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Laurablue · 06-27-2013, 11:11 PM

I bought a Clip Zip and a Fuze+ after reading this thread. The Clip Zip is awesome for listening to audiobooks while walking and commuting, and the sound is at least as good as my iPhone, probably better. The controls are easy to navigate even when I'm not looking at them. I've been able to transfer library books (using Overdrive Media Console), Audible and other purchased books, and books on my hard drive (ripped from CD).

I got the Fuze+ specifically for videos, because I read that it was challenging to use for audiobooks. The touch pad took a bit of learning. I can see why people would get frustrated with it. I decided to test it as a podcast and audiobook reader anyway. I loaded it with a podcast of about 90 episodes (48 hours of audio). I used an mp3 tag editor to tag the genre as podcast and to set the track numbers. They showed up on the player, but in the wrong order. The only way to get them to list and play in the correct order was to rename the track titles using nested numbers (001, 002, etc). Apparently the Fuze+ does not use track numbers to sort podcast files. I have also used Overdrive Media Console to transfer an mp3 book to the Fuze+. The chapters showed up in the correct order. If put in the audiobooks folder, they show up as 13 separate tracks, but I moved them to the podcasts folder and there they are organized into a separate folder for that book. So, the podcasts folder is the place to put books, if you don't want to have one long list of all the audiobook tracks on your player. You can use the advanced options in Overdrive Media Console to choose the destination folder.

I also transferred my Audible books to the Fuze+, using Audible Download Manager to activate the Fuze+ and Windows Media Player to sync the files from my computer to the Fuze+. The Audible books are organized into their own folders, with chapters in the correct order.

The Fuze+ sound is fine, I don't think it's any better than the Clip Zip.

If I could only have one device for audiobooks and podcasts I'd choose the Clip Zip because of the seamless transfers and the controls. I listen mostly while walking or commuting on transit, and the Fuze+ touch pad is quite sensitive and so the device has to be locked or unlocked each time it's handled or put away. Changing tracks, rewinding etc. can be finicky and requires looking at the screen and not letting anything brush against the touch pad. The clip zip can be paused with one press (two if it was in locked mode) and I can rewind or fast forward without even looking at it. On the other hand, the Fuze+ does give you the option of watching short videos, but I can also see why a lot of people gave up on the touch pad and wrote angry reviews about it.

06-27-2013, 11:11 PM	#44
Laurablue Connoisseur Posts: 70 Karma: 910220 Join Date: Jun 2013 Device: Kobo Glo, Kobo Arc, Sansa Clip Zip, Sansa Fuze+	I bought a Clip Zip and a Fuze+ after reading this thread. The Clip Zip is awesome for listening to audiobooks while walking and commuting, and the sound is at least as good as my iPhone, probably better. The controls are easy to navigate even when I'm not looking at them. I've been able to transfer library books (using Overdrive Media Console), Audible and other purchased books, and books on my hard drive (ripped from CD). I got the Fuze+ specifically for videos, because I read that it was challenging to use for audiobooks. The touch pad took a bit of learning. I can see why people would get frustrated with it. I decided to test it as a podcast and audiobook reader anyway. I loaded it with a podcast of about 90 episodes (48 hours of audio). I used an mp3 tag editor to tag the genre as podcast and to set the track numbers. They showed up on the player, but in the wrong order. The only way to get them to list and play in the correct order was to rename the track titles using nested numbers (001, 002, etc). Apparently the Fuze+ does not use track numbers to sort podcast files. I have also used Overdrive Media Console to transfer an mp3 book to the Fuze+. The chapters showed up in the correct order. If put in the audiobooks folder, they show up as 13 separate tracks, but I moved them to the podcasts folder and there they are organized into a separate folder for that book. So, the podcasts folder is the place to put books, if you don't want to have one long list of all the audiobook tracks on your player. You can use the advanced options in Overdrive Media Console to choose the destination folder. I also transferred my Audible books to the Fuze+, using Audible Download Manager to activate the Fuze+ and Windows Media Player to sync the files from my computer to the Fuze+. The Audible books are organized into their own folders, with chapters in the correct order. The Fuze+ sound is fine, I don't think it's any better than the Clip Zip. If I could only have one device for audiobooks and podcasts I'd choose the Clip Zip because of the seamless transfers and the controls. I listen mostly while walking or commuting on transit, and the Fuze+ touch pad is quite sensitive and so the device has to be locked or unlocked each time it's handled or put away. Changing tracks, rewinding etc. can be finicky and requires looking at the screen and not letting anything brush against the touch pad. The clip zip can be paused with one press (two if it was in locked mode) and I can rewind or fast forward without even looking at it. On the other hand, the Fuze+ does give you the option of watching short videos, but I can also see why a lot of people gave up on the touch pad and wrote angry reviews about it.