I have an ipod and a Sansa e280. Got the e280 for $139 at Costco. It sounds every bit as good as the ipod to me. Here are the specs. Great buy if it fits your needs.

chas
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World’s first 8GB Flash MP3 player, the largest capacity in the market
Sleek, thin design with large 1.8” TFT color screen for easy viewing
Strong alloy metal casing provides excellent durability and scratch resistance
Simple to use, backlit controls for fast device interface navigation
User replaceable and rechargeable Lithium Ion battery for up to 20 hours of battery life
Includes the Sansa Media Converter to support all picture and video formats
Features microSD™ expansion slot for additional memory capacity
Supports SanDisk TrustedFlash and Gruvi content cards
Digital FM tuner, on-the-fly FM recording, and voice recording
Supports Subscription Music Stores