Since a couple of people in the "what are you reading" thread suggested an off-topic thread for discussion on gadgets, games and other fun, I thought I might start one. I noticed in another thread that there are non-iPod people in this union, and that made me happy, so here we go, the first off-topic topic: "What are you listening to?" Not your music... the device that plays it for you.

I carry my 8GB Sansa Fuze with me nearly everywhere. I bought it because it can do both music, video, and FM radio, and it has a very good sound quality for it's price cIass There are other players with the same features, that no doubt sound better... but none of them cost below $100. I paid $99 for mine, and the price has dropped since then. It also has a microSDHC expansion slot, which means I can increase the storage capacity of my Fuze very easily if I ever decide to. Probably as soon as my company comes out with 16GB ones... employee discount is an awesome thing.

So what is everyone else using to carry their music around?

Union Officers: If an off-topic thread is not a good idea I apologize and I won't mind in the least if you remove it. I have been wanting one though, and i thought I'd give it a shot and see if others want it as well.

EDIT by domatron23: Thanks for taking the initiative Chilli, lets make this into a general off topic thread. We can discuss games, gadgets, the things going on in our lives and anything else we want to here that's not related to this unions premise. I'll sticky this along with the "what are you reading" thread.

Edited on Aug 20, 2009 2:32 am PT

Right now my alarm clock is the only thing that plays music. I never was into music so I've never bothered to get an ipod or an MP3 player or anything of that sort.

Thanks for stickying the thread, domatron. And I really just wanted somewhere to put all my off-topic ramblings.

@bean-with-bacon
The real D2+, or the one with the firmware "modification"? Curious minds want to know...

For a very long time I wanted Cowon... but then I realized that I would probably never use at least half of the features. I want something that I can stick in my purse or pocket and that plays music to me. Which means that I hardly ever use the video function of the Fuze and would have been happier with it if they had taken that out and made it smaller.

Anyways, here is a picture of it, since the rest of you posted pictures. It is not a good representation, the color is not like what this picture shows at all. It's much darker, more like steel rather than pale silver. In other words, it's a lot less ugly in person!



I also have a 2GB red version of its baby brother, the Clip. If the Clip had a microSD slot, it would be the perfect DAP for me. Oh, and it uses the exact same type/size earphones as the Fuze, to give you an idea of the size.

I have an old 2G I-pod Nano.

I works great, and I really don't need anything else in my MP3 Player but music. (although my versions memory is a little small)

I-pods rule!!

ChiliDragon wrote:

Interesting... now one person in Greece and one person in Australia have said the Zune is not sold there. Is it a US-only device? If it is, has that to do with the Zune Pass and the music subscription licenses? I'm curious now...

Yeah I'm pretty sure it's only sold in the US, no idea why though.

I use my psp.

I need to get some sort of mp3 player so I don't have to carry cds in my car anymore. Just something to put my music on and not have to deal with any sort of program like itunes.

Edited on Aug 21, 2009 2:44 pm PT

itsTolkien_time wrote:

I-tunes works fine, both my dad and I use I-pods (and I-tunes) and no problems have been experienced, I don't understand what some people have against it.

iTunes or iPods?

iPods: They are far more expensive than equivalent players with similar feature sets and storage capacity. For example, my Fuze has more features than an 8GB iPod Nano, but retails for $60 less. I would have a lot less complaints if the Nano was more reasonably priced, but as it is right now, they simply charge a $60 extra for the engraved Apple logo and for (in my mind) very over-hyped "original design".

iTunes: I've used MediaMonkey for years. I had all my music perfectly tagged and neatly organized. I then installed iTunes, since I was curious about the then new online music store they offered. The first thing iTunes did was to find my music library, reorganize it, and retag everything with its own tagging system. One my DAP was not compatible with. More than six years later I still don't have everything back to the way I want it! So yes, I feel I have good reason to despise iTunes.

I had this great urge to have a discussion about make-up, but then I realized that I'm probably the only female who's reasonably active in this union, so it would essentially be me having a conversation with myself on the merits of gel eyeliner over the liquid kind....

So let's keep the topic on music instead: Where do you get your legal music downloads? Subscription or flat rate purchase, or any other way, I am curious to know. Personally I love Magnatune's business model, and I wish more companies would follow their example.

On another note, I noticed that a certain union now has a second thread in one week basically dedicated to me.

Should I be flattered? 

domatron23 wrote:

Hmm, I can't for the life of me find it. I know there's the "belief about eternal seperation" one but I don't see any other.

It's the one on the Septuagint (the Greek translation of the Old Testament) - I made a comment about Jesus quoting from it in the New Testament in the comments section of that YouTube video, and coincidentally, up came that thread shortly thereafter.  I honestly did not even know that there were those who disagreed with the assertion that it was a translation made before the birth of Jesus, given that basically all scholars I know of just take that as a fact, and especially given that Philo and Josephus (Jewish scholars contemporary with Jesus) both not only mention it but laud it as divinely inspired, but there you go, I suppose.

Ironically enough, the Dead Sea Scrolls that were lauded in an earlier thread there agree with the wording in the Septuagint, rather than that of the Masoretic Text, so...

Edited on Aug 26, 2009 11:58 pm PT