Looking for a new MP3 player (in General)

I left my Sansa Clip in a rental car and although they said they found it and would send it to me, it doesn't look like it's going to happen (repeated phone calls go unanswered). I still have my Rio Karma (frequently repaired and sporting a CF upgrade over the HDD), but the super glue holding the dial on is getting thick and it's probably time for something new anyway.

So, I'm looking for recommendations, nothing made by Apple. Sound quality is most important, battery life second, and I prefer flash memory over an HDD. Video is not necessary although I'm warming up the big color touch screens on music players. My flavor of the week is the Cowon J3, but I come to a conclusion so I'm looking for opinions.

Well, I've only ever owned a Sansa e200 (no longer in production) and my current ZuneHD. Not a legit MP3 player, (Its Microsofts version of an IPod) but it doesn't hurt to check it out. ;D

i am curious why you aren't interested in apple products?

i hate apple.. strawyberries are way more tasty >:l

My distaste for Apple comes from long ago when I owned my third and last appple computer, a G3. They make nice stuff, but I refuse to support the company, I don't like the way they do things. It's a long story that's not unique to me. Unfortunately, my wife owns a graphic designe business and Apple is the standard in the industry so my family supports the company in one way or another, but I avoid using their products.

I should add that I mostly use the player when traveling, so on airplanes, and occasionally in a car if it has an auxillary jack.

I have a Phillips GoGear Vibe 8gb. Love it, the battery lasts for days and its flash memory so its faster at pulling the songs you want.

$60 at Walmart, I'm sure you can find it cheaper online.

Shadow: Why don't you consider the Zune a legit player? Thought about it, but it just seems to do more than I will use so I figured I could save a few bucks and go with something with fewer features. Are you happy with it?

Tal: I had a Phillips years ago, liked it but forgot about it. I'll go to Walmart and give it a listen.

I haven't used either, but I purchased a Sansa Clip for my father and a Sansa Fuse for an ex at the same time. Both players fared really well, and since you liked the Clip, why not just look to a Fuse this time around?

Just out of curiosity, how much space do you need? And what kind of headphones are you using?

I've heard good things about the sound quality on the J3, as well as the Clip+, however I haven't listened to either.

I'd recommend the S:flo2, but I hear the UI is horrible. The dual Wolfson DACs and lack of noise when using canalphones are worth it to some though. Personally, I'm waiting for the FiiO X3, but I'm not sure when it's coming out.

Well, a lot of people I know consider an iPod to be separate from mp3 players. And the ZHD is pretty much an iPod, just made by Microsoft. =P So it's really just an association. But besides that, it has good sound quality, and awesome picture and video quality. (But the size of features, such as internet and apps, make it ideal for more then just travel.) In short, it is an awesome device!!
And if you're one of the people who buy your music, you can hook yourself up with a Zune Pass. It allows you to download any song off the Zune marketplace for free, but once your membership runs out you can't play it anymore. (To counter this, you get so many free "tokens" every month which you can use to keep some of your free songs.) It also has a Smart DJ feature, which with a Zune Pass, will function like Pandora or Last.fm But like you said, you'd be paying for a ton of features you won't use. =P

16GB should be enough memory, but 32 would be better if it doesn't have a memory card slot. I use a pair of Ultimate Ears Super fi5 Pros for music. A lot of my music is ripped to FLAC as well as MP3, so a player that supports that format would be nice. I had a Trekstor Vibez that only had a 12 GB drive and it did the job well, but it died last year. I don't need the space for a huge collection of music, just the larger files. I've found that when I have large amounts of music with me I don't actually listen to a lot of it.

I was happy with my Clip, but the big color screens with the touch interface appeals to the gadget geek in me. I have a Droid and that suits all of my non music needs, but it's not so great as a music player. I guess I've become accustomed to the interface and having a touch screen on my music player would be cool, but in reality, I pick CD or a playlist, hit play, and put it in my pocket and listen, so a fancy interface is not important, just cool to have.

Not to mention that pretty much any touch screen mp3 player is likely to have features like internet and apps... Which only jacks up the price. =P

http://www.cnet.com/1770-5_1-0.html?query=mp3+players&tag=srch

They give the Sansa Clip excellent reviews.

Areodjarekput: Thanks for making my decision even more difficult :)
I like the S:flo2, looks nice, good price and the specs are impressive, and I like the dedicated line out for the amp. But I can only find it as the teclast t51, and with limited distribution, and not much info out there other than some forum discussions. I'll have to do a little more research, I don't want to buy another one in two years.