The product is ok but it came with no directions which has made it difficult to use. I wanted to use the recorder but half the time I cannot figure it out and when I do it is by accident.

I've had a 1GB Sansa Express for about four months. I also got a 2GB microSD card at the same time through Amazon. This player has very good sound through good earphones (not the ear buds that came with it) or powered speakers. The microSD expansion didn't work out for me. With the microSD card, it took the Express an unacceptable length of time to build its database each time it was turned on, if it completed the database build at all without locking up. Also, my Express has never been able to play very long on a battery charge, and it takes a very long time to charge (I'm talking overnight and then some).
So ... I put my most favorite music in the 1GB internal memory and use it only for my morning walks. With this 45 minute to 1 hour usage, it performs well. I plug it in to a USB outlet and leave it charging until the next morning, and it's charged enough to last an hour plus. I would advise against buying the Sansa Express if you're hoping to use it as your only MP3 player. I got a Sanza 4GB Fuze from Amazon for $68, and it works wonderfully as my primary music player.

I was able to purchase this from an Amazon market place seller for about $25 bucks. It was brand new unopened in the infamous clamshell casing. It worked superbly for a week. Now it works great 95% of the time. One day, I stuck it into the usb port of an older work computer and it now has two minor glitches regularly:

1. If I turn up the volume a little, it will go all the way to max volume, either needing a soft reset or for you to go to the main menu and then lower volume.

2. It will not shuffle songs, if you reset and had on shuffle it behaves as if not on shuffle. repair: just turn shuffle back off and on again.

I use it daily and 1. glitch happens maybe every other week or so, i guess when I charge the drive on the computer. (as far as I know it charges on computer only, i think for about 3 to 5 hrs, I leave it on as soon as I get home or over night.) I tried an external usb charger but not notification of charging appeared on screen.

FROM USER ERROR the FM radio didn't have any sound, but I discovered that play/pause toggle button will mute it.

Remember when putting microSD in it has to organize info first so can take 5 mins or more to load larger microSD card (2 gigs).

I've always wanted a USB flash drive MP3 player. So, I was glad to see such a large, reputible company like SanDisk made one.

I almost didn't buy it due to so many people reporting bugs with it. But the forum has solutions to this...including a software update.

http://www.sandisk.com/Products/Catalog(1226)-SanDisk_Sansa_Express_MP3_Players.aspx

http://forums.sandisk.com/sansa/board?board.id=express

Well, I'm thrilled to report that I received mine and have been using it every day successfully for 2 months. I didn't update the software but will if I have any issues. You know what they say..."If it ain't broke, then don't fix it".

I love the FM/AM radio feature. And after long research I found that you can go back to the place in the file where you left off. To do this, while the music is playing, shut the power off. Then next time you turn it back on, you'll see a "BUILDING DATABASE" message. Then the Sansa goes right back to the point of the song where you turned it off. So, you can use it for e-books, etc.

The microphone is amazing, too. It works well. I even like the ear buds.

The battery works well, too. I love the fact that it charges while I upload/download files to it. Nice!

It would be perfect if it had both a lanyard and a clip. But it only has a lanyard, which is great. But a clip would allow the ability to run/exercise with it.

Great product!

i've tried sony, philips, zune and this little player
sounds the best. for me the worst was sony then philips and then zune. with equalizer at normal setting, express accurately
reproduces audio files. it sounds natural not like sony (2g nwz series)which sounds artificial. haven't tried ipod but express would definitely satisfy even the most discriminating audiophile.

I bought this knowing nothing about them and expecting it to be complicated to use. WRONG! I just put it into my USB drive, let the computer find it as "new hardware", and began moving my MP3 files to it. Done! I did read the little book to make sure I understood how to navigate between the MP3s - but that took all of 5 minutes.

I am so impressed by this that my business partner and I are going to put all our teleseminar recordings onto these and sell them to our clients as well as attendees at an upcoming state-wide event!

I highly recommmend this product!

The product is of great quality and reasonably priced. However, I later saw other Sandisk items on sale, so I would probably have gotten those if I had known.

