As someone else said, get yourself a small and cheap Flash based one
first to see if you actually use it. The device does not need to
support play lists etc as when you rip your CD collection to MP3 you
can automatically store them by artist, album or whatever and then
simply drag'n'drop to the flash drive.
I'd recommend the Creative NuVo FM as it plugs straight in like a USB
stick, no cables required. Runs from a single AAA. Doubles as a USB
stick too of course!
The MuVo is excellent for audio books at it automatically restarts
playing where it left off.
The flash based ones you can't beat the crap out of and use while doing
sports. The others (>2GB) are hard drive based and subject to shock
limits.
Ipod Nano = nice compact size, but no FM radio, no FM radio record, no
voice record, battery cannot be replaced except by experienced technicians,
no mains charger supplied (must use USB cable), no case supplied.
Yep, everything with the iPod is extra. Not getting a mains charger
sucks, non-replaceable battery sucks, can't play MP3 or WMA files (or
anything) without going through iTunes software sucks, no FM radio
sucks.
But it's trendy, sexy, works well when set up, and sounds quality is
excellent.
Iriver = larger size, has FM radio, can record from FM radio, has voice
record, battery is removable just like a mobile phone, comes with mains
charger and is supplied with a case that has a belt clip.
Zen is much like the Iriver but doesn't come with a carry case, not sure if
it comes with the mains charger either.
In my book the Zen would be the pick, it just "looks right" to me. One
model has a 24hour battery life at the expense of a bit more weight
(big deal), I'll take the extra battery life any day. Zen I think
claims to have the best SNR and sound quality.
In the end though, you can't go wrong with iPod, Creative or iRiver.
Dave