that I may need when out in the field.

Post 12 by faithful angel (I'll have the last word, thank you!) on Tuesday, 10-Jun-2008 15:18:52

That's cool. itunes is my big issue though. As has been mentioned way too many times to count, is not accessible especially with jaws nine, and that is what I have. So, any other suggestions. I've tried the ipod classic, and I hated it. I have had an iriver, but they don't make twenty gig players much anymore. So, I'm kind of stuck. I'll see about the Zen 32 gig player.

Post 13 by BigDogDaddy (Help me, I'm stuck to my chair!) on Tuesday, 10-Jun-2008 17:13:11

You don't use itunes once you've converted the ipod over to Rock box.
Once RB is the OS for the main drive, you access the drive just as you would any other drive you have attached to your computer via windows explorer or my computer.

I just copy and paste everything over that I want off my computer to the ipod.

Post 14 by GreenTurtle (Music is life. Love. Vitality.) on Tuesday, 10-Jun-2008 17:38:15

Yeah, I've heard Rockbox has a lot of bugs though, and is not that easy to set up. I think I'll look into the Zen 32gb too, that sounds pretty cool, and I've been looking for an mp3 player for awhile that would hold my giant music collection. With the Zen, don't you have to have a compact flash card since the player itself doesn't have any internal memory, or am I thinking of something else?

Post 15 by faithful angel (I'll have the last word, thank you!) on Tuesday, 10-Jun-2008 18:05:53

I think it is internal memory, but it does have support for small flash cards. Yeah, I too have heard bad things about rock box. Plus, I have an ipod class, not a video. And plus, most of the players that are accessible with rockbox aren't sold anymore. I would like the toshiba gigabeat x60. if anyone can tell me where to buy one, I'd appreeciate it. I've looked on amazon, ebay, overstock, bestbuy, circuitcity, and a couple more, but can't find a thing.

Post 16 by BigDogDaddy (Help me, I'm stuck to my chair!) on Wednesday, 11-Jun-2008 8:31:29

Well depends! If you're willing to purchase direct from China, dhgate.com typically has any type of mp3 player you could imagine at great prices. I've purchased from them since may of 05, and I've never had a problme, but most people are just a bit put off about ordering over seas. I'll tell you I've probably spent well over 35k with them between business and personal purchases so I can vouch for there reliability. Though with the recent earthquakes and such i've not purchased in a couple of months so I'm not sure how there operations are goin.

Post 17 by krisme (Ancient Zoner) on Wednesday, 11-Jun-2008 20:16:56

I have a Muvo from Creative, it comes in up to 2 gb and is pretty easy to use for the most part. I want to switch to a Zen Stone though since it offers shuffling capabilities and I hate listening to songs in the same order more than once. I like the Creatives, and you really can't go wrong with their prices.
As for Rockbox, I attempted to install it onto a 20 gb IRiver H10 and successfully killed the machine. (my fault, not Rockbox's) I think I'd rather go with something that's accessible right out of the box personally. I do know of blind people who use the ipod without any problems but the ones I've looked at have always seemed really confusing.

Post 18 by chikorita (move over school!) on Wednesday, 11-Jun-2008 20:59:09

Rockbox is accessible out of the box, you just need to download a voice file from there extras page.

HTH!

Post 19 by faithful angel (I'll have the last word, thank you!) on Thursday, 12-Jun-2008 0:10:20

Any one know where i can find the 5th generation ipod with 80 GB for a good price?

Post 20 by faithful angel (I'll have the last word, thank you!) on Sunday, 15-Jun-2008 22:23:24

Never mind found it. Thanks for all the info Jesse.

Post 21 by blw1978 (I'll have the last word, thank you!) on Wednesday, 18-Jun-2008 20:56:06

Hi, I almost bought a Zen Stone, but I can't seem to find one with an Fm tuner. I have to keep up on the news. I will definitely upgrade to more gigs. I don't need like an 80 gig, but is there like a 4-10 gig that's accessible? I don't like Ipods, so any alternatives? Also, are there any mp3 music/video players that are accessible? If so, what have been your experiences?