If you expect big performance out of a little and inexpensive MP3 player, then you'll have to keep looking (good luck). However, this little Sansa Express has been just right for me to use to listen to audio books, interviews, etc. I love how small and portable it is. I was able to easily load the audio onto it, and it has worked as described.

I like this mp3 player because its small, easy to use and has FM radio receiver which you can also record music from and a microphone for voice recording as well. The audio quality is great! All of these features packed into a small tiny device. Not to mention, windows media player 10 can recognize and synchronise to this device making it a lot easier to transfer mp3s to it. Plus, one of the best features that i liked about it is that it has a micro sd card slot which means, more and more storage capacity of course. Whether you want to expand your music capacity or use the spare storage for data, either way, its an awesome feature :). I give this little device a BIG 5 *****'S!

A great budget MP3 w/ FM player. Easy to navigate through commands, light, and adequate battery. Reception on FM is good. Speakers though, are lame but for the money you can't have everything.

I am really impressed with my Sansa Express mp3 player. I won't repeat the points that make it miles ahead of apple's iPod shuffle. Neither am I an audio-quality expert to find any problem with the clarity of music it delivers. I took the 1 GB model as i generally use WMA files that are around half of mp3s in terms of size. Also any time my desire increases, I'll put in a microSD card. The only messy stuff I have had with this product is its inability to classify songs on the basis of Artist's name. Although this might be the problem with the tagging of the files itself so this may not be the problem of the player. Finally the pros and cons according to me are as follows:

PROS

-> Memory extendability using micro SD.
-> Awesome, really great battery life.
-> A cool and sleek look.
-> Radio feature available.
-> Nice day/night visible display.
-> WMA support and no seperate cable required for charging.

CONS

-> Lanyard option given, i wud have liked something like a clip
-> i really can't think of any!!!

Great player - good sound, small form, stylish, the works. I was really happy with it. The only problem was that the headphone jack croaked after eight months. I took meticulous care of the device too - always unplugged it when not in use to reduce stress on the jack and always treated it with care when playing.

This is my second player to die of weak soldering (the first was a Creative Zen). You'd think solder was the most expensive component on these little guys. Anyway, I'll keep searching for a more rugged mp3 player. I have to say though, I really liked this one before it gave up the ghost.

I purchased this unit to replace a MP3 music player for mother that wanted to download books from her library. I helped her get started and now she is downloading and listening to her books and it is working excellent. She is 72 years old so anyone should be able to use this MP3 player.

Did a lot of research prior to buying this mp3 player. Here are my bullets on the positive and negatives:

Pos:
* Small and Slim - size of a bic lighter.
* Expandable via a Micro SD. I know this concept is NOT foreign, but...It is extremely rare for something this small and cheap(<$40 during this writing). Here is main reason I choose this unit(mainly 1Gb), I change songs/podcast often. I don't usually like earphones compare to speakers. Hence I bought this unit for a quick fix when I am working out. Unless, I am planning to work out 3-4 hours straight - 1Gb is huge(over kill really) for 99% of my workouts. Did I say it is expandable? Add 2 more Gb(probably cost an extra $20 online), will be plenty for a very long time...
* Not rediculously priced when I only need it to go swimming(mainly) and working out.
* Works flawlessly with WM 11! Hence you don't need to install anything.
* Extremely efficient on battery life.
* It has a screen and tell me what song(list of songs) is it on - unlike the Ipod Shuffle!

Neg:
* My 1st unit died in 5 days...It has multiple crashes(locked up) prior to that - it is usually go away after I plugged it in the USB slot on my laptop. On the last crash, nothing changes regardless what I do to it...Because, I like the unit, I am willing to give it the benefit of doubt on the second unit(we will see). If it crashes just once more within the next 2 weeks - this whole review will go down in flames.
* Impossible to see in the sunlight(don't know too many cell phones/mp3 have overcome this), especially when you are trying to adjust the navigation by the pool.
* Inconsistent navigation - maybe it is just me, but I can't seem to figure out the difference between fast forward and skip to the next song...Sometimes it works with a double right click and sometimes it works with a single right click.
* Extremely slow on the synchronization process. I have serious doubts it is USB 2.0 compliant(don't have the time to prove it or not).
* Headphones constantly falls out of my ear - NOT a major factor considering most OEM head phones are not worth anything...

