MP3 players: How to buy the best MP3 player Getting started

The tiny iPod Shuffle is extremely portable

MP3 players are a great way to play your music and video while on the move. They’re small, yet have lots of storage, so you don’t have to carry your entire CD collection around with you.

Choosing to buy an MP3 player is a straightforward decision, but picking the right one can be far more tricky, as there’s a huge range of MP3 players available.

Fortunately, our years of extensive testing means that Which? can provide you with a great deal of information to help you buy the right MP3 player.

With verdicts on more than 80 MP3 players, Which? tests and reviews more music players than any other organisation, ensuring that you buy the best one for you.

If you already have an idea of what you want, visit the Which? MP3 player reviews page to read expert verdicts on the best music players, as well as advice on the models to avoid. You could also watch the Which? buyers' guide video for help choosing the best MP3 player. 

If you’re just getting started then a good idea is to think about what you want from your player and how you’re likely to use it.

Size vs capacity

The first thing to consider is the size of your player.

Ultra-portable MP3 players can be tiny – the latest Apple iPod Shuffle weighs just 9g. This makes them perfect for the gym or for when you're out jogging.

However they won’t appeal to everyone. Small MP3 players have limited memory storage, which means you won’t get your entire music collection on to the player, so be prepared to upload different playlists.

Plus they often lack displays or only have room for very small ones, which makes them harder to use than larger MP3 players.

In contrast to the Shuffle, the Archos 7 clocks in at a mammoth 650g – making it more than 70 times heavier. However, while the iPod Shuffle only has a 4GB memory (approximately 1,000 songs), the Archos 7 comes with either 160GB or 320GB, enough for even the largest music collection.

Watching videos

The next thing is to consider how you’re going to use your player.

As well as playing music, many MP3 players can now show video clips and even full-length films. Yet their ability to do this varies dramatically, and the screens on most of these players are too small to watch anything other than the shortest clips.

If you decide that you’re likely to watch a lot of videos then you’ll need a player with a large display. However, as with memory capacity, this will impact on the player's size – you’ll struggle to slip one of these into your pocket.

You can find the best video player and read our expert verdicts using our MP3 player product selector.

Price

As well as affecting the player's size, choosing one with a large memory and a big display will also determine its price. And this can vary incredibly. We’ve reviewed basic models that cost under £20, as well as feature-packed heavyweights that cost almost £400.

Yet you don’t have to spend a fortune to get a great player. We’ve found Best Buy models for less than £50. And if you’ve got more to spend, and want all the latest features, then we’ve found these too.

You can see all the top performing players on our MP3 player Best Buy page.

You'll need a computer to download music or rip CDs to your MP3 player

Compatibility

One last factor to consider before heading to the shops is compatibility.

In order to get the best out of an MP3 player you need to have access to a computer. You’ll use this to convert CDs into a digital format that the player can read, to download new tracks and to manage your digital music collection. You therefore need to ensure that your computer is compatible with the player you’re planning to buy.

For example, some players can’t be used with Apple Macs or may not be able to run on very old operating systems.

If you already have lots of music saved on your computer then also check the file format it is in and that the new player you plan to buy can read it. The most common formats are MP3, WMA and AAC (as used by iTunes).

We list the Mac compatibility and supported file formats for every player that we test.

You can view these in the specifications page on each review on our Which? MP3 player reviews page.