The SanDisk Sansa is a line of 2 to 16 gigabyte flash memory-based digital audio players and portable media players produced by SanDisk.
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The Sansa Fuze+, announced on August 31, 2010 in capacities of 4 GB (US$79), 8 GB (US$89) & 16 GB (US$119), is a portable media player with a 2.4-inch color display (QVGA) and touch capability. It also features an FM radio with FM recording, a voice recorder, and 24 hours of audio playback from a single charge. It supports the following audio formats: MP3, WMA, Secure WMA, Ogg Vorbis, FLAC, AAC, Audible, Podcasts. For video it supports MPEG-4, H.264, and WMV. Storage is expandable via a microSDHC slot, and it can be used to play slotMusic and slotRadio cards.
On August 31, 2009,[1] SanDisk released a redesign of the Sansa Clip called the Sansa Clip+, cosmetically similar to the Clip and maintaining its basic design, audio hardware, compatibility, and 4-line OLED screen, but with a few significant differences. There are 2 GB (black), 4 GB (black, red, blue, white or indigo) and 8 GB (black) models. The case has been redesigned to look more square (including the navigation pad, which is also no longer backlit) and is constructed of higher-quality plastic,[2] the clip is no longer removable, and the player now supports folder browsing and ReplayGain support. Transition times between tracks was reduced, but Sandisk officially declined to support gapless playback.[3] A microSD card slot has been added, allowing the memory of the device to be expanded up to an additional 32 GB. The Clip+ also has added features when playing slotMusic and slotRadio. To make room for the microSD slot there have been some changes from the old Clip, including moving the volume switch to the left side of the device and changing the power/hold switch to a simple power button. Hold mode is now activated by holding the "Home" button on the device. Like previous Clip and Fuze products, the Clip+ retained a directly coupled headphone amplifier, allowing for highly accurate reproduction of bass frequencies and very low distortion on difficult to drive headphones.[4]
The Sansa Clip+ proved popular with audio enthusiasts and programmers because of its very low cost, excellent DAC, and relatively mature rockbox port, which substantially improved battery life and added features such as parametric EQ, completely gapless playback and AAC audio playback.[5]
The Clip+ replaced the discontinued Sansa Clip, with which is shared nearly identical hardware aside from the SD slot.[6]
On August 24, 2011, Sandisk announced the Sansa Clip Zip, an update to the Clip+. Two versions are available, a 4 GB model for US$50 and an 8 GB model for US$70. The 4 GB model comes in seven colours (red, blue, black, orange, white, grey and purple), while the 8 GB model is only available in black or grey.[7] The Clip Zip includes all the features of the Clip+ and is based on the same processor as the Clip+ and Fuze v2 but includes a larger 1.1-inch full-colour OLED display (with support for album art), redesigned controls, a new user interface similar to that of the Fuze+, a stopwatch, RDS radio capability[8] and support for DRM-free AAC audio files (such as those purchased from the iTunes Store).[9] The Clip Zip is the first model in the Sansa Clip line to include support for AAC files. The new Clip Zip will be sold alongside the Clip+. Internally the Clip Zip is identical to the Clip+, and so retains its high quality DAC and amplifier.
| Player | Processor | Vorbis | FLAC | AAC | Replaygain | Folder Browsing | Rockbox | Firmware |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Clip Zip | AS3525v2 | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Unstable | 01.01.18 |
| Clip+ | AS3525v2 | Yes | Yes | No | Yes | Yes | Stable | 01.02.16 |
| Clip v2 | AS3525v2 | Yes | Yes | No | Yes | No | Stable | 02.01.35 |
| Clip v1 | AS3525 | Yes | Yes | No | No | No | Stable | 01.01.35 |
| Fuze+ | i.mx233 | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Unusable | 02.38.06 |
| Fuze v2 | AS3525v2 | Yes | Yes | No | Yes | Yes | Stable | 02.03.33 |
| Fuze v1 | AS3525 | Yes | Yes | No | Yes | Yes | Stable | 01.03.33 |
| e200v2 | AS3525 | No | No | No | No | No | Stable | 03.01.16 |
| e200R | PP5024 | No | No | Yes | No | No | Stable | 1.0.2.165 |
| e200v1 | PP5024 | No | No | No | No | No | Stable | 01.02.24 |
| c200v2 | AS3525 | No | No | No | No | No | Unstable | 03.02.05 |
| c200v1 | PP5024 | No | No | No | No | No | Stable | 01.01.00 |
| m200v4 | AS3525 | No | No | No | No | No | Unusable | 4.1.08 |
| m200v123 | TCC770 | No | No | No | No | No | Unusable | ? |
| Connect | tms320 | No | No | No | No | No | Unusable | 1.2.0.53385 |
| c100 | TCC770 | No | No | No | No | No | Unusable | ? |
| View | PP6000 | No | No | Yes | No | No | No | 1.03.02 |
| Express | STMP 3630 | No | No | No | No | No | No | 1.01.12 |
Note: Refers to latest version of the SanDisk firmware. Earlier version may have fewer features. Vorbis, Flac, AAC, Replaygain and folder browsing are always included in Rockbox.
