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Creative Labs Nomad Jukebox (Silver)

Creative Labs Nomad Jukebox (Silver)

List Price: $349.99
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Product Info Reviews

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Rating: 4 stars
Summary: Great storage, functionality....will only get better
Review: Here's the deal. I bought an 30GB unit on ...(another website)(upgraded with Toshiba hard drive) for ...($$$)shipped. I've owned the unit for nearly a month, and I've got mostly positive comments thus far. Storage capacity is excellent; sound quality great; easy to learn basic features; highly portable, ability to record voice and other data, etc.

Negatives are its short battery life, inability to scan through songs (can only jump to the next track or start same song again), and lack of shock protection (smaller units use flash memory as opposed to a hard drive). Also, the unit will only play WAV and MP3 format.

In short, if you need a storage device for your MP3s that is portable enough to take in a car or elsewhere, but don't need an MP3 player to jog with, then this product will surely work well. Prices for these units continues to decline, and I presume the newer units will solve many of the concerns of present units.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Fantastic Jukebox!!
Review: I got my Nomad Jukebox today, and I am absolutely LOVING it. First, it's incredibly easy to install. No problems whatsoever. One thing though, just in case you don't know this (as I didn't), make sure the Jukebox is ON while it's connected to your computer or it won't be detected. I guess this is common sense, but I thought that since the unit could charge when it was off, it would be detected while it was off too. But that's not the case. So make sure your jukebox is ON. And since the battery life isn't limitless, I'd suggest you use the included AC adapter when connected to your computer.

I think an MP3 player is only as good as what you need it for. So while I know there are a lot of complaints that the jukebox doesn't have this or that (an FM tuner, for example), it doesn't bother me AT ALL because that's not why I bought it. Granted, for the price, I suppose it could use some extra features. But frankly, I would never use any of them anyway. Also, while hard drive based jukeboxes ARE more expensive than tiny portable MP3 players, they're a much better deal when you compare how much memory you get for each dollar you spend.

I bought the jukebox for one reason and one reason only--to transfer all of my all-time favorite artist's music to one device. Right now, I have almost 4 CD binders full of her music (that's about 400 cds--lots of bootlegs obviously!), and I wanted to be able to carry it all without having to lug 4 big binders around with me. So while some people complain about the size of the jukebox, compared to 4 binders stacked on one another, this is pure bliss. So the size and weight of this device is not a problem for me at all.

Another complaint that many people have is the battery life. I agree that it's not the greatest, but then again, I don't plan to use the jukebox without its AC adapter. My commute to work in only about 30 minutes (which is why I have my Nomad IIC), so carrying 6GB of music isn't really necessary. Plus, because the hard drive contains moving parts and I catch the bus to and from work, I don't trust it being jostled in my purse. Again, that's why I have my Nomad IIC with its non-moving parts.

Playcenter 2 couldn't be any simpler to use. I've read a few complaints about it, but I am more than happy with it. It's so easy. I'm not a big Napster/Morpheus fan, so all I'm using the software for is to encode CD tracks to MP3s and transfer them on to the jukebox. All you have to do is insert the audio CD in your CD drive, click on "audio CD" in Playcenter, select the tracks you want to record, and transfer them! How easy is that?! USB transfer isn't the fastest thing in the world (it took me about 6 minutes to rip an 11-track CD), but I don't mind. Remember those days when you wanted to records CD tracks on to cassette tape? You had to record everything in REAL TIME. I know CD burners today are capable of burning entire CDs in seconds, but I don't burn many CDs so my biggest frame of reference is my old school days of transferring everything to tape. And compared to waiting more than an hour while a CD burned in real time, 6 minutes is not a big deal. Plus, you can multitask and do other things while you're waiting.

I haven't played with the jukebox for very long yet, but from what I can tell so far, my only complaint would be the playlist feature. It's kind of annoying that you have to create a playlist in order to listen to more than one song at a time. Not that creating such a list is a hard thing to do at all, but I'd rather select an album, hit play, and be able to listen to the entire thing without adding each track to my playlist. Very minor irritation that I'll get used to after a few more hours, I'm sure.

As for the memory space, 6GB is A LOT. Still, because I want to transfer so many CDs, I'm going to upgrade to either a 30GB or 40GB hard drive. (...). I'd rather have a 40GB, but the prices are still too high since it's brand new.

The sound quality is also really good. I'm not too picky about sound though, so maybe my opinion here isn't very useful. But regardless, I'm very pleased with the quality. Oh yeah, and the volume is LOUD! Be sure to adjust your automatic start volume, or you'll risk blowing out your ear drums. I guess it depends on where you'll be using your jukebox, but since I'll mostly only be using it at home, I set my volume at 8 and it's still too loud sometimes.

One more thing, the firmware upgrades available for free download on the official Nomad and other websites are sooooo fast. I almost thought it didn't work, it was so quick. But then I checked my system information and there it was: version 2.94.

So basically, to make this very long review very short: go out and buy the Creative Nomad Jukebox. NOW!

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: SO Sweet! Higher capacity than one could wish for.
Review: The jukebox is the greatest thing to happen to music since the CD. Yeah, its a little clunky but the sound quality kicks with a built in equalizer and Spatalization (adjusts sound to headphone/speaker size and quality.) It holds 6 gigs which is more than enough for all the mp3s on your computer by far, (I have about 900 and they fit.) The software is very easy to use and it takes a few seconds to transfer files. I highly reccomend it to anyone who has a signifigant # of mp3s on their computer, a great deal too!!

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: Love It To Death - Was expensive though
Review: FYI... I have hacked my nomad with a 20GB harddrive.

