Sansa e200 series
Encyclopedia
The Sansa e200 series is a portable media player
developed by SanDisk
, and released on January 5, 2006. The device is available in four capacities of Flash memory
: 2 GB (e250), 4 GB (e260), 6 GB (e270), and 8 GB (e280). All players have a 1.8-inch, TFT LCD display with a resolution of 176 by 220 pixels. Certain files, if not in a format accepted by the player, must first be converted with the Sansa Media Converter Windows software. This will convert images to bitmap format (.bmp) and videos to MJPEG
(in a .mov container), for v1 models. On v2 players it will convert videos to DivX
and simply resize images. It is not possible to simply copy videos to the device, even if they seem to be in the correct format; trying to access them displays an error message.
content. The players are powered by a user-replaceable (offered as replacement set by SanDisk and some competitors) lithium ion battery
that is also rechargeable, and come with a built-in expansion slot for microSD cards, an FM tuner with a recording function (only available in North America, Japan, New Zealand, Australia and some other countries), and microphone for voice recording.
SanDisk released a version 2 of the e200 series in December 2007 with internal hardware different from the first version. Version 2 changes include support for Rhapsody channels through RhapPFS DRM (Plays For Sure enhanced to support Rhapsody channels), support for Audible audio books, microSDHC, and DivX, and also has a different boot screen and adds the ability to format the device, among other minor improvements.
firmware also supports the e200 series just as it supports the c200 series, and adds the same features.
The standard firmware for e200 models with version 1 hardware is not compatible with the newer microSDHC format (generally 4GB and higher); Rockbox
firmware adds this support. Rockbox also supports e200 models with version 2 hardware.
A number of bugs in the firmware cause problems. One introduces a 0.2 second delay between tracks, even those that are consecutive to a given album. This is most noticeable on musical tracks where the song does not fade completely out before the next begins. Artists whose names begin with "The" are listed incorrectly as well. For unknown reasons, the order of tracks on a given album play in alphabetical order, seriously disrupting the continuity of the listening experience.
The early firmware for version 2 units (firmware version information is under Settings >> Info) removed the ability for unsupported operating systems (Linux, FreeBSD, and etc.) to see the internal storage as a standard flash drive when plugged in via the USB port. Version 1 players had a menu option under the Settings menu for storage mode that could be toggled to show up as standard USB flash drive. For V2 Sansa players with firmware version V03.01.11, this option has been completely removed from the settings menu. Upgrading to later firmware versions, V03.01.14 or V03.01.16 will restore the USB Mode menu option under the Settings menu. Under the USB Mode menu are be three choices - Auto Detect, Media Transfer Protocol
(MTP), and USB mass-storage class
(MSC). MSC is Mass Storage Class where the computer would see the Sansa as a regular flash drive. MTP is Media Transfer Protocol which is a Microsoft-specific mode invented to deal with media files that include Digital Rights Management
.
Portable media player
A portable media player or digital audio player, is a consumer electronics device that is capable of storing and playing digital media such as audio, images, video, documents, etc. the data is typically stored on a hard drive, microdrive, or flash memory. In contrast, analog portable audio...
developed by SanDisk
SanDisk
SanDisk Corporation is an American multinational corporation that designs, develops and manufactures data storage solutions in a range of form factors using the flash memory, controller and firmware technologies. It was founded in 1988 by Dr. Eli Harari and Sanjay Mehrotra, non-volatile memory...
, and released on January 5, 2006. The device is available in four capacities of Flash memory
Flash memory
Flash memory is a non-volatile computer storage chip that can be electrically erased and reprogrammed. It was developed from EEPROM and must be erased in fairly large blocks before these can be rewritten with new data...
: 2 GB (e250), 4 GB (e260), 6 GB (e270), and 8 GB (e280). All players have a 1.8-inch, TFT LCD display with a resolution of 176 by 220 pixels. Certain files, if not in a format accepted by the player, must first be converted with the Sansa Media Converter Windows software. This will convert images to bitmap format (.bmp) and videos to MJPEG
MJPEG
In multimedia, Motion JPEG is an informal name for a class of video formats where each video frame or interlaced field of a digital video sequence is separately compressed as a JPEG image...