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The Sansa Fuze, released on March 28, 2008[11] in capacities of 2, 4 and 8 GB, is a portable media player with a 1.9-inch color display and a thickness of 0.3 inches. It also features a 40-preset FM radio with FM recording, a voice recorder, and has a 24-hour battery life on continuous audio playback. Storage is expandable via a microSDHC slot. Firmware 1.01.22 enabled FLAC and Ogg Vorbis playback. The latest firmwares, depending on hardware version, are 01.02.31, 02.03.31 and 02.03.33.[12]
Also known as the m300, the Sansa Clip was released on October 9, 2007.[13] The player is similar in size to the second-generation iPod Shuffle, but incorporates a removable clip and 4-line OLED screen (one line yellow, three blue.) The Clip has an FM tuner/recorder and a built-in microphone. The flash-based player ships in capacities of 1 GB (available only in black), 2 GB (available in black, blue, red and pink), and 4 GB (silver and black). In November 2008, black and silver 8 GB versions were advertised in the UK. The 8 GB version has been sold in Walmart stores in the U.S.A.[14]
Midway through production of the Clip, Sandisk updated to a new hardware design based on an updated Austriamicrosystems SOC. The updated design moderately improved battery life [15] by introducing a more efficient ARM9E processor in place of the previous ARM9 core. Aside from requiring different firmware upgrades, there were no functional changes to the software. The updated SOC would however form the basis for the Clip+ and Clip Zip products. Rockbox was released for the Clip v1 on Nov 21 2009, and then for the Clip v2 on May 14, 2010.[16]
Firmware version 01.01.29,[17] released in May 2008, enabled Ogg Vorbis compatibility for the Sansa Clip. The 01.01.30 firmware update improved OGG support and added FLAC support. The latest firmware packages for the Sansa Clip are 01.01.35 and 02.01.35, which depend on the hardware revision.[18]
The device (firmware 01.32+) has five folders: Audible (for Audible.com), Audiobooks (for files that you decide are audiobooks, allows for "bookmarking" of every file in this directory by a resume playback feature), Music, Podcasts (also allows every file in this directory to be resumed at a later time), Record (for recordings done on the device, these are in WAV file format). Bookmarks: Do not select "play previous"; this option will bring you to the beginning of a podcast or audiobook and the bookmark for that file will then be lost; if you turn the player off while it is playing then the file will automatically start playing the next time the device turns on. When the device is charged it turns on; that means that your bookmark could advance if you turn the device off while it is playing, and then you next plug it in to charge.
The Sansa Shaker is a screenless digital audio player and comes in colors of blue, red, white, and pink with an SD card slot. One 512 MB or 1 GB card is included, and cards up to 4 GB (non-SDHC) can be used. The tubular design is intended to be kid-friendly, and the player resembles a saltshaker, as it will randomly skip one, two or three songs when shaken. The Shaker plays up to 10 hours of continuous audio with a AAA battery, and has twin headphone jacks and a built-in speaker. The upper controller band adjusts volume and the lower controller band skips to next/previous song or fast forwards/rewinds the current song when held. Unlike other players, the Shaker only supports audio files in MP3, and when the memory card is taken out during playback, the player will emit an "uh-oh" sound. When the player's memory card is put back in, it makes a popping noise.
The Sansa Express is a flash-based digital audio player in capacities of 1 GB and 2 GB. It has a built-in USB connector and a 1.1-inch, duochromatic OLED display, a microSD slot, an FM tuner, a microphone for voice recording and an internal Lithium-Ion battery. It is also able to record FM radio and voice on its internal memory. This player is not considered as a descendant of the c200 series, as it only plays audio. It is more similar to the m200 series and maintains much of its design and internal software structure.
The Sansa c200 has a removable, lithium-ion rechargeable battery, FM tuner/recorder, and built-in microphone. It also features a 1.4-inch 132 x 80 pixel color display and a microSD card slot. The players are compatible with many accessories which were originally made for the Sansa e200 series. The Sansa c200 series is available in 1 GB (c240) and 2 GB (c250) capacities. Newer models, referred to as v. 2, have different hardware that added support for the Audible file format 2.[19] The packaging of the new models has been updated with the line "Supports Audible audio file formats". The free software Rockbox firmware includes a number of additional features, including support for microSDHC even on C200 v1 which enables adding up to 32 GB of storage capacity.
The Sansa e200 series is the name of four portable media players with various capacities, and was released on January 5, 2006.[20] It includes video player, FM tuner/recorder, voice recorder with built-in microphone, and picture viewer. The flash players are available in capacities of 2 GB (e250), 4 GB (e260), 6 GB (e270), and 8 GB (e280). There is also a microSD slot for up to 2 GB memory expansion. (Larger capacity microSDHC cards up to 32 GB are not supported by the original version 1 firmware but can be used with alternative Rockbox firmware, or on the version 2 player.)
