MP3 For Me (FORUM: MiniDisc VS MP3)

Member Name: n1x0r

Product:	FORUM: MiniDisc VS MP3
Date:	22/07/01 (1944 review reads)
Rating:

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The past few years have seen the start of a revolution in the entire music industry. Both minidiscs and mp3 players have their own advantages and disadvantages and which you personally prefer is down to your own preference.

So, the mp3 player...For the uninitiated, an mp3 is a format of saving music to a computer or portable device in a very space-economical way. Its main advantages are that you are able to download any song that you want (no matter how rare it may be) as long as somebody else has ever owned it.

This was where Napster previously filled the market, but due to the ongoing lawsuit, many other simmilar programmes, such as Gnutella, Audiogalaxy and Morpheus, are all battling for position. The idea behind it is that you download a song from the internet (which normally takes around 20-25 minutes) totally free of charge and are then able to do as you wish with it. You are then able to put it onto your portable device (mp3 player) in a matter of a few minutes.

An mp3 can be any size, which obviously depends on song lenght and more importantly, the quality of the sound. But I have found that an average length song at around CD quality is around 3MB in size. Therefore, a 32MB mp3 player will hold around 9-11 songs and a 64MB mp3 player around 20-22 songs.

I personally like mp3 players as they are totally jog-proof as they have no moving parts whatsoever, they are very small and light. But their main selling point for me is the ability to have any song ever recorded, regardless of if it rare, live or a very obscure cover etc.

The minidisc players share many things in common with the mp3 players, however there are also a few differences. One of the main advantages of the minidisc over the mp3 player is the ability to carry multiple discs around with you. Whereas with an mp3 player you have to be at your home computer to edit the songs on the player.

Also, it is far easier to record a CD or radio programme
to minidisc. It is a simple matter of plugging the correct lead into the correct socket. I have also found that a single minidisc (which now only cost £1-2) will hold around 15 or more songs (again, dependant on length and quality). You are also able to record mp3s to minidisc which is another great advantage of it (however this is a far more lenghtly procedure).

For both mp3 and minidisc the battery life is very simmilar, they are simmilar sizes and weights. My personal preference is towards the mp3 player as I have a large collection on my computer of rare and live songs which I would not otherwise be able to listen to with such easy on the move.

Overall, those who don't mind changing what they listen every other night or so should go for an mo3 player. However, those with a very fast internet connection (ie. broadband) would also find the mp3 player far better than a minidisc player.
However, people who like to carry multiple albums around with them should opt for the minidisc.

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