The first step is to determine size. In order to sound good, MP3s need to be encoded around 128kbps (kilobits per second… 128 is considered “near CD quality”). So, a standard 4 minute song is 240 seconds, which means 128×240=30720kb which is about 3,840KBytes (8 bits in a byte). Now, let’s look at the 20GB model MP3 player (you can do the math to see how much the other sizes can hold). 20GB is 20,000,000,000 bytes. So, this means that 5,208 songs will fit on in 20GB. So, where’d they get the 9,900 from?
Well, most MP3 players these days will play other types of audio tracks. The iPod will play AAC (which is the audio component to the MPEG-4 standard). Other players typically play Microsoft’s WMA (Windows Media Audio) format in addition to MP3. Note, no players play all three formats. Both of these formats boast that the audio quality is the same at half of MP3’s bitrates. So now, you could encode all of your music at 64kbps and get about the same quality and be able to store twice as much.
Here’s where things get complex. Whenever you convert tracks, you lose quality. So, you COULD convert all of your existing (if you have any) MP3s to AAC or WMA, but they’ll lose quality. So, if you have all of your music on CD, then you will want to re-rip them in the newer format if you want to save space. If you only have a few hundred CDs and you get a 20GB player, then who cares? You’ll have plenty of space. You could encode them at 360kbps if you want!
But if you get one of the smaller players (4GB, say), then you’ll only be able to fit about 2,500 MP3s on it. So, if you have more than, say, 200 CDs, then this won’t do. Unless you’re okay with only taking SOME of your music with you. Which is a definite option.
Now we get into the next question: where will you GET your music in the future?
If you decide you want to buy songs online, then you need to decide what music store you want to use. This can VERY much dictate what player you get because these tracks are sold with DRM (Digital Rights
Management), which limits what you can do with the song. For the most part, tracks you buy online will be about 128kbps from iTunes and 128-160kbps from other stores that use the WMA format. But that’s LOCKED! So, if you are going to buy music this way, then you need to use THESE numbers to determine the SIZE of the MP3 player to get. And if you settle on iTunes, then you HAVE to get an iPod. No other player will play the locked songs (unless you cheat, like I do).
If you decide to go with Wal-Mart Music Store or Napster or MusicMatch or Rhapsody or Microsoft’s music store, then there may or may not be a portable player that will play the locked tracks. Chances are there MIGHT be ONE.
So, here’s how I cheat. There is a way to break the DRM on iTunes tracks. It’s illegal as all getout, but I rationalize it thusly. What if Apple shuts down iTunes? Or what if Microsoft buys it? Both of these are very possible events. Well, once the store shuts down, as soon as I try to put my music on a new computer, boom! They won’t work anymore. So I unlock the tracks (but I do NOT allow anyone else access to them) so that I know I will be able to play the music I purchased forever. Once I unlock them, I COULD convert them to MP3s, which every MP3 player will play. But remember: loss of quality (which might not even be noticable to you, I can barely tell the difference because I’m not that big of an audiophile).
Another way to hack the DRM is this (and this is basically legal). Pretty much all the music stores allow you to make music CDs of the songs you purchase (within reason… they all have different limitations). You could then re-rip those audio CDs to MP3s, just like regular music CDs. Then you could play them on any player. This is called the “analog hole.” But again: conversions mean loss in quality.
Finally, the last thing to consider, and this is what makes iPod the best, IMO. Since the iPod is so ubiquitous and hip, a LOT of companies are making accessories for it (check out Belkin.com to see their looooong list). This means that if you plan on getting accessories, then the iPod is the best way to go, even if it is more expensive.
Have I confused you?
Basically, what I would do is first estimate 128kbps for each track. You can reduce that to 96kbps or even, possibly, 64kbps if you are ONLY going to use CDs bought at the store or at Amazon.com, for
instance. Use this SIZE to determine how big of a player to get. Realize that your music collection will grow over time. But you might want to get rid of old stuff in favor of new stuff as your player fills up.
