Long I have been involved with the iPod and the Zen of Creative. The Archos Jukebox Recorder (hereinafter AJR) I had first not in my selection. The design has put me off. I probably would have bought even a third-generation iPod when this would have been available. But then I had a AJR borrowed from my colleague and was thrilled with the functionality. Following advantages speak for the absolute AJR: 1. The power supply: iPod and Zen have a permanently installed special battery. What to do when the time decreases in the capacity or is even completely broken? More expensive services required! What to do if you still want to listen to music once his vacation does not spend next to a wall outlet (for example, when they go camping), but also like the day after the arrival? Bad luck for iPod and ZEN! The AJR is operated by four ordinary AA batteries. The you can buy more much cheaper, replace itself and of course still have one or two sentences as a reserve in the backpack. My Digiknippse (Canon A70) has incidentally also Mignon Accumulators and therefore I need only one type batteries on holiday take as a reserve. 2.) Use an external hard drive: The AJR is recognized in current operating systems as a normal drive and can then be fed with any kind of files. The MP3 files are stored directly in the file system. The directory structure is determined completely change. The ZEN is not recognized as a drive (Additional software must be installed). The iPod is recognized as a drive, but can not be "fed" with MP3s via this route. 3.) The price: For this purpose one must actually say anything. Unrivalled. Comparing simple. 4) Firmware: There is an alternative firmware that is easy aufgepielt. Addiction simply the net for Rockbox. This firmware functionality is unbeatable. I think the iPod is still really great. It is significantly smaller and lighter and has better display - not to mention the design completely. But for half the price you get the AJR with significant functional benefits (see above). Sorry Apple, could not outwit my mind. I imagine also, my (not purchased) iPod has two to three years, a broken battery (one knows from the mobile phone). Is it worth still to appoint a probably more than 100 euros expensive repair so that the player will play even without power outlet for a few hours? Why can not I put a new battery in the iPod is not easy? I think this is a deliberate misconstruction. So the customer has at least every few years again rüberschieben money or as equal as possible to buy a new player. Conclusion: Would buy the AJR definitely again. With reasonable headphones (KOSS Porta Pro o. Sporta Pro o. KSC-35), the sound is excellent. And the functional benefits are immense. The device complies with it without compromising its purpose. It might just be a little light and fashionable. But that really does not bother me more now. PS .: Did I mention that the other two can not record as opposed to the recorder (!)? I do not use this feature. The similar-looking player but only USB 1.1 - that's too slow in 20GB capacity.
