• Getting Started

• Determine How Much Storage You Need

• All about iPods

• Find MP3 Players on eBay

• Buy MP3 Players with Confidence

Getting Started

Getting Started

Different types of MP3 players (hard drive-based, flash-based, and MP3/CD) work best for different types of people. Before you buy, use this guide to figure out how you plan to use your player most.

Music all day long

Stay entertained at the office, during your commute, or at home with a hard-drive MP3 player. These players offer huge amounts of storage compared to flash-based players, making them the perfect choice for anyone who wants to listen to a large selection of music over a long period of time. Unfortunately, hard drives have movable parts that can be damaged by high-impact movement, making hard drive-based MP3 players less suitable for people who want to listen to music while exercising.

Popular hard-drive MP3 players include the Apple iPod, Apple iPod Mini , and iRiver

Listen while exercising!

Invigorating music livens up any workout. Skip the movable parts, which can be damaged with a lot of movement, and look at flash-based MP3 players. Many include a radio tuner and voice recorder and some even support Secure Digital cards, CompactFlash, SmartMedia cards, or MultiMediaCards, relatively inexpensive memory cards also used by digital cameras and some PDAs. If you already use a memory card for other devices, buy a player that supports the same type of memory card, and use your storage media with all your devices. Popular flash-based MP3 players include the Apple iPod Shuffle, iRiver iFP series, and Sony.

It's flexible and inexpensive

All of us want to save a little money. Although hard drive-based players often give you a better value per megabyte, flash-based MP3 players (see shopping recommendations above) and MP3/CD players usually cost less overall. If you like to burn CDs, seriously consider MP3/CD players. They play back audio CDs as well as MP3s burned to CD and look like traditional portable CD players. Some even include an FM radio tuner so you can listen to your favourite local stations. Popular MP3/CD players include Sony, Panasonic and Fujitel .

Determine How Much Storage You Need

Determine How Much Storage You Need

eBay sellers list an MP3 player's storage capacity by megabyte (MB) or gigabyte (GB). One megabyte (1MB) equals about one minute of CD-quality MP3 music.

Hard drive MP3 players

Office-dwellers will want enough storage to stay entertained throughout the day. A hard drive-based player with 4GB of storage holds about 1,000 songs, a player with 20GB of storage holds about 5,000 songs, and a player with a 60GB hard drive can hold as many as 15,000 songs. Keep in mind that you can use your MP3 player as a portable hard drive, storing data files on the space you don't use for music. Digital photo enthusiasts should consider a 30GB or 60GB iPod Photo which has a colour screen that can display your JPEG, BMP, GIF, TIFF or PNG images individually or as a slideshow.  

Flash-based MP3 players

If you plan on using your player for an hour at the gym every day, you don't need a ton of storage space. 64MB will let you store about one hour of MP3 music, which comes out to about 32 songs. If you want to mix things up with more song options, invest in more storage. Remember, some flash-based players support memory cards. A 512MB card can keep you groovin' for up to eight hours, or you could keep several smaller cards handy with different music on each one.

All about iPods

All about iPods

eBay has a large selection of Apple iPods, one of the most popular MP3 players on the market, on eBay. You'll see everything from first-generation players to the latest fourth-generation iPods and the new iPod Nano. When you read an iPod item description on eBay, find out which accessories a seller includes. To get started, you'll generally need a dock, headphones (sometimes called earbud headphones), and a FireWire cable or USB 2.0 cable.

• iPod Shuffle: Apple's flash-based player, iPod Shuffle, comes in 512MB and 1GB sizes. It's about the size of a pack of gum and doesn't have a screen, playing back songs on random (shuffle) or in the order they were put on the player. It connects directly to your computer via USB and does not use a dock with cables. Since it doesn't have movable parts, it makes a great player for people who love to exercise.

• iPod nano: The iPod nano is the latest and completely redesigned offering from Apple. Instead of hard drives, the Nano's storage is all solid state flash memory - 4 GB of it. It also has ridiculously small dimensions and is definitely the must have gadget of the season.

• iPod: Apple's fourth-generation (4G) 20GB and 60GB iPods features a click wheel and offers battery life up to 12 hours. You can also find slightly older 40GB versions on the market.

• Apple iPod from HP: The 4G Apple iPod from HP marketed by Hewlett-Packard comes pre-formatted for Windows and the HP logo appears on the back.

