I purchased my Inovix iMP-117D MP3 player from Tesco for about £40. The player is easy to download and upload to. I use Windows Media Player to rip CD's, and then synchronise with the player. The recording function is okay - not the greatest of quality, but it compares well with my now ancient cassette Dictaphone. Battery life (one AAA battery) is good, and nearly reaches the claimed 8 hours. The headphones that came with this MP3 player were of the in-ear variety. They were not padded, and they were very uncomfortable after only a short period of wear. I replaced them with more conventional lightweight headphones. The connection between the MP3 player and the computer is via a cable (with a non-standard connector at the MP3 end) to the USB port. If you happen to not have the cable, then you won't be able to hook up to just any PC, which makes it a bit of a pain if you're round at a friend's home and you want to upload/download and you've left the cable somewhere else.

Overall, I like it, and I enjoy the sound quality that it produces, especially in the gym!