SanDisk Sansa Express (1GB)
Manufacturer: SanDisk Corp. Part number: SDMX6R-1024K-A18
- More product information:
- Editors' review
- User reviews
- Specifications
- Product series
- Accessories
- Manufacturer info
- Bottom Line:
- The SanDisk Sansa Express is a solid choice for those who need an ultraconvenient MP3 player with a decent smattering of features.
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Where to buy
| store | customer rating | inventory | tax & shipping | price |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Amazon.com Marketplace |  | In stock | Enter zip code to get total price: Price +Tax +Shipping =Total price | as of 11/30/2009 |
CNET editors' review
SanDisk Sansa Express (1GB) price range: $19.95
- Reviewed by: Jasmine France
- Reviewed on: 05/16/2007
The good: The SanDisk Sansa Express features a handy plug-and-play design; it's inexpensive; it offers several desirable extras such as an FM tuner, support for protected WMAs, and a MicroSD expansion slot.
The bad: The screen of the Sansa Express is tiny and it's only capable of displaying two colors, so there's no album art or photo support.
The bottom line: The SanDisk Sansa Express is a solid choice for those who need an ultraconvenient MP3 player with a decent smattering of features.
Ever since Apple abandoned the design feature with the release of the second-generation iPod Shuffle, MP3 players with built-in USB have seemed to go out of fashion. It's a bit of a shame, as this type of device is quite handy for some users. So it's nice to see SanDisk reintroducing the feature with the Sansa Express (1GB), a compact flash player with an array of desirable features and a palatable price tag of $59.99.
The Sansa Express is a simple USB stick of an MP3 player, shaped like a small pack of gum with a cap covering the USB plug at one end. The back of the player is standard brushed silver--nothing too exciting there--but the front is decked out in a shiny, mirror-like inlay, reflective enough for lipstick touch-ups. A small, dual-color OLED screen sits front and center and displays crisp orange and blue font on a black background. To the right of the display is a square control pad like that of the Sansa c250, with a center "select" key surrounded by track shuttle buttons, a Play/Pause key, and a contextual menu button. Dedicated volume controls sit on the bottom edge of the player, while the top edge houses a hold switch and a Power/main menu key. On the left side, you get a standard 3.5mm headphone jack, a built-in mic for voice recording, and a microSD card expansion slot for adding more memory.
For a small and inexpensive player, the Sansa Express offers an impressive array of features. As noted above, there is voice recording and memory expansion. The Express also has an FM tuner with autoscan, recording, and up to 20 presets. It supports MP3, WAV, WMA (including subscription), and Audible files as well as playlists. You can even create an on-the-go playlist on the device. Alternatively, use Windows Media Player or drag and drop to transfer those and other files. Music is arranged handily into the Creative step-down interface structure. Menus are basic, but the top one is icon-driven--a nice touch. You do not get album art or photo viewing with the Express, nor is the player technically compatible with Macs, but we were able to transfer an MP3 from a MacBook Pro (the player did not dismount properly, though).
During testing, the Sansa Express held up quite well in its class. The FM radio reception was very good in the building, picking up all the local stations we expected, and the voice recorder works well. Music sounded fine through the included headphones, and the Express offers a variety of EQ settings (normal, pop, rock, jazz, classical, and custom) so that you can fine-tune the sound to your tastes. Still, it's always a good idea to swap out the stock set for a better pair. We used the Shure SE310s, which helped to bring out the low end. Still, bass addicts will probably not be satisfied with the Express. In general, music was clear and detailed, but wasn't quite as rich and full as players in the top sound quality spots, such as the iRiver Clix. The rated battery life of 15 hours is decent, though not awe-inspiring; check back soon for CNET Labs test results.
User reviews
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HELLO YOU CAN COPY FILES DIRECTLY!!!!
by techguy27 on June 12, 2007
Pros: NO SOFTWARE NEEDED, NO ITUNES, NO DRM
Cons: big whoop , what $60 player comes with good headphones anyway?
