CNET Editor's rating: 7.0 out of 10
Reviewed by
Jasmine France
Review date: 05/09/07
Release date: 05/03/07
The good: The Creative Zen Stone is an exceptional bargain, and it comes in a choice of six colors. It offers good sound quality, is easy to use, and includes a standard mini-USB port for syncing and charging. It supports Audible files and has a Skip Folder function that makes it easy to skip through groups of tracks.
The bad: The Creative Zen Stone has no screen, no extra features, and no built-in clip like that of the iPod Shuffle. The rated battery life is unimpressive.
The bottom line: The Creative Zen Stone is a fantastic choice as a secondary MP3 player or for first timers on a budget who want a simple, great-sounding device with limited features and a bargain basement price tag.
In a world of iPod domination, you can't really blame competitors for taking cues from the MP3 player giant. Such is the case with the Creative Zen Stone, a simple and diminutive flash player reminiscent of the second-generation iPod Shuffle. Though the Stone may have taken its design cues from the popular iPod, it outshines the latter in sound quality and costs only half the price: the 1GB Stone lists at a mere $39.99.
The Zen Stone is swathed in the same shiny-plastic casing as the Zen V Plus and that, combined with its rounded-rectangle shape, does rather give it the appearance of a pebble; too bad that name was already taken. As with the Shuffle, the Stone's user interface has no screen and uses a tactile control pad consisting of volume controls and track shuttle keys circling a play/pause button. You also get a choice of colors: black, white, blue, pink, red, or yellow. The similarities pretty much end there, though.
Measuring 2.1 inches by 1.3 inches by 0.4 inch, the Zen Stone is noticeably larger than the iPod Shuffle, and it lacks the handy clip found on the Apple player. Instead, there's a lanyard loop built into the left edge. You'll have to supply your own lanyard, though; Creative merely supplies some standard earbuds and a syncing cable. However, I was happy to see that the Stone syncs via a standard mini-USB port found on the bottom edge of the device. The top side houses the reset hole, a 3.5mm headphone jack, and a playback switch. The latter lets you switch between shuffle and repeat modes and includes a function called "Folder Skip," a handy navigational feature to be discussed in more detail shortly.
As for other features, the Zen Stone is predictably light on those; it's hard to offer many extras when there's no screen. The player supports MP3, WMA (purchased but not subscription), and Audible files, and it can be synced via drag-and-drop in Windows Explorer or through Windows Media Player. In the case of the Stone, I prefer to use drag-and-drop syncing because of the aforementioned Folder Skip function. This handy feature lets you shuttle between folders, which can be useful for getting to the artist or playlist that you want, depending how you organize things. The skipping goes in alphabetical order, so if you know the names of all the artists and playlists on the device, you can find them fairly easily.
When a player costs a mere $40, I don't expect much in terms of sound quality, but the Zen Stone lives up to the Creative audio legacy. It sounds great, though I recommend swapping out the included earbuds to really take advantage of the player's audio capability. Still, the included 'buds don't sound half bad. Overall, the Stone offers impressive richness, clarity, and warmth. Swapping in a set of Shure SE310 earphones brought out the bass and gave music the depth it lacked with the packaged headphones. The rated 10-hour battery life rather diminishes some of the luster of the performance, and sadly, CNET Labs tests proved that the Stone isn't even up to matching that number: we got just 8.6 hours of juice.
8 out of 10 - Excellent Don't fall for Apple's hype
Apple has done an amazing job convincing the world that the Ipod and anything associated is the greatest mp3 player ...
Apple has done an amazing job convincing the world that the Ipod and anything associated is the greatest mp3 player ever made. If you're new to the mp3 market, it is essential that you realize that the only thing Apple does better is market. In terms of the actual products, I believe quite a few companies trump Apple, and Creative does it once again with the Zen Stone.
When compared to the shuffle, you're not going to notice alot of differences. Bottom line, when looking at these devices there are 5 factors that most of us care about; sound quality, user friendliness/compatibility, price, capacity and look.
In terms of sound, the Zen wins by far. It has a much more rich sound, with much better bass. The headphones that come with this device are relatively comparable to the Ipod. They fit well and quality wise is really up to you. Most people are fine with the given ones(I'd say the Stone's are better), but some audiophiles won't be happy with either.
If you're an avid ITunes user, you may have no problem with either device. Personally, I have always been a fan of drag and drop, which is something you can't do on the Apple products. This is the Zen Stone's best aspect in my opinion. The Stone connects to the PC thru a universal usb cord that can easily be replaced by those provided with other electronics (such as cameras and some PDAs). This allows for you to not have to depend on the one cord provided, unlike the Shuffle. You can't get any friendlier than that. The biggest flaw with this product however is the lack of a clip. You can pocket it if you want, but not having a clip could be inconvenient at times (such as workouts)
Price wise, it's HALF the price of a Shuffle with equivalent capacity. There is no significant difference between the products to warrant such a ridiculous gap in price, other than the label "Apple" and the previously mentioned clip.
Capacity wise, 1 GB is never enough honestly. However, if you're looking for a second, smaller device for workouts or want to get something for the kids, spending $40 for this seems far more reasonable than $100(the cost of the Shuffle).