Stay tune on the final analysis on my second unit.

This is a good price quality product. The system is user friendly. sounds great. and the battery works for long enough (I am not sure how long but i've used it for 4 or 5 days without recharging).

Very happy with the MP3 player once my grandson taught me how to use it.

When I got this, I thought I would really like it - it was attractive, had a solid feature set, and just the right memory capacity. Since then, my mind has changed. It CONSTANTLY develops problem after problem after problem, even though I'm using a replacement model (the original got to a point where it just plain would not turn on - I had to send it in for a repair). In fact, this thing has had so many problems that I don't even have time to write them all here - from random instances of it turning itself off, to times where it seemingly "forgets everything", including all of the songs on my go list (this happens a lot - RRRG!), and all of my settings. The battery life also isn't anything to brag about, and neither are the in-menu features. On the bright side of things, it DOES work (usually) to play my music, and it has a good FM receiver and voice recorder (not at all low-quality for a mp3 player this size), and it has a micro SD expansion slot (very handy). And I often find that the problems resolve themselves if I "reset all" in the settings menu, and give it a good charge. Regardless, these are things that you shouldn't have to deal with, and I would recommend that you go with an ipod or something better if you can afford it.

Very easy to use, connects easily without a cable and is straightforward to navigate. Unfortunately mine stopped functioning after less than three months. I would not recommend it.

I am currently on my second Sansa Express 1 GB because the first one locked up all the time.

It took quite a while arguing with Sansa support explaining to them that their piece of equipment was not functioning normally. After sending in my "broken" express, two weeks later antoher brand new one arrived in the mail.

I was fine with the whole ordeal until this morning my new Sansa Express locked up just like the old one where the opening "Sansa" screen hangs and the device will not turn all the way on. I have been able to kick it out of this hang by plugging it into a USB device, very inconvienent if you don't have one around.

Anyway, I'm out - after their painful customer service and half-functioning equipment - I will never buy Sansa again.

I purchased this mp3 player for my brother-in-law last Christmas. He had asked for an mp3 player that was small, had a UBS plug, and could record voice memos (he is an author and often has ideas while driving, when he can't take notes by hand). This player fit the bill perfectly, and will continue to do so because of the memory card expansion slot. He has used this player extensively for 3 1/2 months with no problems.

I really like this...except that it doesn't stay paused where I stop. I really hated this as I'd have to find where I left off in my audio book each time. Finally I found that if I turn it off completely it will stay where I paused it.
Very easy to use.

The product is pretty good but the firmware may need updating. Otherwise they have a tendency to brick. Adding to the fun, the firmware installation program does not run under Vista (Vista is mostly a story of lost capabilities) but does run fine under XP. That said, once you fix it, it works fine. Mine is almost 2 years old now.

I wanted an inexpensive mp3 player for the gym. Overall, I like my Sansa Express, but there are a few problems that I wish I knew before making a purchase.
It's very sturdy, and the sound quality is impressive through the headset, although very quiet when connected to a speaker. The volume has to be cranked all the way up to hear anything. The headset is too large and keeps falling out, but has great sound, and does not leak any sound. (Passers-by cannot hear what you are listening to, even at high volume)
The menu is a bit awkward, it takes way too long to turn the thing off, because the menu button and the power button are the same. Also, once you turn it off, it randomly forgets the song it was playing previously, and you have to go through all the menus at startup (including language selection) to continue. If you are playing an album, it does not automatically jump to the next, it just stops playing after the last song. The display is almost completely illegible in bright daylight, so you have to move to a dark spot to select your song once it stops playing. You cannot delete songs from the device, only from the computer, and you cannot listen to your music while the device is charging.
It is a snap to load new songs, and it is recognized by all desktop media players.
It's a bargain at this price, but don't buy it as a primary mp3 player.

I really like the ease of this mp3. I had no trouble downloading the music and books to it. The sound is great too. The only problem I have is the neck-strap is connected to the USB cover, which comes off. At this point, it has been fine but I am worried that later on down the road, it may fall off and I will lose the whole thing.

