Part 1. How to Pick Up a Best Device for Audiobooks
The answer to what is the best audiobook MP3 player can be subjective because it has many things to do with everyone's preferences. For instance, a visual impaired old man may prefer a player with lossless audio quality while a young man may prefer a wide screen player which looks cool. For a child, a player with smaller size will fix him much better. Before buying, following factors are worth considering:
Portability
The scenario that you'd most likely listen to audiobooks is on the go such as walking, jogging, running or doing exercise. Unless you use the MP3 device at home, classroom or office, you should make sure to pick up one with light weight and compact size.
Display
As a gadget for listening audio files, we may not need to watch the screen all the time. But a big screen will help you operate the device and control the playback in a much easier way. Devices with small screens are cheaper but that doesn't mean they are with low quality. There can be best MP3 players out there with small displays.
Storage
Differs from a standard song which is only several MB in capacity, an unabridged audiobook can have as long as several hours length and several GB capacity. In order to load multiple audiobooks completely, you should make sure to have at least 4GB internal capacity. It would be better if your device supports external SD card.
File Format Compatibility
Nowadays many audiobook sources come with proprietary formats and DRM protection. iTunes audiobook is in M4B format and usually they are only available for iPod Touch, iPad Pro, iPhone. Audible is in AA or AAX format, and you need to make sure you have an Audible compatible MP3 players too if you are considering to buy audiobooks from Amazon. An MP3 player with wide compatibility of file formats MP3, M4A, M4B, AAC, AMR, WMA, FLAC,OGG will save you the annoyance of transcoding fles.
Audio Quality
Although it is difficult to hear the difference between 320Kbps and 1411Kbps songs on MP3 player, a well developed player should be able to avoid any harsh sound effect or noise and make listening a much better experience. This is especially important for a senior or blind person who has high audio sensitivity or an audiophile who has big requirement for HiFi audiobooks.
Battery Life
When you are outside listening audiobooks, a long endurance MP3 device with 10~15 hours endurance will ensure you to concentrate on the things you are doing without interruption.
Connectivity
The Bluetooth feature with help you stream music from your MP3 players to other Bluetooth compatible devices easily in a party or share songs with friends. A Wifi capability will let you download songs directly online without relying on the computers.
Bookmarking
Many audiobooks are so long that you can't finish listening at a time. With the booking marking features, you can easily navigate to the last part you left off and continue the listening without starting from scratch.