Summary: NO SOFTWARE NEEDED, NO ITUNES, NO DRM.
enough said.
let me say it again. you can copy and paste ANY mp3 file from anyone or anywhere and just put it ...Summary: NO SOFTWARE NEEDED, NO ITUNES, NO DRM.
enough said.
let me say it again. you can copy and paste ANY mp3 file from anyone or anywhere and just put it in the thing via USB port.
No limits, no DRM garbage. No itunes, No Windows Media Player. Exactly what we tech monsters want. One less piece or junkware nagging at you to do this or that.
Keep it up SanDisk. And while your at it keep making those sweet sweet SSD SATA drives.7 out of 7 users found this user opinion helpful.
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With good sound and ever better price you can't beat it
by clueless22 on April 17, 2007
Pros: great display, tons of features, upragable to up to 3g of storage
Cons: poor botton design, lask of a podcast section
Summary: This is my first mp3 player and it did everything I thought it should. Sound quality is great but the headphones that it comes with are not that good. The ...
Summary: This is my first mp3 player and it did everything I thought it should. Sound quality is great but the headphones that it comes with are not that good. The recording feature both on the FM tuner and on the mice work perfectly and are actually very useful.
It has a beautiful and sharp yellow and blue display which is really helpfull when recording or finding a specific song.(Sansa Express 1 - Ipod Shuffle 0)
It is reasonably priced, compared to a lot of other music player (some of which don't even come with some of its features) this player is hands down the best.(Sansa Express 2 - Ipod Shuffle 0)
Charging is really easy (alot less hassle when you have to keep track of cables), you just plug it in a usb port and you are done. The one problem it has is if you happen to go on travel in which you might not have access to a computer with a usb port then you are out of luck (unless you buy one of those usb chargers), but that hasn't happened to me yet anyway, i'm a student with 24 hours access to computers.(Sansa Express 3 - Ipod Shuffle 0)
One thing that I had problem with was podcasts. There isn't a special folder for non music files so you can access them faster and easier, instead you have to put them with all the other music files and then try to find it.
(Sansa Express 3 - Ipod Shuffle 0)
Another miner problem is the bottons on the device, not the botton you see on the front, but the side botton that are for volume control and power, are built very loose; they seem like they are going to fall off any day. still they work perfectly.
(Sansa Express 3 - Ipod Shuffle 1)
Ignoring the minor problems Overall i'm very staisfied with my purchase.
for more reviews of Sansa Express check this page out, it really helped me when deciding:
http://crunchgear.com/2007/01/22/sandisk-sansa-express-vs-apple-ipod-shuffle/7 out of 7 users found this user opinion helpful.
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Very good player especially for its money, not excelent though
by kutnenko_k on April 26, 2007
Pros: Direct 2.0 USB connection, cardreader, price, mic, recording from radio
Cons: menu usability, some bugs in software, some ergonomics issues, lack of extra features, moderate battery, no manual
Summary: Before buying this player I used to own Sony NWE005 2 gig usb key player, so I'll compare them throughout review.
The main reason due to which I had ...Summary: Before buying this player I used to own Sony NWE005 2 gig usb key player, so I'll compare them throughout review.
The main reason due to which I had to return my Sony Player was that it had to be used with additional software in order to transfer/ sync files. And that software was really lame. So I was hoping that release of Sandisk Sansa Express will make things brigter for me. It was anounced as USB-key player, which you can use as player and USB key w/o any additional software. So as soon as it was released in Canada I bought it. How great my surprise was when I hooked it up with my latop and it wasn't recognized as usb-drive!!! I was shoked. As player's package doesn't include any manual I had to look it up on the internet and even though I found it, its existence is not obvious, which is strange for fresh product. On the other hand talking about package contents SanDisk included lanyard, which Sony didn't. (Sony 9/ SanDisk 7).