Post 22 by Austin (the magic fan!) on Wednesday, 18-Jun-2008 21:16:12

ipods are the shit! in my ippinion. i love my 80 gb classic ipod. the best way to manage music on ipods is xplay. just google xplay or something. i can't remember the site for it.
it's way easier than itunes. i wished the ipod had radio but tha'ts what my eton e10 is fore.

Post 23 by purple penguin (Don't you hate it when someone answers their own questions? I do.) on Wednesday, 18-Jun-2008 21:21:15

How much is an 80 gig iPod?

Post 24 by faithful angel (I'll have the last word, thank you!) on Wednesday, 18-Jun-2008 22:25:28

Well, i just bought an eighty gig ipod not the classic. I had the classic, but I got rid of it. I wish I had known about all this different software. The 32 gig zen from creative does have a tuner I believe. Yeah, anymore ipod software that makes it or its features accessible would be awesome!

Post 25 by faithful angel (I'll have the last word, thank you!) on Wednesday, 18-Jun-2008 22:30:14

here is the site I think
www.mediafour.com
i wish someone would've poasted this earlier. I wouldn't have taken my classic back if I had known about this.

Post 26 by forereel (Just posting.) on Thursday, 19-Jun-2008 1:41:41

For the person looking for the Zen player with a tuner you'll want the Zen Stone plus.

Post 27 by faithful angel (I'll have the last word, thank you!) on Thursday, 19-Jun-2008 14:47:46

As I've said, the 32 gig I believe has one. Also, does Xplay work with jaws?

Post 28 by faithful angel (I'll have the last word, thank you!) on Friday, 20-Jun-2008 18:29:05

Again is xplay jaws friendly? Ipod cost around 250 for an eighty gig.

Post 29 by faithful angel (I'll have the last word, thank you!) on Saturday, 21-Jun-2008 18:29:23

I'm going to answer my own question here. Yes, xplay is jaws friendly. I have an ipod video and I love it. I'm still getting used to the scroll wheel, but I will manage. I wish I had know about this program before I took my classic back. Oh well. I still have the same amount of memory on my ipod video. I'm good.

Post 30 by GreenTurtle (Music is life. Love. Vitality.) on Saturday, 21-Jun-2008 21:13:35

I had a problem with Xplay. It won't let me install it because it says I have to have Windows Media player 11. But I use Winamp. So do I really have to uninstall Winamp and install WMP just to use Xplay? Thanks

Post 31 by blw1978 (I'll have the last word, thank you!) on Monday, 30-Jun-2008 0:28:02

I just got a Zen V. Plus. Anyone ever used one? From the description, I shouldn't have much trouble with it. I mainly just want it for the music and the fm tuner. I would have gone with the Zen Plus, but that's only like 500 songs. I don't have a huge music collection, but I wanted something with more than a 500-song capacity.

Post 32 by faithful angel (I'll have the last word, thank you!) on Monday, 30-Jun-2008 20:08:42

hmmm, cool. well good luck.

Post 33 by Austin (the magic fan!) on Monday, 14-Jul-2008 3:08:10

man. now my motorola q is becoming my accessible mp3 player. it's time to get that 8 gig micro sd card real soon i think. this on bored memory will not cut it... i still have my ipod but my q is looking good if my ipod goes.

Post 34 by purple penguin (Don't you hate it when someone answers their own questions? I do.) on Monday, 14-Jul-2008 13:12:02

I just bought an 80 gb ipod clasic a few days ago, and using XPlay. Can I uninstall iTunes?

Post 35 by GreenTurtle (Music is life. Love. Vitality.) on Monday, 14-Jul-2008 13:58:00

Yeah, you don't need ITunes if you have XPlay.

Post 36 by audio star (I love to post) on Monday, 14-Jul-2008 16:12:07

no just install windows media player as well.
no need to uninstall winamp.
just use which player when ever.

Post 37 by blindndangerous (the blind and dangerous one) on Monday, 14-Jul-2008 19:46:46

The only problem i had with Xplay was that u have to pay for it. I got a 30 day trial of it, but that was it.