Visually the Zen Stone isn't the greatest thing in the world, but neither is the Shuffle. What you see is whatcha get.
Bottom line, if you aren't hooked by the Apple marketing scheme, you can't go wrong with the Stone. If you can sacrifice the lack of a clip, you pay get a good looking, better sounding device for half the price.
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by irfan_bugmenot (see profile) -
June 7, 2007
10 out of 10 - Perfect Perfect for what it is...a no frills MP3 player
I purchased one a few weeks ago specifically for my workouts. My full sized Zen (microphoto)was too heavy & ...
I purchased one a few weeks ago specifically for my workouts. My full sized Zen (microphoto)was too heavy & bulky for the gym.
My Stone has exceeded my expectations. It looks great and sounds even better. Drag and dropping files is a breeze. I loaded it up with over 200 songs. Do you really need more than that for the gym? I think not. I set it to shuffle through my song list and its workout heaven.
Battery life is pretty good and the unit charges in no time. In two hours it was fully charged via USB or with an optional charger which I purchased for my full sized Zen.
I traded the included earbuds for a decent pair of Sony buds and the sound is amazing. You'll need a "skin" which runs about $10. The skin not only protects the shiny surface from scratches but included a clip. I can't even feel the unit clipped to my shorts since it weighs next to nothing. For the gym there is no better device.
Unit was so good I had to get my wife one since I could never get her to return mine.
In a world of "pod" people there are better alternatives. Creative is the way to go as far as I'm concerned.
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by polaris13 (see profile) -
July 31, 2007
4 out of 4 users found this user opinion helpful.
10 out of 10 - Perfect i love it!
For $40, you can't go wrong...even if something were to go wrong you won't feel like you ...
For $40, you can't go wrong...even if something were to go wrong you won't feel like you were ripped off =) So far so good, I picked up my Zen Stone from CompUSA earlier today and after playing around with it for a bit, I can say that I'm indeed happy with my purchase. The Zen Stone is a lot smaller in person than from what you see in the pics and unlike what some people are saying, it is NOT twice the size of the iPod shuffle. This will be great for most but not all--I can see how some may easily misplace it.
I bought the Zen Stone for workouts, I was getting tired of holding my Zen Vision:M while jogging. This is perfect for working out, using in the car, and just as an overall secondary player. I wouldn't recommend this as a primary device.
The build quality seems fairly decent, it's made of shiny hard plastic. Too early to tell how durabe this will be. The sound quality is excellent, even without EQ settings, this is up to par with my Zen Vision:M. To truly appreciate the Stone's sound you MUST use other headphones. The out-of-the-box earbuds are absolutely horrible (much worse than the supplied white earbuds for the higher Zen players).
Drag and drop loading is a cinch. You don't even have to use WMP or Creative Media Lite, wherever you have music files, just right-click and use the "send to" option...works just like a flash drive.
It's too bad they don't supply a separate AC charger (I suppose if they did, it would cost more). Luckily, my RAZR's mini-USB charger works with this. I got a full charge in less than an hour out of the box using my RAZR's charger.
All in all, a great device...perfect for what it's advertised to be: a simple, functional, base player.
If you're thinking about getting one, don't hesitate! Everywhere I went was sold out. Unfortunately, most stores won't carry all the colors...mine is black, although I would've loved to get the blue or lime one!
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by bleu_tropix (see profile) -
September 18, 2007
2 out of 2 users found this user opinion helpful.
9 out of 10 - Spectacular amazing player at a unbelievable price 9.5/10
it is so light when i first held it up, i even wondered that is it because i havent inserted ...
it is so light when i first held it up, i even wondered that is it because i havent inserted the battery pack. the shine from polish surface gives it an extraordinary look. the range of colours offered are excellent. first impression of player 10/10 while charging the player through a usb port, transfering of songs is relatively simple, just drag and drop. the 1 gb of memory was then took up by my 200 songs. though 1 gb might be rather small, but i personally feel 200 songs is more than enough. 9/10 plugged in the included earpiece, music wasnt as excellent. i then used my soundproof earpiece, great sound quality from tiny player. included earpiece 4/10. player's sound quality 8/10 i then fell asleep while listening to music. when i woke up, 8-9 hours has passed, the player is still running. in addition, the protruding play/pause button makes easy for control in the dark. 9/10. overall, i feel its an excellent player for such a stunning price. buying 2 zen stone is equivilant to 1 shuffle who has similar function. the fact that it doesnt have a screen doesnt seem to be affecting me the slightest bit. 9.5/10
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by demon-strative (see profile) -
May 12, 2007
2 out of 2 users found this user opinion helpful.
7 out of 10 - Very good Sounds good, but...
I'm just commenting on the review. So, someone spends 40 bucks on an mp3 player and your recommending that ...
I'm just commenting on the review. So, someone spends 40 bucks on an mp3 player and your recommending that they should spend 6 times as much for headphones. If somebody is buying an inexpensive mp3 player maybe you could recommend inexpensive headphones too.
