What do I look for in a MP3 player?

Digital audio players (also known as MP3 players) have become a major staple in the lives of those who have embraced technology on a personal level. Whether it be on the treadmill at the gym, on the bus on the way home from work or sitting in your living room, these little electronic devices have found their ways into the hearts of many.

For those considering the myriad of players out on the market today, both online and in stores, it can be bewildering. Do you go with a well known name like Apple and their iPod, or do you take a chance on a cheaper, less known maker and player? Do you take the larger square model with the big hard drive, or the smaller one which the sales rep tells you is good for jogging with?

Ultimately, the most important thing for you to consider is what makes you happy as you listen to your tunes. Fancy features, unknown buttons and dancing icons on the screen make for fun bells and whistles, but if the player is too complicated, will you really want to use it? That's where this guide comes in. Listed below are the features we feel are five basics you should consider before you plunk down your money.

• The first type of connection option, known as USB, is the more common one found today and is something supported by both PCs and Macs. It is also somewhat slower in regards to how quickly it transfers music from your computer to the player then the other standard, FireWire. FireWire however, is primarily supported only on Macs.

  Regardless of which standard you use, keep in mind that transferring music can take some time, especially depending on how many files you want to copy over.

• Display The display screen on most digital audio players these days is tiny. Using the screen is a must though if you want to see what music is playing, as well as navigating through options like volume control, song shuffling and the equalizer. The main things to consider here include making sure you can see the display under all conditions, including being outdoors when there is a glare, as well as being able to read the characters on the screen without going blind.

• File Types When music is copied onto your computer from a CD or downloaded from a Web site, the type of file it is saved as can vary. While it will often default to the .mp3 format, which is the most widely handled by digital audio players today, it could also end up as a .wav, .aac, .wma or something else. The important thing to know from all of this is to check what types of music files your player supports: it doesn't help to waste an hour prepping music to transfer to your player only to realize it’s not compatible in the first place.

• Software How you get your music onto your digital audio player is important to consider. Most players ship today with some type of software which will allow you to compile play lists and copy files. The big question here is: is it easy to figure out? Does the software provide guided instructions, or are you left to struggle with a cumbersome help file? Is the interface easy to navigate, or a cluttered mess of buttons and words?

• Storage Type Do you plan on taking your player jogging, or using it as a supplement to your home entertainment system? This is a big question to answer because players come in two types of flavors for storage: hard drive models and flash-based units.

  Hard drive models store files in the 1000s and are great for when you want to kick it with all of your tunes in your cubicle at work without having to lug dozens of CDs around. The downside with hard drive units however, is they tend to have movable parts, which means bouncing along on the treadmill may make your music skip if your player doesn't have a memory buffer.

  Flash-based models are small and sleek, usually slipping into your pocket with no problem. They are great for more active users and those on the go a lot, but are offset by the fact that they can't carry more than a few dozen songs unless you add a usually expensive memory card.