Post 38 by purple penguin (Don't you hate it when someone answers their own questions? I do.) on Monday, 14-Jul-2008 20:02:38

I can't figure out why when I select a file and alt tab to another window and alt tab back, it loses it's selection and does not go anywhere so I have to open it again.

Post 39 by faithful angel (I'll have the last word, thank you!) on Monday, 14-Jul-2008 22:38:44

Hmmm, I just copy and paste my stuff. It's really easy. Of course, you have to pay for it. What's the deal with everybody thinking that everything should be free? I don't get it. This is the real world people. Live in it! Having things free is nice, but most of the time, if it is free, it's probably ileegal, and although many people take that risk, if you are caught, then, you are in big trouble and will be "paying" a heavy fine. How's that for "free."

Post 40 by crimson x (This site is so "educational") on Wednesday, 16-Jul-2008 23:34:50

hey all try this mp3 player it's called the zmate no enternal memory but it takes sd cards. also try the vr stream.

Post 41 by blw1978 (I'll have the last word, thank you!) on Thursday, 17-Jul-2008 19:18:51

Word to the wise, Don't buy a Zen V Plus mp3 player. Those are waaaaaay complicated! Anyone ever used a 4 Gb mp3 player from Sansa? 2 gb just isn't enough space. I let my niece buy the Zen V plus for $40. She sent her other mp3 player through the washer.

Post 42 by GreenTurtle (Music is life. Love. Vitality.) on Thursday, 17-Jul-2008 19:46:21

Yeah, I've heard of the Xmate. And it's not that expensive either. How much do the SD cards hold, and if the ones that come with it don't have that much space, does it support SD cards with a higher capacity? Or are all SD cards the same?

Post 43 by crimson x (This site is so "educational") on Friday, 18-Jul-2008 23:15:41

the highest I know is 4 gb

Post 44 by Reyami (I've broken five thousand! any more awards going?) on Tuesday, 29-Jul-2008 6:22:43

Where the hell does one find an eighty-gig IPOD? I've never even seen one like that.

Post 45 by blw1978 (I'll have the last word, thank you!) on Tuesday, 29-Jul-2008 15:19:56

Maybe you could try Ebay, Walmart.com or electronic stores like Circuit City, Radio shack or BestBuy.

Post 46 by faithful angel (I'll have the last word, thank you!) on Tuesday, 29-Jul-2008 17:46:43

Go to walmart! They're not hard to find. You can even get 160 Gig ones.

Post 47 by singingsensation (I just keep on posting!) on Wednesday, 30-Jul-2008 22:59:44

I used to have an iPod Nano, but it wasn't accessible at all! This was before I knew that there were scripts for ITunes. Now I am using my Victor Reader Stream and I love it! One of our computer teachers has one and he really likes it!
Hope this helps,
Macy

Post 48 by faithful angel (I'll have the last word, thank you!) on Thursday, 31-Jul-2008 1:44:32

You can use Xplay with ipod nano. It's awesome! You don't need scripts for itunes. You don't have to use itunes. I too love the victor reader stream. It's awesome!!!

Post 49 by Reyami (I've broken five thousand! any more awards going?) on Thursday, 31-Jul-2008 9:13:09

I use my Victor reader Stream as an MP3 player. love those eight-gigabyte SD cards.

Post 50 by Godzilla-On-Toast (I've now got the silver prolific poster award! wahoo!) on Tuesday, 09-Sep-2008 5:02:58

I have a ZMate, and it's a nice player if you want something cheap and basic. It will take up to a 2 gig SD card, so sorry, no 4 gig SD card will work on this one. I suppose one solution could be to get several cards and change them as needed. Still not sure what file types that one will play. The most versatile screenless players are by Creative, such as the Zen Stone and the MuVo T100. If you want lots of storage space, get a T100, as it can be had in a 2 gig or 4 gig model. I got a 4 gig myself. That thing looks a bit like a thick stick of gum far as the shape goes with the headphone jack on the top end and the cap for its USB port on the other end. Has the same controls as the Zen Stone series, but they add a bass boost button along the right-hand edge.