This is a very nice player, with a sleek appearance and a nice bright display.
Sound reproduction is awesome. It is also expandable via a MicroSD card.
Minor drawbacks, both fixable:
1-Need to reconfigure to be read as a drive for easy transfers and direct-to-player downloads. (See Sansa express forum for how-to)
2-does not hold place very long when you pause. Starts at the beginning of song or podcast. Workaround by turning unit off instead. When turned on again, it will start where you left off. There may be a firmware fix for this coming.
It has an excellent FM radio too. Nicer sound than my Sony Walkman.
Definitely get this one, just shop for price.

Well, plugged it into my USB and synched some random songs. Plugged in the headphones and tried to play it. It tried to play the first song and stalled. It powered off a couple minutes later. It's just dead now. Can't charge it or power it on. Taking it back to the retailer. Read the reviews on this and didn't think I'd get a lemon, but sure enough... Beware of this product. The people complaining about this are for real. This was my first experience with Sandisk. I'll never buy anything from them again.

This is the first portable MP3 player that I have bought, and I absolutely love it. I plug it into the jumpdrive on my computer, drag the music into the Sansa, and I'm off. It is so small and yet the screen is easy to read and clear, and easy as pie to use. I'm far from a being gadget savvy, but this was so simple to learn that I know anyone could use it. Very user friendly. Highly recommended if your looking for something affordable, portable, and easy to use.

Very cheaply constructed and fragile. Will break with only minimum use and Sandisk will not honor their warranty. I had mine 4 days and it never played a note. Four days of arguing with tech support and RMA and the result was "Too bad for you. Guess you own a broken MP3 player." Same thing happened with an M240 I purchased a month previous. Save your dollars and purchase a different brand.

I've had this for a few months and while it works as advertised, I haven't been overly happy with it. I've tried it with both XP and OSX and can't get it to work correctly with either. It won't unmount from either system and I haven't been able to get the firmware updater to run. However, I haven't lost any data by pulling it out from the USB -- yet. I listen to mostly OTR shows, usually 15 - 30 minutes long and 5-8MB in size. I listen to a show and then delete it - however, the Sansa doesn't allow any way to delete except when plugged into a computer.

And maybe it's my age, (however a good design should work for everyone) but I've never been able to figure out exactly how the buttons work. Sometimes it will fastforward through a selection and the next time it seems to skip to the next selection. In addition, the Sansa seems to be of its own mind when organizing OTR files. Artist and album come from some metadata tag that I haven't discovered yet.

I've had no problems with charging and use a cheap set of earphones - OTRs aren't known for hi-fidelity, so I don't lose anything there. Putting the lanyard clip on the cap is almost criminally stupid. If you wear it around your neck, you're going to save the $1 cap and lose the $40 player when it gets loose.

All I want is a cheap player, 1GB or less, AAA powered, that will let me listen to long-playing, low-memory intensive files one-at-a-time. I don't need FM, voice recording, fancy graphics, multi-colored screens or rechargeable batteries that can't be replaced.

I purchased my Sansa Express 1 GB six months ago. I am sending the unit back for the third time. They just keep dying and dying and dying. The first unit was the best - it worked for almost six weeks. Initial problems with unit number one were related to software/firmware upgrades but by the sixth week it just quit working. This unit was not abused - it probably had a total of 20 hours actual playing time.

Sansa support is relatively good but don't call them. When I first had problems I would call and talk to a tech but there was a significant language barrior. In one instance, the tech kept telling me to 'press the silver bullet...., press the silver bullet...' After a minute or two, I realized he was talking about the small, square metallic looking button on the front of the unit. After that, I strictly communicated by written message.

Customer support is good but turnaround times are slow. First you have to get them to agree to a replacement. Then you have to get a RMA, ship the old unit back before they send a replacement unit. All together I've managed to use my Sansa Express (and replacements), maybe, 30 hours in six months. - If someone gives you a Sansa Express it is because they hate you. 'nuff said.

I like this MP3 player a lot because it fills my needs, but it has numerous minor issues that really makes it the most annoying electronic device I own.