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by scooter329 (see profile) -
May 10, 2007
7 out of 10 - Very good Small & Basic. Excellent Value.
I just bought this unit. Not bad for the price. Small & lightweight and as basic as you can get. ...
I just bought this unit. Not bad for the price. Small & lightweight and as basic as you can get. The supplied earbuds are horrible though. With a good set of earbuds, the unit comes alive! A lanyard (not supplied) can be attached so it can be worn around the neck. 2 playback modes (repeat & shuffle) are available. Another feature allows you to skip folders which is nice since the unit has no display. I like it. For the price, it's a good value for someone just entering the mp3 player market. The rated 10 hour battery life is unacceptable these days. 15-20 hours would really make this unit desirable.
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by dwalmz (see profile) -
May 29, 2007
1 out of 1 users found this user opinion helpful.
6 out of 10 - Good One big glaring deficiency
First things first. This is a good player. For the price, I wasn't expecting a lot of features. And ...
First things first. This is a good player. For the price, I wasn't expecting a lot of features. And it doesn't really have any, apart from the folder skipping and shuffle mode. It makes a great second player (this is my 9th) for working out or if you want to carry light. I'm not so sure if it is good for beginners. I'm not an audiophile so I cannot truly judge sound quality. To my ears it sounds good with a decent set of earbuds. But I can't really say it sounds better than my 2nd generation iPod Shuffle either.
So on to the glaring deficiency: in regular playback mode, it does not play back in the order that you put it on the player. For me, it's not so much of a deal-breaker but an annoyance. For others, I'm not so sure. Do other players do this? I've had 5 iPods 2 Rio players (the Rio players are long gone), and one no name throw away and they don't do this.
You can put music on by the drag and drop method in Windows Explorer or use Creative Media Lite, which you download from Creative's website, along with the user's guide. Either way, everything plays in alphanumerical order unless you play in shuffle mode. The folders play back/skip in alphanumerical order as well.
If you have your music arranged on your player by albums as their own folders, then everything plays in track order within the folder. I like to arrange by genre, such as My '80s or Disco Divas. I imagine most people's songs are named by track number and song title. So, the Stone will play all of the 01s in alphabetical order, then the 02s and so on. Then the 1s, the 2s, etc. Again it's more of an annoyance. I suppose you can go back in through explorer and renumber the tracks so they play back in the order you want - if you want to do that to several hundred tracks. I don't. Too much work. Would this be too frustrating for a beginner? I think it would be if they didn't download and look at the user manual.
It's something that I can learn to live with. It kind of creates a shuffle like experience without having to put it on shuffle. I'm actually rediscovering music that I have long ago forgotten since I'm not mentally locked into my playlists.
It does have a volume-limiting feature, but in order to access it, you must download the Creative Media Lite software. If you want to play copy-protected purchased wma tracks (supports drm9, not subscription) you must also use the software. With the software comes the actual users manual. With the player you only get the quick start guide in the package, with a short mini usb-usb cable and earbuds.
Updated I should have paid more attention. My second paragraph may have been a little confusing. I meant to ask if other players do playback in the same manner as the Stone. All my other players play back in the order I put them on (the screened iPods via playlists).
Updated I should have paid more attention to my second paragraph. It may be a little confusing. Sorry about that.
What I meant to ask was: do other players do playback in the same manner as the Stone? My other players do not - they play back in the order that I put them on. In the case the screened iPods, they play back in the order that I have on my playlists.
Updated 1. It does seem to scratch somewhat easily. It ended up migrating to the bottom of my purse, mixing with my keys and scratching.
2. After turning it on, it takes about 10 seconds for it to start playing.
These are things that I can live with, since it is not my primary player. I'm not even going to bother getting a case.
9 out of 10 - Spectacular Pretty Good
It's a great player. Great battery life. I really like it. I kind of wish I could make it ...
It's a great player. Great battery life. I really like it. I kind of wish I could make it amplify the Bass a little bit but there are no options besides super basic ones. Good stuff though.
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by nutrumpet (see profile) -
May 28, 2008
9 out of 10 - Spectacular What else do you expect ?!?!?!
1GB of Creative quality product for only $30 its a good deal. I am an audiophile and with my Sony ...
1GB of Creative quality product for only $30 its a good deal. I am an audiophile and with my Sony plugs ($30) this mp3 player sounds better than any of the more expensive ones. Its same as the shuffle but cheaper and without the hold button(I have never pushed any of the buttons on accident while it was in my pocket so maybe its not a big deal anyway). I love it and I definitely got what I expected.
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by gagunx (see profile) -
March 27, 2008
7 out of 10 - Very good It's all about the sound
This is a dead simple mp3 player. Much like the shuffle but depending on how you load it up more ...
This is a dead simple mp3 player. Much like the shuffle but depending on how you load it up more complex. Compared to the shuffle its better sounding and charges faster also looks more sleek but the shuffle has iTunes. However this is a very good sounding mp3 player it looks good, sounds good and I expect it will do me good. I'd recomend this to anyone who wants a good sounding cheep simple mp3 player but good luck finding one.
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by x.killeddestiny.x (see profile) -
March 11, 2008
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