(in a .mov container), for v1 models. On v2 players it will convert videos to DivX
DivX
DivX is a brand name of products created by DivX, Inc. , including the DivX Codec which has become popular due to its ability to compress lengthy video segments into small sizes while maintaining relatively high visual quality.There are two DivX codecs; the regular MPEG-4 Part 2 DivX codec and the...
and simply resize images. It is not possible to simply copy videos to the device, even if they seem to be in the correct format; trying to access them displays an error message.
Features
The Sansa e200 series can display album art and display song information, thanks to the audio files' ID3ID3
ID3 is a metadata container most often used in conjunction with the MP3 audio file format. It allows information such as the title, artist, album, track number, and other information about the file to be stored in the file itself....
content. The players are powered by a user-replaceable (offered as replacement set by SanDisk and some competitors) lithium ion battery
Lithium ion battery
A lithium-ion battery is a family of rechargeable battery types in which lithium ions move from the negative electrode to the positive electrode during discharge, and back when charging. Chemistry, performance, cost, and safety characteristics vary across LIB types...
that is also rechargeable, and come with a built-in expansion slot for microSD cards, an FM tuner with a recording function (only available in North America, Japan, New Zealand, Australia and some other countries), and microphone for voice recording.
SanDisk released a version 2 of the e200 series in December 2007 with internal hardware different from the first version. Version 2 changes include support for Rhapsody channels through RhapPFS DRM (Plays For Sure enhanced to support Rhapsody channels), support for Audible audio books, microSDHC, and DivX, and also has a different boot screen and adds the ability to format the device, among other minor improvements.
Issues
The player lacks Asian text support when displaying song names and artists, but users can patch the firmware to add support. RockboxRockbox
Rockbox is a replacement for the standard firmware in various forms of digital audio players . It offers an alternative to the player's operating system, in many cases without removing the original firmware, which provides a plug-in architecture for adding various enhancements and functions...
firmware also supports the e200 series just as it supports the c200 series, and adds the same features.
The standard firmware for e200 models with version 1 hardware is not compatible with the newer microSDHC format (generally 4GB and higher); Rockbox
Rockbox
Rockbox is a replacement for the standard firmware in various forms of digital audio players . It offers an alternative to the player's operating system, in many cases without removing the original firmware, which provides a plug-in architecture for adding various enhancements and functions...
firmware adds this support. Rockbox also supports e200 models with version 2 hardware.
A number of bugs in the firmware cause problems. One introduces a 0.2 second delay between tracks, even those that are consecutive to a given album. This is most noticeable on musical tracks where the song does not fade completely out before the next begins. Artists whose names begin with "The" are listed incorrectly as well. For unknown reasons, the order of tracks on a given album play in alphabetical order, seriously disrupting the continuity of the listening experience.
The early firmware for version 2 units (firmware version information is under Settings >> Info) removed the ability for unsupported operating systems (Linux, FreeBSD, and etc.) to see the internal storage as a standard flash drive when plugged in via the USB port. Version 1 players had a menu option under the Settings menu for storage mode that could be toggled to show up as standard USB flash drive. For V2 Sansa players with firmware version V03.01.11, this option has been completely removed from the settings menu. Upgrading to later firmware versions, V03.01.14 or V03.01.16 will restore the USB Mode menu option under the Settings menu. Under the USB Mode menu are be three choices - Auto Detect, Media Transfer Protocol
Media Transfer Protocol
The Media Transfer Protocol is a devised set of custom extensions to the Picture Transfer Protocol . Whereas PTP was designed for downloading photographs from digital cameras, Media Transfer Protocol supports the transfer of music files on digital audio players and media files on portable media...
(MTP), and USB mass-storage class
USB mass storage device class
The USB mass storage device class, otherwise known as USB MSC or UMS, is a protocol that allows a Universal Serial Bus device to become accessible to a host computing device, to enable file transfers between the two...
(MSC). MSC is Mass Storage Class where the computer would see the Sansa as a regular flash drive. MTP is Media Transfer Protocol which is a Microsoft-specific mode invented to deal with media files that include Digital Rights Management
Digital rights management
Digital rights management is a class of access control technologies that are used by hardware manufacturers, publishers, copyright holders and individuals with the intent to limit the use of digital content and devices after sale. DRM is any technology that inhibits uses of digital content that...
.