Creative Zen Stone Plus officially in 4GB for $90

What's that little iPod shuffle? Not feeling so hot? You say that for $10 more than you cost someone can officially get a Creative Zen Stone Plus that not only has a display, but four times your storage? Yeah, we'd have a tummy ache too. Well, at least the $90 4GB Plus only seems to come in black, unlike colors-of-the-rainbow you.

[togroovy @ Dec 6th 2007 4:41AM]

Yet only 4 people will buy it...
Another zinger from creative.

[jessy @ Dec 6th 2007 5:12AM]

the ifan boys really need to get more inventive on their insults.

[js @ Dec 6th 2007 5:35AM]

@Jessy

Unfortunately, he is right. It's not an iPod -- it won't sell.

[Mike Cerm @ Dec 6th 2007 5:51AM]

If you can buy one and like it, and it's profitable for Creative, who cares how many people buy it?

Almost nobody buys Macs, but does that matter to the people who use them and like them?

[Kurt @ Dec 6th 2007 9:37AM]

Almost nobody buys macs except for the millions of people that do. Oh yeah and you can sell small amounts if your margins are high. Trust me this device isn't making much money for Creative.

When you sell an item for bottom dollar the only way to make profits is to sell a crapload. Apple doesn't deal with this market they would rather sell 1,000 with a profit of $40 per device then 10,000 with a profit of $4. On the outside these appear to be the same thing but the costs associated with trying to sell 10,000 will swallow up that $4 profit pretty quick.

[Eriloman @ Dec 6th 2007 10:22AM]

...of course theres always the china clone:
http://www.mp4nation.net/products/index.php?PID=xmas

[Benson @ Dec 6th 2007 10:36AM]

@Mike Cerm
>If you can buy one and like it, and it's profitable for Creative, who cares how many people buy it?

Well, ask the few (audiophiles and ethernet-centric geeks) who bought Rio Karmas. And then Rio went belly-up, presumably because not enough people bought it.

Creative won't go belly-up, I'm sure. But they could stop producing, and therefore supporting, MP3 players. Probably not an issue in this case, but it can matter.

[JohnTitor @ Dec 6th 2007 11:19AM]

I work at Circuit City, and at least in store, we sell more of the regular Zen Stone than iPod shuffles

[Warren @ Dec 6th 2007 5:13AM]

Hope this Zen product lives up to it's name more. I switched to the iPod for a reason. And Zen Micro was it's name!

[John @ Dec 6th 2007 9:45AM]

Really? I actually swtiched from a full-sized iPod to a Zen Micro a few years back. The GUI was similar enough that i didn't care either way, the zen was slightly less pleasent to control, but the sound quality improvement was significant. I'm not some RAH RAH IPODS SUCK guy. I didn't hate my ipod. it's just funny to see someone having gone the other way.

Oh yeah, I also love having a built-in microphone for recording indie shows, but i don't see that being an overly-common need in a DAP.

[matt0baba @ Dec 6th 2007 12:06PM]

its still lame.. i have teh stone and the shuffle at my household , i prefer the shuffle... the Stone's UI is slow as dog poop and the display is hard to read, especially if you dont have your ID3 tags all nice and proper

[XenoX101 @ Dec 6th 2007 5:30AM]

Nice, I'll be looking forward to a review on this one.

[Mike Cerm @ Dec 6th 2007 5:46AM]

Can I save you the suspense? It'll be exactly like the 2GB version, but with double the storage. Depending on how you choose to organize your files, it might be difficult to navigate with such a small screen (but certainly preferable to the Shuffle's lack of screen).

[bugmat @ Dec 6th 2007 5:52AM]

It'll sell - there are still ppl who love value for money in this world - the shuffle is the worst player out there (chef's surprise every day? no thanks). The other iPods are another issue but the shuffle is a truly pointless waste of money!

[jabsdad @ Dec 6th 2007 5:55AM]

Too bad you gotta use crappy software to interface with it. Yes it's crap and you know it.

[matt @ Dec 6th 2007 7:24AM]

You mean drag and drop?