So manual said that in order to use player properly I had to download Win Media Player ver. 10 or higher (I had ver. 9). I downloaded it and problem was solved. However you have to keep in mind, that it should be installed on each and every PC which you plan to use player with. (Sony 6/ SanDisk 7).
The player itself is rather attractive and stylish. I like its design. The only con is that lanyard hooks on usb cap, which means you can potentialy loose player carrying it on the neck. (Sony 10/ Sandisk 9).
Menu is easy to navigate through, buttons are ergonomic, you can easily use player without taking it out of the pocket. Display is quite informative, but its brightness is insufficient, you can hardly read it on a bright day. Max. volume is not the highest one and even though it's not improtant for me it is for many people. Then there are minor bugs which I hope will be fixed in future firmwares (eg. player sometimes doesn't save radio recordings, in radio mode vol. up doesn't work once you turned it down to minimum) (Sony 7/ Sandisk 9).
Extra features include mic and recording from radio which are quite cool but for which I couldn't find much use. I would prefer to have clock (as Sony player has) and extra settings insted (such as ID3 layout setup in Sony). (Sony 9/ Sandisk 6).
The last but not the least is price. I paid 70 CAD for my device, which is half of the price of Sony player I used to have. (Sony 5/ Sandisk 10).
Summing up Sandisk Sansa Express is very affordable player of good quality with all basic features. If you are buying your first mp3 player Sansa Express is definetly a good choice. However if you look for more and price is not crucial for you, look elsewhere.5 out of 5 users found this user opinion helpful.
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Great budget DAP (with a display)
by fugufish on May 21, 2007
Pros: Small size, OLED display, Easy to navigate, FM radio, voice recording, easy to transfer songs to, microSD slot.
Cons: USB charging only, lousy stock earbuds
Summary: IMO the CNET reviewer rated this player far too low. She touted all the great features and then concluded that it didn't sound as good as a $200 iRiver ...
Summary: IMO the CNET reviewer rated this player far too low. She touted all the great features and then concluded that it didn't sound as good as a $200 iRiver Clix, had only a 2 line OLED display with no album art or photo support and then nailed it with a 6.7. Huh?? How many $60 DAPs have these features?
The Sansa Express has a great feature set and sounds great for $60. The micro SD slot is a fantastic value add. The stock earbuds are bad but a set of Sennheiser MX400s ($9.95)made it sound 150% better. Sandisk just released a new firmware that cleared up some bugs.
Overall a great little player that sounds decent, is nice and small and a joy to take running. Buy one!4 out of 4 users found this user opinion helpful.
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good budget mp3 player
by spartan2142 on April 4, 2007
Pros: direct connection USB file transferring and recharging, FM radio/recording, EQ, good value, very small
Cons: very small buttons, FM recording takes up very large amounts of space and tends to freeze when saving, doesn't get nearly as loud as other mp3 players, and the middle buton feels clumsy
Summary: I expected better from sandisk. I have always used their mp3 players and I consider this one a step down. the 1 Gig of memory is decent for a flash ...
Summary: I expected better from sandisk. I have always used their mp3 players and I consider this one a step down. the 1 Gig of memory is decent for a flash mp3 player and the no-cable-needed USB connection is convenient but the sound is quiet even on its default LOUD setting and you can hear some low system noise. Overall, the value makes up for it's flaws. I paid $60 for it and it's a decent mp3 player but I wish I would have spent a little more and got a bigger, louder mp3 player with better control and feel.
3 out of 5 users found this user opinion helpful.
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Great for the price, just not loud enough
by arlucasinc on April 30, 2007
Pros: Nice display, Easy to use
Cons: Not loud enough
Summary: I bought this player to replace the Sony S2 Minidisc player that I was carrying with me when biking to work (don't worry! I only listen to it when ...
Summary: I bought this player to replace the Sony S2 Minidisc player that I was carrying with me when biking to work (don't worry! I only listen to it when I'm on the trails, not on the roads). The S2 is a great little piece of equipment, but it's heavy, and dealing with Minidiscs can get tedious.
