Newbie: CD/MP3 players? 550? Lots of questions! Thanks!

[leeraff]

Hopefully not a duplicate as it took me 3 attempts to finally get message to post!!! Argggh!

Have been researching mp3 players for a couple of months now. Made a decision and was ready to pull trigger. Now, truly believe a CD/mp3 player is better option for my particular needs. Please help. Specific background and then question follow.

Background:
Not a total audiophile so having 20gb of music is total convenience but not necessity. I actually listen to mostly audio books, spoken word, etc. Able to put even the longest of books on one cd in mp3 format. (That's a week's worth of listening on one cd.) Having music will of course be important, but simply changing out a couple of cd's is no big deal to me. Most of my books and music are saved as mp3 on cd now, so... Also, many audio books at library are on cd. While I listen to most selections on tape while running or walking, I currently don't have a CD solution except while in car. That need will make this a great intermediate step on the way to future DAP.

Questions:
--550? Is this THE product to buy? Why? Why not? Seems some believe it's not "all that." What instead?
--What other manufacturers? iRiver or nothing?
--Exercise? Can these things REALLY handle jogging? No? Exercise machines?
--How does the extra battery pack work? External? Keep in pouch?
--How do you guys carry these players? Pouches? Belt clips? Specific suggestions/recommendations?
--How exactly is this "bookmarking" feature (exact term) where you can go back to same spot on really long tracks? Example, listening to 70 minute track. Finish run at 45 minutes? Can you stop at 45:01 and start at same point later? How does this work? One button? Need programmer's brain?
--How well do the radios REALLY work? Seems many radios on most of these devices are below sub-par.

Any other advice, suggestions, warnings, etc

Final point. This player basically comes to me free. It's a credit from a company Rewards Program. That said, I do of course value this credit and want to get something that lasts. Unable to get an extended warranty from this source, that is one reason HD DAP's are OUT OF THE QUESTION. Especially Rio! Final nail in the coffin is that my computer is Win98. An upgrade may be in the future, but certainly not just so that I can use an mp3 player. CD/MP3 player will be a great intermediate step as many audio books at library are on CD's. Currently restricted to listening in car. This will be a great way to listen to those without having to convert to mp3, store on player, etc. Then, just convert and burn the ones I really want to keep.

Any other questions you can foresee me asking? All info is good!
Thanks so much!

[jangell2]

Check out my post in the topic "skip free playback." I talk about my experiences jogging with the 550.

[MGogesch]

First off, i have a 350 (and a iHp 120), so i am going to make the asumption that the 550 works the same as both of my iRiver players.

When you turn the player off (by holding the stop botton) it will automaticly start up by playing where you left off last. So with your audiobook example, if you were 35 min into a book, turned your player off, when you powered it up again it would start on the exact same word, (or in the middle of the word) that you stoped at.

My 350 took a bit of abuse. I run cross country for my high school, and i take it to all the meets. I have never run with it, but it hast taken a good beating in my bag, and it still works fine.

The radio works....kind of. It gets OK reception, not reall good. Since the head phone cord is in fact the anteanna for these types of radios, reception can be increased by moving the cord around sometimes. Usually not praticle to do thought.

I think the 550 will do what you want it to. There are other people that make CD mp3 players. Sony makes one that looks fine, as does....panasonic i think. I myself would stick with the iRiver, as i have found them to be the best. I will say that when i bought my CD mp3 player i thought they were the option for me, and now (after two years) find that Hard drive players are a better way to go.