Kubik Evo 8GB MP3 Player with Radio and Expandable MicroSD/SDHC Slot - White

Short review: It's really good! Don't believe the reviewers who say the volume's fixed or it doesn't remember track positions - they haven't read the instructions!Long review:I've been looking for a replacement for my 8Gb Creative Zen for a while, as that player is starting to lose battery power very quickly. I wanted something with similar specification to the Creative Zen, and this MP3 player has them, and for a very affordable price (the Zen was £78 in 2009, and I paid £28 for the Evo in April 2015).I was looking for these, in particular:-large screen, with useful information displayed (not gimmicks)- ability to keep memory of the point in the track I'd been listening to when I switch off and on again- quick and easy volume control-easy pause function (as I transcribe spoken word files a lot using my MP3 player, so I need to regularly pause tracks)- long 'play life' between chargingsThis MP3 player has all of these.READ THIS BIT!! I need to note, though, that I nearly didn't buy this player, due to so many reviewers here saying that (a) the volume couldn't be altered, and it is fixed at a very loud level, and (b) the position of a paused track is not remembered when you turn the machine off and then on again.THIS IS NOT TRUE!!!If people bothered to read the instruction manual (which I doubt they had), it is very clearly explained how to do both of these.KEEPING MEMORY OF THE POINT IN THE TRACK WHEN YOU SWITCH OFF AND ON AGAIN: The trick to this one is that you don't use the On/Off slider switch on the side of the machine. In the instruction manual, it clearly explains that this button is the *POWER* On/Off button, and should not be used all the time. Instead, use the top right hand quarter button on the front of the player - press and hold for three seconds to turn on, and again for three seconds to turn off. In this way, settings (such as screen display customisations) won't be lost. There is one more 'tweak' that you need to do, though, for the machine to remember your track position, otherwise it will default back to Main Menu each time. Before turning it off press pause mid-track. Then, when you turn it back on, from the Main Menu, press the 'up' button once to get to the option 'Breakpoint player' (this is quicker than pressing 'down' several times). Select Breakpoint player, and the track will resume playing from the point where you paused it. Simple when you know how, and more complicated to describe than to do, honestly!ADJUSTING THE VOLUME: You simply press the Volume button once, and the volume level number on the display screen turns red. You now have a few seconds to use the up or down arrows to select the new volume level - then the number goes from red to black, and the new volume level is selected, and will stay at that level until you select a different one.OTHER POINTSSo far, the battery life seems to be holding up well from one charging, when listening to music. I haven't used it for videos, etc. Although there is the option to read eBooks on it, the screen, I feel, is too small for that to be sensible, even if it is possible.The screen is clear, the font is readable, and you can select to not show the graphic equaliser but to have artist and album name displayed instead (but this setting is lost once you exit from the Music folder).It can take a micro SD card, which the Creative Zen couldn't, so now I can put loads of music on it. The Menu shows the contents of an SD card as a separate folder from the machine itself.As others have noted, the headphones seem cheap - but then, most people have their own favourite headphones anyway, so, for an MP3 player in this price range, I wasn't expecting great ones. They are 'in ear' barrel shaped ones.The casing is pink and white plastic. As other reviewers have noted, it feels a bit plastic-y, not surprisingly. But it's not flimsy, and unless you stamp on it, I don't think it would be too delicate. I bought it with the pink leather case, but I probably won't be using that, as the player itself is dinky and small, and inside the case it seems all case and no player - the buttons on the front become a bit difficult to press, as the leather edges cover up the front somewhat. But it would protect it if you were to carry it around in a bag. I think a drawstring bag would be more practical, and would hold the headphones as well.CONCLUSION: A very good MP3 player for the money. Does what I wanted, does NOT have issues with volume or holding track positions (like some reviewers thought), small and light, with a clear display. Very glad that I took a risk and bought one anyway. I'm actually finding that I use this one already, when my plan was to use the Creative Zen until it broke completely, and only keep this one as a spare :-)

If like me you want a simple music player that is neither microscopic nor expensive, this is a decent choice. I give it 4 stars.But be aware of the following negatives:1. It doesn't remember what you were playing last time you used it. You have to navigate the menu every time. This is annoying for music and very annoying for audiobooks. It DOES remember all your settings (volume, shuffle, EQ, etc) so why it can't also remember what song you were playing is beyond me.2. The SD card works well (I have a fully loaded 16GB card) but does NOT integrate with the artist/album/genre listings. Only songs in the internal memory appear in these. Personally I don't care because choosing songs from a folder works better anyway - I keep all my music on the SD card in artist/album folders and don't bother with the internal memory at all (wish I'd bought the cheaper 4GB model in fact). The shuffle function DOES work with SD card content.3. The key functions and navigation is not very obvious and takes some getting used to.4. It's slightly slow to respond when you press the keys, and there is a delay of several seconds when you play a song from a SD card with thousands of files on it.6. The screen is hard to read in sunshine, needs shading with your hand. Sansa Clip is much more visible, but its screen is far too small I think. At least this one has a screen the right size.7. It is reasonably well constructed but fairly light and plasticy as you would expect at this price. I use it in the car and I think its adequately well made for that (time will tell), but if you're going to carry it around a lot it will need a case.8. I was pleased to see a dedicated sliding on/off switch. Just like in the good old days. But then found I have to hold down a key for 3 seconds as well, to make it actually come on. This arrangement is strange and not as useful as a 'hold' switch, which is missing.A few of the good points:1. Adequate volume. Louder than the Sansa Clip.2. Decent sound quality and some useful EQ settings.3. It DOES charge and play at the same time. When you plug in the charger while playing, it switches off and shows a charging screen. But then you can switch it on again and charge and play simultaneously. Bizarre, but it works.4. Quick start-up even with fully loaded 16GB SD card5. You can just copy and paste your music folder onto the SD card. No need for special bloatware (e.g. itunes). Then use the SD card anywhere, not only in this player. Very convenient.6. You can play Tetris while listening to music. Woo-hoo!7. Good battery life.