Things I Love:
Every CD I own is on the nomad
You can copy data files to it
You can do live recordings with it

Things I Wish Were Better:
I wish I could just use this as a USB harddrive
I wish the batteries didn't run out so quickly
I wish it was smaller

I have had nothing but a good time with my nomad. Creative had some issues with the operating system on this thing when it first came out, but not too many big issues left to deal with. There were some people who had trouble with the hardware and batteries, but I wasn't one of them. I bought this...so even if I hated it I would like it, just because it cost so damn much.

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: good except...
Review: Fairly i liked this jukebox. they sent me the wrong i ordered the nomad 2 MG. but i didnt get the headphones which isnt a problem i have 2 pairs. i didnt get ne xtra batterys (...). what i liked was it took like seconds to put songs on it. playcenter 2 is VERY easy to use. thats about it i think. overall i liked this item.

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: Overall one of the best
Review: I've had my Nomad Jukebox 6gig for about a year now, and I still love it. Sure, it's got it's cons, but overall it is a cool, reliable and swanky little bit of electronics.

Here are the cons:

Easy to use...one you get the hang of it. I agree that the documentation for the unit is pretty substandard and the interface is non-intuitive. But once you work your way through it and become accustomed to it, it is easy to use--easy to add, delete, make play lists, etc.

Upload and download--Move stuff from your PC onto your Jukebox, then back again! Some reviewers have said they can't do this, but I do it all the time. No probs.

Battery life--About 4 hours with each set of batteries...and you get two sets. That's pretty good. WARNING: when they say 12 hours the first time you charge, they mean 12 hours. Any less, and you've screwed your batteries for good.

Playcenter software--actually this is easier to use and more intuitive than the Jukebox's internal software. Great, easy, reliable and fast.

Cons:

The carry case sucks...buy another quickly. I bought the larger padded case from Creative, with plenty of room for headphones, a car adapter, extra batteries. And it has zippered access to the ports, so you don't have to haul it out every time you want to connect it.

Ummm...that's it, really...although I wish it played Audible content. Maybe a future upgrade.

An excellent buy, especially now that you can get a 20gig one.

Rating: 3 stars
Summary: Bad Batteries
Review: I love the Nomad Jukebox and it is a great way to store and listen to music. It is sturdy and goes with me everywhere.

The only major problem with this merchandise - and I mean MAJOR - is that you must use the Creative Rechargable Batteries ONLY. These batteries are awful. They only last about and hour and a half and they are impossible to charge. You are supposed to be able to put them in the player and plug it in to the wall and it will charge them.

This rarely works.

I called the manufacturer to ask what was going on. The customer service rep explained that the batteries have a "memory" and that if they are not TOTALLY out of juice when you plug the player in to charge them, then it won't charge the batteries.

The solution was to buy a seperate bettery recharger you put the batteries in and plug into the wall. This takes 15 hours to charge the batteries, though. (As opposed to the eight hours it is supposed to take when you charge it in the player.) You have to constantly be charging the batteries if you use this every day like me. The equipment is totally useless without these special batteries.

Rating: 3 stars
Summary: An OK investment if you're willing to put time into it!
Review: My youth leader got one of these to use at our meetings. At first I thought the Jukebox was dumb and a waste of money. However, when I considered how much music you could store on it and that it offered skip-free, quality playback... well I wanted one badly and saved like crazy. I finally got it and loaded all my cd's directly onto it. However, later when I listened to it, I realized some of the songs just weren't loaded. I was bummed but tried loading all the files onto my friend's PC using the Creative software. Finally all my music got onto it. As for playback, the Jukebox has shown no defect. I like making playlists of my favorite albums and then putting it on random.
I really can't complain, for most of my problems with it have been solved. I can get at least 3 hours I think when I recharge the batteries for 2-4 hours. I wish they lasted longer though. The AC is nice but it and the jukebox get real hot after a small time and it makes you wonder if you're going to melt it or something. One word of warning: Do not subject this thing to even the slightest abuse. I dropped it bad once and it worked fine. It thuds to the floor a couple times, and now the display screen is messed up. This bums me, but the player still works fine...for now. I'm beginning to think twice about buying seeing I really only use it when I travel and that's pretty sporadic. I find myself just wanting to put a cd in my old player and lsiten to that. I do like Playcenter (the program that lets you load the music), for it behaves and has more features than the Jukebox. Think about it before buying it. Its great for travel and you can't beat having over 150 cd's loaded onto it for skip free playback. But you get a pair of crummy headphones and a cheap little pouch to put it in. Also, the manual isn't very in depth either. Oh well, there seems to be a divided opinion about the jukebox, what can I say?

Rating: 2 stars
Summary: Too difficult for someone who is not into gadgets
Review: I bought this product as a gift for my brother, figuring that the hours and hours of music that it can store would bring a smile to his face. Alas, he could not figure out how to make it work and returned it for a refund. I am not sure whose fault that is (the mfr or my brother) but I thought I would write this review to alert potential purchasers that at least one user had a problem figuring out how to make the Nomad work.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Very, Very Good; but, Just A Little Bad!
Review: This, mp3 player, has met or exceeded almost all of the items -- important to myself; which, I perceive to required of a portable mp3 audio player: 1. An exceeding large data storage area (6-Giga Bytes); 2. Wide format coverage (mp3, Wav, Wma, etc.); 3. Excellent sound quality which can be enhanced on board; 4. Better than expected battery life (almost 5-hours); and, 5. Upgradeability (the latest upgrade has improved the life of the battery from 3.75-hours to 4.9-hours).

What I find to need improvement is the documentation. Learning to use my silver mp3 player has been mainly an educated guessing game. Most of the features (the small things) which lend ease of use for my personal enjoyment have been found through trial and (mainly) error. A comprehensive Users Manual would be a welcome addition.


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