Post 51 by Brawny (Newborn Zoner) on Thursday, 11-Sep-2008 23:18:09

I found out about rock-box a few months ago... and so started looking for an mp3 player to load it on too. I read review after review, and finally settled on the I-River h110. It was released in 2004, and is no-longer manufactured, but I found one on overstock.com for about $130, where it sold originally for around $500. The only problem I found was that over stock didn't ship it with a charger. I found a multi player charger with google for around $25, and it works just fine. I loaded rockbox on the unit with no problem (though it is time consuming and the instructions are skechy) and I couldn't be happier.
The h110 has 20 gigs of memory, external mike for recording, fm radio, several in/out ports that I have no clue about, and is dangerously easy to use. The rockbox voice works perfectly with all features, except that when you're reading through a music list, rock-box will spell the name of the song rather than just say it out-right. I also ordered some kicken ear-buds for $50... consult cnet.com for all your reviewing needs.:P

Post 52 by changedheart421 (I've now got the bronze prolific poster award! now going for the silver award!) on Friday, 12-Sep-2008 16:49:34

Bought the IRiver 810 20 gig model and love it. I sent it to my friend to load rockbox on it and can not be happier.

Post 53 by faithful angel (I'll have the last word, thank you!) on Friday, 12-Sep-2008 23:17:10

I had an iriver for two years, and never put rockbox on it. I didn't need to. I just memorized the folders that I put on it. It was so awesome! I now have an Ipod, and do the same thing. I do miss my iriver though. Oh well.

Post 54 by cttal109 (#1) on Saturday, 13-Sep-2008 3:32:07

Hello I got the first model of the IRiver it holds 20 Gig, it can record and has rock box on it I love it I got it for the awsome low price of $75.00! It has an FM tuner on it, and I see from her I got a hella good price on it. it's still under warranty, and is fucking respect!

Post 55 by skpoet711 (Zone BBS is my Life) on Sunday, 15-Feb-2009 11:27:29

I'm bringing this topic back because new times new technology of course. However, I need help with suggestions on a new mp3 player with which I can put rockbox.
I have been using my Iriver h10 20 gb for a while now, but need something much larger, say 80 gb.
I can mod my Iriver, but don't wish to take the off chance that I will destroy it inadvertently.

Here are my qualifiers
1. It must be a UMS, universal massive storage device. This means that its plug and play, recognized as another hard drive so that you can simply copy and paste your music on to your player. No need for other silly software requirements such as Itunes or windows media.

2. Rockbox compatible.

3. 80+ gb of hard drive space.

I have heard that ipod video is rockbox compatible, but does all ipod require itunes, no exceptions? No trick to make it in to a UMS like Iriver?

Thanks

Post 56 by faithful angel (I'll have the last word, thank you!) on Monday, 16-Feb-2009 21:59:18

You can use your Ipod as a Universal drive. Yes you can put rockbox on it. Also, you don't have to use Itunes. I use a program called XPlay. However, jaws is now compatible with Itunes version 8.... so you really don't have a problem.

Post 57 by Godzilla-On-Toast (I've now got the silver prolific poster award! wahoo!) on Tuesday, 17-Feb-2009 10:20:43

I'm pretty much into the 2 gig Zen Stone with built-in speaker by Creative. It plays MP3 and WMA files and a couple audible.com formats, ahs a resume feature, has no screen and no menu, and costs less than 40 American dollars if you look around a bit. I tried the 4 gig MuVo T100 by Creative Labs, but I discovered the thing was rather flimsily built, as the little slide control that flips you between folders broke so I ahd to just throw the silly thing out. I also have the Dane Elec Z-Mate MP3 player that the Speak to Me catalog used to sell. They've replaced that now with apparently is an iPod Shuffle look-alike player that holds 4 gigs worth of audio and comes with its own charger. That one will only cost about $26.95 US, but it is not dependent on iTunes, of course. I may get one next month so I can see how good it is.