Next, determine if you are going to purchase any music online. If so, then research the different stores and determine which one (yes, you will need to stick to ONE. And that’s another whole kettle of fish) you like best and then find out which player(s), if any, will work with it. That would determine the brand.
In the end, just get an iPod and sign up for iTunes. That’ll probably be your best bet. I get pretty much all my music from iTunes.
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“In the end, just get an iPod…” This was the conclusion on an article about choosing the right MP3 player? I think proprietary buying methods and hard drive considerations are key - next to size & price. I think SanDisk and iRiver are a better bet. Sign up for iTunes? Go to the store and buy the CD and rip it yourself. Anyway….
Posted December 7th, 2006 at 10:47 pm CIS 3720 - Telecomm Programming Blog » MP3 Player Choices. Says:
[...] Here is a nice article that has a large overview on how to select an mp3 to suit your needs. If anyone is in the market for an upgrade or their first mp3, this would be a good article to read. http://www.dailyindia.com/blog/12112910.php/what-mp3-player-should-i-get Posted by Michael Worden @ 10:27 pm :: Uncategorized Comment RSS :: Trackback URI [...]
Posted December 7th, 2006 at 11:27 pm Aaron Says:
Ok, all he talks about is size… Alot of the other brands out there have some nifty features. Now, i’ll admit. I finally did go IPOD on my last buy but that was mainly because i found the UI (User interface) to be the easiest to use one handed. (good for the car) Past that, its nice to have tons of accessories available for it. I bought a car integration kit for mine and love it. If your into bells and whistles, look into other MP3 players. If all you want is music and maybe a portable Video file player (i.e. Ipod video) then maybe the ipod is better for you; same if you love accesories since every company out there seems to be making some kinda IPod add on.
Posted December 7th, 2006 at 11:48 pm Ram Says:
what a stupid remark!!!!
“In the end, just get an iPod and sign up for iTunes. That’ll probably be your best bet. I get pretty much all my music from iTunes.”
How much Steve paying you for this? This is the worst article i have ever read
Posted December 8th, 2006 at 12:16 am Sam Says:
1. Re MP3 term. As said in the article there are on the market players that play other audio formats like WMA, so the proper generic term should be Digital Audio Player (DAP). Calling them MP3 players is confusing as one may think that they play only the MP3 format and they won’t play, say, WMA format.
2. Re: audio quality. For the same bit rate, the WMA sounds much better than MP3. My estimat is that for, say, a bit rate of 64Kbps using WMA, you need to go to 128kbps using MP3. In other words, using WMA you can store double the number of songs on the same DAP.
3. Re: Audio quality required. Most people use their MP3 players (oops DAP’s) outdoors, in shopping malls, while on public transit, in the gym, while jogging, etc, where there is high level of external background noise, which penetrates into the ears (unless you use active noise cancellation phones - very expensive and under certain circumstances, very dangerous). Under these conditions it is impossible to appreciate and discern the CD quality of the music played, so storing songs using 128 kbps is simply a waste of space and money. Personally, I use a small 1GB player (i-river), rip my CD’s to WMA 20 (yes, twenty) kbps, a typical song is 600KB, so I can store approx 1500 songs or 100 CD’s.
One should rip a CD using different levels of bit rate and try listening to the music under actual conditions (where he/she will use the DAP) and find out the lowest bit rate acceptable. I am ready to bet that most people would not be able to tell the difference between a song ripped at 128 or 64 or even 32 kbps while they are jogging or exercising at the gym.
Posted December 8th, 2006 at 6:32 am Jason Hall Says:
A Megabyte is 1024 kilobytes, not 1000 kilobytes so you’re doing fuzzy math. A true 20 GB disk has 20,480 megabytes and 20,971,520 kilobytes. At 128 kbps, this is 20,971,520 * 8 / 128 = 1310720 seconds worth of music or 364 hours worth. This is somewhat better than the numbers that were posted in the article.
