but don't want to break the bank to get something that I'm only going to use at the gym. I was looking at this :

Timex MP3 Watch (http://www.compgeeks.com/details.asp?invtid=72921&sourceid=qIZ6QBVQeTUvAkmzaQnb)

but I'm not sure just how good it is. Do any of you have any affordable suggestions? I don't really need anything with more than 128megs and hell, 64 megs might be plenty.

Damn, John. I'm making you moderate like mad today. :p

Seriously though, my bad... I had no idea this forum was even here. ;)

Damn, John. I'm making you moderate like mad today. :p

Seriously though, my bad... I had no idea this forum was even here. ;)
Don't sweat it, man. I'm off today. :)

Look on eBay.

Look on eBay.Get at least 256 megs if you want to be able to store more than 1 album. I'm getting my mp3 player hopefully tomorrow or the day after. I got myself a Creative Muvo2 with 4 gigabytes of memory. It's really small, less than 90 grams with batteries.

i know you said you didn't want to break the bank, but i can't say enough good things about the iPod. Be on the lookout and you can sometimes get refurbs direct from Apple for as low as $150.

I have the IRIVER 256MB MP3 player....it's pretty cool..

+FM Tuner
+Ability to record off of FM and place on disk
+Different equalizers
+very small
+voice recorder

etc.

Be careful about harddrive players for workouts (Iriver, Ipod, Karma, Dell Jukebox, etc). Hard-drives, unlike the flashplayer devices, have moving parts. Routine vibration from running can shorten the life of the drive.

I bought a Rio Karma (20g) and then learned that while some people run with theirs, it's not the safest thing to do with a $250 device. I still use mine on the bike, or on a stairmaster where I can attach the player to the pannel; but I don't run with it.

YMMV.

/CoReY

Well, I found the Iriver one for $157 shipped. It looks like a good player. I just don't see why I would really need 256megs. I'm pretty certain I could get plenty of music for my cardio on a 128meg device.

Does that IRiver hold up pretty well? Does it support more than mp3 format? WMA perhaps?

I got a cheapo unit off ebay that supports compact flash cards. its not bad, and with my 256meg flash card it holds a decent amount of music, but... i think it might be time to move up to a 10gig ipod. and since they came out with the new, SMALLER ipod, im definitely leaning that way.

Rio Sport.

I have the 'Cali' which is 256 megs, but they make a yellow one that is 128.

fantastic player, easy to use, weatherproof (I use it snowboarding), comfortable on your upper arm w/ the included strap, great run time on 1AAA battery.

I'd stay away from anything hard drive based (the 4gig+ players)

http://www.digitalnetworksna.com/shop/_templates/item_main_Rio.asp?model=215&cat=35

Neat, I just found that 128meg Cali player for $135 shipped + it has a $20 mail-in rebate. That's really not a bad deal. I assume it can also take flash cards since it says it is expandable to over 600megs.

Neat, I just found that 128meg Cali player for $135 shipped + it has a $20 mail-in rebate. That's really not a bad deal. I assume it can also take flash cards since it says it is expandable to over 600megs.

well not "compact flash" cards, but it'll take SD cards, and something else I think...

ah here

"to add up to 512MB additional memory using SD or MMC cards (sold separately)"

I have the Iriver 128 Mb player - FM, FM recording, holds a CD of MP3's, stylish, easy to use, compact....

You can find this for $60-80 on Ebay, $128 at Best Buy....

Steve

I have the MPIO for about a month now, no problems so far.

Best buy has them!! (http://www.bestbuy.com/site/olspage.jsp?id=1057490619391&skuId=5767404&type=product)

I have a couple of MP3 players - a 20 gig hdd based unit for normal use and a 128 meg flash-memeory unit for the gym. It holds about an hour and a half of music for me, though it would hold more if I had more things encoded at 128k. Since I figured it would take a pretty decent beating over time, I wanted something I wouldn't care about if it broke. I just went to Circuit City and found a nice, cheap unit from Memorex.

It has an FM tuner, plays WMA files, expands to 640 megs if needed and came with a nice armstrap thing so that it stays out of my way. I think I paid about $80 for it.

Go with the Cali. It's flat out made for athletic activity. IT's comfy, light, and sturdy as hell. I'd drop the fifty extra bucks for the 256 meg, though. You'll learn to love that extra space...

i'd agree to go with the cali. despite being a complete apple advocate (read: junkie) i've had the cali 128 model for a few weeks now and it's perfect for what i need an mp3 player for - something small, light, durable and compact, that plays music while i work which usually involved a lot of moving around.

i also had an extra 512 SD card lying around (the cali will take both SD and MMC cards) which approximately adds a whopping 7.5 hours with a bit rate of around 128 - 160. in my three weeks of owning one with going to gym about 1 - 2 hours everyday (except my one rest day) i've only had to change the AAA battery once, which was yesterday.

some people complain about the sound quality, but i've also read that you can simply switch headphones and that will improve the quality significantly. i personally have had no problems with it, since i'm not concerned so much about the sound quality, but having some music to keep me company. plus, i like how the ear buds feel on my ears - they don't make my ears sore after a couple of minutes like most headphones do.

can't say enough good things about it, especially for a portable workout mp3 player. for that price (with the rebate) it's definitely a great value!

side note: if you are near a citcuit city i think they have a rebate for 512 SD cards, which will bring down the price to $130, which is also a great deal. imagine that, the SD card will cost more than the mp3 player! heh.

I use the Rio 500. I have had it for about 4 years. I got it when Rio was the only company making mp3 players. It only has 64MB of memory. I have started leaning towards getting another since my cardio and weight routines last longer than what the memory can hold.

i have a generic one... can't even remember the name. but the good news is, my ipod mini is in the mail! :spaz:
i know harddrive based players can't be banged around as much, but it comes with a belt clip and i ordered the shoulder holster as well. hopefully that will keep it safe.
i'm planning to use it as a mini harddrive to transfer files from work to home and back again and i read it also reads txt files so i can store my workouts on it and look at it to remember what i should be doing next!
:claphigh: