Pocket Rocker (Creative Zen Micro 5 GB)

Member Name: Oldbwl

Product:	Creative Zen Micro 5 GB
Date:	29/07/05 (160 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Sleek attractive and good capacity - great sounding

Disadvantages: Controls are hopeless

The Zen Micro (in any colour) is a fabulous highly specified MP3 player with an FM radio built in.

As usual with Creative products the sound quality is superb. The headphones are the in-ear bud type - I was not quite so pleased to see that the foam cover of these is not readily changeable or washable - I have had an ear infection before and this is asking for trouble. Nonetheless, they are significantly louder than most and are capable of delivering a good bassy but not muddy sound.

The menu system is so so. The music is categorised by the software in to Album, Artist, Year Genre, etc and you can replay it in almost any combination or randomly if you require. And while I am at it, the software needs a mention or two here. It is simply too difficult for the novice in my humble opinion. I have used windows media player before many times to rip music from CD's, but the Media Source explorer suite supplied is certainly comprehensive but is just overly complex with too many windows avail for the novice to feel comfortable with. However, the hardcore experienced rippers amongst you will feel quite empowered. There is every type of utility avail in a well skinned suite of programs. For example it is useful to make bulk changes to Artists or Genres and this is done, but the changes are not always imediately apparent until you click elsewhere. Also, maddeningly, this can only be done from the PC. Creating or renaming playlists in the Zen itself is - well, I have never done it successfully.

The control pad is a touch sensitive affair. You will love it or hate it. I think it is a mistake. Admittedly it helps make the unit water and dust proof, but in use it is way too sensitive even in the lowest settings. You will keep missing the place you meant to scroll too and have to go back a few times to get it right. It also means you have to employ the manual lock switch as any touch no matter how light will activate a change of track etc. You cant just click play then drop it in a pocket, as it will start to jump all over the place, you must lock the controls immediately. Then just changing the volume is a pain, you cant just roll a wheel, you need to unlock, then adjust via the central scroll pad. A real pain!

The Zen will record radio directly and also voice, but it has no encoder built in like the Samsung Yepp, you need to convert the wav files later.

In summary easily the best sounding and equally specified unit out there, let down by an attractive but, in practice, hopeless control system.

Summary: Nice looking, great sounding, good price, terrible controls

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