WINAMP.COM | Player When all your songs are encoded in MP3, it provides you the freedom to play them in all MP3 capable hardware and software media players. -

Sonique Web v3.0 Popular audio player for Windows capable of handling MP3 files, audio CDs, and Windows Media Player formats. Supports skins, and the interface is fully -

MP3.com - the source for digital music! Review an album and enter to win a free MP3 player and an MSN Music gift certificate! - Our editors pick the top MP3 players from each class. -

Howstuffworks "How MP3 Players Work" With the rise of MP3 as the digital audio format of choice, the MP3 player has become <i>the</i> portable audio device. It can store weeks of nonstop music, -

MPEG . ORG - MP3 Software Players So we recommand that you install an MP3 player and configure your browser - Most Players can play both MP3 and MP2. Some older software can only play MP2. -

X Multimedia System X Multimedia System, an open-source MP3 player for Linux. Contains mostly the same features as Winamp and supports skins.

Musicmatch Jukebox - World's best music player Musicmatch Jukebox is a smarter way to play, manage, discover and get music, burn and rip CDs, create playlists and enjoy music anywhere.

Apple - iTunes - Download iTunes All your music in one place in AAC, MP3 or Apple Lossless. Party Shuffle. Create Playlists. Generate lists of your favorites. Dig deep into your library -

Apple - iPod - the original iPod remains the archetypical digital music player for Mac and PC. - You can import music in a variety of formats, such as MP3 or AAC, -

WINAMP.COM | Winamp.com: Media Player, Skins, Plug-ins, Videos - Windows high-fidelity music player with a lot of original features and support for many formats of audio files.

If you don’t have an mp3 player, and even if you do, you should check out all the different stuff that’s going on. I’m hoping this article will give you some vision of what sort of mp3 player you need and some tips on what to search for in an mp3 player.

Maybe you work out and need something small and skip-proof for running or lifting. Maybe you have an 8 hour (or longer) plane ride when you go home and need to pass the time. Maybe you want a new one just for the sake of having a new one. Whatever it is, this article should help you decide.

First, for those of you who want something for working out: The two most important things to look for are size/weight and solid state memory, things CD players lack. You need something that you can clip to your shorts or strap to your arm that won’t interfere with your movements, and you want it to be light enough so you don’t even notice it. (Tip: Get a lithium ion battery to save even more weight.) To be sure that your player will not skip if you move too much or too fast, get one with solid state internal Flash memory, which has no moving parts so it can’t skip. These are usually available as 64 to 512 MB models, with a 64 MB model holding roughly an hour of music. Prices typically range from $100 to $300.

Also, you may want to store all 16,000 songs in your collection on your mp3 player so you never hear the same one twice. In this case you need a hard drive based mp3 player, commonly known as an mp3 jukebox, for which you could pay up to $500. It will be a little bigger and heavier than others and not quite as durable as a solid state mp3 player, but that isn’t a concern if you just want to sit around and listen to music. And they are still far more portable than a CD player.

Torn between a small, light, solid state mp3 player and a hard drive based player that holds thousands of songs? Well, the iPod Mini may be for you! The iPod Mini is just one model in a just released breed of small hard drive mp3 players. They are a little lighter and smaller than normal hard drive players, and hold more songs than the average solid state mp3 player. (Did I mention the iPod Mini comes in blue, green, gold, and pink?) That’s it for the main differences, but here are some more things you should look for when making a purchase: long battery life, an FM tuner, voice recorder, an easy to read screen, and compatibility with your computer.

If you’re looking to purchase online, I recommend www.amazon.com. But first you should check www.mp3-player-guide.com (which has a buyer’s guide and reviews) so you can make a better decision.

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Levi Bloom has been studying mp3 players for the past few years, so he knows his stuff.

If you want more, check out his websites:

http://mp3-player-guide.com and http://thoughtyouhadeverything.com

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