Features

• 30 GB storage lets you bring up to 8,000 WMA songs (80 kbps) or MP3 songs (128 kbps) everywhere you go
• Use AudioSync to synchronize your music on your player with your PC at work, school and home or on the road
• Load a song a second with ultra fast USB 2.0 port, compatible with USB 1.1 too
• Removable, high-capacity Li-ion battery -- up to 14 hrs continuous playback per charge
• Compatible with Microsoft Windows 98 SE, Me, 2000, and XP

Reviews (118)

Zen and the art of noise - close to the edit
I got this back in March when Creative themselves were running a big sale on their site. I had most of my CDs already ripped on my PC in WMA and this player supported them fine. Most people compare this to the iPod though it really it is like the Dell Jukebox just slightly cheaper (the sizes are almost identical). The iRiver could also be compared to this.

Pros
Almost half the price of the iPod of the same capacity. Sound quality much better than the iPod. Controls on the side mean you don't have to take it out to change tracks. They are not totally intuitive but when you get use to them you can navigate very fast. Battery life great (I'm getting about 14+ hours out of it.) USB2 transfer does about a track in under a second.

Cons
Only currently supports MP3 and WMA, though Real seem to have an update on their site but I have not tried it. It requires drivers installed on any machine you want to dock with. Software is not great. Although much better than previous Creative outtings it still has limitations. For example you can't have two tracks on an album with the same title. Doesn't link to WindowsMedia library correctly if you rip in WM9 (you have to import the tracks - using the watch facility doesn't get the tags). Slightly larger than the iPod. I also have a strange issue on Nomadworld where there is an autoupdate facility for the firmware. Whenever I use it my system reboots!

In all I can live with the limitations because of the huge price difference and significantly better sound quality. By the way if you register your player you get a discount on their site for a select set of their other products.

in a word ... AMAZING
i got this for christmas. i was going to get a 10GB ipod, but after looking at the 10 DAY WARRANTY FOR IPOD AND WWW.IPODSDIRTYSECRET.COM (BATTERY LASTS 18 MONTHS ; IT costs like 200 dollars to replace - now you mail it off to get the battery replaced for like 99 ... what a big improvement ... lol) and the fact that lots of people have had problems with iPODs on windows computers, i realized this is a much better buy. Not only is it more affordable, but its a better player for windows, which is what i have. anyway, on with the review.
so far i've only had it since christmas, so i cant tell you much about the battery life. it hasnt gone below the second notch (i charge mine whenever i'm at home and not using it), so the battery life seems fine (so far).

SOFTWARE: for the people who complain about software, please, stop complaining. once you hook the thing up to the computer (via the USB cable), the machine instantly recognizes the fact that it's there & installs the drivers. from there, you transfer files from your computer to the mp3 player (with the help of the media sniffer...read the manual). my only complaint would be that you need id3 tags & that takes a while to do if your mp3 files don't have them. if you're copying CDs with windows media, its really simple to give your songs id3 tags, so thats what i do. oh...and file transfers are fast & easy.

THE PLAYER: it's silver. a little weighty (9 ounces ... no biggie), but otherwise fine. people complain about the scroll wheel, but its not a big deal at all (though it is just a LITTLE annoying at times). it's easy. the buttons are easy to use, and its easy to navigate. the big backlight makes things easy to see, and the writing is big enough for people to see. my favorite thing about the nomad is the EAX feature. you can customize bass, etc. like usual, but also you can customize the sound of the player (like how it would sound in a concert hall, jazz club, etc). its really cool. sound quality is AMAZING. i was expecting worse, but its really good (especially if your files have good sound quality). you can also slow a song down & speed it up, which is cool too. BUT THE EAR BUDS SUCK! BUY NEW ONES ASAP. every time you move your face or something they pop out. for a 250 dollar player, they could have thrown in nice headphones. a remote would have been cool too ... but lets not push it. oh... one more thing. i forgot, the case doesn't fit. my case doesnt close...maybe mine was just faulty, but the case isnt that great.

so far the player froze on me once (i started pushing buttons before it loaded) but since is hard drive based - you have to expect that. so all you do is stick a pin or something small in the reset button & you're golden.

also, you can store data on it, which is a plus. for all you people who want to buy an iPOD just to say you have an iPOD, don't bother, this is a MUCH better buy. HOPE I HELPED !

Beware - no customer support
Stay away from creative - far away. They only want your money. The unit itself - a creative zen 20 gb - has a few quirks but operated sufficiently. However, it did not hold up well and each time a repair was made, we were charged $100 minimum. Now, just over a year later, the headphone jack no longer makes contact. We were told "This unit is no longer supported" but we were offered a REFURBISHED unit (now, where did that come from?) for a price more expensive than a brand new 30 gb unit. I thinks its time to get an iPOD.
Consider me a disgusted, former customer of Creative. I will never buy their products again. I expect a several hundred dollar item to last longer than a year and to be supported as well.

Nice MP3 player
This is certainly a nice product. It's well put together, attractive, durable, provides some good options, and has great sound.

However, there are a few little drawbacks. First, it doesn't support a very wide array of sound formats; you're basically stuck with MP3s. Second, the "jog dial" scroll button is a little annoying and difficult to use, but not enough so as to ruin the experience. Third, it's practically impossible to read the LCD without perfect light or the backlight on (you can set how long the backlight stays idle, up to 60 seconds). Fourth, and finally, the button style and button/input locations are just a little...off, for lack a better word. The buttons aren't quite sticking out far enough and the button/input locations are a little strange (they work and all, but it could have been designed just a slight bit better).

Besides those few quirks, this is a really nice player. The sound is amazing, and the EAX settings are really nice, albeit some scale down the volume whilst using them. Battery life is acceptable. The player is a little larger than say an iPod, but it's still a nice size. The sync from your PC to the Zen Xtra (or vice versa) is a snap and very quick. Also, there's firmware and driver updates available, and the little harddrive is replaceable; if you ever want to replace or upgrade it, it's really simple. The case is really attractive and more durable than the plastic players out there, but the front case cover is easily removed, which is a good thing but can possibly become a bad thing as well, although I've yet to be able to make it 'accidentally' come off.

With everything the package includes, there's really no reason you shouldn't pick this up. For the score I had to knock off one star (I wish I could knock off only half of a star, though) for the my four small annoyances with the player.

Good value for money
Have had mine for about 5 months now...still working fine, battery life lasts 10 hours on mine (but that's only cos I'm diligent about recharging only when it's completely empty) and the sound quality is exceptional.
There are a few downsides, the main one being the size and lack of remote control...now I am sooooo tempted to buy the zen touch...
I've had no problems with the software, I'ved already used up 20GB of the alloted 30GB...mainly with personal files, it also doubles as my backup hard-drive...transferring of files to and from the Nomad to PC is a breeze, and with USB2.0, absolutely flies!
Conclusion is: Not as sexy as the iPod, but for this price, unless you have more dosh than sense, then go for this... ... Read more

Features

• Portable digital audio player with 6 GB of built-in storage (over 100 hours of CD-quality music)
• Plays MP3 files; upgradable to support other formats (such as WMA) and is SDMI compliant
• USB interface for fast digital transfer; compatible with Windows and Mac
• Weighs only 14 ounces and measures the size of a portable CD player
• Comes with headphones, rechargeable batteries, AC adapter, and carrying pouch; "

  Reviews (113)

  Your COMPLETE GUIDE to evaluating the Nomad Jukebox.
  Hello. I ordered the Jukebox from the U.S. to Lebanon, it cost me overall 400$, but I think it was worth it. Before buying the Jukebox, I read almost all the reviews on it [...], they were almost 50% unsatisfied and 50% totally satisfied. That made me a bit sceptic about the product, but it turned out to be a great one. The pro's and cons and some answers to some very stupid problems other reviewers complained about.

  Pro's: -Amazingly huge amount of memory (5.7GB and not 6GB as Creative claims, but what the heck, 0.3GB!) -Excellent connectivity. The Jukebox can be connected to any stereo or speaker system and it supports Dolby Digital AC-3 and 4point surround. Plus a line in plug so you can record from a mic, from the radio or even from the T.V.!! -Very fast transfer rate (500Kbps!!!!!) via USB port. -The ability to run it direcly from DC unlike the Nomad II MG and many other MP3 players, thus saving battery power and lifespam. -Big display, nice backlight ;)

  -The three soft buttons that change function according to the mode you're in, thus having less buttons and more stylish look.(just like the NAV key on most Nokia phones like the 3310) -Great software (PC, haven't tested the Mac) nice design unlike many others said, AMAZINGLY CLEAN RIPPING, very high sound quality,in fact, others complained about the software because they hadn't updated it! updates are always available at [their website]! -Exceptional batteies! More power than any othe battery you could imagine! thrash duracell and energizer, the Creative batteries are a power station! (built for a power hog :P ) -Compatibility with WMA format after the upgrade (see above)

  Ok, now the FEW cons (well, man isn't perfect and never will be. so are his creations! right?) -Battery life...hmmm...well it's not bad at all! but it's still a con compared to other MP3 players who last for 10-12hours. the Jukebox lasts around 4hours of PLAYBACK, and since Creative provides you with 8batteries, you can say it lasts 8hours of PLAYBACK, right? well it's a HARD-DISK running on AA batteries! Quite amazing battery life then! -The carrying case!! OOOOH GOD, that's THE CON. No holes for headphone plug, no place to store headphones nor spare batteries, the strap is so short it is meant to carry it like a handbag. But a SOLUTION to this costs only 19.99$. You can buy one of the other GREAT carrying cases Creative offers at [their website]-I'm not gonna talk about the size and weight because for a jukebox they are pretty cool: weight:14oz, dimensions: 5"x5"x1.5"

  Well, that's about it. Finally, here is a summary of what you get when you buy the Creative Nomad Jukebox: -The Nomad Jukebox Unit (duh) -Stereo Backphones (which look great but sound a little less great ;) -2 4pack AA NiMH batteries (that makes 8batteries for those who donno math :P) -USB cable, Universal Power Adapter, Installation C.D., installation booklet (quite comprehensive, plus comes in 4 languages) -Carrying Pouch (I wish Creative kept it for them, they would've spared themselves the embarrasment! ) -Preloaded 20 that's TWENTY HOURS of music, including classical, jazz, hip-hop, dance, pop, rock, and two audiobooks(frankenstein and robinson crusoe)

  Well, I hope this review was of use for you people. Thanx for reading.