[riggs @ Dec 6th 2007 8:52AM]

my pointer is pissed that it has to lift heavy icons :(

[Scott @ Dec 6th 2007 11:21AM]

Drag and drop is what we did before smartlists and auto playlists were invented. One button syncing is where it's at.

In my experience, Creative always drops the ball on the software for any of their products. They're like Logitech... Great hardware, but the software should almost always be avoided.

[insertAlias @ Dec 6th 2007 11:35AM]

Drag and drop can suck for some of us...
I have my music organized several folders deep. Music-->Artist-->Album-->Songs. I let iTunes/WMP handle my playlists and never have to go to the actual files. If I could drag and drop a playlist, that would be great, but I don't want to have to hunt through my library to find the songs I want.

If you don't organize your music deeply, then drag and drop is fine.

[seoultrain @ Dec 6th 2007 1:09PM]

syncing is good for large-capacity mp3 players, but on something like this, with 4gb, you're gonna want to drag and drop.

[Ty @ Dec 6th 2007 1:21PM]

http://www.binaryfortress.com/itunes-sync/

iTunes isn't only for iPods...

[skhawaja @ Dec 7th 2007 5:58AM]

@ riggs

LOL damn - thanks for crackin me up

[mediamoshpit @ Dec 6th 2007 6:25AM]

"Almost nobody buys Macs"

When looking at overall sales, Macs account for for now 7% of the overall market. When compared to the automobile industry, this is equivalent to the number of BMW and Volkswagen owners combined.

However, overall sales include the corporate environment. When you look at what computers people choose for their homes and their families, the Mac install percentage raises to a healthy 30% of all domestic homes.

When looking at entertainment devices that sync with a host machine, the domestic sales figures are much more important, due to the fact that interfacing with corporate machines is largely frowned upon, not allowed or simply deemed undesirable by management or the end user.

[Argot @ Dec 6th 2007 9:16AM]

Nope, Mac accounts for around 3% of the market. When compared to the automobile industry for some strange reason it's equivalent to the number of Skoda and Hyundai owners combined.

[GETYOID @ Dec 6th 2007 9:25AM]

I wouldnt purchase a MAC with YOUR money. Well, what I'd do is purchase two PC's and the networking hardware and still have money for an overpriced cup of crappy coffee from Starbucks.

[Gene @ Dec 6th 2007 11:01AM]

@ GETYOID

Have you really priced a Mac? I'm no fanboy, hell, I too wouldn't ever buy a Mac, but, they aren't as expensive as you think they are. Sure, they may not be as well equipped or game-able as a comparably priced PC, but... that really doesn't matter to alot (most) of the people who buy them.
Now, I know a Mac Pro can end up being around $25k fully equipped, but, you don't seem to be comparing Mac Pro's to PC's... you seem to be comparing MacBooks and iMacs to PC's, which, like I said, the price difference isn't really enough to whine about if you actually care to own a mac.
Just a non-biased post from a non Mac owner.
GR

[seoultrain @ Dec 6th 2007 1:12PM]

Gene, have you really priced PC's? Sure, Macs have come down in price, but they're still ridiculously expensive, especially considering you can get a deal on a PC. Sales and deals on macs (student discounts notwithstanding) are very rare.

[mediamoshpit @ Dec 6th 2007 6:29PM]

@Argot: Your comment is funny, it really is. However the statistics I gave are no less accurate. They just seem to be unpopular, as the truth often is I guess.

[skhawaja @ Dec 7th 2007 6:05AM]

Where the hell does this yapping about Mac and PC come into effect with a mp3 player of all things?

Last time I checked you could damn well plug your USB cable into whatever computer with whatever OS with USB device support and throw some files onto it, hopefully you're throwing audio files that the mp3 player can actually use.

What's the highest bit rate and supported format(s) by the Zen Stone? (guess motorola took pebl)

[richard knights @ Dec 6th 2007 7:01AM]

Thats the point. The Zen micro comes with no rubbish software. You just copy your music folders across, so much better than all that horris itunes synching malarky.

Zen is giving genuine choice, sheep buy an ipod, users that have a brain buy something else.

