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Listening to audio books on a portable media player

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We received a lot of responses to the Picking a portable media player article. It's great to know how popular these devices have become. One thing we didn't cover in the article—and we got a lot of comments on—was what to consider when buying a portable media player to listen to audio books. A search on MP3 audio books shows just how many books are available in this format.

For buying a device, the same considerations we discussed in the article generally apply, but there are some other features to consider. If you want to listen to a 20-hour novel, you're probably more apt to choose a bigger device with more memory or features. Having a smaller device that wraps around your arm while you're exercising probably won't fill your needs. Some additional factors to consider include:

1. Pause functionality: You're going to want to pause the audio book at some point. Make sure your player includes this feature. Otherwise, you may miss something or search for where you left off when you get interrupted. And if it does allow you to pause, check for how long. You'll want it to pause indefinitely.

2. Continuation after interruption: It's important for audio books that players keep to the same point in the book (or at least to the same file chapter), in case of intentional or unintentional interruption, for example when you switch the player off and on or have to replace the batteries. In those instances, you don't want to have to return to the beginning of the book. It is tolerable that you have to re-listen from the beginning of the current file, provided that the file isn't too long. However, if the player "forgets" the current file and after interruption points to the first file, it's probably going to cause you some irritation and is not suitable for audio books.

Before you buy the player, here are some things to check in the store:

  1. What happens if you switch the player off and on? Is it going to the same file or to the beginning of the first file?
  2. What happens if you change the batteries? Is it going to the same file, or to the beginning of the first file?

3. Memory: Get as much memory as you can. Players with 10 gigabytes (GB) of memory or more are very well suited for long audio books. A lot of players these days have large amounts of storage, so finding a player that meets this requirement shouldn't be difficult.

4. Batteries: Choose a player that has a longest battery life possible. It's best not to run out while you're in the middle of an audio book and traveling.

5. Earphones: Sound quality on an audio book may not be as good as you get with music. Players might sound good if you're in a quiet location, but you might have problems if you're in a noisy commuter train or office. In those cases, some higher-quality, over-the-ears headphones are good idea.

—Jason Kozleski

Comments

  • Anonymous
    April 22, 2006
    I really enjoy audio book.  Please let me know how to get started.

  • Anonymous
    April 25, 2006
    C-Net recently listed only four, yes, only four players that have a bookmarking feature and work with Audible.com.  That is astonishing.

  • Anonymous
    May 11, 2006
    Uuummm..., it's great to know what is needed for listening to audio books, but it would be even better if I could have found the part where you say, "and here is a list of players that work really well for listening to audio books".  I want to know specific machines from which to choose and after two days of googling, still don't know much more than when I began.
    Jon :(
    jcminer46@yahoo.com

  • Anonymous
    June 08, 2006
    I use my laptop in noisy places. Unfortunately, the speaker in the laptop is very poor. I have tried using several headphone/microphones, even at the highest volume, I miss sounds.  Can someone tell me (a) is there a headphone/microphone that can raise the volume ABOVE the default laptop volume? (b) If yes, what are the critical technical specs that would work for this problem? I see all kinds of specs on headphone boxes, but none of them seem to vary much, and I don't know what is critical. Many thanks! It would be great to listen to audio books!

  • Anonymous
    October 18, 2006
    i have a habit of listening to audio books in my car.as you said, iam facing a problem with my mediaplayer memorycard.it's great to know what is needed for listening to audio books.recently i listened <a href="http://www.karaditales.com">Audio books</a> it's really good. thank u for ur information.

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