Sansa e200 Series - Making iPod Nano lovers jealous
By Adam Cochran
It is no secret that we are not big fans of the iPod. There is nothing wrong with the device itself, we just don't care much for the way committing to an iPod means committing to iTunes and other proprietary standards (oxymoron).
We love media players that do it all without forcing the user to change their music into different formats or go through long conversion processes to get the music or media onto the device.
The Sansa e200 series is shamelessly designed and marketed to compete with the iPod Nano. However, when it comes to features and construction, the Sansa e200 beats the Nano hands down.
Let's compare, shall we?
|
iPod Nano |
SanDisk e200 |
|
| Music format | MP3, WAV, M4A/AAC, Protected AAC, AIFF, Audible audiobook, and Apple Lossless audio file formats |
WMA, Protected WMA, MP3 |
| Construction | Composite | Composite, Titanium alloy (Back cover) |
| Expansion | None | Micro SD (currently up to 1GB) |
| Video | None (only on big iPod) | .mov format - must convert with included software |
| Photos | JPEG, BMP, GIF, TIFF, PNG | JPEG, BMP, GIF, TIFF, PNG |
| Software | iTunes | Anything except iTunes for music SanDisk Media Converter for photos & Videos |
| User Replaceable Battery |
No | Yes |
| Voice Recorder | No | Yes |
| FM Radio | No | Yes |
The iPod's strength is that it has been well marketed and adopted by millions. It is a great device, but it has many shortcomings. The e200's strengths are direct correlations to these shortcomings.
The best features of the e200 are its tough construction, beautiful screen, ease of use and great sound. I have reviewed several of SanDisk's previous models of audio players and while I have always liked them, they have never been that great when it comes to sound. The e200 shows that a lot of effort has been put into improving the weak and bass-less sound of the early devices.
Construction is another area where the Sansa e200 excels. It is solid. The front is glossy composite and the back is Titanium alloy from Liquidmetal® Technologies that is stronger than steel and highly resistant to scratches and wear. It does add some weight, but it is a solid feel.
I also love having hard buttons. Many other similar devices are now copying the iPod with the use of touchpad controls. I don't trust touchpads. I like to feel the buttons. At the center (see photo) is a ring that lights up. This ring is your volume control. It is a textured ridge that is easily spun to adjust the volume.
One funny thing I noticed in the documentation was also a direct answer to iPod complaints. Recently there were some articles and lawsuits concerning the high volume level of the iPod.
Apple released an update that lowered the dB level of the iPod and many iPod users weren't happy. The e200 comes with a bright yellow document that addresses this issue. Essentially, it says, don't turn this thing up all the way unless you want to risk damaging your hearing. SanDisk leaves it to the user to decide whether they want hearing loss in their later years.
SanDisk also addresses another huge complaint about iPods by adding the ability to change the battery. Although it takes a special battery and changing it requires you to remove the back with four screws, replacing the battery does not void the warranty.
The e200 also has an expansion slot for a Micro SD card. These are tiny little cards that hold as much as a gigabyte (200+ songs). Photos and videos however can not be read from the card.
I have few complaints at all about the device. Sansa's only real weaknesses are based in its software choices and design.
In order to transfer videos or photos to the e200, you must use a very simple program called the Sansa Media Converter. The conversion software reformats and "compresses" images and video for the Sansa. The process works great for photos, but I hope that future firmware and software updates provide the ability to read or convert to other video formats.
To test the video feature, I took a 2 hour DVD and, through several steps not supported by the software in the box, I converted the movie into a 41MB WMV file. That's right, the entire movie in 41MB. I then took that video and converted and transferred it with the SanDisk software. The result was a 650MB collection of MOV files (an Apple Quicktime format). This was very disappointing.
If the Sansa would support the original WMV (a Windows Media Video) or any other high compression format, you could put as many as 200 hours of video on the device. As it is, you can only put on about 8 hours. True, there is not much need for a ton of video on such a small screen, but in terms of memory, one movie takes up a quarter of your space for music.
The SanDisk e200 series comes in three flavors (2,4 & 6 Gigs). It sounds great, looks great and has every feature you'd expect and a few you wouldn't. With a few software improvements, many could still be made, fans of similar devices would be hard pressed to find reasons not to switch.
No matter how you look at it, SanDisk has proved itself a major player in the MP3 player wars and I have found my new favorite portable media player. The positives far outweigh the negatives and I have no problem recommending the e200 series to anyone looking for a serious alternative to the Nano or any other device currently on the market.
| Castellini on Computers Rating (1-5 mics) |
 |
| Recommended Market: | Students, joggers, audio book fans, anyone stepping up from a smaller device |
| Approximate cost: | e250 (2GB) $179, e260 (4GB) $229, e270(6GB) $279 |
| Company and Web Site: | SanDisk |
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books on tape
Can I listen to books on tape on my Sandisk E250?
Yes
Many libraries or audible.com and other sites are good sources for the books.
restart
how do i restart my sansa e230?
i tried to turn it on but all that happens is the blue circle light comes on, and not the screen.
what do you do...
what do you do when media player says that the songs are on your device but when you turn on your mp3 you dont have songs?
Media Conversion
Try RiverPast Media Converter
It Works Great
If you want the full version,you could try btjunkie for a torrent file
crack screen
i dropped mine and the screen cracked can this be fixed
bun
video
when i put video on my sansa e260v2 it puts it in the photo section and i cant play it .it says that i have to put it in sansa media converter which i just did can any1 help me, Adam Cochran you seem like a pretty intelligible guy maybe you know the answer.
plz help any1, trey
Anyone????
I am having the exact same problem over here.....anyone have a solution to this? Are we just doing something wrong?
