Hi....Please Help!!

MP3 players Sansa Fuze
1

Hi,

I’m new here!

Just wanted to know a bit about the sansa fuze, as i am planning on buying one in the next few days!

I wandered if someone could tell me : -

  • which of the sansa’s have the radio record facility? Does the fuze?
  • Will it work with windows vista and windows media player? (as i read somewhere it has to be media player 10)
  • does the fuze charge via usb? and if so is that the only way you can charge it? As i think it’s silly charging it by usb… i like to use batteries… for when i’m out and about walking (obviously cant take my laptop)

Please help me as i need the answers to these

Any help would be great

thanks

lyn

2

@music_lover2008 wrote:

Hi,

I’m new here!

Just wanted to know a bit about the sansa fuze, as i am planning on buying one in the next few days!

 

I wandered if someone could tell me : -

 

  • which of the sansa’s have the radio record facility? Does the fuze?
    The fuze does record radio. I dont know about other but the Fuze does a pretty good Job (I work in radio and I am happy with it)
  • Will it work with windows vista and windows media player? (as i read somewhere it has to be media player 10)
    I Use Vista Home Premium (PC) and Ultimate (Lappy) and WMP 11 With No Issues at All
  • does the fuze charge via usb? and if so is that the only way you can charge it? As i think it’s silly charging it by usb… i like to use batteries… for when i’m out and about walking (obviously cant take my laptop)
    The Fuze Does Charge thru USB but so does every other current sansa player and Ipod and Zune, So good luck finding one that doesnt. The Awesome thing about the Sansa Products tho is that the make a Wall Charger and a Car adapter that plug in to your player thru the cord you use for the USB. Also the Fuze batter will last a really long time playing music (substabtially longer than you will be away from a computer car  or a wall plug)

Please help me as i need the answers to these

Any help would be great

thanks

lyn

 

Overall I would pick the fuze 100 times out of 100 if I had to do it again. Even with out battery power it lasts longer than I can imagine ever being away from power.

3

Here ya go:

  • which of the sansa’s have the radio record facility? Does the fuze?
    The Fuze does; I think most recent models do, actually.
  • Will it work with windows vista and windows media player? (as i read somewhere it has to be media player 10)
    It will work with Vista & WMP11.
  • does the fuze charge via usb? and if so is that the only way you can charge it? As i think it’s silly charging it by usb… i like to use batteries… for when i’m out and about walking (obviously cant take my laptop)
    It charges via USB. You can get a generic AC USB power adapter for about $10 (sometimes less) that allows you to charge it directly from the wall (and you can listen while it charges)

 Edit: well I guess Conversionbox beat me by a bit, but at least our answers match! (of course, my response is much prettier)

Message Edited by bdb on 01-04-2009 02:13 PM

4

 personally I like the fuze it has radio record,it also has video and pictures and voice,also a scroll wheel,people ask me if it’s a ipod nano so that’s how much they looked and work alike and it does work with vista and windows media players 10,11

as for the via usb,with mine if you plug it into the computer it should charge while you have it plugged in and if you buy a usb charger kit you can charge it in the car and in a wall outlet in your house 

(it has a built in battery so that should not be a problem)

it’s a great product and I recommend it  

good luck

5

Hi

Thankyou both for your reply’s!

But “conversionbox” you said wmp 11… i have only got wmp (not 11) you think it will still work?

 Well i’m not bothered about how i charge it inside, i just dont want to take it out with me and then runs out of battery after a few hours because obviously the more you use it the less time it will last

Thanks for both replys to my thread!

6

Hi

Thanks for your reply!

Yes thats the only reason i’m thinking of buying the fuse… for the radio record cos this is the only mp3 i can find that has got the radio record… which i really want!

It does sound good, but i’m concerned about the media player because ppl are saying it works on wmp 10/11 … but i have only got the normal wmp

Will it still work?

Thanks

Lyn

7

What windows are you running? Vista or XP should be fine. And if Its not there are other free programs you can use and WMP is free to download as well.

Message Edited by Conversionbox on 01-04-2009 05:27 PM

8

 Other notes:

The radio works fine and the radio-record works fine.

Voice record works pretty well too.

This device carries on the tradition of the Sansa e200 series, which are now considered discontinued, as of fall 08.

the Fuze has better sound quality (new chip) and more features.  (although not tremendously more than the older e200 units)

The user interface is very good.

Firmware support continues for Fuze about every 6 months with new releases avaiable for free download.  If you get a Fuze, go on-line with Sansa and get the Firmware Updater and then download the new firmware.  it’s an automatic process; the application will sense the device you have plugged in and get and load the correct newest firmware.  some bugs were recently fixed and a few new features added in the December 08 release.

The battery on the older e200 series were replacable by user.  Not so on the Fuze.  Not even factory-replacable like and iPod.  but, there are not complants about battery life, performance or expected longevity.  Also, with a street price of around $75 for well-designed 8 gig device, it’s not like you are making the investment of a lifetime.

The microSD card support is really tremendous.  The Fuze will take microSDHC cards, from 2 gig up to 16 gig.  Also, when the 32 gig cards are released this year, it should take those too.

8 gig cards are around $20 so you really get a 16 gig device for the added cost of the card .

If you plan on using the device for video, check the boards here for discussion (there are many!).  Mucho glitchos senor.