  First Generation, Lots of Problems
  I was so excited by this product - conceptually it's all I wanted. However, it's a case of great idea, bad implementation.

  1) It's not loud enough. If I can't hear normal volume music when walking my dog on city streets, then it doesn't cut it. I couldn't hear music in a store either with volume full blast. My panasonic cd player has no problem with this - I'm not deaf or anything - it simply seems designed for use in quiet rooms. Forget using it at a gym where they might be playing their own dance music or something.

  2) It doesn't scan through songs - you can only skip from one song to another. This is contrary to what the box says (although the manual confirms that it doesn't scan). In this day and age, how can you do without this feature???

  3) It doesn't recognize regular wav files - only mp3s.

  4) Sound quality is inferior (if you care about this sort of thing - I do) to the DACs in most modern portable audio devices (again, my Panasonic portable CD is wonderful).

  If they fixed all this, I'd reconsider, but for now, I took mine back and received a full refund. Not yet ready for prime time.

  2 years later and still going strong
  While my Nomad Jukebox's structural integrity depends heavily upon duct tape, it still works like a charm. I've managed to break it a few times, and it was always pretty easy to repair just by ripping off the fuzzy things on the bottom and unscrewing those delightful miniscrews to reveal the magical guts of the player. Sometimes it gets fussy if I start and stop and start and stop like 3 different songs, but that's what the reset button is for. My only complaint is that USB 1.1 just seems so slow these days, I wish there was a magic wand that would all of a sudden give it some firewire capability.

  First Generation Jukebox, functional but has quirks
  I bought this jukebox about a year ago before the version 2 came out. And boy did I get buyer's remorse when a few months later Creative introduced the Jukebox 2 with lithium batteries. I could not get more than 1-1/2 hrs with the enclosed batteries, and the Jukebox would reboot sometimes when going over a bump in the car. However I do enjoy the 6 GB of storage (now they have Jukeboxes with 40Gigs!), and since my CD collection isn't so large, I get to have it all with me. I bought a car adaptor, [it was out of stock in the Creative online store for months, and I did not get it until 6 months later]. In the meantime, I could only use it for getting to sleep hooked to the AC adaptor.

  One more thing, to the person who said that his jukebox would not even turn on with and without the batteries. You need to stick a pin or paper clip into the reset hole in the back while turning it on or off [if it is hung in the off position]. I read how you bought all those accessories and feel for you.

  Serious QC Problems
  Do not buy Creative lab products. After contacting customer service multiple times about a warranty item, I talked to one of their techs, who said that they estimate 10% product failure on their products. My options were to pay to have it fixed, with another 10% chance that the repair could fail, or get the broken part back. They do not stand up behind their products. Don't throw your money away. ... Read more

Amazon.com Product Description

The Creative 10 GB Nomad Jukebox is a portable, multiformat digital audio player with intuitive navigation for easy categorizing and classifying of content. Measuring about the size of a portable CD player and weighing only 14 ounces, this EAX-certified digital audio player features a 10 GB storage capacity. Its 8 MB DRAM memory buffer provides up to five minutes of shock protection for portable use.

The 10 GB Nomad Jukebox stores approximately 160 hours of CD-quality audio (equivalent to over 220 albums) or up to 4,300 hours of spoken-word content. It supports file formats such as MP3, WAV, and WMA, and comes preloaded with classical music and audiobook content.

Unlike other hard drive-based solutions, the Nomad Jukebox offers an onboard, real-time digital signal processor for superior audio playback and customization. It includes special-effects algorithms that alter the way your music sounds, making it seem as if you are listening in a concert hall, in a stone room, or in a forest. You can also slow and speed the playback of files, a feature that is particularly helpful if you are running through the minutes of a meeting you just recorded or are listening to other spoken-word content.

Other features include:

• Line in for direct audio recording from external devices
• Dual line out for 4-point surround speaker connectivity
• DC power in for separate power supply and battery recharging
• Downloadable OS for upgrades and extended features
• Interactive, easy-to-use software interface for quick playback, organization, customization, and categorizing your entire music collection
• Windows and Mac compatibility

... Read more

Features

• Portable digital audio player with 10 GB of built-in storage (over 160 hours of CD-quality music)
• Supports MP3, WMA, and WAV files; firmware upgradeable
• USB interface for fast digital transfer; compatible with Windows and Mac
• Weighs only 14 ounces and measures the size of a portable CD player
• Comes with headphones, 1 set of rechargeable batteries, and AC adapter

Reviews (46)

Only gets worse
I bought the 6 gig version of this product right when it came out, which I think was a little over a year ago. I was amazed that it could hold 6 gigs... why would any one ever buy 128 or even 32 meg ones!!!????? It seemed too good to be true... turns out, it was!
When I first started using it, it worked Ok... It has always had excellent sound quality, and with my head phones, it sounded awesome. If you play with the 'Parametric EQ', and turn up the 'Mid Frequency', then you can get it to play REALLY REALLY LOUD!!!!! I really don't understand the reviews that say it can't go up loud, this is the loudest portable Mp3 or CD player I have ever used!!! That was a definite plus for me... It the beginning the only drawbacks were that the batteries only lasted 3-4 hours, (It takes about 4 times longer then my laptop to charge, too!) that it would periodically shut off for no apparent reason, about one in every 10 songs I put on it wouldn't work properly, and it's reaaaaallyyyyyyy sllloooooowwwww!!!!!
Then it kept getting worse.... the batteries started dying faster and faster, it started shutting off all the time - it always dies when going over rough spots in a car, and now the majority of the time it won't turn on at all, and when it does it won't work on any batteries, it only sometimes works when plugged into the wall. - Which is completely useless, because I might as well just use my laptop, which isn't nearly as annoying.
Overall I wish I never would have bought this product for any amount of money had I of known the aggravation this nasty machine would cause me... I recommend looking into one of the other 10 gig mp3 players (Don't settle for an 128 Mb, it's useless!)
(Don't shy away from other 'Creative' products though, my Creative speakers, sound card and CD burner work great!!!!!!!)

Good For A Large Collection
My first portable MP3 player was the Rio Volt. What a piece of junk. So I bought this Nomad Jukebox 10GB player. I don't have 10GB of MP3s in my music collection, but I'm pretty close. With these hard drive-based MP3 players, I was under the impression you could just connect it to your computer, have it show up as a removable drive in Explorer, and just copy over the files. On the contrary, you have to start some bloated software to connect to the Nomad and copy the files over. Unfortunately, navigating a large collection with the Nomad is difficult. For example, you can't organize the files into folders on the original Jukebox models. Fortunately, the computer software does make it a tad easier to create playlists than on the Jukebox alone.

Battery life is short...maybe 4 hours using AA rechargeables. The power adapter doesn't seem to charge them very well, so I use an external battery charger. At least it doesn't use a proprietary battery like the iPod. I've dropped the unit a couple of times. The unit shuts itself off, but I was able to turn it back on with no problems.

If you need to carry your extensive music collection every where you go, the Nomad Jukebox is a good choice. I absolutely recommend you go to nomadworld.com and upgrade the firmware to 4.1. You will have fewer problems. Also, stay away from the Nomad bloatware. There is a freeware app called "MP3-Library" that works very well with the original Jukebox. If you have a the Jukebox 2 or 3, look into Notmad Explorer (redchairsoftware.com) which allows you to move files to and fro in Windows Explorer. It costs a little, but the software is updated every 2 weeks or so with new features and the updates are free forever. Also check out nomadness.net for underground info on your Nomad.

Personally, the volume isn't loud enough to hear over my lawn mower or whatever when doing chores. The Nomad takes a good minute or two to start up which is slower than my computer. I'm constantly rotating in and out the songs I listen to. It takes about as long to copy the files over to Jukebox as it does to burn a CD, so I think I am going back to a MP3 CD solution (Samsung MCD-HM200). It's easier to use and cheaper, so I won't cry when it breaks.

A review for the reviews.
Seeing that the reviews here are all really good, or really bad, let me explain. I bought this a short time ago,and have had no serious issues with it at this point. Battery life is only about 4 hours, which is about right when you consider they're running a hard drive (moving part, always uses more power.). Second, transferring music. It can be a little confusing to get your mp3's transferred over, but once you figure it out, it really isn't too difficult at all. Sound quality is excellent, and while some reviews may sway you away from the products, Creative Labs tends to make an excellent line of audio products. I'd say this product is worth buying, at the very least if you see it on sale...and don't worry too much about those who blasted it with just one star...most likely frustrated "Newbies".

Better than i expected
I thought this would be a very hard to use player. i was wrong. i have never seen anything easier. the menus are easy to make and the songs are very easy to navigate through. also the space is enormous. compared to other mp3 players i would definitely say that this is the best. using this you don't have to carry all the cds around.

