Creative Labs Zen Vision M 30gb Review with video

There have been many challengers over the past few years. Unfortunately, these would be competitors have come and on without leaving much of an impression on the consumers who buy personal media devices. There have also been a very select few companies who have put out portable media players that provided features that rivaled, if not beat, the comparable iPod Product. Today we’re going to take a look at what could be considered so far to be the best alternative to the Apple iPod. It’s called the Zen Vision M and I own one. I’ve used this thing at the gym, in bed, and while working for over 3 months now and want to let you know what I think about it. Excuse me while I become a tad bit less “silly” and really try to help any of you who are about to make a purchase of a portable media player.

Now what you won’t get in this review will be a whole lot of electronic gadget freak tech talk with all kinds of specifics on display resolution numbers and stuff like that. What you are going to get is a review from a guy who loves his music, loves to go to the gym and listen to music, and lives with people who own various iPods like the nano and the video iPod.

I think a cool way to do this review is to list the questions I was asking myself before I made my decision. I’m not a rich dude. $350.00 + accessories is not a small chunk of change to me. This was a big purchase. I took my time and really weighed out my options. I checked out many different media players first hand as well as searched my little fingers off on the internet to make sure I didn’t waste my money.

What was I looking for when I bought the Zen Vision M 30gb?
A media player that was loud!
A media player that had a lot of storage space.
A media player that had good battery life.
A media player that supported a lot of different audio and video formats.
A media player that could use Napster’s Unlimited download service. ($14.99/month can transfer almost any song on Napster to your device)
A media player that had an available arm band accessory on the market. (I need this for when I go to the gym).
A media player that had an accessory that could allow me to plug it into a t.v.

What were my main choices before narrowing it down to one?
Apple Video iPod
Creative Zen Vision M
X-Micro X-VDO MP4 F610 (you’ve probably never heard of it)
Microsoft Zune

Why were you down to deciding between these four?

Sure, there are lots more players out there that play audio and video but these were the only ones to make it to the final cut. The final cut would be the time when I was freaking out because I didn’t know which one to get. Once I got to this list, I really started thinking abut how much I do not like iTunes and how much I didn’t want to deal with it. This was really steering me away from the iPod. I still considered the iPod because I was very impressed with how loudly it could play music. I went back and forth listening to music on both the Zen and the iPod trying to figure out which one was louder. It was close, very close.

The X-Micro started getting phased out of my decision when I started wanted a new player NOW. The X-Micro was only available to me online.

The Zune was soon to be eliminated because I just couldn’t get enough info on it. I didn’t know which download music services were going to be supporting the Zune besides Microsoft’s. I read bad things about the launch of Microsoft’s download music service, the Zune Marketplace. Basically, the Zune was just too new.

One thing I noticed while putting these two head to head at Circuit City was that the Zen Vision M’s screen was way brighter and clearer looking than the iPod screen. I didn’t know how much video watching I was going to use my future media player for but it was obvious that the Zen screen was much prettier.

The Zen Vision M looks a lot like an iPod. Then when you pick it up or turn it sideways, it’s noticeably thicker and heavier. I started to wonder if having the Zen Vision M on my arm would be annoying. I don’t know exactly how much more depth there is to the Zen Vision M compared to a Video iPod but to me it looked as if it was twice as thick.

So what made you buy the Zen Vision M and not the Apple Video iPod?

Audio Formats, Video Formats, Battery Life, and iTunes ultimately led to my decision to buy a Creative Zen Vision M and not an iPod. I’ve used iTunes with my friend’s ipod and I hated the whole experience. With the Zen Vision M, I can subscribe to Napster or Rhapsody for a flat fee per month and pump my Zen full of music without having to buy any of the tracks. I can also use Rhapsody if I want. Both Rhapsody and Napster have portable music player plans that work with the Zen Vision M. When it comes to adding video to my Zen, it’s a snap. I usually don’t need to convert anything because the Zen plays a bunch of different video formats with no problem. If I do need to convert a video to be able to play it on my Zen, there’s software that came with my Zen Vision M that will convert it for me.

What else can you tell me about the Zen Vision M? What do you really like about it now that you own it and are familiar with using it.

It’s tough. I have already dropped it several times. It has taken a licking and keeps on ticking.
It’s loud! I know loud music is bad for you but I can’t help myself. This thing rocks.
I can use images that I have added to my zen and make wallpapers out of them easily.
The battery life is really, really good. When I turn the “hold” option on while at the gym, the buttons lock and the screen turns black. This gives me outstanding battery life.
IF you have windows media player installed on your computer, you don’t need to install any drivers or anything like that to be able to add music, video, images, etc. My Windows Media Player (version 11, i think) recognized my Zen Vision M. Rhapsody and Napster will do the same which means you don’t really need to install the software that comes with the Zen Vision M. Even better, I will never have to deal with iTunes.

Is there anything you don’t like about your Creative Zen Vision M?

The way you scroll through menus, adjust volume, etc. is done using this little slider touch pad thing. It works fine but it not as easy to use as the click wheel found on iTunes.
My player is scratched up. I don’t know if this is common with other media players but my Zen vision M (it’s black) is really scratched up. Had I known how easily it could be scratched, and I’m talking about the body and screen, I would have been more careful. When watching a video at night, you can’t even really notice the scratches on the screen. In the daytime they’re a little more noticeable.
There are no car stereos out there that will let you plug in a Zen Vision M and control it with the radios buttons like you can with an iPod. I own a Sony Xplode head unit and it has a cord coming out of it for an iPod. It has an auxiliary in which I use to listen to my Zen through my radio but I can’t control my Zen through that. My stereo also has one usb port on the front which I can use to charge my Zen Vision M when I’m on the go.

Overall, I’m extremely happy with my Zen Vision M. It works great for me and even better, I don’t have an iPod like everyone else. I think that counts for something. I’m like, a rebel or something.

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