It seems that more and more of my work colleagues are getting “intoxicated” for a search of good sound quality, either through better headphones and headphones, or music player.

The new gadgets I get my hands to is Samsung M1 Music Player. It looks like a competitor of Apple’s iPod Touch, because it is a full multimedia gadgets similar to many O2 Mobile Phones that not only capable of playing music files, but also playing videos, games, and other applications.

Look sleek, and I’m more than ready to review this cool gadget.

Physical Form and User Interface

It really looks like an iPod Touch with just a bit smaller screen size (3.3″ vs 3.5″) and smaller overall size too, but it’s a bit thicker (99mm vs 85 mm).

In terms of user interface, I think it copied much of iPod Touch feel, so I don’t have much trouble figuring out how to go around the applications. It lack a single cancel button like iPod Touch has though.

It’s touch sensor is also a bit unresponsive compared to iPod Touch.

Sound

I’ve heard that Samsung phone sound quality is one of the best out there, and I hope it’s true for their music player too. After copying a lots of standard songs I always use to review cans and music player, I immediately put it to the test.

It has myDNSe settings (don’t ask me what is the DNS stands for..) and you can set the equalizer, 3D effect, Bass, Concert Hall settings (Echo), and sound clarity effect.

Cool!

All the settings are true to their name. Bass settings improve bass very well, and the sound clarity effect really increase detail sounds.

In short, I like it sound quality, and it certainly beat my iPod Touch and I believe even the other iPods as well.

Video

I’ve got to say that M1 handles video wonderfully. With a 3.2″ screen it surely got something to give. The resolution is also great enough to give pleasure to the watchers’ eyes. Nice and vibrant colors. This probably is due to its nVidia graphic chip it uses.

etc

I’m telling you this little gadget has a lot to offer. It has bluetooth, FM radio, and out of the box it’s loaded with a lot of applications too. It also has Text reader and several cool pre-installed games.

The built-in memory is 8GB but it has a micro-SD slot so it is extensible. Sweet! It means more music and movies.

Price

My friend bought it for $130 here in Indonesia.

vs Meizu M3

It’s normal if I immediately compare it with Meizu M3 because they both sounds better than average music player.

However cool is the SQ of Samsung M1, unfortunately it still fall short to Meizu M3. The M3 definitely touch down on this criteria. Though if you need a more versatile entertainment gadget, Samsung M1 is definitely a winner here.

vs iPod Touch

Allright, it is really a tough decision here. iPod Touch certainly won the coolness look and applications (by hundreds of thousands of them), but I prefer the M1 for its sound and video quality.

But if I got to decide, I will still choose my iPod Touch over M1.

Why? Because I like to read ebooks and play endless possibilities of games whenever I want to.

Conclusion

Samsung Yepp M1 is truly an entertainment gadget, you just can’t get bored with this cool toy. In terms of sound quality, it definitely beat iPods family, I love it!

Videos are also played flawlessly, I watched the whole episode of ‘The Big Bang Theory’ on it and I still feel want to watch some more movies if I was not reminded that it’s not mine. :p

In conclusion, if your ear can only be satisfied with more than average sound quality it is really a cool gadget that can accompany you around and make you happy.. really happy!

*Test environment

Earphone – Sennheiser PX 100
Music files
- The Very Best of MTV Unplugged – MP3 320kbps
- Dave Matthews Band – Big Whiskey & The Groo Grux King – Flac
- OST City of Angels – MP3 192kbps
- Jason Mraz – We Sing, We Dance, We Steal Things – Flac

Another small music player I review this week after Meizu M3. My work colleague just bought it last week and he kindly let me borrow it and let me test it. It is the first Creative portable music player I tried so far.

Physical Form

I’m not sure if it is to be a rival of iPod Nano cause they have similar physical form, though Zen Mozaic is a bit shorter yet thicker.

Sound

When I first tried to listen to it, I’m not really disappointed. I can hear some bass punching. Then I tried to check it’s sound settings, and this is where I felt a bit disappointed. There is only one significant sound setting, which is the EQ settings, and it didn’t help much.

Another thing that disappoint me is when I cannot tried my playlist of songs in FLAC and WAV formats I always use to review music player and earphone or headphone.