Low or no battery
Seeing as I have a large CD collection (250+), it's difficult for me to decide what I'd like to listen to on the bus that goes to and from school. I saw an ad for Future Shop. They said that going back to school is the day you "put 150 albums in the palm of your hand." I thought that was cool, but Future Shop had no idea what it was, maybe a burner. How can you hold 150 albums in just one burner, anyway? I found out later that this machine was an mp3 player, and, using my birthday money, I got it. Disasters kept striking when we tried to set it up. Eventually, it works and now I have something to amuse myself on the long bus rides for Ladner or North Delta. My only complaints would be that it doesn't have enough room for ALL the CDs I like, and has very short battery life. ... Read more

Features

• 1.5 GB data storage
• Stores up to 50 hours of WMA or 25 hours of MP3 tracks
• Up to 10 hours continuous playback
• USB 2.0 for super fast file transfer -- load a song a second
• Compatible with Windows 98SE, 2000, Me, and XP

Reviews (4)

Just good not great.
Good thing about this player it is small.
Easy to jog or weight lift with.
Negative side it only fits about 1.3 GB.
So so you have to high speed dub drive
for your PC to work with the MuVo.
Also if you get this player best go to
Creative Labs for Firmware updates.
Why because it transfer mp3 slow otherwise.
Would I buy another Nomad Movu 1.5GB no.
But I would buy another Creative Labs Product.
I also own 128MB Nomad Muvo MP3 Player its great
compare to the bigger more expensive

Nomad MuVo² 1.5 GB MP3 Player.

overall it is good
creative says it last more than 10 hours for continuous playing, but my nomad muvo 1.5 have to be recharge every 4 or 5 hours. i agree the provided earphone is suck. the 1.5 gb storage are able to statisfy my need, actually i don't think people will need a mp3 player with too big storage, because i dont have that much cd. the sound quality is good and clean. and the appearance is ... as long as you have never seen ipod then muvo 1.5 can be consider as good

Great MP3 Player!
If you're looking for an extremely compact mp3 player with a lot of memory, this is the way to go. This thing is tiny and will fit in just about any pocket. 1.5 GB means you can put over 300 songs on there. It is very easy to add songs. All you have to do is drag and drop the files from the computer into the player window. This item comes with a carrying case, charger, 2 USB 2.0 cords (one for home and one for travel) and media player software. Creative says you should install it but it is not needed to use the product.

One thing I dislike about it is the size of the keys. If you have big fingers you might find it hard to change tracks and adjust the volume. The directions are also not great. Some people might have trouble navigating the menu.

Overall a great player - highly recommended

Darn this thing is good!!
This little machine is wonderful. It's software is great but the speakers that come with it suck. I had to go buy so sony ear bud ones and they are great. The battery is a big problem, because it will not let me go past song 10 unless I put the old battery bad in the player!! This is really upsetting and one day I cyied b/c it would not play my favorite song #11. What if anything can I do about this little problem. The machine is perfect I got it for Christmas and I already wants to mess up!!
Some one please save me from breaking it.
Thank you to the people that read this.

Thanks,
Jim ... Read more

Features

• Form-fitting leather pouch
• Integrated belt clip
• Custom-stitched leather
• Secure portability

Reviews (4)

Nice accessory for your Jukebox 3
To this day, I still use my Nomad Jukebox 3 on a daily basis. I don't think I'd be saying that if I hadn't purchased this last year. Not only does it make it easier for me to carry the, now massive, Jukebox 3 around, it's also kept it in perfect shape. When I originally received it, it was a very tight fit, over time it's loosened a bit and made it easier to remove if needed. I only mention this because occasionally the holes for the rear ports get slightly covered by the case. Not a big deal but still worth mentioning. If you still have the Nomad Jukebox 3 or are just now getting one, I seriously recommend picking this up as well.

Nomad JB3 Leather Pouch
I am quite pleased with both the quality and workmanship on this product.

All the openings allow for simple access to the various controls and sockets without any difficulty. In fact they matched up almost perfectly. I would have preferred to see the gap a little wider for the scrolling wheel, as bigger fingers may have a minor problems with negotiating it otherwise.

The belt clip seems quite seviceable and should perform its function well. My preference would have been for it to be slightly wider so as to provide some more stability.

Overall the product looks good and is well worth the money for the protection it affords.

The Best
I think this item is a good price a CD and MP3 player is very good if you want to listen to a CD instead of downloading the music or just download from the internet its still a good deal

Kind of Pricey but Good Quality
Nice construction, and the belt clip works very well.
I wish it cost less though. ... Read more

Amazon.com Review

It's hard to believe that so many features could be packed into such a tiny package, but the Creative Labs Nomad MP3 player is one little dynamo. With 64 MB combined memory (32 MB onboard and an included 32 MB SmartMedia card), an FM tuner, voice recording capabilities, and a bevy of extras, the Nomad is a terrific deal in a digital music player.

We loved how ultratiny the Nomad is--it truly deserves to be called pocket-sized. The case is made of a solid silver-colored plastic, and the buttons run down the sides of the player instead of being on the player's face. We appreciated this design, since it's easy to accidentally bump buttons on the front of a player. The Nomad also has a hold button, which stops buttons from activating if you accidentally bump them.

Setup of the Nomad is relatively straightforward. We installed the software, connected the docking cradle to our PC's parallel port, and we were ready to go. Be sure to check your BIOS settings to make sure your parallel port is configured to ECP mode, or the player won't work at all. If you're unfamiliar with how to do this, check your computer's manual and the Nomad's documentation, as this process can be tricky.

The software that comes with the player is somewhat unintuitive. Most MP3 players let you drag tracks directly from your software MP3 player to the hardware, but the Nomad adds an extra step. It ships with MusicMatch, a terrific MP3 utility. You can use either it or another program that you favor as your default player. You can record all your MP3s to MusicMatch from CDs or the Internet, but you can't move them directly to the Nomad from this interface. You must use the Creative Nomad Manager software that comes with the player to transfer files. This makes the process somewhat longer and more tedious. We hope that Creative Labs remedies this problem in the next incarnation of the Nomad.

The earbuds that ship with the Nomad are not the best quality, but music still sounds decent through them. We do recommend that you get a more expensive pair, as it will greatly improve the sound quality.

Skipping from track to track on the Nomad is simple, and you can use the equalizer to select one of four presets--normal, classic, jazz, or rock. The player has repeat, all, and shuffle functions; however, the shuffle function doesn't remember which tracks it's already played, and at one point we got stuck listening to the same track three times in a six-track stretch.

The circular display, while clever, is somewhat difficult to read. There is no backlight, so you can't see the display in low-light situations. Another complaint is that the display scrolls through the track name and artist at the beginning of each song, but stops after the first scroll-through and shows only the elapsed time until the next track starts. The display does show helpful information on mode, battery life, whether or not the memory card is in, and which track number you're currently listening to.

The voice recorder is a great feature that lets you record up to four hours on the player. We also appreciated the addition of an FM tuner. While it's not perfect--it uses the headphone cord as an antenna, which can cause stations to fade in and out--it's a great bonus for those times when you're tired of your current selection. We quickly programmed in 10 presets that are easily selectable in the FM tuner mode.

Despite the shortcomings with the software and display, we were thoroughly impressed with the Nomad. Its tiny size, 64 MB of included memory, FM tuner, and voice recording capabilities make it representative of everything fun and exciting about MP3 players and digital music. Be warned, though: the Nomad is not upgradable to support any future compression formats, so it's possible that the player may become outdated. --Ara Jane Olufson

Pros:

• 64 MB combined memory
• Nice quality FM tuner
• Voice recording capabilities
• Durable

Cons:

• Unintuitive software
• Difficult-to-read display
• Not upgradable

Features

• Record your favorite songs from your personal CD collection or the Internet
• Nonmechanical operation for skip-free, continuous playback
• Combined 64 MB RAM (32 MB onboard, 32 MB on removable media)
• Includes FM tuner and voice-recording capabilities
• LCD song title readout

Reviews (42)

Record companies promoting SDMI through reviews?
I love the Creative labs Nomad 64 even with its couple of flaws which are -

lack of USB support / Awful Nomad manager and MusicMatch software - although there is an update as of 2000 that improves it a lot and not enough memory

I don't care and won't care for SDMI as long as it does not interfere with the way I've gotten used to using my MP3 files - Right now as far as I understand - SDMI will be an option for the user to choose and not come preinstalled for example on the new Nomad II.

Creative Labs makes the best players as far as I am concerned because they have the cool look and feel plus they have an FM tuner which comes in handy when you are tired of listening to the same limited number of songs because of the lack of more memory

Limitations
I recently got a Creative Nomad MP3 player, and after installing the Nomad Manager Software, I get an error message ¨Docking Station not conected¨.
The parallel cable is properly connected.
I actually have Windows 2000 and the software that comes with the mp3 player, says that it is for Windows 95 98.
I have looked in Creative's Web page and there are no drivers for windows 2000, I also change the Bios settings as the setup instructions manual refers. With no results .

Great Deal
I have spent about 2 weeks researching all MP3 players on the market, and I have come to the conclusion that this one is the best for the price at this time. It is made by an extremely reliable company, and comes with a flury of features.

Total included memory: 64 MB Approximate playback time: 60 minutes Onboard memory: 32 MB Included memory cards: 1 32 MB SmartMedia Compatible memory type: SmartMedia Number of expansion slots: 1 MP3 playback: Yes WMA playback: Yes LCD Display FM tuner Voice recording Battery status display Random play Repeat: One track, all tracks Forward/reverse: Yes Hold: Yes Preset EQ curves: Normal, classic, jazz, and rock Bass boost: Yes AC adapter: Yes Car adapter: No Carrying case: Included Batteries: 2 AAA (rechargeable NiMH, included) Headphones: Yes Bundled software: Creative Nomad Manager, MusicMatch Interface: Parallel (supporting ECP mode) Battery life: 9 hours Weight: 2.26 ounces

At this price who can pass it up!