I went to BestBuy and picked up the Sansa Express based on the price and the listed features. It's a great looking little unit, it's a complete breeze to use (didn't even have to look at the documentation), and I really appreciate the display. The menu system is similar to what I've seen on other digital players, and as such is very familiar and intuitive.
The sound quality is good, and when I was in the house, I thought that the volume was okay. When I went outside to mow the lawn yesterday, I turned the thing up as high as it could go, and I still basically couldn't hear anything (I'm using Sony's S2 Street Style headphones, by the way).
I was a little concerned, so I figured I'd just see how it sounded when I rode in this morning and there was some wind whipping around my head. And yeah, it just doesn't do the job. Which is fine, for something this small and inexpensive. I should have considered that a little player like this might not be able to drive a pair of headphones the way a bigger unit could.
I'm going to take this back to BestBuy this week and trade up for something more substantial. I'll probably spend another $20 or $30, which kinda stinks, but you do get what you pay for, I guess.
If I wasn't looking to use this in noisier conditions, this would be the perfect player, and for people who are maybe just walking around or something, this thing is great.2 out of 3 users found this user opinion helpful.
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Fantastic Device with a Small Footprint
by nodamidis on May 7, 2007
Pros: Ridiculously small; direct USB connect; plentiful features
Cons: User interface could be easier; fingerprint magnet; does not include protective case
Summary: This is one fantastic mp3 player. I like that it doesn't occupy much real estate in my pocket. I don't care that it doesn't display album art ...
Summary: This is one fantastic mp3 player. I like that it doesn't occupy much real estate in my pocket. I don't care that it doesn't display album art or videos. I have an Archos 604 for that. This is the perfect device for using while I'm out mowing the lawn, etc. It sounds great and has preset equalizer settings. Also, because it connects to the USB port of my PC without a cable, I don't have to worry about carrying the transfer cable around with me. I wish the cap protecting the USB connect were hinged like a cigarette lighter so I wouldn't have to worry about that. My only gripe is that it doesn't come with a case to protect the bright OLED screen, which is otherwise a magnet for fingerprints. I cut a PDA screen protector to fit both the main player and the cap, so as to protect the screen from scratches. Overall, this is one sweet little mp3 player for the price. Highly recommend.
1 out of 1 users found this user opinion helpful.
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Unreliable
by kenne1s on October 20, 2007
Pros: Size and Functions. Rechargeable.
Cons: System Failures
Summary: A system can have all the great features in the world, but if it doesn't work what good is it. The 1st one I had failed, I called customer ...
Summary: A system can have all the great features in the world, but if it doesn't work what good is it. The 1st one I had failed, I called customer service and they couldn't fix so I had to send it back. They sent me a replacement in about 2 weeks. The replacement stoped working after the 1st recharge.
1 out of 2 users found this user opinion helpful.
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love it and hate it
by tvheartache on August 3, 2007
Pros: really bright screen, very attractive design, great pink color, solid buttons
Cons: sometimes lags, refuses to play files other than the ones i ripped from own CDs (won't play downloaded files)
Summary: first off, i have to say this mp3 player is one of THE most attractive i've seen out there on the market. with the choice of it in sleek ...
Summary: first off, i have to say this mp3 player is one of THE most attractive i've seen out there on the market. with the choice of it in sleek black or bright pink, and the smooth and rounded overall shape of the mp3 player, i was very satisfied. a great perk also was the reflective surface, good for applying makeup, checking your teeth, or anything like that.
however, it's actual performance falters behind. half the time, it would work perfectly fine, and i would be content. other times, it would be crazy, as so:
1) the sansa express would not play any files except for ones i ripped from my own purchased CDs -- aka, it doesn't play any of my downloaded files. which i thought was RIDICULOUS. (this applied all the time.)
