The Touch is certainly an amazing piece of technology. Mobile Safari is the best portable Web browser around, Cover Flow works great on a device with limited storage capacity, and the iTunes Wi-Fi Music Store is extremely slick for a first-generation ...

Includes a Web browser and Wi-Fi ; Beautiful design, easy to operate

Expensive ; Dark videos can be difficult to see

The iPod Touch is beautifully designed and incredibly fun to use. It still suffers from some performance hiccups, but I'd gladly recommend it to anyone looking for a mobile video player, a portable Web browser, or a high-class way to cart around the ...

New, smooth digital music streamer boasts logical navigation.

Simple setup, Logical navigation

Imprecise scroll wheel, Occasional long lag times during operation

My quibbles with the Duet are relatively minor. Overall, this is an elegant system that's simple to set up and use, and it offers a reasonably priced alternative to high-end products such as the Sonos Digital Music System

Gadget lover's player may lack Wi-Fi, but it has lots of other features, supports a wide array of formats, and accepts SD Cards.

Feature-heavy, SD Card slot for instant memory upgrades

One-handed operation a little tricky, Skimps on bundled accessories

, but it's a great choice for gadgeteers and audiophiles alike. If the 16GB's $150 price tag is too rich for your blood, buy a lower-end Zen and make up the difference with SD Cards

Compact video-enabled player is a jack-of-all-trades but master of none.

Very inexpensive

Kludgy menu system, Only plays WMV video

The 105 does many things, but none of them really well. I'd recommend this player only for someone who doesn't want to spend a lot of money for a device to multitask with music, videos, and photos. The Archos 105 would be a good first player for a ...

The Cowon Q5W is a portable media player with a stunning 5-inch touch-screen display and built-in Wi-Fi capabilities. I tested a model with an internal 40GB hard drive that sells for a hefty $550 (as of 12/19/2007). A 60GB version is also available, ...

Beautiful 5-inch touch screen Wireless networking

Could use much more than 40GB for video Advanced features can be complicated to use

The Q5W has a USB miniport for syncing with a PC (using Windows Media Player, Windows Explorer, or the supplied Cowon Media Center software). The second USB port should be a hit with photographers, because it lets you archive images from a digital ...

Though the old 30GB Zune didn't go over too well, Microsoft's kept at it and managed to produce an impressive pair of players in its second-generation Zunes. The $250 80GB hard-drive model I tested would make a capable alternative to an 80GB iPod ...

Wireless syncing Intuitive controls and interface

Comparatively low screen dpi

All in all, the 80GB Zune is a decent choice as an 80GB MP3 player. It sounds great, its interface isn't a hindrance, and its pricing is right in line with the competition. Accessories and features such as premium headphones and an FM tuner give it at ...

Is full wireless syncing support appropriate for a flash-based player? Microsoft's $199 8GB Zune certainly ships with a raft of features, but unless you need a light player with wireless functions, you'll probably be able to find better values ...

Wireless syncing ; Intuitive controls and interface

A bit bulky

With wireless syncing, FM radio, and full video support, the 8GB Zune has a lot going for it. Unfortunately, unless you really want wireless syncing, it's not the best choice. If you're looking for lots of storage, the Sansa View has the Zune beat. If ...

This basic multimedia player has a touchscreen, but it lacks efficient menus and the software lacks playlist creation.

High-quality audio ; High-quality audio

Software lacks playlist creation ; Menu navigation is cumbersome

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The second-generation Apple miniplayer gets even smaller, and cuts its price by almost half.

Inexpensive, Stylish

Lacks LCD screen, Expensive

The bottom line: I like the small size and versatility of Apple's new iPod Shuffle. In view of the unit's modest dimensions, the lack of a screen seems less deplorable than with the original Shuffle

The Cowon iAudio 7 is a compact, Flash-based player that measures just 3 inches long by 1.4 inches wide (but a chunky 0.7 inches thick), and it weighs only 2.1 ounces. Its tiny 1.3-inch TFT LCD screen responds more quickly than the OLED display of its ...

Small, lightweight design Records voice and FM radio

Screen is too small for watching video Average audio quality

Despite its middling audio quality, the Cowon iAudio 7 works well for listening to songs and the radio, and for making occasional audio recordings, but it's too small for video, and you should see if you can master its peculiar controls at a local ...