Micro
Hard-Drive Players: The hard-drive group can be divided into two groups: large
capacity(20 GB or higher) or microdrive (1.5-5GB).Micro
hard-drive
players ride
the line
between
full-size
hard
drive-based
MP3 players
and compact,
flash-based
players,
these models
aim to give
you the best
of both
worlds by
using
miniature
hard drives
(about 1
inch in
diameter)
with
capacities
of up to
5GB. The microdrive
players,
which tend
to be
palm-sized
and weigh
about a
quarter-pound
but can hold
up to 2500
songs. The
downfall of
hard-drive
players is
the drive is
always
moving while
playing
therefore
having the
potential of
skipping
during
exercise
even with
skip
protection.
But often
that extra
capacity
translates
into a
bulkier,
heavier
player
weighing up
to 1 pound.
Pros:
-
smaller
and
lighter
than
high-capacity
players
- hold
more tunes
than
flash-based
models
with the
same
price.
Cons:
- You
get fewer
megabytes
per dollar
than you
do with a
larger
player
- moving
parts that
limit
physical
activity,
potential
for
skipping
Micro vs. Large
If you see yourself adding several new CDs to your
player every week then the large-capacity player is
definitely for you. To put the size of the player in
perspective a 20 GB player holds 5000 songs which equals
500 ten-song CDs. If all you want is 20 CDs worth of
music on you at one time then save some money and go
with a micro hard-drive player.
|
Size |
hours
of music |
amount
of songs |
|
1.5 GB |
25 hrs |
375 songs |
|
4 GB |
70 hrs |
1000 songs |
|
5
GB |
87
hrs |
1250
songs |
PORTABLE
MEDIA
