Many upscale players on the market run about $250 to $300. The most upscale player was commissioned as a piece of jewelry by Russian-Canadian billionaire Alex Shnaider. Designed with diamonds and a chain, and case in 750 ct gold, the device is valued at $20,000. It was made by German audio company, TrekStor.

This kind of gadget is beyond luxury for most consumers. Many would probably not purchase a $20,000 device even if they had the expendable cash. Therefore, many manufacturers have release some budget conscious models that are a bit more reasonably priced. A look at six of the best MP3 players for under $75 should give a good indication of where to start shopping.

The iPod as a brand has enjoyed a reputation as one of the most coveted MP3 players on the market. The Apple iPod Shuffle 4 GB comes in right at budget at only $74.36. The 4 GB of memory enable you to store up to 1,000 songs and there is a capacity for 10 hours of extended play when the device is fully charged. A handy clip makes it possible to attach the player to a belt, purse strap, pocket or other safe transport. Touted as the smallest music player in the world, the iPod Shuffles comes in silver, black, green, pink and blue, and it is engineered to announce out loud which song is playing and which group is performing. This feature, called VoiceOver, even announces your playlists and tells you when your battery is low.

The controls for the iPod Shuffle 4 GB have been moved to the earphone cord. This comes in handy if you use your MP3 player a lot at the gym. You are not forced to fumble for the actual player in order to control the shuffle of music. You have the option of using the headphones that come with the device or shopping for similar ones made by Belkin, Klipsch, V-Moda or Scosche.

The shuffle feature of this MP3 player gives you three options: randomly play songs, play songs in playlist order or turn the shuffle off altogether. Some customers have complained about the functionality of the shuffle while they are working out, citing that the control mechanism on the earphone goes haywire without warning. This malfunction reportedly makes the iPod shift between songs after only a few minutes of play and keeps the VoiceOver feature repeating unnecessarily.

Apple has been trying to overcome this hazard by working with third-party makers of headphones, but this, of course, will come at some extensive cost to users.

The Zune 4 GB Digital Media Player allows you to store 1,000 songs, 12 hours of video or 25000 pictures. With a 1.8-inch screen and special importing feature, the Zune has a wireless Zune-to-Zune player to let you swap tracks, pictures and video. An FM tuner keeps you connected to sports and local news.

Intuitive touch controls make it easy to navigate this player, which centers its operation on community networking. The Zune Online Community is a social networking hub that allows users to create a profile, add friends, connect to people with similar music tastes and make music recommendations. In addition, the Zune Marketplace encourages subscription-based purchases or the downloading of individual songs. Zune has enabled the MP3 player to tag songs that you hear in passing and want to purchase later.

Zune, priced at about $67.99, is compatible with the Xbox 360 and lets you customize soundtracks for games. If you download compatible Zune software on our PC or laptop, you can also stream pictures, video or songs from your computer to your Xbox 360 console. The software is online, and it is a full multimedia player that can stay on your computer.

Customers have praised Zune for creating one of the best MP3 players for under $75 because of its intuitive interface, simple software, sound quality and easy-to-hold shape. The device also has excellent sound quality. Aside from a few reviews that place the earbuds as being too large and a random complaint about a lock switch being stuck, Zune seems to have won over many different types of users.

The Touch Screen 4 GB 2.8-Inch TFT MP4/MP3 Movie Music Personal Media Player ($49.99) has an amazing resolution of 320 x 240, which will make it easy fun to watch video and images. The FM radio tuner has 20 channel presets. An impressive eight-preset equalizer allows you to customize your listening experience for rock, jazz, classic, bass, pop, 3D and natural settings.

The built-in SD card slot, unfortunately, does not come with the Mini SD digital card included. You will have to purchase it separately. The player does allow you to play videos, see pictures, and listen to songs, though.

The touch screen for this player is reportedly not as sensitive as those on more upscale players. It can be frustrating having to give a command twice in order to get it executed. One customer has also revealed a problem with transferring large files or a lot of files at one time.

Apparently, the device cannot handle such large bytes of information and will permanently crash the MP4 capabilities. Other challenges to the MP4 format for this model include having only one game available to play and using an MP4 that will not take SDHC or micro cards. Mini SD cards are the only ones that work with the Touch Screen 4 GB. There is a very knowledgeable professional support team in place however, and they respond quickly to emails and help requests.

The Coby 4 GB Flash MP3 Player with FM and color display has 10 hours of playing time in an MP3 formats and can do video, photos and text. The device costs about $36.67.

A free subscription at the time of purchase allows you to test drive the music offerings before your account goes to automatic billing. This player has been a favorite for those who enjoy listening to audio books. This genre has favorable selections in the subscription download offerings.