2) the sansa express wouldn't be recognized on my computer no matter how many times i unplugged it, plugged it back in the USB port (as per the advice from the tech support agent on the phone), restarted my computer, et cetera. while at times, it would work perfectly.
3) in addition, it would also at random times lag, freeze, or just not respond to me attempting to turn it on.
those were the main conflicts i have with this mp3 player. it could be just that it's defective, but i would much rather just get another mp3 player to replace this one. it's not worth the hassle.
but, i should give mention to the built-in recorder, which is very convenient. however, this plus of the mp3 player is pale in comparison to all of it's negative aspects.1 out of 2 users found this user opinion helpful.
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Not so hot
by gator2009 on April 10, 2009
Pros: Small, attractive, screen tells you what song is playing
Cons: Frequently shuts off, screen is not visible outside in daylight, difficulties with expansion MicroSD card, shuffle feature plays the same strings of songs each time
Summary: I got a refurbished Sansa Express and have had quite a few problems with it. It frequently needs hard resetting and turns off a lot. I took a MicroSD card ...
Summary: I got a refurbished Sansa Express and have had quite a few problems with it. It frequently needs hard resetting and turns off a lot. I took a MicroSD card out of my blackberry to use for extra space on the sansa express and it wouldn't read anything on it until I removed everything that was on it. And what good is a shuffle button if it just plays the same strings of songs each time?
Specifications
- Manufacturer: SanDisk Corp.
- Part number: SDMX6R-1024K-A18
- Description: The Sansa Express MP3 player is an affordable, cable-free, flash-based MP3 player with superior features. It gives you everything you need to enjoy digital music. It's slim, sleek, and easy to use! Created by the leader in flash memory, the Sansa Express MP3 player has many high-end features, including a microSD expansion slot, recording capabilities, plus a direct connection to a consumer's computer - with no USB cable required.
General
- Product type Digital player / radio
- PC interface(s) supported Hi-Speed USB
- Flash memory installed 1 GB Integrated
- Digital storage None
- Dimensions (W x D x H) 1 in x 0.7 in x 3.1 in
- Included accessories Lanyard, Headphones
Digital Player / Recorder
- Supported digital audio standards MP3, WAV, WMA, Audible, Protected WMA (DRM)
- Additional features PC Connection via USB
Built-in Display
- Audio system built-in display OLED
Audio Features
- Sound output mode Stereo
- Additional features Voice recording, FM radio recording capability
Radio
- Tuner type Digital Radio tuner
- Tuner bands FM
Remote Control
- Remote control None
Microphone
- Microphone type Built-in
Headphones
- Headphones type Binaural
- Sound output mode Stereo
- Connectivity technology Wired
Connectivity
- Cable(s) included 1 x USB cable - External
- Connector type 1 x USB 4 pin USB Type A, 1 x Headphones Mini-phone stereo 3.5 mm
- Slot(s) provided 1 x microSD
Battery / Power
- Battery Lithium polymer Rechargeable Player battery
- Mfr estimated battery life 15 hour(s)
System Requirements
- Peripheral / Interface devices CD-ROM
- Operating system Microsoft Windows XP, Microsoft Windows Vista
Sustainability
- CNET Labs: Battery drain test / audio playback 1126.885 min
Product series
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Manufacturer: SanDisk Corp.
Specs: Digital player / radio, 1 GB, MP3, WAV, WMA, Audible, Protected WMA (DRM), Lithium polymer Rechargeable Player battery
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Manufacturer: SanDisk Corp.
Specs: Digital player / radio, 2 GB, MP3, WAV, WMA, Audible, Protected WMA (DRM), Lithium polymer Rechargeable Player battery
Accessories
Manufacturer info
- SanDisk Corp.
- Manufacturer profile
- Browse SanDisk Corp. products on Shopper.com
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- Website: http://www.sandisk.com/
- Address:
140 Caspian Ct.
Sunnyvale, CA 94089 - Phone: 408-542-0500
- Email: support@sandisk.com
- Fax: 408-542-0503
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