Display

With 1.8″ screen, I think it’s big enough to show all the informations needed. It’s definitely better size than the Meizu M3 that only has 1.5″ screen.

The resolution however is a bit low, makes it look like an old Sony Ericsson Walkman Phone. I’m not saying that it’s bad, I’m just not saying that it’s cool also.

Extra Features

Probably this player has a lot of plusses when it comes to extra features.

First, it’s able to play video files (although you need to convert it to its format first (.cmv))

Second, it’s a small player with an external speaker. I love external speaker, and I haven’t see any small portable music player with external speaker before this one.

Third, it has microphone so you can record important conversations as a solid evidence (like when your boss said he will double your salary).

Price

In Indonesia it’s tagged at $67. A bit expensive I should say.

Conclusion

I don’t wanna sound mean, but I’m not impressed with this Creative Zen Mozaic 4 GB. Having listened to Meizu M3 earlier this week probably skewed my judgment this time, makes me expect something more from Zen Mozaic to impress me.

If you are looking for a small music player with a video playing capability, probably this is a good player for you.

If you also need a microphone, then I think you might like this player also.

However, if you are a sound afficionado and can be only satisfied with nothing less than a high definition sounds, then this player is not for you.

One day, a work colleague of mine asked me for songs in flac format. I wondered why? Not so many people I know know about flac format.

Later I found out that he just bought Meizu M3 music player. Hearing the brand Meizu, it seems that I’ve heard the brand somewhere, though I’m not sure where.

Then he let me hear the Linkin Park Meteora album in flac format that he copied from me played in the M3. And whoaa… I immediately need to listen some more to this tiny music player.

And this is the result:

Physical Form and Controls

I think M3 is really Meizu product to rival iPod Nano. It is about the same size and look, though Meizu M3′s screen is smaller. The player combine both buttons and soft touch controls, similar to iPod Nano once again.

It took me some time to get used to the control, but it’s quite easy after a while.

Display and Interface

Meizu M3 screen size is 1.5 inch with 176 x 132 resolution. Though the resolution is good enough to watch videos, I feel the screen size is too small for me.

Interface is ok, nothing much special. One particular feature I like is it’s ability to browse all the folders. It’s really helpful when you copied the music files by folders and without artist or album informations. In short, it makes my life easier.

Sound

Ever heard the sayings, “Never underestimate the music player by its size”?

Don’t worry if you never heard that, cause I just made it up few seconds ago, right after I listened to this little Meizu M3. It’s a bit smaller than the iPod nano 4th generation several months ago. But its sound quality impressed me so much the way iPod nano did, though somehow I think Meizu M3 sounds superior then nano.

One Meizu M3 unique feature worth mentioning here is the “spatializer”. When I saw it, I think “What on Earth is spatializer???”

But trust me, you don’t need to know what it is, not even how to properly spell it to hear the difference it makes to the sound quality.

The sound settings didn’t stop there. There are Bass Boost, Treble Boost, and EQ (Equalizer) settings. Properly choose these settings and you give your ears delightful treat.

Price

My friend bought the Meizu M3 in Indonesia for $75.

Buy It or Not?

Although with all the goodness I mentioned above, I’m very sorry to say that this product is… A MUST BUY!!!!

Hahaha! Never before I heard a music player that sounds this good. Meizu M3 with its Spatializer, Bass Boost, and EQ definitely kicks iPod Nano off when it comes to sound quality. (Apple lover, please don’t
hurt me…)

Did I mention that it’s half the price of iPod Nano?

In terms of hi-fi audio files, I like it’s capability to play FLAC, though not m4a files. One note though, though it says that it can play WAV files, during this review none of the WAV files I copied can be played.

So it is fellas, if you really looking for sound quality, nothing beat Meizu M3. But if you are looking for coolness, I still give all Apple products straight A+.

Review Notes

Earphones/Headphones:
dBE Acoustic PR-20 IEM
Sennheiser PX100

Songs tested:
Linkin Park – Meteora – Flac
Dave Matthews – Some Devil – Flac
Jason Mraz – We Sing, We Dance, We Steal Things – Flac