Zen Hints and Tips

[ZenChick]

Since it's already starting to head in that direction anyways, I've redesignated this thread as the general "Hints, Tips, and Common Questions" thread and retitled it accordingly. Please feel free to post your hints and tips here. As this thread grows, I can start working out a FAQ thread or subforum based on the information here.

Cheers!

[CrowdAds]

[covertrussian]

Originally Posted by ZenChick

Since it's already starting to head in that direction anyways, I've redesignated this thread as the general "Hints, Tips, and Common Questions" thread and retitled it accordingly. Please feel free to post your hints and tips here. As this thread grows, I can start working out a FAQ thread or subforum based on the information here.

Cheers!

Yay my thread got a sticky - I know I'm easily amused

[Nujabez]

Does anyone know how much mW output the creative zen has?

[Serpiko]

Hello all

i just ordered my zen (a 16gb cause their shop wouldn't lemme use my card to order a 32gb one :s ) and i've been meaning to ask something.

Can somebody tell me about what video formats can the zen play?

i mean everything about them, bitrate, size, sound codec, video codec.. i've read that the provided software sometimes fails to transcode video files and that would be a deal breaker for me :S Maybe i can use another transcoder if i know the exact supported format.


thanx for answering

[werezenwolf]

Video playback formats: MJPEG, WMV9, MPEG4, XviD, DivX 4.x and DivX 5.x.
(XviD encoded files are playable if they are encoded as standard MPEG-4 Simple (SP) or Advanced Simple Profile (ASP) without GMC and QPEL support. This product is not certified by DivX Inc. and may not play all DivX 4 and DivX 5 files. Other formats, for example MPEG-1 and MPEG-2, may be transcoded with the bundled software. Appropriate codecs must be preinstalled.)

[Addie_Goodvibes]

Originally Posted by Giancarlo

I think both the Zen and Insignia have their own strong points. It just comes down to personal taste. I still dispute the claim of bad SD support.

What is your dispute/Opinion of the SD card Integration of the Zen?

[Addie_Goodvibes]

I just got off the Phone with Creative Rep & they informed me that the SD card integration has been fixed! So I am curious if any one here who recently purchased the Zen has had any problems with the SD card integration?

I know many on here have owned their zen for quite some time, but out of those who recently purchased one, please rpovide your Feedback on the SD card in the Zens that are shipping out in the past month or so!

[Qboi]

that's just a customer rep giving you bs.

total integration would be like the cowon d2. if you plug in an 8gb sd card into an 8gb zen, it should give you a singular amount of 16gb total memory, not two separate hard drives.

i dont mind it at all, since i only use an SD card in case i want to carry a large amount of movies with me, but some other people do

[Claire]

Hello! For Christmas I was able to convince my mom that a Zen would be much better than the new Ipod nano. It can do basically everything one can, plus it's memory card accessible! The only problem is, I didn't know you had to have windows XP in order to install the program. I've been looking for some sort of program I could download that can allow me to upload songs and other media onto my new Zen but haven't been able to find one. Then I read somewhere else that it's supported by itunes. Is this true?

I would appreciate some light on this probably well covered subject, thanks! ;D

[Valdr]

Not exactly. it's not supported by itunes, it supports AAC files converted with itunes. You still need something that handles MT protocol. What system do you use?

[Buzzkill]

Originally Posted by Claire

Hello! For Christmas I was able to convince my mom that a Zen would be much better than the new Ipod nano. It can do basically everything one can, plus it's memory card accessible! The only problem is, I didn't know you had to have windows XP in order to install the program. I've been looking for some sort of program I could download that can allow me to upload songs and other media onto my new Zen but haven't been able to find one. Then I read somewhere else that it's supported by itunes. Is this true?

I would appreciate some light on this probably well covered subject, thanks! ;D

What OS do you have?

[Claire]

Windows 2000

[poples]

Couple of n00b questions for your enjoyment.

1. Is there any hope/chance that a future firmware update would add file name/folder browsing to Zen? Or is it a question of hardware that cannot be fixed?

