I currently have an old e130 that I’d like to use for listening to MP3 (not audible) books, ripped from CDs. I like to do this while exercising when it’s not always convenient to read the book, and a portable CD player is too much trouble.
The problem with it is that when I power off, it insists on starting back at the beginning rather than the current position. To me, this is brain-dead. Other players have a choice.
I’m hoping I’ve missed something, and it’s possible to do this. I do have another old player that works, but I don’t like it very much, and it may not last much longer.
There are two series of players, depending on their firmware (1.x.xxx or 2.x.xxx), as described here. I have had the same experience as you with four different 1-series E130s, i.e., they don’t resume properly. I can’t speak for the 2-series players. Unfortunately, you can’t load 2.xxx firmware into a 1-series player.
Other Sandisk models:
The m200 models do resume properly, but don’t have an SD slot. But they’re cheap now.
The Connect resumes properly for 72 hours (until it goes from sleep to full shutdown), and has a micro SD slot.
The e200 models have a micro SD slot, and do resume properly if there is nothing installed in the slot. If there is a micro SD card in the slot, there are two situations, and I don’t remember one of them: 1) They don’t resume properly from the content on the micro SD slot, and 2) I forget if they resume properly from the content in the internal memory if there is a micro SD card installed. (If you need to know this, report back and I can test.)
Thanks for the information and the offer to double-check for me. I was hoping there was some way to do the resume that I had missed, although I didn’t have much hope. I do have the latest 1.xxx firmware, so I’m SOL.
I’m a bit surprised that the m200 series works, but not the e100 series. Maybe the e100 series will work without the SD card?
I see the m240 for about $15 recertified, on buy.com. This might be a good deal if you’re sure it works. But it would be nice to have one with the SD card, so I can also have a little music if I don’t want to listen to a book. Know anything about the C250’s resume?
@zinfidel wrote:
TMaybe the e100 series will work without the SD card?
I see the m240 for about $15 recertified, on buy.com. This might be a good deal if you’re sure it works. But it would be nice to have one with the SD card, so I can also have a little music if I don’t want to listen to a book. Know anything about the C250’s resume?
No, the e130 won’t pause correctly without (or with) the SD card.
My recently purchased m230 pauses fine for the two months I’ve owned it. I know nothing about the C250, sorry.
By the way, when you say “pause”, does that include power off/resume at current location (a persistent pause, I suppose)? Hopefully, a literal pause would always resume where it stopped, where an actual stop, if available, might start over again. I actually don’t remember whether the one I have pauses correctly without a power off or not.
Sorry, I meant to say “resume” and not “pause,” which was a mistake. The e130 won’t resume correctly in any of the cases of it turning off: 1) auto shutoff after too-long being paused, 2) manual shutoff while paused, 3) manual shutoff while playing, 4) auto shutoff due to battery rundown.
To defer 1 above as long as possible, I set Auto Power Off to its max, 60 min. in the e130. (And use rechargeable batteries.)
Thanks for clearing up the pause question. It might just be worth getting a m200 series player just for this purpose and using the e130 I have for music. Both are small enough to easily use while exercising.
I don’t know that I’ll ever buy an e200… Maybe if there’s a really good deal, but I prefer a bigger display, I think; it would be nice to have some video available in cases where I get stuck waiting somewhere without anything to read or do.
I got my e140 just a few months after it came out, back in 2005. It’s the first Sansa SanDisk ever made, and the fancy ‘resume in the middle of the song’ hadn’t been added to the list of features yet. Let’s face it - it’s not that the e100 doesn’t resume properly, it’s that the thing is just too old to know how to do it in the first place.
Oh yeah and I wouldn’t go for a refurbished player if I were you…last I checked, you get no warranty with a refurb player.
H4ll3igh wrote:
I got my e140 just a few months after it came out, back in 2005. It’s the first Sansa SanDisk ever made, and the fancy ‘resume in the middle of the song’ hadn’t been added to the list of features yet. Let’s face it - it’s not that the e100 doesn’t resume properly, it’s that the thing is just too old to know how to do it in the first place.
Oh yeah and I wouldn’t go for a refurbished player if I were you…last I checked, you get no warranty with a refurb player.
@h4ll3igh wrote:
I got my e140 just a few months after it came out, back in 2005. It’s the first Sansa SanDisk ever made, and the fancy ‘resume in the middle of the song’ hadn’t been added to the list of features yet. Let’s face it - it’s not that the e100 doesn’t resume properly, it’s that the thing is just too old to know how to do it in the first place.
Oh yeah and I wouldn’t go for a refurbished player if I were you…last I checked, you get no warranty with a refurb player.
I don’t think that feature is fancy at all - I think someone made a decision to start at the beginning of the current song rather than the current position in the current song, either to save space in not storing the position, or just too lazy. But the smaller model without the SD card does save the position, it seems.
I had one or two cheap, noname players before this, and they actually have menu options for resume. I’m still using one, but it’s getting old, and sometimes gets confused and won’t work until I reset it.
Anyway, I ordered a refurb. Refurbs are factory checked, and often better than new, because a new one can be broken out of the box, but the refurbs have been certified to work. And they usually have a warranty, but not always as long. I could pay an extra $5 for an extended warranty, which would then be longer than new, and still much cheaper, but at $15 (includes shipping), I can’t worry too much.
Oh yeah and I wouldn’t go for a refurbished player if I were you…last I checked, you get no warranty with a refurb player.
No warranty from Sandisk, but there is typically a warranty from the distributor or retailer; this varies from seller to seller. Buy.com for example, sells refurbished Sansa players with a 90-day warranty from the distributor.
