Coby MP550-4G 4GB Micro Clip MP3 Player - Black

There are many great things about this and some bad things about it that you need to weigh.Pros:-inexpensive, probably the lowest price for a 4GB you can get-it has a clip, critical for a runner/jogger-perfect for running where you want no frills, you don't want a screen, a radio, a microphone, etc., it is a zero frills MP3-Fantastic sound. I am amazed how good it sounds and can go up against any high end MP3 for sound quality-plenty of storage, can store about 800 songs-lightweight and small and inconspicuous (barely visible)-has a shuffle featureCons:-Limited availability (no longer manufactured but they keep appearing for sale and amazingly they still work)-poor quality control, people report they arrive broken and break however mainly because they don't know how to turn them on (see below) or they get sweat on them (see below).-DO NOT GET SWEAT ON THEM!!! Like most MP3s, if you jog and sweat a lot, and get sweat on them, the unit will turn off and never turn on again. I place mine in a tiny plastic zip-lock bag to protect it with a hole for the clip and a hole for the headphone wire . Now I can sweat and even run in the pouring rain and the unit is fine-Shuffle feature is mediocre, once in a great while, it gets hung up and plays over and over the same 5 songs so you have to cycle it forward-Hard to turn on and off. To turn on you have to press and hold for 6 seconds until the light comes on then you have to wait another 5 seconds then press firmly and quickly release then it comes on. To turn off you have to press firmly but quickly twice in a row and it will pause, then you have to press and hold for 3 seconds then release, then press and hold for another 3 seconds and it will turn off. Note, these instructions are not provided with the instructions.

Go-to, inexpensive mp3 player for my workouts. I'm on my 3rd one (have been wearing them out for about 8 years). The clips eventually break or the headphone jack gets messed up (causing the sound goes out in one ear), but I'm talking after a couple of years of very heavy use/abuse.---PROS:-Inexpensive-Clips onto clothes for hands-free use-Comes with COBY earbuds (I have trouble using any other kind due to an inner ear piercing)-Comes with USB converter that you use to charge the battery and upload music from your computer (I charge it using my computer)-Battery life is at least a few hours/several days of working out-Has a shuffle/random setting, hold button, pause button, fast forward skip, and rewind/backwards skip buttons as well as volume adjustment---CONS-No screen-No folder/playlist options (unless you have shuffle on, songs will play in the order you uploaded them)-The last one I purchased didn't have as strong a clip as previous ones (slides off my shirt if I'm running strenuously). This could just be a fluke, since I've never had this problem before with previous ones.-Sometimes I wish it would turn up louder. Some of my music files are on the quiet side so if I'm near traffic I can't hear them as well as I'd like to- however, this could be a headphone problem. Most of the time, it is plenty loud.Love this product because I can listen to music while working out and not have to carry it. I don't have to worry about it breaking or falling, because it is so inexpensive to replace. It's very small and practically weightless. Uploading music is simple- think dragging mp3 files onto a thumb F: drive. Charges quickly and holds battery life long enough. I also purchased a USB wall outlet for super cheap so I can charge it when I'm not around my computer. Overall, a great bargain for the price if you're looking for a lightweight, no-frills shuffle mp3 player!

This is awesome. Very nice mp3 shuffle for almost nothing! You will go broke trying to find what you want for less than $20. The little $5 ones that look like an iPod shuffle are cool too, but there is no shuffle; they play a micro SD card (you buy separately) and it only plays in the order downloaded. This one is REALLY GOOD, and sound QUALITY is great. The ONLY DRAWBACK to this one (why it didn't Gert 5 stars) is the dang packaging and instructions came in SPANISH!! And my ass is a gringo, so fortunately for me I know my way around a few electronics. But if YOU need instructions, I hope you read/speak Spanish! Great player though; I will be purchasing ANOTHER one as a spare. I DO reccomend this product, and ignore the bad reviews. Anybody can get a dud, and Amazon will send you another one if you do! The other folks just don't know what they're doing.

I suppose you might be getting what you pay for here. Costs less than 1/10 of the price of an iPod, and works about 1/10 as well. Charging problems, no display of any kind, a multi-function button that does not respond well, makes this a non-intuitive, frustrating little device.I only bought it to play "house music" before and after our band's concerts, so my needs are very simple: plug and play. But several instances of charging the unit, turning it off (or so I thought), storing it, only to find it won't boot up when needed.If it powered off automatically when not in use, and held a charge better, I would have given it another star, but the defects aren't mere inconveniences; they prohibit any use of the device "in the field," and quite unexpectedly. I have had several successful episodes where it worked correctly, but also a few failures.This device is probably well below the price threshold at which you can expect to purchase an .mp3 player that works well, so if you get this unit, you will have to manage the charging / battery issues carefully. Mine may have actually died; it didn't work at the last show, but I'm trying a (slow) recharge, so I'm expecting it can be "resuscitated." I will post an edit to this review if it does actually die!