Hot and Cold...
I received this mp3 player with high regard. I had read all the reviews and this player really looked like the best all other available models for the price. It comes with rechargeable batteries and a charger as well as 64 total MB of storage. These are both great features. However, the data is transferred from the computer to the mp3 player via a serial or printer port. I could never get the Nomad configured to work properly with my brand new system. After calling Tech Support (Long Distance) they still could not fix my problem. Luckily, I had a laptop which happened to work perfectly with the Nomad. Using this I was able to transfer songs and actually use the mp3 player, for which the sound quality was great and the features were exceptional. Yet, I noticed another 'problem.' The songs I had placed on the SmartMedia section of memory were not properly being erased. Everytime I tried to format it, it would still have the reminants of two older songs left on the card, in plain terms my SmartMedia card was corrupt. I had to send my Nomad back but I do miss my portable Mp3 ability. The player is lightweight, easily stored and sounds awesome. Sadly, the portable mp3 market is limited right now and I believe I'll wait a while before I invest in this technology again.

great value, poor reliability
On the surface, this looks like a great player at a great price---and it is. However, soon after I bought mine the flash card started causing me problems. Within a few days the flash card failed to work anymore, thus leaving me with only 32MB to work with. When I called Creative Labs they didn't seem to care at all about my difficulties, and actually tried to blame Amazon for the problem. To the contrary Amazon helped me greatly and I ended up exchanging the Nomad for a Rio player, which I'm very happy with. Also, if you plan on using your player while exercising/working out, be forewarned that this product DOES NOT have a belt clip, thus making it almost impossible to use while exercising. Of course, Creative labs does offer a leather carrying case/belt clip for $30---a rip off if you ask me. Overall, I would stay away from this product. If you do choose to buy it, remember to add $30, the cost of a belt clip, to the total price. The player is no good without it. I mainly give this product such a poor rating becuase of the terrible customer service I recieved from Creative Labs. However, I thank Amazon for helping to remedy the situation. ... Read more

Features

• Huge 60 GB capacity to carry up to 16,000 songs
• USB 2.0 for the fastest file transfers
• The most powerful music search and playlist management available
• 14 hours of continuous portable playback - charges via USB
• Compatible with Windows 98 SE, Me, 2000, and XP

Reviews (4)

No more Creative for me
Had this for 7 months. Kept it in excellent condition but after 7 months it crapped out. I had to pay shipping and deposit $20 with Creative to have them look at it. They told me it was a bad circuit board and it would cost me $125 to fix it. I told them to keep the $300 paperweight. Then 2 weeks later they call and ask me if it is correct that someone (I assume inside Creative) authorized to charge my account to fix it. I told them that if I see any charges on my account I will contact Better Business Bureau. I used to swear by Creative products. Now I just swear AT them.

Run, don't walk from this item
I have a huge library of mp3s that I maintain on a 40 gig mp3 player. I wanted to upgrade, and the Creative 60 looked good. Two insurmountable problems: 1) the unit's manual is provided as a pdf file, but in order to load it onto your computer, it assumes that you don't have Acrobat Reader (of course - this is 1960, isn't it?), and insists on installing acrobat on your computer. When it discovers you have acrobat (no!), it doesn't know what to do, so a) it screws up your current acrobat installation, and b) it fails to provide access to the manual. 2) Creative is confident that, even though you have 60 gigs of music, Creative knows better than you do how to organize it: by artist, name of song, album, year, and genre (rock, jazz, etc.) Never mind that you organized music by year (1973), function (wedding music), or specific category (Anton's favorites). In order to find a song, you must scroll through 60 gigs of songs to find yours. This is a small, sleek (perhaps a little tinny and fragile) unit, but the restrictions on organization render it useless. The old Archos 20 gig is a far more user-friendly system. The RCA Lyra 40 I now use has similar issues, but accomodates a work-around. The Creative is simply not "creative." Keep it. I'll try not to buy another Creative product.

Important Zen Information
This player is an overall disappointment with a couple of big flaws that potential buyers should be wary of; and all readers need to know about a third party software company that resolves virtually all of the Creative MediaSource file transfer issues.

Zen Good points:

1. I achieved my basic objective; my entire CD collection is on a portable device with lots of room to store more.

2. Most MP3 players have a gap between the end of one track and the start of the next; it's annoying in music that is intended to be continuous. The Zen has minimal stoppage between tracks; when listening to music that continues from one track to the next the gap is just a hesitation - a slightly audible click; if I am not listening for the progress from one track to the next I don't even notice the click.

Flaws:

1. Creative MediaSource software is OK to rip, catalog & burn music if you are starting from scratch; but I used MusicMatch to rip my CDs before I bought the Zen (272 CDs; 3,350 tracks; 12Gb of music all ripped at 128bps) and guess what? MediaSource did not recognize my tags; my choices at that moment would have been to manually re-tag my music or re-rip using MediaSource. I don't think so. BTW, if you *are* ripping your CDs, MediaSource accesses the CDDB music catalog over the Internet and the few CDs I experimented with all provided good quality [correct & uncluttered] tag information.

2. Despite most reviewers giving kudos to the Zen for music quality, I experienced a flaw using EAX. After about 45 mins of listening there was audible static in the player. When I turned EAX off the static disappeared. When I turned EAX back on the static was also not present. Creative are *the* sound people for computers, I can't understand why EAX would introduce static. Is EAX faulty? Is my unit defective? Was I just unlucky at that moment? Was it a full moon that night? I haven't figured it out yet.

3. MediaSource is an application with serious user interface flaws. Do not underestimate this in your purchase decision. Many reviewers refer to it as "clunky" or "difficult" - heed their warnings.

4. The Zen *stores* data files, but does not allow a folder structure nor does it allow documents to be opened or programs to be launched from its disk (they must be copied to another hard drive to be launched). In other words, the Zen is not a convenient data storage device; only buy the capacity you need for your music collection (see point 2. for some sizing information). My goal of using it as a music player *and* data storage device has not been met; don't make the same mistake.

5. The Zen does not have a Stop button! You can stop playback by pressing 2 buttons, first the Pause button, then the "Next Track" or "Previous Track" button. But this is *not documented* in the Zen manual - neither the hard copy nor the CD version. To discover this I had to read about 10 online reviews (with many complaints about the lack of Stop button) before I found one reviewer who was smart enough to both figure it out & document it.

6. The Zen NX battery requires the AC adapter to recharge; it does not charge by USB cable; this is not tragic, but USB recharging would be a convenient (additional) choice. If you are buying a Zen Xtra check whether the battery recharges via USB; it does not on the Zen NX.

7. MediaSource did not install on my personal notebook. It referred to a "Microsoft Jet Database Engine" error and the install program suggested I download a service pack from the MS website to fix the problem; I did that and re-installed the software but had the same error. Creative provided e-mail support; I followed their advice but that failed, too. I experimented with installing MediaSource on 2 other computers at home and it worked fine. So it is probably "just bad luck" on my part that the personal notebook I own had this install error. However, it did motivate me to find a work-around solution.

Third Party Software To The Rescue

After much frustration (above) I found the Notmad Explorer; cute product name for software that resolves virtually all of the Creative MediaSource FILE TRANSFER & ORGANIZATION problems. I am not associated with the company, I am not providing a URL, but search for NotMad and you should find it pretty easily. This provides drag & drop transfers of music between the computer & Zen; each time it transfers music to the Zen it asks if you want to generate a playlist; it allows playlists developed in other software to be transferred to the Zen (.m3u files are used by most mp3 players like MusicMatch and Winamp, but not Creative); it doesn't care what software you use to rip or catalog your music - Creative or any other company - all my 12Gb of music were transferred to the Zen with correct tags - hooray! Notmad has other features too, but this is not an advertisement so please see the company's web site for more information ...

Conclusion:

If I knew then what I know now I would have paid the extra to get an iPod & avoided the Zen. Given that I already have the Zen the only reason I am happy with it is because of the Notmad software. And I am hoping the static I heard when using EAX was a blip ...

To summarize, I am using the Creative Zen as a mobile device; I am using MusicMatch to rip & catalog (and if I choose, download) music; I am using Notmad Explorer to move music & playlists between the Zen & my computer. The only Creative software I am using is the device driver(s).

I LOVE IT
This is the best mp3 player i have ever used, it took a whiel getting used to the controls and options but once you get the hang of it, its incredble. The only complain I have is the software used to transfer the songs... it just sucks. But we arn't talk about the software here we talking about the mp3 player, its just awsome, the sound, the design, the options all make it an awsome package. Took me less than 5 minutes to transfer 3GB of music and installin gthis baby was a breeze. YOU ALL NEED TO GET THIS MP3 PLAYER. its better than the zen nx and zen xtra because you can buy and optional remote, which I did. It only works with the Nomad Zen and this makes it even a beter mp3 player with the remote! GO OUT AND BYE ONE ASAP!

Previous Creative Products:
Soundblaster PCI 512
Soundblaster Audigy 2 Platinum eX
Nomad IIc

All of them were/are great! Creative is the leader in sound and iPods suck ass! ... Read more

Reviews (1)

Great mp3 player
I got the Nomad 2 32 MB mp3 player about 5 months ago. This version is probably the same but you have to buy your own memory. It is a great player and can take a lot of abuse. I drop it a lot more than I should, and it is fine. The backlight is great for playing in the dark, and the player has a flash bios system to upgrade to new technologies. The sound is loud enough almost all the time unless I am downtown in the city. It only takes one battery which really does last a while. The best part is that it has an FM tuner to listen to the radio when you get tired of your MP3s. Also, the remote on the headphones is a great idea. Great player, I would easily reccomend it. ... Read more

Features

• Uses Removable Compact Flash or Microdrive Memory Cards
• FM Tuner with 5-Band Equalizer
• Voice Recorder
• Drag-and-Drop File Transfer
• Remote Control for Easy Access and Control

Features

• Package Contents -NOMAD MuVo TX FM Player / Neodymium Earphones / Armband (Armstrap and Case with clip) / AAA Alkaline Battery /Quick Start Guide / Installation CD Instruction Guide is printed in English and French
• 256MB player holds up to 8 hours WMA or 4 hours MP3 music
• Built-in FM radio and recorder
• High-resolution backlit LCD that is reversible for left or right handed operation and provides full track information (ID3 tags); great for folder navigation with the convenient scroll button
• Super-fast USB 2.0 with USB 1.1 backward compatibility

Amazon.com Product Description

If you've been waiting for the cost of digital music technology to come down and the amount of memory to come up, now is the time to take a look at the Creative Labs Nomad II MG. This player features 64 MB of built-in memory plus a SmartMedia slot for an additional 128 MB. That means you'll get hours of playing time, plus lots of features and an FM radio tuner to boot.

