Creative's DAP is a different creature from the rest of the MP3 devices in this group. It's an MP3 jukebox and its main advantage over a conventional player is that you can record over 100 hours of audio (around 150 albums worth) on it at one time - more than many people's entire music collections.

DAP uses a 6GB hard drive to hold and play back MP3 or WMA format music files. This has two immediate consequences - three if you include the price. First, the DAP player is much bigger than most MP3 players, close to the size of a portable CD player. Second, it needs reasonably careful handling; using a hard drive, with its delicate moving parts, instead of solid state memory, means you should handle it with the same care as a notebook. Finally, it costs nearly as much as two conventional MP3 players.

The device is easy to use, with an eight-line, back-lit LCD display showing details of your music. You can set up your own playlists and view track names and artist details using an array of 11 buttons on its top surface.

The PC-based software consists of Play Center, which converts CD tracks, manages your music and downloads it from Internet and to the DAP, Lava, which displays 3D visuals for your music, and MediaRing Talk which, rather incongruously, is an Internet phone utility.

Overall, this is a great system for those with a lot of music and no desire to go jogging. Treat it gently and you can take all your music with you.

Creative - DAP Jukebox price

£379 inc. VAT

Creative: 01189 344322