What to look for when buying MP4 Players

MP4 Players come in all different shapes and sizes, each manufacture offers their own "bells and whistles" functions, but once you cut through the fluff there are some basic elements you should consider:

1) Media Player Shape and Size
Your first consideration should be "What do I want my MP4 Player for". Why is this important, simply because this will dictate most / all of the other choices you need to make. The smaller the player then the smaller the screen and battery, not very good if you want to watch full length movies, but OK for just listening to music.

2) Media Player Screen Size and Type
If you intend to use you MP4 player for listening to music, and occasionally watching short video clips you can chose MP4 players with a smaller screen, 1.5" or 1.8" screen. As this priority changes so should the screen size, i.e. the more video you intend to watch with respect to the amount of audio you wish to listen to the bigger the screen your MP4 player should be 2.0" upwards.
Summary -
More Music - Small Screen
More Video - Large Screen
Not Sure - Mid Large Large Screen

3) Media Player Storage Capacity
Storage capacity for MP4 Players comes in two main types – hard disk and solid state.
As a rule of thumb larger-capacity MP4 players use a hard disk for storage, not unlike your PC. This type of storage tends to make these MP4 Players bulkier than solid-state players, but the up side is you can fit more media on to them. Hard-disk capacities vary and you will pay more for higher-capacity models. You can also use many hard disc players to transfer large files between computers.
Solid state MP4 players get their name because they have no moving parts, this storage is based on flash silicon IC's. This technology means MP4 players can be incredibly small and light, and a benefit of this is they are often more robust compared to hard disk MP4 Players. As with the hard disk you can also use this type of MP4 Player to transfer files between computers
Another consideration is expansion slots on MP4 Players. Some MP4 player models come with SD card slots which allow you to plug in more solid state memory in card format and therefore expand your on board memory. These are particular useful for holding films on.
Summary -
If you want to load your player up with your complete DVD collection and all of your music files you will need to look at a hard disk MP4 Player. If you want to rotate your music and video collection, or hold a smaller amount on you player at any one time a solid state MP4 Player will suit you.

4) Media Player Battery Life
Each brand and type of MP4 player will have its own battery life. There are various considerations as to how long your battery will last between charges, the main one being how much video you are watching. The more screen time you have the less play time you will have. Most MP4 players will offer at least 4-6 hours of play as standard, this can be extended by turning the screen off.
Charging takes on average 3-4 hours , but some of the players with larger memory can take up to 5-6 hours. With most models, you can recharge the batteries without removing them. This can be achieved on some models using your computers USB port rather than carrying around a clunky power supply and cables

5) Connections
Most, if not all MP4 players connect to your PC via USB or in some cases Fire Wire. If you choose an MP4 player with Fire Wire you should make sure your PC has a Fire Wire port on it. If not you will need to buy an expansion card. You should also make sure any MP4 Players you are looking at support USB 2.0, this will speed up you data transfer times.

6) Data Formats Supported
You should make sure the MP4 Players you are looking at support the most common media formats, (MPEG) MP1, MP2, MP3, MP4, WMA. WMV. This will be done directly on the player through embedded drivers or via conversion software which will take these formats and change them in the best format for your MP4 Player.

7) Audio Output
There are two types of audio output on MP4 players, these are headphones and/or external speaker. Most mp4 players with an external speaker will also come with a jack socket for you headphones. This is a good feature as if a group of people want to listen to the MP4 player whilst watching video you don't need to share earphones.

8) Bells and Whistles
Once you have you checked the above list covering the above points you can look at the extras. These will range from games, FM radio, voice and/or radio recording, phone book, camera for both video and stills, calendar, Electronic album and picture browser, Graphics Equaliser, multi language, and the list goes on.

Like an MP3 player, you will need a computer to use an MP4 player, and ideally access to the internet.

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