With digital music players, memory is the key to a long-lasting and hassle-free relationship. The players store music on flash memory chips, so you won't have to worry about skipping or your music degrading over time. Flash memory means you can also record over and over again with no loss of sound quality. But building memory into these chips costs money, and up until recently you were lucky to get an hour of music in an affordable player.

The Nomad II MG's built-in 64 MB memory means you won't have to invest in additional memory immediately. If you do decide you need more playing time, you can choose from SmartMedia cards in a range of sizes and prices. The tiny cards easily slide into the back of the player and require no configuration or extra power to use (check out our selection of SmartMedia cards).

With the rapid pace of technological developments, Creative Labs has also made the Nomad II MG upgradeable using software that can be downloaded from their Web site. Creative Labs also complies with Digital Rights Management, which means that, to prevent copyright violations, you can't upload certain files from your player to another device.

Linking your Nomad II MG up to your computer is easy using the included docking station. The USB interface means you'll spend only seconds downloading files, using either MP3 or Windows Media Audio (WMA) formats. Turning your CDs into digital audio files is simple with the included Creative Digital Audio Center software.

If you do get tired of your playlist, the Nomad II MG allows you to switch at the touch of a button to FM radio. The player's 32 station presets save time fiddling with the tuner and you can even record from the radio with the player's built-in microphone. The microphone can also be used to record memos or conversations at one of two speeds. A 64 MB SmartMedia card will hold up to four hours of voice recording.

You can view track information on the LCD display, which is backlit for easy viewing in dim light. The Nomad II MG runs for up to 10 hours on two AAA NiMH rechargeable batteries, and comes with a case.

For an affordable and versatile introduction into the world of digital music, you can't beat the Nomad II MG. ... Read more

Features

• 64 MB of internal memory with 1 SmarkMedia card slot
• Record from your personal CDs or download from the Internet; can also record voice
• FM tuner with 20 programmable stations
• Comes with folding headphones, a USB docking station, rechargeable batteries, and an AC adapter
• Compatible with PCs and Macs

Reviews (30)

Worth It!
My first portable MP3 and I am not disappointed. Positives: sounds great, small, lightweight, reasonably well-made, built-in memory, fast downloads, docking station with rechargeable batteries. Negatives: FM radio weak (does not compare to Sony FM Sports Walkman). Docking station quirky - lacks the reassuring 'click' a la Palm Pilot. Creative software awful - grab MS Windows Media Player instead (but to use it, you'll need the firmware update available on Creative's web page). Plan on replacing the headphones (unless you like being uncomfortable). And in general, requires careful handling (cannot take abuse like a sports walkman... forget about taking it out in the rain). In-line remote would have been nice. Arm or belt clip even nicer. But trust me, if you like to exercise to music you'll never go back!

The Best MP3 Player that isn't a Jukebox!
About a year ago, I shopped around for many MP3 players. I have even bought many. All of the Rio's were fine, but didn't have many features and had less then perfect sound quality. The previous Creative Labs MP3 players were fine, but didn't have the overall quality needed in an MP3 player. The Nomad II MG is in my mind the best MP3 player ever created. It has enough memory for three CD's worth of music (with smartmedia card), voice recording, FM tuner, an easy interface, and never freezes like other MP3 players might. Also it supports upcomming formats. If you worry about the sound quality, it's the same as a CD player, plus you don't have to buy the songs. My only gripe is the crappy headphones. The sound quality is there, but not the solid materials you would expect. Buy this product or the Nomad Jukebox. It will be worth it!

Blaster Disaster
Once upon a time, a boy bought a Nomad II MG player and he was rightly happy. He had just obtained a piece of technology that would hopefully give him countless hours of crystal clear music and many excellent features.

Then one day things started to go wrong...

After purchasing the docking station to accompany this cool MP3 player (which took several weeks to order in as the boy lived in the Middle East where it wasn't in stock) he quickly took it home to try it out. It didn't work. So he took it back to the shop where, thus was the staff's confidence in the product, they proceeded to plug it into every power outlet available (into which their own devices were plugged and working perfectly) to ensure that it wasn't the fault of the socket - alas to no avail.

Finally they conceded there was a problem so the docking station COMPLETE WITH THE PLAYER had to be sent to Singapore for a 3 month warranty draining vacation during which the boy had no use of the player.
It came back apparently working fine.
A while later the unfortunate boy noticed some annoying background noise during operation and so the player had to be handed in for repair again. This time they managed to fix it without sending it to Singapore and for that the boy was grateful.

HOWEVER

Not long after THAT the docking station again stopped functioning correctly and the boy was informed that it would again have to be sent to Singapore this time at his own expense!

---

I have written to Creative America, Asia and Europe and the management here in Dubai. NOTHING positive or helpful has been done. During the player's globetrotting I had no use of it and whilst it was working I NEVER used it in any strenuous situation. It was never mistreated and yet it still broke. How can this be called, "Music on the Go"? I propose a change to the more honest, "Fuzzy noise on the Go" as anything else is basically false advertising.

Yes the warranty has expired but only because it spent three months of its warranty period in Singapore. I have not been shown any kind of empathy and I recommend that people rethink before purchasing. Companies like IRiver offer SUPERB MP3 players (Several of my friends have purchased them).
I do not expect to pay the kind of money I paid and be told that I'll have to dish out more money in order to get it fixed. If Creative had their way, my MP3 player would soon rack up more air miles than I have.
On principle I'd rather throw it away and buy a new device from another company even if it cost more than the proposed repairs.

Though this is only one person's tale of woe, my point is this:

With a big company like Creative, some products will inevitably have problems. Some customers such as myself may even be unfortunate enough to experience several problems. I can deal with that. What I can't deal with is the complete lack of customer care and the non-existent technical support I have been offered. Creative America and Europe wrote back immediately saying I was not under their jurisdiction. Creative Asia have not written back 3 weeks down the line.

They like to waste your time at Creative.

HIT THE BACK BUTTON AND BUY SOMETHING ELSE!

Item listed was not available (substitute was suggested)
I was looking forward to the blue product and paid for expedited shipping, but was informed by the seller that only silver was available until the middle of next week. I would be cautious about this seller because inventory needs to be more accurate.

this pice woudl never grow old
Its slim, kewl, high tech, i have it for more than 6 months, no probs with it. Just new players coming out and the technology keeps out pushing old stuff away .. !! ... Read more

Amazon.com Review

The Creative Labs Nomad II C is one of those gadgets that are so much fun to play with, you find yourself forgetting they're useful, too. When portable MP3 players first hit the market, they were relatively simple devices good for one thing: playing MP3 files. Now, as companies have learned consumers want more than just that, today's devices can no longer be described as just MP3 players.

The Nomad II C's most overlooked feature is that of a digital voice recorder. Since voice recordings aren't the memory hogs that music files are, the Nomad II C can record up to four hours' worth. This feature is perfect for dictating messages to yourself or for the fledging journalist recording interviews, and you can even upload voice files from the Nomad II C to your PC.

From an audio perspective, the Nomad II C couldn't have performed any better. The equalizer had good settings, and the ability to program user-defined settings was awesome. Furthermore, a wired remote control and bass-enhanced, behind-the-head headphones completed the package.

MP3 players are great for music lovers on the go. Because they have no moving parts, they're well known for skip-free music. To test the Nomad II C, we loaded it up with some hip-hop and headed down to the local BMX spot in San Francisco. With the player clipped to a belt, we put it through its paces over a multitude of jumps and with more than enough crashes. We did our best to make it skip, but it performed perfectly (though beware--the Nomad II C isn't scratchproof). Only after the battery started to get low (the Nomad II C offers from eight to 10 hours of playback) did performance degrade. But this was easily remedied by dropping in a new AA battery.

This version of the Nomad II C has 32 MB of onboard memory, but it does include a slot for SmartMedia memory cards. As additional memory is still relatively expensive, and most of us don't have extra cards lying around the house, there will come a time when you'll tire of the songs on the device. And without the presence of your PC--and no additional SmartMedia cards--you're at a loss.

MP3 music--like everything else technology related--is in constant flux. With that in mind, the Nomad II C ships with reprogrammable firmware that should enable it to support future digital-audio formats and software extensions as they emerge. So, you should be able to enjoy your Nomad II C for years to come.--William O'Neal

Pros:

• Awesome sound
• Lightweight
• USB interface makes connecting to your computer simple and downloading fast
• Intuitive software
• Supports numerous digital-audio formats

Cons:

• Simple software could be more robust
• Navigating the LCD menu can be a pain

Features

• 32 MB of built-in flash memory
• Plays both MP3 and WMA files; upgradable to future formats
• USB interface for fast digital transfer; compatible with Windows and Mac
• Expandable using SmartMedia memory cards
• Comes with one AA battery and USB cable; does not include docking station, carrying pouch, wired remote control, or headphones

Amazon.com Review

One of our biggest frustrations with MP3 players has been their limitedstorage capacity. You'll typically get 64 MB via internal memory or memorycards, which provides just a little over an hour of near CD-quality MP3 audio.So when we heard that Creative was releasing a 6 GB player that can hold over100 hours of music, it sounded perfect. Soon we'd be rifling through a massivecatalog of tunes on our little player, from Elvis Costello to LL Cool J to MilesDavis, whenever the whim struck.

The Nomad Jukebox is essentially a portable hard drive with software that willplay MP3 audio. Since hard drives include spinning and moving parts, this playeris not ideal for active MP3 users from joggers to snowboarders.

We cracked open the box, inserted the rechargeable batteries (two sets of fourAAs are included), plugged in the AC adapter, and waited the recommended 12hours for them to charge initially. This is a very important step. This was oursecond set of batteries--we didn't bother to heed Creative's initial chargingdirections when we first got the product, and our first set of batteries soonlost the capacity to be recharged.