One of the major complaints about the Coby 4 GB Flash MP3 Player has been its inability to play song in the order in which you would like to hear them. The player alphabetizes the songs, and the user is forced to listen to the order arranged by the player.

Another complaint has to do with the functionality of the earpiece. It has been called hard by users and difficult to insert into the ear. Users have mostly bought their own headphones and earpieces – a luxury when it comes to compatibility, but a challenge when it comes to saving cash. The manual for this player has been reportedly less than impressive. Too little information makes this not a thorough tool. This has been solved by most buyers by locating a more extensive manual online.

The Sandisk Sansa Clip 4 GB MP3 Player ($39.19) has a best feature of playtime. Currently set at 15 hours, it includes an internally rechargeable battery. One of the most lightweight MP3 players, it is a real convenience for the person who is always on the go. A voice recorder and built-in microphone even make it easy to save memos to yourself and transfer them later to your computer. Synching is a breeze with this player, as it allows drag and drop transfers or moving files via software.

Some of the general complaints about the Sandisk have to do with the clip having a weak clamp and not always fitting certain thicknesses of belts, straps or other clip-on sites. Some have also been irritated with the fact that the jack has to be inserted into its port until it snaps and no metal can be seen. Otherwise, the headphones will not work properly.

There have been some reports of defective units and durability issues. Some customers have reported extreme dissatisfaction with the way the company honors (or does not honor) its warranty offer. According to some reviews, Sandisk gives the customer the runaround rather than addressing the problem.

One customer said the company kept him on the line for 35 minutes asking exhaustive questions about the player rather than simply responding to the information given. When the customer asked why the process was taking so long, the agent said he was exhausting all possibilities before honoring the warranty. This made the customer feel as if the prolonged questioning was a way of avoiding the warranty guarantee and discouraging the customer from demanding a working product. The problem the customer had had with the player was that it played only for a few minutes and then quit altogether.

The Philips GoGear 4 GB Vibe MP3 Video Player with 1.5-Inch color screen has one of the longest lasting playback times for all other MP3 players in this category. It can play songs for 25 hours or continuous video for four hours. Most other MP3 players edge in at half the amount of playback time.

You can easily do video downloads from the internet with the Philips GoGear, and an FM radio gives you 20 presets. Rhapsody to Go has teamed with Philips to offer buyers a savvy music subscription service right at their fingertips.

The GoGear, priced at $51.82, synchs quite easily with a PC and comes with a very intuitive, user-friendly interface. Users also report an extremely high quality sound and say this is a unit that really scores well for portability.

Complaints have been logged about the too-short USB cable that is only 4.75 inches long. You will inevitably have to purchase a separate USB cable if you want some degree of comfort while you synch. If you use a small port to large port USB cord, you are able to recharge the device that way, though. The earpiece is also a bit uncomfortable after short use. This should be added to your accessories shopping list as well.

The reset button on the GoGear has given some users a bit of a problem, as well. Some report pushing the button and locking the player completely. Holding the + side of the volume control down while using the Philips GoGear VIBE Device Manager, though, might save the day. The device manager can update software and restore the original settings. Be aware that having to perform this function will completely erase any songs or other information that you have stored on the player. You will be forced to start from scratch rebuilding playlists and downloads.

There are many different price ranges of the best mp3 players for under $75. The least expensive, costing between $18 and about $27, sacrifice memory, video capacity and the ability to personally order playlists. Moderately priced MP3 players can give buyers quite a bargain for the money, since most have all the features of some high-end players, though not quite as much memory. For some users, the memory is not a real issue. Having the power to take about 1,000 songs with you wherever you do is plenty of storage.

When shopping for the best MP3 players for under $75, it is important to make sure that you know exactly how you will be using the device. If you will be listening to songs during a workout, it will be important to have a player that does not skip and has easily accessible controls. For a traveler or person with a busy lifestyle, a strong clip might be the strongest selling point. Whatever your habits dictate, the market has a right solution for you. Your right MP3 player can fit in your shopping bag for less than a hundred bucks.

Shopping for an inexpensive MP3 player with video is not always a mission to land junk. In a tight economy or on a strict budget, high end fantasy MP3 players are not altogether practical. If your primary purpose is to just listen to music and be able to see images, you need a basic MP3 model with a cheap video player to meet your basic needs. All the bells and whistles are mostly for show, since you probably will not use them anyway.