• iPod U2 Special Edition: iPod U2 Special Edition includes all the features of the 4G iPod. The sleek black case includes a red click wheel and autographs from members of U2 (yes, the band) on the back.

Buy a retired iPod

First-, second-, and third-generation iPods cost less than their 4G counterpart, but you need to consider a few things when buying one.

• Windows compatibility: First and second-generation (1G and 2G, respectively) players usually require additional third-party software to work with Windows. Third-generation (3G) players come with a Windows installation utility.

• Battery life: iPods use rechargeable lithium-ion batteries, which you can recharge between 300 and 450 times. After that, the battery dies completely. A replacement battery for an iPod no longer under warranty runs $99 from Apple. If you're concerned, verify with the seller that the battery still works or was recently replaced.

• Connections: First and second-generation (1G and 2G) players have a FireWire data port at the top while third-generation (3G) players use a connector dock. Make sure a dock is included with players that have lower storage capacity.

• The wheel: How you select iPod menu options varies from generation to generation. 1G players have a mechanical scroll wheel, 2G players use a touch-sensitive non-moving wheel surrounded by mechanical buttons, and 3G players use touch-sensitive buttons. If you like 3G players, but don't want to accidentally select things off the menu with the touch-sensitive buttons, go with a 4G player.

iPod accessories

Whether you want to spice up your player with a new cover or charge it in the car, you can get everything you need to integrate your iPod into your life on eBay.

• iPod on the go: When you want to take your iPod out into the world, you'll need a protective case or exercise-ready carrying case to protect it. You may also want to personalize it with skins, different headsets, and more.

• iPod at home: Use your iPod as a stereo by integrating it with speakers and a remote control.

• iPod in the car: Take your music collection on the road with a cassette adapter, FM transmitter, car holder or  kit, and car charger.

Find MP3 Players on eBay

Find MP3 Players on eBay

Now that you know what to buy, narrowing down item listings to the MP3 player you want shouldn't take much time. From the Consumer Electronics portal, click the MP3 Players link under MP3 Players, and start searching for items on eBay.

• Categories: If you know what brand you want to buy, select it from the Categories list on the left side of the page. When shopping for an iPod, make the Categories list your best friend. It will help you narrow down your choices by make and storage capacity in a couple seconds.

• Keyword Search: Let eBay find items for you by entering the keywords you want to find into the search box. For example, if you want a new 512MB flash-based player from iRiver, type "new iriver 512mb flash" into the search box. If you want a player that's still under warranty, type "warranty" in the search box. Visit eBay's Search Tips page for more advice about searching with keywords.

• 1 Paisa Auctions: Avail the best of all deals on 1Paisa Auctions. To search for 1 Paisa Auctions, go to the top of any page in ebay.in and click on "Advanced Search". When in the advanced search page, go to the section named "Show Only" and click the check box against "Items starting at Rs. 1". Click on the "Search" button and you will be shown the list of all 1 Paisa Auctions. You can narrow your search by selecting the various options available in advanced search.

If you can't seem to find exactly what you want on eBay, try shopping at an eBay Store, tell the eBay community what you want by creating a post on Want It Now, or save a search on MyeBay and eBay will email you when a match becomes available.

Buy MP3 Players with Confidence

Buy MP3 Players with Confidence

Take a couple of seconds to research your seller so you feel positive and secure about every transaction.

Know your purchase

• Figure delivery costs into your final price. If you spend a lot of money, make sure the seller will insure the item when it ships.

• Is the item you want still under warranty? If so, what are the terms? If you want more warranty information from a seller, ask by clicking the seller's "Ask seller a question" link under a seller's profile.

Know your seller

• What is the seller's Feedback rating? How many transactions have they completed? What percentage of positive responses do they have? Do they have a lot of Feedback for big-ticket items such as TVs? How long have they been selling these big-ticket items?

• What do buyers say in their Feedback? Did the seller receive praise?

• Does the seller have a return policy? Most top eBay sellers operate like retail stores and have return policies. Do they offer a money back guarantee? What are the terms and conditions?

Buyer protection

• Pay safely with PaisaPay: PaisaPay enables you to pay without the seller ever seeing your bank account or credit card numbers. In fact, PaisaPay protects buyers 100% against unauthorised payments from their accounts. Plus, with eBay Standard Purchase Protection, your purchase can be covered up to Rs.10,000..

• eBay Security & Resolution Centre: Visit the Security & Resolution Center to learn how to protect your account and use eBay's quick and efficient resolution tools.