Home > Consumer Reviews > Creative Zen Stone Plus MP3 Player With In-Built Speaker - Blue

I read many reviews about this model and decided to take the plunge and for £29 I am so pleased I did! I am not the most technically minded of people but I found it very easy to start loading podcasts and music. The player is very small - fits in the palm of your hand - but it packs an excellent speaker which I have found very useful indeed; the sound isn't bad at all given its size. The radio also works a treat if you have a good signal. I do not regret my purchase at all as I now have a fully mobile mini music centre!!!!

The main reason I bought the Creative Zen Stone Plus with built in speaker(pink) was the radio and that built in speaker. The radio is a waste of time though. Reception is very poor even though I live in an area with a very strong FM signal. All the other radios in the house have crystal clear FM reception (including the FM radio on my partners Sony Ericsson K750i mobile phone). If you have the patience and can put up with very loud static while you shuffle about the room seeking that elusive hot spot, you might eventually find one. Don't move though or you'll lose it. No good then for listening while walking the dog. I wondered if my player was faulty and contacted the Creative Support Team two days after purchasing it to discuss. After some rather stilted and weird email communication from them (they didn't read my email properly regarding the problem nor did they actually answer any of my queries) I took it back to the store and they happily exchanged it for another one. The reception on the new one is slightly better but not by much. I have decided to live with it (even though i am not happy and have since noticed that somebody else has notified of the same problem on the Creative web site user discussion forum) because I really love that speaker...it really is fun! Obviously it's a thin sound but never harsh. Music or spoken word you find yourself getting totally immersed in the listening because somehow, despite its size it manages to deliver real ambience. The microphone is ok for recording as long as the source is right next to the mic. Anything else it doesn't pick up. No good for recording lectures as I have seen bandied about by the manufacturers! As you might have read elsewhere, the way files and menus are managed on the Zen Stones is not ideal. However, as far as i know no other player has this built in speaker so there's no other option if you want this feature. Supplied software is excellent and easy to use, the player feels gorgeous tucked in your hand as so small and screen very clear. Creative should sort that radio out though because it really is not acceptable. I have had to take this into consideration with my rating.

I wonder if the previous reviewer has a faulty radio! I have had my Zen Stone Plus since last July and regularly use the radio when walking the dog (in South Wales). It also works well in North East Wales, Scotland, Northern Ireland and the North East and South East of England ( I haven't tried it anywhere else). I have even used the radio on the train. I am delighted with both the radio and MP3 player and would recommend it to anyone who wants a cost effective, truly portable MP3 player with radio functionality.

I bought this for my 7 year old daughter because it has a speaker and she likes to share her music with friends. I didn't have high hopes for the speaker but it's excellent. Given the size of the device the speaker is astonishingly good.

The radio is really poor; if you're thinking of buying this because it has a speaker and an FM radio you may want to think again. I have an old Creative MuVo MP3 player with an FM radio that is really strong so why 5 years later Creative have produced such a poor radio is a mystery. The radio is effectively unusable.

The menu system is a bit awkward but not terrible. Getting music etc into the Stone Plus is a doddle.

The flashing LED that tells you the thing is on can be seen from a few miles away; I have no views on this being good or bad but it's certainly eye-catching in the dark.

However, my daughter loves her Stone so we're all happy with it.

It's well built, looks nice and the sound quality is good so for what we wanted and at this price it's good.

Received this and followed the instructions to the letter; it was charged for the correct length of time prior to use. It worked fine the first time, the sound was great and the functions easy to use. However, then I went to turn it on for the second time....hmmm, after ten minutes I gave up, and that's been the story ever since. I sent the first player back and received a second one after some time - I couldn't believe it, it suffered exactly the same problem and has now been binned. This is the most temperamental piece of equipment I've ever used. It is essentially useless. If I take it on the bus to work I can spend the whole 30min journey trying to get it to turn on, another time it will work first time; but not very often. It is totally frustrating and I'm obviously not the only person to find this problem infuriating. You might be lucky and get a 5 star one which works, but I've received 2 duds, don't waste your money.