One of the reasons I bought an N900 was so I could put a 16GB microSD card in it and use it as an mp3 player. The N900 has 32GB of storage–about 26GB of that are available due to the N900 needing about 6GB for system files. Adding a 16GB SD card makes 40GB total available for files such as mp3s.

I don’t even have 40GB of mp3s on this device, because I need to save space for downloaded files, photos, etc. Right now I have maybe 35GB of music on my N900, split between the internal storage and the microSD card. This, by the way, from someone who nearly ran out of space on a 120GB Zune. 110GB – all music, no videos (the Zune Pass subscription service was primarily to blame).

Right now the device has 8,465 songs on it, according to the N900′s default media player.

So a few months ago I started a dastardly experiment. I took my Nokia N800 out of my closet, put two 32GB SDHC cards in it, and tried it out as a 64GB flash-storage mp3 player. Results? Slow, sluggish, and to top it off there were no mp3 player apps I was happy with. I cannibalized the project, using one of the 32GB cards as an easily swappable storage drive for work files, and the other card became a backup of the first that I carry on my person.

The N800, however, still hasn’t made it back into my closet. This is due, more than anything else, to the amazing speakers on this device. I used to wear headphones while I cooked or washed dishes. Now I bring my N800, which has a 4GB card full of music, prop it up, and let it’s speakers fill the kitchen. It’s not extremely loud, but it’s loud enough and still sounds really good considering how tiny the device is.

I also keep it in my shirt pocket as I’m playing video games, such as Uncharted 2 on crushing mode. I can’t wear headphones, as I need to hear if someone shooting at me, plus I still like to watch the cutscenes, but I can keep the game volume low and play music on the N800 during.

I have an eeePC 901 (netbook), and its speakers sound terrible. That’s the only way to describe them, terrible. I can watch some videos on it, movies or tv shows, but listening to music is out of the question. Keep in mind this is a 9″ netbook being compared to a 6″ internet tablet. In addition to the N800 sounding better than the 901, it’s actually louder. How did this happen?

This is, of course, another reason I’m anxious to get my hands on a N900, because I’ve heard the speakers aren’t quite as loud but they’re still fairly loud and sound pretty good. So maybe when I get my hands on an N900 I’ll be able to finally put my N800 back in the closet. Until then, I don’t see it going anywhere.

Lark

I think most people who follow technology have operated under the assumption that solid-state flash drives (SSD) will eventually replace hard drives (HDD). SSDs have many benefits over HDDs. They’re more energy efficient, they tend to be faster, and there are no moving parts, so they’re much more forgiving of drops and kinetic energy in general. I’ve been waiting for years for flash drives to increase their capacities and drop in price so I could finally get a nice SSD-based 60GB-120GB mp3 player.

I have a 120GB Zune right now, using 87 GB of it, yet I’m willing to downgrade to 60 GB to get a flash-based player. I’ll be honest, I want to change for many reasons not related to SSD vs HDD–the Zune doesn’t play nice with other OSs, it’s a pain to update, and I hate the interface including the fact that I have to browse by id3 tag. Since I will be changing mp3 players soon, and because flash drives are at the point they should be showing up in larger capacity mp3 players, I really want my next player to have an SSD.

There actually is a 64 GB flash-based player in the US. It’s an iPod. What the fuck?

Early adopters get screwed. Still not convinced? I’ll bet you are, but let me elaborate more, this time using the mp3 as an example.

Yesterday I was talking with a friend of mine about the Zune Pass. In defending it, I actually talked myself into subscribing. Ok, I haven’t subscribed yet, but I did just initiate their 14-day trial. It hasn’t even been 24 hours yet and I’m already sold.