Posted December 8th, 2006 at 6:56 am Zoinx Says:
Actually, if you look into it Jason (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mebibyte), a Megabyte is 1000 kilobytes, what you are referring to is a Mebibyte. People in at least the last decade have been mistaught about this!
About the article, I would not consider 128 as “near CD quality”. I would say anything less than 196kbps can contain parts where you can actually hear the difference (mainly if listening through earphones).
Posted December 8th, 2006 at 7:43 am Paul Says:
‘What if Apple shuts down iTunes? Or what if Microsoft buys it? Both of these are very possible events.’ - Which world does he live in for the above mentioned to be ‘very possible events’
Posted December 8th, 2006 at 8:40 am Michael Swanberg Says:
Great discussion! Allow me to answer some of the comments above.
@Michael: I think it was demonstrated that people have way more than size and price to consider. This article was written aimed primarily and those that aren’t in the know. Try to think of it in these terms: you are buying a MP3 player for your mom and don’t want to spend endless hours helping her set it up and troubleshoot it. What would you buy?
@Ram: It would be nice if you qualified your remark. What would you get? Why? In the end, I am not in “Steve’s Pocket” and my choice was based on many factors. There are many other players out there that beat the iPod on one or two of the pertinent factors, but none that beat it on the majority of them.
@Sam: I agree with you that the term should, more accurately, be DAP. Or maybe even “portable media player” to encompass pictures and video. But the sad truth of the matter is that the layperson has heard of MP3s and that is what they understand. Many other items have been inaccurately termed with names that are not exactly what they are. For instance, Kleenex and Xerox.
@Jason Hall: Sorry, but you are incorrect in this instance. You are very right that the OS sees 1024 bytes as 1K. But take a trip to your local Best Buy or CompUSA and look at the drives. When you see, say, 160GB as the size of the drive, they mean 160,000,000,000 bytes. This is basically a marketing scheme to make you think you are getting more than you are getting. For instance, my “30GB iPod” is registering a 27.85GB capacity. Essentially, the marketers use a base-10 scheme to make it seem like more. In the end, you are essentially correct, but realize this article was originally intended for an audience broader than you and me who know binary. Remember, there are only 10 types of people: those that know binary and those that don’t.
@Paul: Lest thou forget about a year ago when the record labels pressured Mr. Jobs to raise prices in the ITMS and Jobs threatened to pull the plug. The **AA greediness could very easily cause these music stores to declare it all “not worth it”. As well, there is also the VERY real possibility that the popular format will change, leaving all of the purchased WMAs and M4Ps defunct. I have some 20-year-old CDs that still play fine. Do you honestly think that iTunes will still be able to use tracks purchased today 20 years from now? The industry is changing way too fast and I am not that optimistic. For instance, there will probably come a day when wireless access to the internet is ubiquitous and cheap. Then, we will probably all have players that stream our “purchased” tracks from the server. At which point, storage will become unnecessary and so will MP3s. I can easily see this happening as a way for the RIAA to control the use and consumption of “their” property. Just my $0.02.
Posted December 8th, 2006 at 10:41 am vijay Says:
send me comlete material for mp3 player and gps receiver throw email my emil is :vijay_048@yahoo.co.in
Posted February 3rd, 2007 at 4:11 am Michael Swanberg Says:
@Vijay:
Are you asking me to send you a box of transistors and such so that you can build your own MP3 player?
Posted March 9th, 2007 at 1:57 pm JM Says:
Ipods have had lots of problems recently. Check their own support forum:
http://discussions.apple.com/thread.jspa?threadID=907754&tstart=105
I’ve had this same problem, and I strongly discourage people from buying Ipods. Their support is terrible.
Posted January 17th, 2008 at 8:11 pm Michael Swanberg Says:
I hardly think one thread about one guy having troubles with his Nano constitutes “lots of problems recently”. These things happen. Some units are bad.
It is a pity that Apple considers iPods throwaway trinkets to be replaced frequently, but I’ve never had any problems with my iPods.
-Mike
Posted January 17th, 2008 at 8:33 pm
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