Some people enjoy listening to MP3 players when they work out, so they don't have their phone with them. Whether that's also to keep calls and messages at bay or keep their phone safe.

There are two basic types of MP3 player: hard drive-based players and flash-based players. The latter is much more popular (and practical) as flash storage options are high enough to store thousands of songs, and they’re also much more compact. The interface is easy to control. Tap through options using the touchscreen, and select the music you want to listen to. It could be more responsive, but you get used to it. Battery life is around nine hours, which isn't amazing, but not terrible either. Always look for the latest model of digital radio as it will have the most up-to-date technology. For example, you should avoid buying the Roberts Sports DAB2 and instead buy the newer Roberts Sports DAB5. As the name suggests, Lossless Audio doesn't sacrifice any of the musical information: the successors to the WAV format used in CDs, which is also lossless, use more advanced technology to take the audio information and make the file smaller without compromising on quality. There are several versions of Lossless Audio including Apple Lossless, FLAC and WMA Lossless, and as you'll see from our guide above you'll often find that the best MP3 players support at least some of those formats. The overall design is obviously very reminiscent of the Nintendo Game Boy but with some welcome modern refinements. The smooth, rounded corners feel great in the palms of your hands and allow for comfortable playing sessions. Furthermore, the D-pad is very responsive and the face buttons are also excellent with a springy tactile feel that is absolutely perfect for button mashing.How about a customisable PMP with interchangeable DAC modules? That's the idea here – and we liked it so much, we gave it What Hi-Fi? 2021 and 2022 Awards. The SE180 is the third model in Astell & Kern’s near-flagship A&futura range, following the inauguralSE100andSE200, both of which gainedAwards from this very publication in 2019 and 2020 respectively. It's not just about sound quality, of course. If a product has noteworthy features – such as battery life, built-in streaming services and DAC-performing abilities, in the case of portable music players – we always ensure part of our testing involves testing the claims made by its makers. Of course, these can be considered optional extras; experimental paths that can be taken or completely ignored. After all, the SE180 is an all-in-one player in itself, with the default module containing the ESS ES9038PRO DAC. It supports 32-bit/384kHz PCM, native DSD256 andMQAaudio and has 2.5mm, 3.5mm and 4.4mm outputs to cater for a wide range of headphones. Your mileage with the 2.8” (~7cm) screen is also likely to vary dramatically depending on the quality of your eyesight - especially if you want to experience titles at their intended aspect ratio with the Pixel Perfect display mode. If this is applicable to you, you would be much better off considering larger options like the Evercade EXP instead.

If you need a device for your workouts, look for one that’s small, light and ideally water and sweat-proof. The Sony NW-WS415 in this list is a definite winner on that front, and can also be used for swimming if that’s more your thing.Most important in our reviewing process is that each product is compared with the best in its price and class. What Hi-Fi?is all about comparative testing, so we keep our Award winners nearby to enable comparisons between new products and ones we know perform highly in the category. It supports a huge range of formats, including DSD(DFF, DSF, ISO), FLAC, WAV, AIFF, ALAC, APE, MP3, WMA, OGG and DCF. Music sounds brilliant and with Bluetooth, you can listen on a range of different devices. Although there's no Wi-Fi streaming available. These radios are popular among people staying in hospital for extended periods of time as well as people with solitary jobs, for example postal workers.