Home > Consumer Reviews > Transcend T.sonic 850 8 GB Video MP3 Player (Black)

I have an iPod shuffle, a Zune and a couple of Sansas. So this is not my first MP3player. If I compare it with all of those players, I find the Transcend a little lacking even given the low price range for 8GB storage. With the current price and its features it is the closest to Sansa but I find that the navigation and audio quality is poorer.

It is nice to have an MP3 player, FM radio, video player, photo viewer and voice recorder in the same device but Sansa offers the same features too, and Zune offers everything except voice recording. However, the main reason to get an MP3 player is to play songs and unfortunately that is the most frustrating aspect of this player. The audio quality really suffers in comparison with my Zune 30 GB(1st gen) and also the Sansa e250 2 GB (available often for under $20 on woot). I could sense a distinct hiss through my Shure E2C Shure E2c Sound Isolating In-Ear Earphones Color CLEAR - E2C / E2earphones on the Transcend. To make sure it wasn't a bad recording, I downloaded and listened to the same song on a Sansa and my Zune and the hiss was gone. It may be a problem with the earphone jack on this device as the hiss diminished when I pulled out my earphone plug slightly.

However, if you listen to it with the lower quality earphones that come with this device, the hiss is not as noticeable.

I was also disappointed with the file navigation system, which is the main reason I am not using this player. You can get to the file system by pressing the Menu button when the song is playing but it is really impossible to scroll through a longer playlist speedily and find the song you want to play. There is also no way to choose by different classification systems like - By artist, by album, by genre, etc. All you get a windows explorer like file structure and you have to get into levels. I had a Top 1000 songs compilation and it lists all of them as one album. So if you have a long list of songs, by the time you find the song you want to play, you won't have the time to play it.

In my opinion, if iPod navigation is the best at 9/10, Zune gets 7/10, Sansa 5/10 and Transcend a 2/10. There are some free applications out there like Rockbox which are more intuitive and have a multitude of useful features. I have been able to "rockbox" my Sansa to make it much more productive but I am not sure if support is available for Transcend.

A good thing about this device is the quick drag and drop method to add music, you don't need to go through some proprietary software like Zune or iTunes. This feature is also available in Sansa. This player also works with many subscription services, and I like devices that offer more flexibility.

This player comes with a translucent white gel case, a neck strap, and earphones, although the foam pads which go over the earphones were missing. The manual was also very short and did not explain some of the features.

Overall, if you ask me, I'd rather get a more intuitive player with less storage for this price or pay a little extra for a better brand.

This is a very basic MP3 player. For example you can't select a band or album to play - you can just setup to play in order or randomly. Works for me but for many people this might be too basic. Everything else works great and is a great value for the money.

This was my 1st MP3 player and I'm glad I purchased it to try out. But, there are sooooo many better ones out there. I wanted one that would play audio books, this one does not. Don't know why the maker would not make it possible, since it's literally like playing music! This model made me feel like I purchased the first ever digital watch with the red dots - for those of you old enough to remember. The unit would do ebooks, but who can read books on something so small? Overall, I think this is good for a young teen.

On first impressions, the transcend T.sonic 850 looked impressive and as a definite option instead of an ipod. This unit has a good capacity, nice physical size (not too small, not too big...I find things that are too small too difficult to use), not a featherweight but it feels sturdy.

After charging the unit and turning it on, the displays is very bright and pretty easy to read even the text at about 6 points (though some of the font choices make reading the smaller text a little more difficult). The interface is very easy to navigate. When plugged in via a standard mini USB patch cable (ultimately, i would prefer a built in retractable USB interface, but its still a nice change from a proprietary plug like my previous Sandisk player) you can just drag and drop music files and even playlists. In the transfer mode, the player can also be used as a flash drive.

Sound quality is nothing extraordinary, but using the included earbuds the sound is better than average for units under $100. It is also nice that this player gives you the added features of an eBook reader, picture viewer, voice recorder, FM receiver and even movie viewer (haven't used it yet but that will come in handy to keep nephews and nieces during a night out or long car rides). Other niceties is a video conversion software, and a slideshow maker. I haven't used the player for a complete charge yet, but it is lithium ion that is supposed to be good for 22 hours, but I personally like to have AAA batteries that I can readily carry extras of.

I do have to give mention to the fact that I appreciated that the player was packaged with a neck strap, headphones (decent enough) and even a silicone skin to protect it from small bumps and "in pocket neighbors". Overall, I think this player is a good deal for the price and features, and would recommend to anyone unwilling to shell out the hundreds needed for an IPOD.

The Transcend T. sonic 850 is an incredible little device. First, it is an MP3 player and FM radio tuner. Great for music...however, it also can be used for recording classes, lectures, etc...! Seriously, this is great. My daughter is a senior in high school taking pretty tough classes and is also a school newpaper "reporter" who uses this handy dandy device to record her "interviews" and her class lectures! Everyone who sees this wants one. My son, sophmore, made me get him one for his latin lectures and chemistry labs. I have to buy another one for myself to use in my massage room for my favorite massage music. These are just a very few of the possible uses of this device. The video is also pretty amazing. I downloaded a little show just to check it out and it was fantastic quality. I am so happy with this item! Will be buying a few more for family!