You need to use Sansa’s proprietary software/app for transferring photos and videos to the device.  You can hav a perfect avi or mpg4 video but you will then need to get it loaded onto the device via Sansa Media converter (SMC).  Interestingly,SMC will take a 25 meg file and make it 75 megs for use on a 2" screen!  there are a lot of glitches with codecs etc.  it DOES work but not alwasy and not with all videos.  There apparently ARE workarounds but require some tech-savvy and perseverence. Again, check the boards here and on the SMC forum.  there are very few problems with getting photos onto the device. 

All-in-all it is a fantastic device for music. 

In the USB mode called MSC (Mass Storage Class) you drag and drop music files as if it were a USB flash drive.  Which, in effect, it is.  there is also a second USB operating mode called MTP (Media Transfer Protocol) which stems from Microsoft Windows Media Player.  It is suggested that you pick one mode and stick with it, as music that is added via one mode will not be “visible” in the other mode.  If you are into playlists, you may prefer MTP mode.  if not, MSC appears to be simpler and less trouble.

Regarding charging, as mentioned, you can get inexpensive wall-wart chargers that supply 5v power to a USB port.  The cord for the Fuze s proprietary to Sansa (same as with the older e200 series).  Although the business end looks like an iPod cord, it is NOT.  Do not use and iPod cord.  The other end is normal USB and plugs into the wall wart of computer in the normal way.  Chargers avaiable for car-use too.

Regarding extra batteries:  You cannot have spare batteries.  Unfortunate.  But, there are external power packs that charge your device and provide power on the go.  This would be effective if you were going on an extended hiking trip or a long airline flight.  You should get somewhere around 20 hours, maybe a bit less, of power from the Fuze when playing music.  You might get less than 4 hours if playing video.  So you decide.

Here are two external power options.  Both get good reviews.

APC:

http://www.amazon.com/APC-UPB10-Universal-Battery-10WH/dp/B000GBN42E/ref=pd_cp_e_2?pf_rd_p=413862901&pf_rd_s=center-41&pf_rd_t=201&pf_rd_i=B001DDLU1Q&pf_rd_m=ATVPDKIKX0DER&pf_rd_r=176EH6GR1NHRDJ78BZE7

McNally:

http://www.amazon.com/Macally-Compact-External-Lithium-Ion-Battery/dp/B000O2YOII/ref=pd_cp_e_1?pf_rd_p=413863501&pf_rd_s=center-41&pf_rd_t=201&pf_rd_i=B000GBN42E&pf_rd_m=ATVPDKIKX0DER&pf_rd_r=006Q7PKGZSM5VA3JEY7W

Also solar chargers are available for REALLY extended wilderness trips or third-whirled trips.

Brand is “Solio” I believe.

There are fewer accessories than in the iPod world, but there are some good ones.  And some docks, etc. 

External (mono) speaker with case.  Cool little device.  I have a similar one. Not hi-fi but very convenient on the go and holds all your cords and the fuze, etc.

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000HOWEG2/sr=8-2/qid=1204407817/ref=dp_cp_ob_image_0?ie=UTF8&qid=1204407817&sr=8-2

Here’s another one:

http://www.amazon.com/Mccally-Portable-Stereo-Speakers-MP3/dp/B000HGID1K/ref=pd_bbs_10?ie=UTF8&s=electronics&qid=1204408866&sr=8-10

One last tip, the screens on these get scratched with normal use.  Save yourself the frustration of trying to “fix” this in six months and get screen protection on as soon as you get it.

Here’s my favorite; a very thin and super durable  membrane that is applied right to the screen.  It’s not a “full body armor” and adds nothing to the size of the unit.  Super-resistant to scratches.

From company called ZAGG.

I believe it’s Zagg.com.  Product is called Invisible Shield.  About $10.  Well worth it!

Have fun!

Message Edited by blackdog-sansa on 01-04-2009 06:02 PM

9

If you have a computer less than 5 or 6 years old, you most likely have WMP 10 or 11.  You have to go into “About Windows Media Player” to see the version.  If you have 10 or 11 you’ll be good to go.

10

Hello Lyn. There are very few players being made now that use a AA or AAA battery. I started a thread in the product suggestion page for a AA battery powered player. The Sandisk Sansa Clip and Sansa Fuze both record from the built in FM radio. They record in WAV though, so it is only around 3 hours of recording per GB of space(6 hours per gig for the voice recorder since it is mono).  The Fuze also only records to the internal memory, not to the memory on a card you put into the player. The Fuze is listed as having 24 hour battery life, but 18 hours is more typical in real world usage. The Clip is listed as having 15 hour battery life, but 12 hours is more typical(the battery run time is like the mpg for a car. It is listed for the best case scenareo, not typical usage).

11

Hi,

Thankyou for all your reply’s!!

Yes my laptop is only bout 2 years old

Everything sounds good (will just have to make do with battery)

So i will be buying 1 today or tomorrow hopefully!!

Thanks everyone

Lyn

12

You don’t NEED WMP at all unless you want to transfer protected music.  BTW, I have windows XP and the update to WMP 10 failed.  If they can’t get that right when they wrote both the program and operating system then forget it!

If FM record and replaceable batteries are both high on your priority list then look at some of the Iriver players (T60 for one runs on a single AAA).

There’s a Sansa M200 series that uses AAA and has FM, but I’m not sure it can record from the radio.