After installing the included software (we tested the Jukebox on a Macintosh G4using SoundJam MP; for PCs, Creative includes PlayCenter 2) and connecting theUSB cable, we quickly deleted 2 GB of starter MP3 and audiobook files andstarted loading our own music. We started with about 500 songs, but noticedafter the load had finished that not all the songs made it onto the Jukebox.Also, the SoundJam software didn't like us doing any other work on our Mac G4,stalling out the load whenever we switched to another program.

We found it was best to load in smaller numbers and to keep SoundJam up as theactive application (unfortunately, not the most efficient use of computer time).The transfer rate is about 6 minutes per 100 MB, which translates to around 25songs. (So far, we've loaded 861 songs and we still have over 2.3 GB left ofstorage.)

Once music has been transferred to the Jukebox, you need to create an activeplaying list by navigating one of three lists--artists, albums, and genres--thenadding songs to the queue. (This points out the need for creating thorough ID3tags, an electronic label that can include song title, track number, year, andmore. ID3 tags can be created via the PlayCenter and SoundJam software manuallyor be imported from the online CDDB database. For more information abouttagging, see the Amazon.comMaking MP3s Guide.) Playlists canbe saved in the Jukebox, though it can be a bit tedious (there's no keyboard),and you can't add songs to an existing playlist.

The Jukebox also sports some nice additions. It has a line-in recordingcapability (using an external microphone) that records WAV files that can beadjusted for optimal (or low-end) sound quality, and it can play audiobooks.

The biggest downside to the Nomad Jukebox is its portability. As noted, it doesrun on rechargeable batteries, but they'll last far less than the advertised twohours. Also, this isn't the device to take jogging; its internal hard drive,though somewhat shock and motion resistant, just won't take that kind ofactivity. It's really made for stationary play using its included AC adapter.

It also has a few playback glitches, the biggest being that you can't fast- forward or rewind within a song. Also, there's no bookmark feature for audiobooklistening--a necessity for long files.

Ultimately, the Creative Nomad Jukebox isn't perfect and isn't suited foreveryone's MP3 needs. But it has become a staple of our gadget life--it travelswith us daily to the office and hooks in nicely into stereo systems, both athome and at friends' houses. Someday, we'll all wonder what we did without anMP3 jukebox. --Agen G.N. Schmitz

Pros:

• 6 GB of storage is massive--over 1,000 songs
• Several methods for selecting playlist songs (artist, album, and genre)
• Line-out for connecting to stereo systems, and line-in for recording

• Battery power is sucked up quickly
• Prone to skipping/stalling when used in heavy activity

Features

• Portable digital audio player with 6 GB of built-in storage (over 100 hours of CD-quality music)
• Plays MP3 files; upgradable to support other formats (such as WMA) and is SDMI compliant
• USB interface for fast digital transfer; compatible with Windows and Mac
• Weighs only 14 ounces and measures the size of a portable CD player
• Comes with headphones, rechargeable batteries, AC adapter, and carrying pouch; "

  Reviews (100)

  Unit is too bulky, battery life sucks, & OS too slow !!!
  I anxiously waited for this product to come out and as much as I wanted to love it, I just couldn't get past the three major flaws I've listed below. I wanted an MP3 player that would hold a lot of music so I wouldn't have to keep running to my computer to transfer in new music every time I wanted to listen to something different. This unit does do that, but you pay a price for it. (1) The unit is awkwardly shaped, heavy, and rather bulky. I thought I could get used to this by telling myself that the unit would be like holding a portable CD player. Wrong! It weighs nearly a pound! What's worse is that this units shape makes it feel a little awkward to try to carry it in your hand. I always feel like I'm going to drop it because of it's weird, hard to grip oval shape covered with a slippery plastic case. I just don't enjoy walking around with this large heavy thing in my hand. (2) The battery life is one of its biggest drawbacks. You only get 3-4 hours of usage from a single charge! Talk about stressful! When I'm away from home I'm constantly worried it's going to die after running out of juice again and it leaves me searching for a place to charge it wherever I go. Making sure you always have extra charged batteries with you at all times just adds to the stress! I can't tell you how many times this thing has gone dead on me when I've been out and about. Listening to a portable music player should be fun and a relatively carefree process, and this thing just does not give me that kind of an experience. (3) It takes forever for this player to boot up and load the music! You have to sit and wait a couple minutes during this process before you can start doing anything with it! This is a real drawback if you are the type of person who would be turning it on and off through out the day to listen to a few tunes when you have a little bit of time on the go, like on your lunch break, in between classes or meetings, out doing quick errands, or using it in your car for numerous but short trip where you would have to shut it off upon arrival. This problem simply makes me not want to use this unit when I normally would with a standard MP3 player. I end up just leaving it my bag most the time if I know I'm not going to have a lot of time to listen to it, and with the size and weight issue I don't really enjoy hauling it around in my bag either since I already have enough to carry as it is. ***Basically, this unit was designed to be a stand alone MP3 player plugged into a wall with speakers plugged into it, NOT as a portable "on the go" music player -the unit is just too much of a hassle for it to be truly portable.

  Dies after one song
  For me, this mp3 player is great for holding all of my music- I downloaded all my Cd's and still have room for more.

  My problem is this: When I unplug it from teh wall to take it out running, it plays, then dies after one song. I replaced teh rechargeable batteries, but it keeps doing the same thing. It just freezes up and I can't press any buttons. Then I have to wait until it says "shutting off, not in use" before I can try turing it back on again.

  Best MP3 player for its time
  When this item first came out, it was the best thing ever invented. I had it for about 8 months before I upgraded the hard drive to a 30gb. I took this thing everywhere with me (even to bed at night). It became an obsession. I purchased the car adapter kit from jukeboxaccessories.com so that I could take it along with me for long trips and listen to kiyosaki audio books.

  Great when Jukeboxes were first coming out
  Well, I own the original Nomad Jukebox 6GB, and I've had it for a year and a half. No lie, a year and a half, functioning. But I'm upgrading to a Nomad Jukebox 3 in a couple weeks. I'm obsessed with music. Anyways, Lets start with the main annoyance, the battery life. You can get four hours if you're really lucky, but count on three and a half. If its plugged into the wall though, you obviously wont have to worry about anything. The player itself is pretty shock-proof; I haved dropped it many times, and it still works to this day. It IS a bit bulky but hey it's better then carrying around 150 CD's. You will have to restart it alot, especially when the batteries get low. Don't even bother with that stupid reset pin, just yank out the batteries. The sound is more than great, I can definetly give it that. People shouldn't complain about the headphones supplied with it, because honestly; who actually USES stock headphones? Of course they [are bad]. The sound is nice and loud, and the presets make it even better. Navigating on the player was always pretty easy for me once I got the hang of it, and the green backlight is nice, you'd be suprised how bright it is. The Playcenter 2 thing is the only thing I have ever used so I can't complain about it. It's kind of annoying at times though, be prepared to restart your computer once in a while. As for transfer speeds, my computer is ancient so I know nothing but USB 1.1. It's pretty slow compared to a nice computer with FireWire or USB 2.0 but I usually only rip CD's so it doesnt matter. As old as this MP3 player is, people will still get incredibly jealous of you. It all depends what you're looking for. With things like the iPod and the Nomad Jukebox 3, and even that hideous looking Archos thing, this MP3 player doesnt really stand up to the competition. However it IS cheaper then most of the new jukeboxes, and if you can stand the battery life and you're on a budget then this is a great MP3 player to invest in, if you TAKE CARE OF IT! If you arent to short on cash and you're big on features, memory, and battery life then I suggest looking elsewear. The Creative Nomad Jukebox 3 is a good alternative in that case.

  nomadwoild?
  I BOUGHT A NOMAD JUKEBOX ABOUT A MONTH AGO, HAVING READ YOUR REVIEWS I AGREE WITH THE FACT THAT IT IS A BIT NOISY AND TAKES FOREVER TO START UP,WHICH CAN BE A LITTLE ANOYING WHILE DRIVING.
  THE JUKE BOX ,I HAVE IS THE TYPE WITH THE 6 GIGA MEM.
  I AM USING IT WITH THE NEW SOFTWARE FOR WINDOWS XP.
  I ENCOUNTERED A MAJOR PROBLEM THREE WEEKS AGO, WHILE RIPPING A CD TO MP3,THE JUKEBOX WENT DEAD,THE LCD SCREEN WAS DEAD AND UPON RESTARTING THE JUKEBOX,I DISCOVERED THAT MY PREVIOUS MP3 DOWNLOADS WERE ERASED.
  I WAS DISAPIONTED AND HAPPY.
  THE SAD PART WAS THAT I HAD TO DOWNLOAD EVERYTHING TO THE JUKEBOX FROM THE START.
  THE HAPPY PART WAS THE FACT THAT INSTEAD OF HAVING ONLY 6 GIGA,
  I NOW HAVE 12.7 GIGA TO STORE MY MUSIC IN.
  THERE ARE NO MORE PRELOADED FILES, I LOST SOME FUNCTIONS,AND EVERYTIME I START THE JUKEBOX IT OPENS THE SAME PLAYLIST, OF A COUPLE OF ALBUMS, WITHOUT STORING THE LAST PLAYLIST.

  I HAVE A COUPLE OF PICS TO SHOW THE CURRENT MEMORY STATIS OF MY JUKEBOX BUT UNFORTUNATELY I DO NOT KNOW HOW ATTACH THEM TO THIS FORM.

  I'D BE HAPPY IF SOMEONE COULD ADVISE ME ON HOW TO FIX OR RESET THE JUKEBOX TO ITS FACTORY DEFAULT.