The Sansa e200R was released in October 2006. Physically identical to the regular Sansa e200, this player is sold exclusively at retailer Best Buy or directly through Rhapsody. The player has a feature called Rhapsody Channels, which is the online service's brand of podcasting, and also comes with preloaded content. The Rhapsody firmware also added support for AAC audio files. A regular e200 could be flashed into an e200R and back again.[21]
The Sansa Connect is a Wi-Fi-enabled player that allows the user to connect to any open network in the area. The Mono/Linux-based device has a 2.2-inch TFT LCD screen, but unlike SanDisk's previous player, the e200 series, the Sansa Connect does not have the ability to connect via USB mass storage or tune to FM radio yet. The player was developed by ZING Systems in collaboration with SanDisk and Yahoo!, which provides music streaming via LAUNCHcast radio and a subscription download service. Viewing pictures from Flickr is also possible with the device. The Sansa Connect is currently only available in the United States in capacities of 4 GB. The storage capacity is expandable with microSD cards, currently giving the player up to an extra 2 GB of storage. At the 2007 Consumer Electronics Show, the Sansa Connect won the Best of Show award.[22] A new firmware update allows the player to support microSDHC cards up to a capacity of 8 GB and the playback of digital video.[23]
The original Sansa View was SanDisk's attempt at a portable media player, and had a 4-inch screen, built-in speaker and an expansion slot for SDHC and SD cards. It was announced on the 2007 Consumer Electronics Show. On June 1, 2007, SanDisk announced that the player had been shelved.[24] It has since been redesigned and launched.
The Sansa c100 series players have color displays and are able to show cover art and small picture thumbnails. They use AAA batteries and are available in 1 GB (c140) or 2 GB (c150) of capacity. They also have built in microphones for recording and settings they also have radio and music.
The Sansa m200 series are digital audio players that have been released in four models: m230 (512MB), m240 (1 GB), m250 (2 GB), and m260 (4 GB). The players have a built-in FM tuner and microphone, and supports MP3, WMA, WAV, and Audible (.aa) audio file formats. It comes in different colors (one for each memory size) such as blue, black, pink, and gray, and uses a single AAA battery for power. There were four different hardware revisions of this player. The first three revisions used a Telechips TCC770 SoC for a CPU and DSP, and the fourth using a chip developed by Austria Microsystems and also used in the Clip, Fuze and later e200/c200 models.
The Sansa e100 series is a monochromatic player with a blue backlight, FM tuner with 20 presets, SRS WOW technology, an SD expansion slot capable of using cards up to 2 GB (non-SDHC), internal memory of 512 MB (e130) or 1 GB (e140), depending on the model, and uses a single AAA battery for power. It supports MP3, WMA and Audible file formats. The e140 series also known as Sansa SDMX2. Released date is January 12, 2006.
The SanDisk SDMX1 (including SDMX1-1024, -512, and -256—reflecting capacity in MB), also known as the SanDisk Digital Audio Player, is a low-end solid state memory MP3 player. It was SanDisk's first personal media player, and the only one not to carry the Sansa brand. It can handle MP3, WMA and the protected WMA DRM files. It cannot play seamlessly, and imposes a non-configurable fade at the beginning and end of each file. There is a microphone for low-fidelity (8 kHz) voice recording, and there is a built in FM radio. The SanDisk SDMX1 is powered by a single AAA battery that gives around 15 hours of continuous playback. The dimensions are 75.2mm x 32.8mm x 20.8mm and weighing under 40 g (1.4 oz). Its release date was January 11, 2006.
Released October 26, 2007, the Sansa TakeTV is an easy to use plug-and-play storage device that allows the playback of DivX, Xvid, and M-PEG 4 files on an external display via the included dock and remote. Unlike other Sansa products, the TakeTV is not a digital audio player. The device comes in 4 and 8 GB. While the user is free to use his own videos, TakeTV comes with FanFare, a program similar to iTunes, allowing the user to purchase premium content. On December 11, NBC Universal signed up with SanDisk to provide content on FanFare after having left Apple Inc in a similar deal. The TakeTV along with FanFare was discontinued on May 15.[25]
In May 2006, SanDisk launched an anti-iPod campaign labelling iPod users as "iSheep", "iChimps", etc. These campaigns featured graffiti-type posters around urban areas and a website (iDont.com), in an effort to promote the e200 series. SanDisk has since replaced the iDont campaign with LilMonsta.com, which is also the name of the creature that resembles the player.[26] In June 2008, the LilMonsta.com was shut down in favor of the new website.
On September 3, 2006 SanDisk announced the "Made for Sansa" program, following the similar program by Apple inc for its iPod. With it, a number of 3rd party accessories have been released, including hardware accessories mostly for the proprietary 30-pin IO port featured on the e200, c200, Connect, View, and Fuze players.
Maki Goto, a Japanese pop artist has also endorsed the Sansa e200 series with a promotional video, featuring one of her songs.[27]
In 2007, SanDisk launched a Flash microsite to promote the line of MP3 players. ShopSansa.com (available only in North America, Australia and New Zealand) was later added as the official online store for the players, as well as third-party accessories and entertainment products such as console games and DVD movies.