2. I've understood that a firmware update made it possible to transfer files from SD card to internal memory. Is this correct?

3. Would it be possible for me to live with just ID3-browsing? It seems like a big issue right now, but since so many people are happily using Zen, I guess...

I'm having great difficulties choosing between Zen and D2, they both have their strong points and weaknesses... yet neither one has a removable battery, which was one of the main things I was looking for in a PMP/DAP/OMG/WTF/BBQ. I should get a custom-made player, that would work.

[Buzzkill]

Originally Posted by poples

Couple of n00b questions for your enjoyment.

1. Is there any hope/chance that a future firmware update would add file name/folder browsing to Zen? Or is it a question of hardware that cannot be fixed?

2. I've understood that a firmware update made it possible to transfer files from SD card to internal memory. Is this correct?

3. Would it be possible for me to live with just ID3-browsing? It seems like a big issue right now, but since so many people are happily using Zen, I guess...

I'm having great difficulties choosing between Zen and D2, they both have their strong points and weaknesses... yet neither one has a removable battery, which was one of the main things I was looking for in a PMP/DAP/OMG/WTF/BBQ. I should get a custom-made player, that would work.

1. Not sure. Prob. not gnna happen.

2. You are correct.

3. Yes, it is. I have adapted. Many programs will auto-tag songs.Media Monket, et.

4. Not sure. D2 is too large for me.

[poples]

Originally Posted by Buzzkill

1. Not sure. Prob. not gnna happen.

2. You are correct.

3. Yes, it is. I have adapted. Many programs will auto-tag songs.Media Monket, et.

4. Not sure. D2 is too large for me.

Thanks for your input, Buzzkill. Size does matter indeed. I'll propably have to make my decision based on which player I can get my hands on here in Melbourne cause ordering online from overseas is too much of a hassle. Not the ordering itself, but warranty issues and such.

[Buzzkill]

Originally Posted by poples

Thanks for your input, Buzzkill. Size does matter indeed. I'll propably have to make my decision based on which player I can get my hands on here in Melbourne cause ordering online from overseas is too much of a hassle. Not the ordering itself, but warranty issues and such.

This is key with most personal digital devices. Many units don't live up to consumers expectations and to buy the device from a store you can easily return it makes a 10% higher price worth it.

[poples]

Originally Posted by Buzzkill

This is key with most personal digital devices. Many units don't live up to consumers expectations and to buy the device from a store you can easily return it makes a 10% higher price worth it.

If only the price was just a measly 10% higher... JB Hi-Fi (in Melbourne) sells 8 gig Zen for 269.00 whereas I could get one from bhphotovideo.com for 197.00 (incl. S&H). Oh well. It's just money.

[bodotdot]

Originally Posted by Claire

Windows 2000

Claire--

Were you able to get the Zen software to work? I also am running Windows 2000 and would really like to get a Zen. Have you made it work? If so, what did you do? Can you drag-and-drop files without the Zen software?

[BobbyRS]

You can try this:

I saw this on Creative's forum a while back.....

For Windows 2000:

1. Download the drivers with support for the Zen.

2. Unpack & Install MTP9x-2k.EXE

3. Choose ctpdmtp.inf & click right mouse button & select Install

4. Restart Windows

5. When Windows has booted up again plug your ZEN in to a USB port, if it askes for a driver please refer it to the ctpdmtp.inf file.

Let us know how it works. Good luck!

[bodotdot]

I don't know what to do here. I'm running WIN2k and am trying to get my new Zen recognized. I'm installing new hardware, called it a Windows Mobile Device, selected "Creative Vision V," and have followed the instructions above. I'm up to the point where I'm about to install the ctpdmtp.inf file, and I get a warning which says something like "Installation of this driver is not recommended" because it's not recognized, and it also says installation may cause my computer and my device (the new Zen) to not work properly or at all.
Is this driver safe to install? Should I go ahead and click "yes," or am I doing something wrong?