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August 19, 2006

Creative Zen V

This review appears in the October 06 issue of PC Advisor, available now in all good newsagents.

At last: someone has come up with a navigation system for an MP3 player that doesn't involve a control wheel or four-way directional buttons. Granted, the Zen V looks very similar to a nano, but it's actually more innovative than its rivals in this increasingly crowded market.

V's petite joystick frees up space on the front of the attractive – albeit somewhat 1990s-styled – audio player. The result is a small, neat device dominated by its 1.5in Oled screen, and a user experience that is not marred by the usual fiddliness of miniature players. This friendliness is continued in the wise use of the V's sides for dedicated volume buttons – a policy we at PC Advisor have long championed.

Peering beneath the Zen's pleasing exterior and helpful control layout, however, we discovered some slight concerns. Synchronising the player with a PC proved a surprisingly tricky procedure. The device crashed one PC and sent another into a state of paralysed confusion when docked for an initial charge. On other occasions it took repeated efforts to establish a connection.

Another potential headache lies in the Zen's counterintuitive method of creating playlists, which had us baffled for a while – we recommend the manual. The device is also occasionally sluggish at obeying commands, and it's a fingerprint magnet.

But on the up side, the file-transfer system is quite impressive, particularly for its inclusion of the option to rip music files from CD to the device, rather than via the PC. And the V boasts the ability to record directly from a standalone music player via a supplied cable: a thoughtful and handy feature.

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Independent customer reviews from

Creative Zen V scored:
8.5 out of 10 100% real reviews

The 2 most helpful reviews based on 12 reviews:

27 Dec 2006 Anonymous verified purchaser

10

Good Points

easy to use, crystal clear sound, tons of storage space

Bad Points

Reviewer left no comment

01 Jan 2007 Arthur, London

9

Good Points

Fits comfortably in top pocket. Easy to use and has a simple menu system. Good sound quality.

Bad Points

Care must be taken when uploading individual, varied, music tracks as multiple albums are named automatically, depending on track info'. Careful editing of track info', on your PC, can overcome this, if you want all of the tracks in the same 'Album' - ie. 'Pop Classics' or 'Easy Listening' etc.

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Creative Zen V

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