Sansa Fuze MP3 Player Conclusion

Sound Quality

Testing and usage of the Sansa Fuze was performed by using all of the available functions as you would normally use a MP3 player. I have used a variety of MP3 players in the past, with the iPod Nano and iPod Video being the most heavily used players, so my experiences with the Fuze were compared to those players.

My testing of the Fuze revealed that it provides very good sound quality when listening to high bit rate MP3s through the supplied earphones, and adequate sound quality when listening to regular bit rate MP3s. The music was clear, detailed and had good separation between voices and instruments. When listening to some rap and rock songs, the bass notes were fairly well pronounced and only had a hint of muddiness. The mids and high frequencies sounded smooth and did not sound harsh at all. Fortunately the player includes a screen for EQ adjustments, and this was quite helpful in giving the low-end frequencies a bit more punch. Overall, the sound stage was airy and spaced out and I did not notice any tendency for localization of instruments – at least not any more than other MP3 players I have evaluated.

The included ear buds are relatively good and will do the job for most users. Aftermarket headphones, such as the Sennheiser HD 280 Pro headphones that I used for most of the testing, will definitely increase the clarity and overall enjoyment of the music.

Volume levels of the Fuze were adequate using the included ear buds. Even with a lot of background noise from my surrounding environment, it was easy to drown out by increasing the volume from the player. However, I had to crank the volume level pretty high – at least 60% and probably closer to 70% - to really get enough volume to drown out all background noise. Listening at that volume level is definitely going to drain the battery much more quickly than typical usage.

The built-in microphone works well and picks up your voice for recording audio messages to yourself. You need to be within 2-3 feet of the microphone for it to clearly pick up for voice.

Video Quality

The review unit was pre-loaded with a music video and I also transferred over a couple of small MPEG4 movies from my PC. With no support for DiVX or other video formats, the Fuze cannot be used to watch most movies (such as those downloaded from Amazon Unbox or other movie download sites). The screen is really too small to enjoy a movie or a long video anyway, but if you really wanted to watch a movie on the Fuze you would be able to do so only by converting it to MPEG4 format.

The 1.9-inch screen is fairly sharp with images, but does appear grainy compared to other MP3 player displays with larger, higher resolution displays. Additionally the Fuze has a lot of trouble with color definition. Skin tones and black levels suffer the most – do not expect to be impressed by the image quality. The video playback at 20 FPS is also somewhat choppy, especially for scenes with fast movements. The screen brightness is usable in most indoor lighting conditions, but does not do well outdoors. You will need to either find some shade for the screen or crank up the brightness in order to see images outdoors.

FM Radio

The Fuze includes an FM receiver that allows you to tune into your favorite radio stations. The reception is good, with clear sounding music for most major radio stations in my area. For smaller stations, I did get some static when moving around with the player. The Fuze also has the capability to record music directly from the radio for later playback, which is a nice feature. It can be programmed with up to 40 presets, which is more than enough for most radio listeners.

Battery Life

Battery life was right around 20 hours during mixed usage, which is very impressive. I typically used it for about 4-5 days before I needed to plug it in for a recharge, which is less frequent that any other portable MP3 player that I have used. No AC wall charger is included, but this accessory (along with quite a few others) is available to purchase separately.

Sandisk Sansa Fuze

Overall, the Sansa Fuze is a thin, lightweight MP3 player that offers a lot of features for a very attractive price. It is compatible with all major operating systems (including Linux and Mac OS X) and supports audiobook playback. The user interface is simple enough to use that I would be confident that anyone I gave it to (even my grandma!) would be able to use it without any issues.

It can be found for about $50 less than a comparable iPod Nano, and offers expansion in the form of a micro SD/SDHC slot to boot. If you are like me and are not tied to using iTunes for your digital music collection, the Sansa Fuze is an outstanding value and is highly recommended.

Pros: Attractive price, easy to use UI, full-featured with excellent 20 hour battery life.

Cons: Meager video playback quality, isolated lock-ups.

Rating: 4.5 out of 5

www.sandisk.com/sansa