  BEST REGARDS,
  FAISAL. ... Read more

Features

• USB connection offers faster transfer rates and ease of connectivity
• 64 MB SmartMedia card allows hours of CD-quality audio or voice recordings
• Built-in FM tuner stores up to 32 preset stations
• Large icon-based LCD screen with backlight for easy viewing in any environment
• Upgradable to support multiple digital-audio formats and future software extensions

Reviews (12)

its an ok system
I boughtr mine last year. The first thing to go was the headphones the wire inside breaks easilyso be careful. the headphones will stop working from normal use then there is the whole thing of memory. 64 mb might sound like quite a bit but its never enough.you might get and hour of cd quality music. thats less than a cd. If your gonna spend this kind of money maybe you should look at the nomad jukebox. It has more memory than I would ever use but for 100 dollars more its worth it. not that the nomad II is bad I really like the radio feature except it having a weak antenna. The microphone on the recorder is really bad too but if these features are important go with it. For the money I wish I had gotten the Jukebox but I was in a hurry. choose wisely. Its overall a pretty good player for the money with a few flaws. hope this helps.

So now you get to buy it with color!
So you get to buy the best MP3 player around but with a funky pearl color! Real Nice.

The Nomad II by Creative Labs is the best MP3 player around, period. There are others that do almost the same job, but none of them provide the great package you get with the Nomad. You see, you get the best transfer option available, the USB cable which can transfer a song in 10 seconds. I don't think the USB is a problem, almost every new computer comes with at least one port, and in case you don't have one you can buy one at a fairly low price and start using it.

With the Nomad II you also get 64 MB of storage capacity. It's almost one CD's worth of music at 128kbit. And as the manufacturers say, it's near CD quality. I have yet to find the "flaw" with MP3 recording. You could also record in WMA format which would make your NOMAD II hold around 2 hours of music.

For those of you who are unsure about an MP3 player, and prefer MiniDisc; the only positive thing I see from MD is the capacity of having multiple discs, but if you have some money, you can do the same with Nomad, just get some extra memory cards, and you're set.

The option of expanding the Nomad is also a nice feature. In the future you can buy a bigger memory card, and get more music into your player, but isn't 1 hour a decent amount?

The nifty, extra features you get with the Nomad is what sets it apart from most players of it's kind. You get an FM tuner (which you can program to remember 32 stations!) a voice recording (for those of you who don't want to forget appointments) and the earphones with remote control! You might say that the earphones are awful, but they have a great sound quality. You can always buy or use your smaller earbuds if it's a problem...

If you find no use for some of these features, and you only want it "rough" (you only want a player for listening to MP3s) then get a Rio 500, it's not as expensive as others, and you get your 64 MB of internal (!) memory and an extra space for another memory card. You can also get it with special colored casings (purple and teal). But I'm not here to review the Rio, I'm here to talk about the Nomad II.

The size and weight of this player are impressive! Just pick up your computer mouse, imagine it has no cord, and that's about it. (I'm talking about a standard mouse, not one of those huge ones!)

And the look and feel are just, awesome. You can hide it in a pocket, just like a small celullar phone and remember, it'll never skip!

The only thing that has yet to convince me of the Nomad, is it's price, not that its expensive (because most similar player cost around the same), but I think is a considerable amount of money... But I'd say it's worth it!

If the Nomad could make dinner, I'd probably marry it!

Poor Quality
This item was dead out of the box for me. Look elsewhere. Normally, Creative Labs has great quality. Not this time.

Not worth it
This MP3 player did not live up to my expectations. It constantly jammed; meaning that I had to take the battery out to change a radio station or even move on to the next song. Also, setting radio pre-sets was complicated. Mine actually died only 9 months after purchase. Not exactly the longest living MP3 player.

Terrible Customer support when things go bad...
I bought this less than 2 years ago off of Amazon. Everything worked well for the first few months but then in january (4 months after i bought it....one month after warranty)...the sound started to break up and I could only hear out of one ear of the headphone. I decided to call to find out what to do. First off, there is NO toll free number to call so you have to pay for the call which I had to wait 45 mins to finally get someone:-/ Next, I found out that since it was after the warranty I had to pay for both ways of shipping as well as an excess fee for them to "fix it". Deciding I needed it fixed, I sent it back...and was told that I "may" have to pay an extra 77 dollars to replace the unit. At this point, I was pretty angry. So finally I get it back...4 weeks after the whole process began. They never did fix the problem...and now it's always crackly when listening to music. I would not recommend this to anyone...terrible product, terrible customer support! I will not go Creative Labs next time! ... Read more

Reviews (6)

I Love My MP3 Player
Although some of the reviews are not great. I'm here to set the record straight. This thing is awesome. I paid $399 for my jukebox 3 from jukeboxaccessories.com. I received it in about 8 days from the date of purchase. Not great, but hey, I'm not complaining after some of the horror stories I've read. As for the battery life, 11 hours is about right only if you're not playing it for 11 hours straight. 2-3 hours at a time for a couple of days without charging is what I got for the first few months. I decided to buy the extra battery (also purchased from jukeboxaccessories.com) since they were the only store selling it at a reasonable price at the time. Now, I travel back and forth from home to school to work and back home and enjoy several hours of play time without charging the batteries.

Battery life not great, but not biggest problem
The battery life is more like 6-7 hours rather than the 11 hours advertised however, this is not my biggest problem with the JB3. I too was cheated by Creative of my $50 rebate. For this reason, I will never purchase from them again. The Jukebox 3 is adequate, however, as pointed out, tracks on the Jukebox cannot be transferred to a hard drive or another player. This is a major shortcoming, in my opinion. Mainly, I think that Creative has sowed an awfully bad crop by cheating so many customers of their rightful and promised rebates.

11 hours is a fairy-tale
I like the Creative Nomad Jukebox 3. I think it's a great value for what you get; sounds great, and has many options and features. However, my experience with their battery life is somewhere around 6 hours per charge, not 11. I can't imagine where they got that number; unless one of them ONCE on a rainy day in May did that so they claim it for all. Average in the real world is about 6 hrs by my experience, of course "your mileage may vary."

Rebuttal
I'm not sure why James McConathy's review is listed here under the replacement battery, but I just have to comment on it because it doesn't reflect my experience with the Jukebox at all.
1) I have had great battery life, probably in the 8-12 hour range. I use it while walking and on long trips in the car. It is great for mobility if you don't mind the size (obviously a 20 GB HD device has to be larger than a memory-card one)
2) It's easy to transfer music in both directions between PC and Jukebox. Very fast, too, with the firewire connection (and reasonably fast even with USB)
3) I also had the $50 rebate and had no problems with it at all. I doubt that Creative Labs was being "shady" in Mr. MrConathy's case, more likely a postal or clerical error.
All in all, a great unit. Now, about that spare battery ... I'll have to comment later!

Buying a Nomad Jukebox? Great, but read this review.
I want to be able to inform others that may want this item for the same reasons I bought it.
For starters, the Creative Nomad Jukebox is great for storing pretty much every song you download and all of your cds.

Some things I would've liked to known before I bought the jukebox:

1. The Limited mobility. The battery life can be described in one word, Awful. Some people describe it as okay and that "you can always bring spare batteries". Trust me, this does not make up for having to change your batteries in the middle of a song every time.

2. Can't transfer to cd. Once you upload songs onto the Nomad, they cannot be transferred to a cd or computer hard drive. This is enough reason not to buy it.

3. Very bad business. My Nomad had a $50.00 rebate when I bought it. After sending it in, the rebate info was returned stating something about "company changed address, return to sender..etc". This is very shady of the manufacturer considering my Nomad was purchased brand new from a chain store.

The Jukebox is great for use at home since you can hook it up to an ac outlet and connect through a home stereo system. Just don't purchase this product for mobile use b/c compared to MP3 players, the Nomad Jukebox is inferior and not even in the same league.
I hope this review helps you in your decision! ... Read more

Amazon.com Review

The Creative Labs Nomad II C is one of those gadgets that are so much fun to play with, you find yourself forgetting they're useful, too. When portable MP3 players first hit the market, they were relatively simple devices good for one thing: playing MP3 files. Now, as companies have learned customers want more than just that, today's devices can no longer be described as just MP3 players.

The Nomad II C's most overlooked feature is that of a digital voice recorder. Since voice recordings aren't the memory hogs that music files are, the Nomad II C can record up to four hours' worth. This feature is perfect for dictating messages to yourself or for the fledging journalist recording interviews, and you can even upload voice files from the Nomad II C to your PC.

From an audio perspective, the Nomad II C couldn't have performed any better. The equalizer had good settings, and the ability to program user-defined settings was awesome. Furthermore, a wired remote control and bass-enhanced, behind-the-head headphones completed the package.

MP3 players are great for music lovers on the go. Because they have no moving parts, they're well known for skip-free music. To test the Nomad II C, we loaded it up with some hip-hop and headed down to the local BMX spot in San Francisco. With the player clipped to a belt, we put it through its paces over a multitude of jumps and with more than enough crashes. We did our best to make it skip, but it performed perfectly (though beware--the Nomad II C isn't scratchproof). Only after the battery started to get low (the Nomad II C offers eight to 10 hours of playback) did performance degrade. But this was easily remedied by dropping in a new AA battery.

This version of the Nomad II C has 32 MB of onboard memory, but it does include a slot for SmartMedia memory cards. As additional memory is still relatively expensive, and most of us don't have extra cards lying around the house, there will come a time when you'll tire of the songs on the device. And without the presence of your PC--and no additional SmartMedia cards--you're at a loss.

MP3 music, like everything else technology related, is in constant flux. Recognizing that, the Nomad II C ships with reprogrammable firmware that should enable it to support digital-audio formats and software extensions as they emerge. So, you should be able to enjoy your Nomad II C for years to come.--William O'Neal

Pros:

• Awesome sound
• Lightweight
• USB interface makes connecting to your computer simple and downloading fast
• Intuitive software
• Supports numerous digital-audio formats

• Simple software could be more robust
• Navigating the LCD menu can be a pain

Features

• 32 MB of built-in flash memory
• Plays both MP3 and WMA files; upgradable to future formats
• USB interface for fast digital transfer; compatible with Windows and Mac
• Expandable using SmartMedia memory cards
• Comes with one AA battery and USB cable; does not include docking station, carrying pouch, wired remote control, or headphones

Reviews (52)

Simple was all I wanted.
I was looking for a basic player to take to the rec center, and that's exactly what I got.

