How Do MP3 Players Work?

There are three basic types of MP3 players – Flash Players, Micro-Drive Players and CD MP3 Players. Each works a little differently:

1. Flash Players are the smallest, least expensive, and most reliable of the MP3 player types. These use solid-state memory with embedded software and have no moving parts. The batteries on these types of players last longer and there is no skipping. The downside with many flash players is their limited amount of memory – from 1GB to 8 GB. However, Sansa® MP3 flash players solve this problem by providing external storage capacity. You can easily expand their storage capacities with either SD cards or SD™ micro expansion cards. You can keep separate SD cards for different music, videos, photos and data.

2. Micro-Drive Players contain tiny hard drives that have storage capacity of up to 80GB of memory. They can hold literally thousands of tunes. Some also store and display photos and videos. Anti-skip technology helps, but because these players have moving parts, shock or vibration can still cause skips.

3. CD MP3 Players are the new generation of portable CD players that in addition to CDs, play MP3, WMA and ATRAC files. Some also burn CDs. They can hold 10 to 45 hours of music per disc and play standard and/or 3" MiniDisc CD's. Most also play both pre-recorded and CD-R/RW discs. Features are similar to the other CD players but because these also have moving parts, they are also susceptible to shocks and vibrations.

MP3 -- the latest advancement in music formatting!

In 1877, Thomas Edison invented the first phonograph using records made from tinfoil. Initially intended to be used to record dictation, the quality left a lot to be desired. Through the years music recording quality continued to improve. In 1948, the 12-inch (30 cm) Long Play (LP) 33 1/3 rpm microgroove record album was introduced by the Columbia Record Company. This would become the standard. In 1958, the first stereo two-channel records were issued. Quadraphonic records were introduced in 1971.

The problem of size, however, remained a major obstacle. Record quality kept improving, but record players were still big pieces of equipment. Portability soon became the key. Consumers wanted to take their music with them, wherever they went. To meet this need, music formats and players needed to get much smaller. This happened with the introduction of the 8-track in the 1950s, compact cassettes in the 1960s and compact disks (CDs) in the late 70s.*

Then, in the late 1990's, came the next step in small size and portability -- the MP3 digital file format. The MP3 compression system reduced the number of bytes in a song, while still retaining sound that was near CD quality. The smaller file size allowed players to be smaller and more portable and made it easier and faster to downloaded music from the Internet. An MP3 player with 1 GB of storage space could carry about 240 songs or the equivalent of about 20 CDs.

The MP3 player – the ultimate in portability and ease of use!

The MP3 digital format allows users to put music on their MP3 players by simply connecting their MP3 players to their computers and then downloading it. None of the older music formats (records, tapes or CDs) provided this level of convenience, control and portability. In addition, many MP3 players, including Sansa® Fuze™ from SanDisk® allows you to watch your favorite video clips on the Sansa® Fuze's 1.9" color screen, jam to FM radio with 40 preset stations, play with the built-in voice recorder, and share your photos wherever you go.

What started as a tinfoil record played on an enormous phonograph is now a tiny, lightweight player that lets you take everything you want to hear and see with you wherever you go!

* http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gramophone_record
* http://electronics.howstuffworks.com/mp3-player1.htm