THANKS!
micro sd cards
I have had a problem with my Sansa E250 ever since I added my card. Every time I turn it on "Refresh Database" comes on the screen and it takes forever to finish. Also when I tried to add music to it, it says "Syncronize to continue music subscription" I do not have a subscription?! I download off Walmart, without any problems. Also I am disapointed with Sansa cause they do not give any advice or directions if you use an sd card. I put in in and thought all I had to do was put music on it. Am I doing something wrong or what. Also, I read where someone said to only use a 1gb card and mine is a 2gb. Could that be the problem? I sure do hope someone can help me. And it is not tooo confusing.
I can't open up the e280s conversion thing
I want to open up the file for my e280 to add in and transfer songs, but i cant find the file anywhere to open it, i have like 4 removable file things and it doesnt show up in any of them! i've also tried the MSC thing and it didnt work..it also says connected when i look at my sansa screen
crack screen
The screen on my sansa e 260 crack and i have no clue how. Can someone please help me find out where i can get the screen fix and how i can repair it.
deleting videos
soooo im not sure how to delete videos off my sansa e200. im starting to get pissed...cuz like it takes up of memory. maybe the answer is obvious, and im just an idiot, but i need help.
so like...help.
Deleting Videos
With your device connected, go to "MY COMPUTER" and click on the sandisk icon. Find your vidoe file and delete what you wish.
DELETING VIDEOS
if u cant find it, you may want to make sure that in folder options, the "view hidden files and folders" is checked, because sometimes the sansa likes to hide some of its folders
I don't know if you...
already have the answer to this, but here goes. With any deletion, go double click on your My Computer icon when your e200 is synced to your computer. Your Sansa will appear like an extra storage device. Double click your way to you get to that option you want to change file in, in this case video. Delete that video file from the folder & it's deleted from the deivce.
Doesn't make much sense when they allow you to delete stations right from the e200, why not the other options you've added? I give them A for effort, but F on follow through.
Transferring music files = Writing??
Did I assume that correctly?
Video Writing
I just now put videos on my Sansa e250 and when I came back nearly an hour and half later,it still says "Writing".Why does it take so long?And when I converted a video with the Sansa Converter,it shows up on the Videos but when I go to it,it just shows a black screen with no sound even when I turned it up all the way.How do I fix that?Or what did I do wrong?
Apple is cruel
i just thought i would throw some humor into this thing, my brothers ipod video died yesterday, possibly a hard drive issue, but he turned it n and it came up with a picture of an ipod with a sad face and x's for eyes, if u ask me thats just a cruel (but funny) way to tell someone that their ipod broke
i need the disk
i love the sansa exept for the media converterm cause whene you lose the disk you cant download the software. Do you know a place to download it
Nano conversion
I am tired of dealing with my Nano that works when it feels like it! I am thinking about a Sansa e270, but I have a huge concern about converting my entire library of itunes over. Is it possible to convert the itunes library over so that I can use the Sansa easily?
WAY better than iPod, except connection problem
First, let me say that this is WAY better than the iPod nano (for both, i used the 2GB model). I used my cousin's old iPod nano 2GB for about a week, and although its more famous, i dont know why except for perhaps its because it sucks...first, you have to use the stupid apple iTunes, which refuses to run sometimes on Vista...meanwhile, to transfer mp3s on the sansa e200, you only need windows explorer (or mac stuff, i guess, i dont know what its called and i dont use a mac). anyways, however, i found that sometimes on my dell dimension e521, the computer cannot detect my mp3 sansa and i have to reboot it...strange and irritating :( still, the sansa e200 is still WAY better than the iPod nano...
my installation cd wont work on my computer
i have a problem, and i hope that you can help me with it. i tried my installation cd, on my computer for my mp3 e200R, but it wont work, and i need it to put pictures and videos on my mp3. can you help, please?
Formatting
I tried to format my sansa player to fix it but it said "the device was unable to complete the format" I have a feeling this has something to do with the seemingly undeletable folders in my music folder including an endless amount of music folders containing the same thing. Has anyone encountered this problem and if so how do i fix it
locked
is your hold key in the locked position?
Bad track?
I was listening to music on my sandisk on a roadtrip and i probably had played every single song on the track. Then randomly, when i advanced to the next track, it said bad track(i'd already been listening to a song). I went through my songs and i think all of them were "bad tracks". I went back to the song i had just been listening to and it said "bad track" what happened and how do i fix it?
I love the sansa e200
I love my sansa, it gives everything I want,,,just because its not a important brand name it doesnt mean it sucks..so yea but..I need help with erasing music videos. I can't figure it out. HELP!!!
Go to my computer, sansa
Go to my computer, sansa e200 and click "media". Then go to videos. Then you can delete any video.
HELP
kk, so i've tried everything i could to delete the hidden songs, but its still there! I tried transferring songs onto my sansa e200 on media player 10 using mtp, but wen i disconnect it, the sansa tells me its a bad track. Also, it doesnt even display the songs i just added in!
how can i fix this problem?! Will formatting the sansa help?
NVM
lol nvm! i finally fixed it. First, i backed up everything from my sansa other than my music file. i then formatted the sansa using the msc mode.
To format your Sansa E200 series MP3 player:
1. Open "My Computer."
2. With the player plugged into the USB port, right-click on the player (if in MTP mode) or the drive letter for your player (if in MSC mode) and select "Format" from the right-click menu.
3. Press "Start."
4. You will receive a warning that the format process will erase all data on your device. IMPORTANT: Make sure you have backed up all of your data from the device before continuing with the format. Procedure will erase everything off the player. Agree to the warning.
5. The format will complete.
once format is complete, copy & paste or cut back ur backed up files. Once this is done, no more hidden music files! =D
It works!
I did this and it worked! I also upgraded the firmware right after the format
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