[shanoboy @ Dec 6th 2007 8:19AM]

I agree 100%. Most people buy Ipods because they're considered "cool". I've had plenty of discussions with people concerning why various other mp3 players out there are better than Ipods and most of these people always return to the, "Well, I just want an Ipod" stance.

[Prokanda @ Dec 6th 2007 10:00AM]

I'm a "PC guy" but I have an iPod. And hell no I didn't get one because it was cool. I got one fore the accessories. There are a ba-zillion accessories for the iPod. It integrates with my pioneer deck in my car seamlessly and I don't have to use itunes. (Winamp works just fine).

I have nothing against creative. I just wanted to have my pic of what cases and devices would work well with my DAP.

[Scott @ Dec 6th 2007 11:21AM]

"sheep buy an ipod, users that have a brain buy something else."

Nice ad hominem attack. Really shows your intelligence at debating a topic.

[Wayne @ Dec 6th 2007 8:22AM]

So is it $80 (article) or $90 (title)?

[Syed @ Dec 6th 2007 11:01AM]

$90. Clicking a link is much easier than posting a comment.

[Galley @ Dec 6th 2007 8:43AM]

Do Creative products support AAC?

[Michael Nixon @ Dec 6th 2007 9:18AM]

The 4GB zen stone plus is said to support DRM-free AAC (the 2GB version does not). Check the instruction manual for the stone plus series.

[gotsmart @ Dec 6th 2007 9:12AM]

Drag-and-drop is great for files, but what about playlists?

[Jason @ Dec 6th 2007 9:23AM]

Will this work on a Mac? I have been wanting a small cheap MP3 player I can job with and I refuse to buy one without a screen.

[zipplet @ Dec 6th 2007 10:24AM]

It should work fine with a mac as it's just a FAT32 USB storage disk and macs support those last time I checked. Just don't reformat it as HPFS.

[Rob @ Dec 6th 2007 9:35AM]

I love drag and drop. Is there such a thing with iPods? I'd love to get it as I hate having to have all my content on my hdd. What if I want to drag a drop a video clip of a disc. I'd love to do that without having to copy it onto iTunes, and then transfer to the iPod. Double transferring is not fun.

[Pete Steege @ Dec 6th 2007 9:59AM]

$80 for 4GB! Flash prices are dropping like a rock! I work for Seagate, and love to see this trend. As GB/person goes up, the storage needed to create/distribute/protect/manage the content increases ten-fold. Flash and disk are a great team!
storageeffect.com

[TDG01 @ Dec 6th 2007 10:37AM]

I can't speak for this Zen stone, but the audio quality on the Shuffle is utter garbage...I can't imagine anything else being much worse...

[seoultrain @ Dec 6th 2007 1:13PM]

just want to make clear that the 2nd gen shuffle's sound quality blows. The 1st gen was actually very good.

[Nick @ Dec 6th 2007 11:01AM]

At least it has a screen..

[-TrEaT- @ Dec 6th 2007 12:01PM]

creative makes a great product. when it comes to syncing WMP11 will sync your playlist and library for you if you choose. you are not forced to drag and drop but at least it gives you that option (ipod). when it comes to the ipod and why people buy it i would have to agree that most of the time it is its "cool factor" however i have owned 6 ipods and currently own a ipod touch and it isnt because its "cool" but because the ipod touch has the best touch screen interface hands down. i also own a archos 605 wifi but as great as that device is it cant hold a candle to the smoothness of the ipod touch. this is why many people buy macs over pcs now. because out of the box macs require no tweaking and work incredibly smooth. i recommend macs to many people even though i would never buy one. macs are great for a many people i just like to have more control and enjoy adjusting my OS. as for the rest of the MSM (main-stream-morons) who buy ipods because there cool, well more power to you.

[Brett @ Dec 6th 2007 12:09PM]

I would happily buy something other than an iPod if it would work nicely on my Macs.

[dcash @ Dec 6th 2007 12:50PM]

zen v plus 4gb at 49.99 directly from creative (refurbished)
http://us.creative.com/products/product.asp?product=16774

other deals up for grabs too..

[PEZ @ Dec 6th 2007 1:55PM]

MP3 PLAYERS SUCK.

[Jhongerkong @ Dec 6th 2007 5:25PM]

YOU SUCK