Right out of the box I was loading songs with no problem. The software was very intuitive - though I did have to refer to the online manual to figure out how to navigate the menus on the Nomad itself. Luckily the manual is crystal clear.

32MB seemed small, but that's fine for my purposes (besides it's expandable, though I don't think I'll find the need.) I loaded 15 songs with no problem using the WMA format at 64kbps. Now I know that's only 'near CD quality' but in the rec center with crappy little head phones, who can tell the difference?

This unit doesn't come with headphones. That was fine with me, if it had come with headphones I probably would have just replaced them.

There are two reasons I didn't give this 5 stars. One is it doesn't come with rechargeable batteries. There is no reason Creative Labs can't package this with rechargable batteries for the same price - and it's just silly using throw aways in it. Before it even arrived I bought myself a couple of rechargeable batteries and a charger.

The other is the belt clip. It is pretty loose. I'm using this in an active environment, and may end up having to buy a carrying case for it.

Bottom line - I'm quite pleased with my purchase.

Good Purchase.... Best for the money!!
This is the first MP3 player I have owned and i am extremely satisfied. My friend has the Nomad 2 so i knew that the Creative Labs digital audio line was a good one. I decided to get the Nomad IIc and an extra 32mb card. This makes the Nomad IIc just the same as the Nomad II if you allready have headphones and you dont want the extra FM radio feature. Why pay 50 bucks for headphones and a radio? I convert all my files to wma at 64kbps to get 32 songs onto my player with the extra 32mb card. This is below CD quality but I cant tell the difference and you get an extra hour of music. The software is also great! It is so simple to use. It only takes about 5 minutes to get a fresh 30 or so new songs onto the player. No moving parts meens no skipping. All around--- a good choice.

Great little player
I've had the Nomad IIc for about three months and couldn't be more pleased. It's extremely light weight, it's durable, dependable, easy to operate and the quality of the sound is wonderful. The software was easy to load and easy to use. Downloading into the IIc is a snap. I had a 128m card in the desk drawer when I got the IIc and immediately filled it will music. I also had a couple of 64m cards from a previous I-Jam player that I gave away (piece of junk) and I filled those. Changing genres is easy...jazz on one care, blues on another, classic rock on yet another. Using the 128m card, plus the onboard memory, I can get about 3 hours of music into the little guy. You can pay a lot more and not get the features and quality of the IIc. It's a great product from a great company. If you get one, you will not be disappointed.

Great player... while it works
I actually bought this as a gift for a friend, and she loved it. The player was small, light, had decent sound, and was working great until just a short while ago. The player just spontaneously died (just sitting on a desk... it wasn't being jostled around while running or anything). To my horror, I've discovered problems with the Nomad II line are fairly common ... To top it off, the unit was past its short 90 day warranty, so there's a [monetary fee] (plus shipping) just to have Creative examine the player for repairs. After they assess the problem, they'll charge extra money for repairs. For all that time and money, you may as well just buy a new player from another company. Stay away from this product. It seems like a great deal, but they are manufactured cheaply and prone to break down. Creative itself doesn't even have enough faith in their own product to back it up with a better warranty.

Nomad II "C" Series
This is the BEST MP3 player out there. It is my 1st one and i am completely satisfied with it. I got it for my birthday about 5 months ago. It still works well without any problem.
I use MusicMatch to put music onto my Nomad IIc. With MusicMatch i can compress the audio files so i can get 73 songs onto mine with a 128Mb memory card plus the built in 32 MB. If anyone doubts this player, DONT, buy it its the BEST player for the money...
Much better than a MiniDisc Player. Don't buy one of those. ... Read more

Features

• Accessory kit customized for the Creative Labs Nomad IIc and Nomad II MP3 players
• Wired remote for easy access to controls
• Convenient carrying pouch
• Comfortable and stylish lightweight backphones
• Cassette adapter for listening to audio through car stereo systems

Reviews (2)

A must
If you are getting the Nomad II or IIc get this! The headphones are awsome and fit confertably around your head. the remote is so handy so you dont have to fish your player out of your nap sack. The leather case just makes it look cooler... and it also reduces scractches to your new nifty player. The tape player is good for long road trips (im guessing your car speakers pack a bigger punch than the headphones, but the headphones are very powerful so I might be wrong). Personaly I dont know what i would have done with out this accessory kit. Its a reasonable price for the amount of stuff you get and the high quality of it so i highly recomend this kit.

You'll Want These Items
My Nomad II 32mb came with the items in this package. Creative was able to keep the price of the Nomad IIc down by offering these items separately. For the price, you get a lot. The headphones are very good, although I prefer the sound of my Koss SportaPros. The remote is handy. You can keep the Nomad in your pocket and clip the remote to your shirt, then control the unit from the remote. The cassette adapter lets you connect to your car stereo and the pouch offers some protection from scratches.

I would say that if you need the items included, then the kit is a great buy. You would probably pay more buying headphones and a car adapter. However, if you already have good headphones and own an adapter, or wouldn't use one, then saving the money is a nice option.

It would've been great if these items were included with the Nomad IIc, but then you'd pay more for the IIc. Creative deserves credit for giving consumers the choice. ... Read more

Features

• Plays your Nomad II digital audio player through your car's cassette player
• Listen to your favorite downloaded music while you drive
• Audio books or spoken-word programs entertain you while commuting to work or school
• Includes cassette adapter

Reviews (7)

I don't know how you people can say "high quality"
I recently bought this product, hoping that the reviews on amazon.com were true. They were not. I'm not very particular on my music; I'm fine with 128k mp3's and won't spend tons of dollars for a microscopic difference in quality. However, the quality of the sound coming from that cassette adapter is absolutely horrible. I have a Nomad Jukebox, and I can't stand to listen to it with that adapter. Everything's fine with headphones (not the ones Creative gives you, those are really low-grade), but that adapter really kills it. Perhaps you people have been comparing the sound quality to the crappy backphones that Creative provides on the Jukebox (buy a good set of Sony street-style backphones and you will see what I mean), but I can definitely tell a very distinct difference in sound quality. It really kills the beautiful smooth bass that I'm used to, the screaming guitar riffs, and especially the vocals. Every word coming from the singer's mouth is distorted as if he or she is using some intentional voice filter. Now as far as I'm concerned, the Jukebox is fine for hooking up to my computer speaker system, or taking along on-the-go with headphones. But as far as hooking it up to the car, I'll wait until they come out with cars that have line in/out jacks. It'll be CD's for me.

Let the buyer who isn't half-deaf be warned.

Enjoy Your Digital Music On Road
This car adapter is a great idea for everyone who has a portable music player. It playbacks song with high quality, just like how you hear it with your headphones. Some people say this the adapter only works with Nomad II, but their wrong. I am using it with a Nomad II MG and I even tested it with my portable CD player and it worked.

Good stuff, bad reviews
The fact that people complain that this doesn't give power to the Nomad Jukebox is silly. It's called the Nomad II Car Adapter Kit. Other than that nit pick, I love it.

Eh? What's this? Power from a cassette adapter?
This is a cassette adapter... nothing more. I found no difference between this cassette adapter and a generic RadioShack adapter. It does what it's supposed to - output the sound to your car speakers - so there's no real reason to pay extra for one with 'Creative' stamped on it. The connector is straight (rather than right-angled), and the wire isn't anything heavy-duty... you're probably better off just getting a cheaper cassette adapter somewhere else... unless...

What other reviewers say is true. The claim is that the adapter uses power from the car, so the unit's batteries aren't drained. I don't have a Nomad II or II MG, so that might be the case, but I do have a Jukebox, and it doesn't get any power from this accessory. If you've got a Jukebox, you'll need to get a 12V cigarette-lighter adapter to provide it with juice... the cassetter adapter alone doesn't cut it.

One more note... this thing weighs nowhere near the 1.4 pounds it's listed at. It weighs less than a normal cassette tape, although the box it comes in won't fit in your mailbox.

Confused
This is listed as an accessory for the Nomad Jukebox - I just spoke to Creative Labs Customer Service and they told me it's for the Nomad II and won't work with the Jukebox.

As there is no way I'm buying a Nomad Jukebox unless I can play it in the car this is a bit of a show-stopper for me. Any ideas?!?!?! ... Read more

Product Description

Sleek, compact and cool, NOMAD II MG doesn't just look good but is built to enhance your digital lifestyle. Dance to crystal clear, CD quality audio for hours without missing a beat. Make real-time FM radio and voice recordings. With the EL backlit LCD, you'll have no hassles operating your NOMAD II MG even on your late nights out. Keep up-to-date with the latest audio technology. Play your favorite MP3 music now but NOMAD II MG is versatile enough to support future audio compression standards and also WMA (Windows Media Audio) management technology.With EAX Time-Scaling, you are free to vary the playback speed of voice recordings without affecting audibility or clarity. Perfect for listening to recorded lectures, seminars, meetings and conferences (up to 2 hours' worth on 32MB of built-in memory). The EAX Time-Scaling supports up to 1.5x faster or 0.5x slower playback speed for voice. It also supports real-time recording from any FM station. The NOMAD II Manager software allows you to manage, access, upload, and download content to your player in seconds. The Creative Digital Audio Center by MusicMatch allows users to encode, decode and archive high quality MP3 files and Windows Media files. It also allows users to convert an unlimited number of CD tracks and compile them according to preferences. The SSFDC (Solid State Floppy Disk Card) compliant SmartMedia flash memory card allows audio content to be swapped with other SSFDC compliant devices without the need for reformatting. The SDMI (Secure Digital Music Initiative) ready device ensures listeners play digital music in secure formats. ... Read more