I was looking for a simple and small MP3 player to use while exercising. I didn't need half a TB of internal storage for all the MP3s I own. I wanted an internal battery and an easy means of adding songs to the device. The Sansa Express with its 1GB space and built-in UBS plug fits those needs. The battery has a long life too.

Where the Sansa fails is in the little details: It's obnoxious. It's always doing what you don't want it to do.

For example:
(*) Most of the time when I turn it on it forces me to select my language instead of continuing the last track it was playing.

(*) It's difficult to turn off. OK, manufacturers refuse to use a switch for turning off electronics anymore but why must I hold the power button for so damn long just to turn it off? Turning this thing off is often a battle of wills between man and machine.

(*) After adding new songs to the player it's difficult to actually play them because they don't show up in the default playlist until you explicitly play them somehow. This is very annoying if you load some songs then go for a run because you'll find that you can't get those new songs to play without playing in the menu using a screen that's hard to read in the sunlight while moving.

(*) FF and REV are poorly implemented

(*) Connect the player to the PC using the USB drive and then remove it. The device will immediately begin playing audio! After removing the device from the USB port it should turn itself off. What's strange is that this automatic playback function is what should happen when you manually turn on the player, but when you do that it goes into the language select menu. So not only does removing it from the PC turn it on, it turns it on in a way that's better than the actual on button!


I suppose I could read the manual to see if any of these annoyances can be avoided, but a device like this should be intuitive and self-explanatory.

I bought this player because I needed a small FM radio to listen while at work. The tuner works fine but not perfect. It picks up reception from the headphone cord which is the reason for the so-so reception.

I like that the player connects and charges through a standard USB plug instead of a mini-USB socket that needs a small USB cable to use. The player recharges fine with any wall charger with a USB port. The cover for the USB plug fits firmly and blends with the rest of the player.

I also like the style of the OLED screen. There is a microphone and an option to record a FM station, but I never use those options.

My major problem with this player is that it resets all of its settings and preset FM stations randomly. Sometimes the player will be stable for a week, and sometimes the player will reset 1 or 2 times in a day. It's very frustrating to search and preset all of my favorite stations after a random reset.

Another problem I have is that the "Play All" option for MP3 music automatically sorts the songs by the reverse order that they were loaded into the player. This makes for a tedious time loading up multiple parts of a podcast in correct order to the player.

An obscure problem that I ran into was that it makes Winamp crash while it was plugged into one of the computer's USB socket. Deleting a file in Winamp that syncs it to MP3 players solves that problem.

The player claims to have 15 hours on a full battery recharge. The most time that I'm used the player on one fully-charged battery is about 11 hours.

This player had great potential to be a great MP3 player, but too many problems had ruined that opportunity. Overall, if I had a second chance, I would not buy this player again.

My girlfriend purchased the Sandisk this for me for Christmas. I was excited and loaded the entire space used for about a month then couldn't get it to charge on anyone's computer try mine hers and others no go.

I will spend a little more money and get something that won't break in a month. I had one that worked with Triple A batteries but only 128 MB buts its still ticking.

Not a very good product very disappointed. Not sure I will purchase another of this brand.

I was delighted with my Sansa Express for a fews weeks. I even brought a 2 GB microdisk for it. But then, after fairly light use (e.g. maybe 10-12 times) the "volume+" button became inoperative, which made the device useless. I realize that this is only a $40 device, but I expected to get more than a few weeks use from it.

ive bought alot of mp3 players in my day. most ive had for years and buy new ones just because they look nicer. this is by far the worst one ever. it lasted about 3 months with very little use (less than once a week). I put songs on it when i first got it and it worked ok. it doesnt save changes (shuffle, equilizer etc) so you have to adjust the settings every time you turn it on. The shuffle is a horrible feature anyway. unless you change your songs every time you listen to it youll hear the same list in the same order repeating alot of songs. sometimes twice in a row! so 3 months of that aggrivation and i updated my song list just to have it freeze up and i havent gotten it to turn on since. If you need a jump drive style mp3 player i reccomend coby. they have some pretty sturdy players. i have one that melted in my car and still works fine