Fantastic MP3 player - but can two times faulty be just bad lucky?? (Sandisk Sansa Clip 4 GB)

Member Name: SapphireSunflowr

Product:	Sandisk Sansa Clip 4 GB
Date:	15/02/09 (205 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Sound, ease of use, weight and size, a joy to use

Disadvantages: I've had two, and two have broken within days and/or months of purchase

I've just come from Currys, where I have been returning my second faulty Sansa 4gb clip. This is not a good track record admittedly, but I'm still choosing to swap it for another one rather than purchase a different brand or model, simply because I cannot find (in Currys at least) a similar product for a similar price. I'm hoping that this review - of both the good features and the unfortunate demise of both my players - will help you make up your mind.
Okay, first the technical bits. This version of the Sansa Clip is 4Gb flash memory (approximately 1000 songs) and comes in silver. The buttons, sides and back are made from silver plastic, with a shiny black plastic screen. The screen attracts fingerprints, but is easily cleaned. There is also an FM radio - which is a brilliant extra feature - which you can apparently record from, although I've never been able to work out how! I wont repeat all the technical details as you can find them on a separate tab in this review, but suffice to say it holds a good number of songs and has all the features you'd expect from a decent mid range MP3 player. I bought mine for £39.99 at Currys, £10 more than the 2Gb version.

Headphones:
Good sound quality and comfortable, don't split down the middle so hard to share with someone or wear round the back of your head. In ear, but not bud, so fall out when jogging.

Sound:
Very good, comes with the usual settings (rock, jazz, pop, classic etc etc) to change how the sound is mixed. Very clear, and true to sound.

Practicality:
Very light and very small, it fits into the palm of your hand but also has a decent sized clip to attach to clothing or bags, which is handy, especially when jogging or using it on the go. Uses USB connection for charging and uploading music, a good short cable that seems very durable.

Display:
Very good - shows song and artist info, also can flip to sound menu etc. Two line display plus battery indicator. Lights up in blue on black background, easy to read.

Uploading music:
I didn't download the software provided, I just use windows Media Player, which is so easy to sync music from. You can sync whole play lists and it keeps it in the order you have it in, which is also good. I've found it very easy to use indeed, and had no problems at all uploading music.

Battery life:
Was fantastic at first, well the 15 hours advertised. It doesn't give you much warning before it cuts out (ie, if you leave the house and then get a battery low message, the battery will go in the next few minutes), mind you. However, my second player has been returned because of a problem with battery life - see below...

Right, now the bad bits - the problems I've had. My first player worked fine, but within the first couple of days the screen faded out - the blue lit display started to go, showing in bars, then suddenly went completely so all I got was a black screen! My second player was fine for a few months, although I did notice occasional skipping - like how CD walkman used to skip if you moved them too much. Then, the earphones broke (no sound came out at all) and the battery life dwindled to nothing - I could charge it for hours and then the battery would run out in minutes. Now I'm on number three - I love this player so much I really really hope this is the end to the problems, but I shall keep you posted!

Summary: I'm taking the risk again because I love using it, will you?

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