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By Mike Joubert 10 May 2010

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MP3 players have lost a bit of ground over the past few years as the music playing abilities of cellphones have improved. They do come in handy though if you don’t want the bulk associated with playing your music through cellphones, for example in the gym or while jogging. SanDisk’s 8 GB Sansa Clip+ is a very good choice if you want to do any of those things. It’s about half the size of a matchbox, is dead easy to use and, as the name states, it contains a very handy clip to attach it to your clothes. This solution we think is much better than carrying your MP3 player on a lanyard around your neck or in your pocket.

Features
We come from a Sansa background and they’ve always served us well - from our initial 6 GB e270, going to the smaller 2 GB lil’ Monsta c250 and more recently the 4 GB Sansa Fuze. The Clip+ is no different, offering good sound quality, excellent battery life and a new microSD card slot to enlarge its music storing capacity, hence the + tag. This feature works well and the integration of the expanded memory is much better than that found on the e270. Having said that we simply didn’t use the feature much, mostly sticking with the original 4 GB on offer. But if you do have a few microSD or MicroSDHC cards lying around, it’s an easy way to add extra songs to your collection. In the US the microSD card slot can be used to play SanDisk’s slotRadio or slotMusic cards preloaded with music, but these are not available locally.
 
Why not shuffle?
The Clip+ might not be as small as the iPod shuffle, but to us a screen is very important, even if it’s just the tiny 1” OLED found on the Clip+. You don’t need to install additional music software to load the device with music - all you do is drag-and-drop the files into the appropriate folder. Also included are a voice recorder and a radio, which works fairly well on certain frequencies. That said, the Clip+ feels a bit plasticy and not all that solid. With a RRP of R699 the Clip+ knocks R200 off the R899 asking price on the 4 GB shuffle.
 
We like the Clip+ and found it perfect for sports because of the clip and its lightweight design. The microSD slot can come in handy for expanding the onboard memory, but we simply didn't have the need to make use of it. The Clip+ is dead easy to use and has a very decent battery life. You can pick one up at any Look and Listen and Makro stores nationwide for R699. 
PROS
Small design with a clip to attach, MicroSD expansion better integrated than other Sansa players, good battery life.
CONS
Feels a bit plasticy, MicroSD card slot exposed, no lock feature.
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