Users who buy a cheap MP3 player and know what it is they are getting are not at all disappointed by the shortcomings of the gadget. Some reviewers for the Coby 2GB Flash MP3 Player, for example, know that one of the frustrating glitches in this model causes the playback mode to get stuck. Users have to remove the batteries and reset the player in order to continue listening to music.

Additionally, this inexpensive video MP3 player does not give you the flexibility to sequence songs and place them in the order in which you would like to listen to them. You must listen to them in the order in which they were loaded. It does not give you free will, but it does give you music.

The FM function on this Coby model seems to pick up one station. The player is also not compatible with iTunes. If you have already stored a lot of songs in iTunes, that music will be lost to you with this player. Toggling between menus also takes some guess work.

As an inexpensive video MP3 player, the Coby 2GB Flash MP3 Player does serve its intended function: playing music with just the basics. The 2GB of memory makes it easy to store thousands of music files, and the price (about $28) is one coveted feature that lets users get a moderate bang for little bucks.

Sandisk Sansa Clip 4 GB

For example, the Sansa Clip comes in sizes ranging from 1 GB to 4GB, and are priced from $27.99 to $69.99. For the price, these players are perfect in size, both in terms of musical capacity and dimensions, for those who wish to use it primarily when exercising.

Pros:
-Long battery life (15 hours)
-USB compatible
-Variety of color options.

Cons:
-Voice recording is fuzzy at times
-a few users reported issues with files that are over an hour in length.

Coby 4 GB Flash Video MP3 Player

Another affordable option is the Coby 4 GB Flash Video MP3 Player. This unit includes an FM Tuner and the added feature of video support. The unit is relatively small, about the size of a third generation iPod nano, making it the perfect workout companion, and for around $40, this unit brings excellent bang for the buck.

Pros:
-File transfers are a breeze with USB Support
-Video screen is exceptionally clear

Cons:
-Charger not included
-Headphones have been reported to be poor quality

Sony Walkman 8 GB Video MP3 Player

If your budget is around $100, look no further than the Sony Walkman 8 GB Video MP3 Player. This unit brings the impressive resume of Sony with a feature-packed unit that is sure to satisfy even the most discriminating consumer. With a large screen and extremely thin design, the unit fits in virtually any pocket and has an optional arm holster for use when jogging.

Pros:
-Quick, easy setup
-Equalizer delivers superb sound quality, even with stock headphones
-Easily import and remove media
-Large, easy-to-read screen

Cons:
-Some users reported less-than stellar battery life
-No voice recorder

Regardless of your budget, a quick browse of the models above will surely help you find an ideal unit to fit your needs.

This Coby MP3 player is great for someone looking for something good while on a budget. This is a very simple to use cheap MP3 player and is great for anyone on-the-go who doesn’t want to deal with watching videos or viewing pictures. For a tiny MP3 player, it does exactly as advertised.

With this MP3 player you cannot expect any bells and whistles like you would with a Zune or another fancier device.  Basically you plug it into your computer, move songs onto it like a flash drive, and then go.  It uses AAA batteries for power (gets about 13 hours per set) so you may want to purchase rechargeable AAA batteries so you don’t end up eating  wallet trying to keep it on.  But for the price, you really can’t argue about the battery power or anything like that.  The included ear buds can be a little painful after wearing them for a while, so it’s recommended that you buy a nice set of headphones while getting the player.

Advantages of the Coby 4 GB MP3 Player:

• Very inexpensive to purchase.  If you lose it, there’s no big deal.
• Decent sound quality for someone looking for an MP3 for everyday use.
• Simple interface to move songs from your computer to the MP3 player.  If you don’t want to hassle with iTunes or some other software, this player is a great choice for you.
• Delete songs on the player itself without using the computer.
• Built-in FM radio with over 30 presets.
• Very small and portable.  Great for listening to music while on a morning jog.
• Can be used as a flash drive for moving data from computer to computer.

Disadvantages of the Coby 4 GB MP3 Player:

• Poor navigational interface if you have a lot of songs in one folder.  Can be a bit annoying at times.
• Fairly cheap when it comes to the body of the unit.  Probably would break if dropped from 3 feet.
• Easy to lose cap for the USB portion of the player.
• Uses AAA batteries for power so will require rechargeable batteries if you don’t want to spend a fortune powering it.
• Uncomfortable starter headphones.  You’ll definitely want to buy some nice ones with it.

In the end, this Coby MP3 player is great for anyone looking for something cheap, easy-to-use, and able to get the job done.   For the price, nothing really compares against this player.  Besides a few of the negatives–which can be easily remedied for an extra $15–you’ll be more than satisfied with the MP3 device.  Seriously, with the price as low as it is, who cares if it breaks after a year, you can just buy a new one.