Review: Creative Zen V

With Christmas less than two months away, now might be a good time to explore an alternative to the iPod Shuffles and Nanos that will no doubt be stuffed into many a stocking this year: the Creative Zen V.

The flash-based V is the less expensive, bare bones version of the Zen V Plus (ZVP) that was released this past summer. Both players are available in black and white with accent colors based on storage capacity (orange for 1GB, green for 2GB, blue for 4GB), but the ZVP can also be had (or at least preordered) in all pink (2GB) and black with red accents (8GB). Further setting apart the two models are the ZVP's FM tuner and video capabilities.

I purchased the Zen V in September because I don't listen to the radio or want to watch videos on a 1.5-inch screen. Now that the ZVP is available in pink, however, I'm checking Amazon every day for its debut. In the meantime, read on to determine whether the V would be the perfect gift for that music lover on your Christmas list.

System specifications
Storage capacities: 1GB, 2GB, 4GB
Supported audio: MP3, WMA, WMA-DRM, Audible, WAV
Extras: Photo viewer, voice recorder, line-in recording, organizer, removable disk
Dimensions: 2.7" x 1.7" x 0.6"
Weight: 1.6 ounces

Box contents
The Zen V is my seventh Creative DAP and sadly has one of the worst accessory bundles included with it.

In the box are a pair of earbuds (Creative's standard EP-480 model), lanyard, USB 2.0 cable, line-in cable (okay, this is a decent addition), software CD, and one of those pathetic drawstring velvet pouches that Sony used to be known for.

Why do companies throw in pouches like these? They're about as effective as a Ziploc bag. Creative used to include more decent cases in their earlier players (e.g., fitted leather for Nomad Jukebox, magnetized rubber-like case for MuVo Slim, and silicone skin for MuVo N200), so I'm really disappointed by the cheesy velvet numbers paired with newer devices like the ZVM and V.

Another letdown is the omission of an AC adapter. Using the included USB cable, the V takes an outrageous six hours to receive a full charge. If anything, Creative should've left out the cable, as they're not proprietary and everyone has about a hundred of them laying around.

The software CD contains Creative's Zen V Media Explorer and Media Source for transferring and syncing media and other files between the V and a PC. Both are easy enough to use, but Media Monkey, Windows Media Player, and other music management apps work just as well, if not better. The player is also an MTP device, so if you're running Windows XP with all the latest updates, you can just drag and drop content through Windows Explorer.

Design
What the V lacks in its box, it makes up for in its design. It's not the sleekest player out there, sure, but it's still very nice. It's so glossy, in fact, that the only way I could get a halfway decent picture without reflection and glare was to place it in a white box. (This created a lot of shadows, but compromising the white background is better than compromising the subject of this review.)

The surface is smooth, and the player is lightweight and comfortable to hold. Unlike its big brother the ZVM, the V is not made out of butter-soft plastic that scratches when you breathe on it. In fact, Creative has employed an amazing scratch-resistant surface on the player that honestly withstands the wear and tear of everyday use.

Size
To illustrate size, early pictures showed the device next to a box of tic tacs. The comparison is a good one, but I'm not sure how many people have tic tacs at their disposal. I think more people have loose change and a deck of cards around the house than a specific brand of breathmint.

Even though the V isn't the thinnest DAP on the market, it's still only about a half-inch thick. I don't understand the obsession with paper-thin players: they're not comfortable to hold and they're barely three dimensional.

Controls
When I first saw the V, I thought the play/pause and back buttons on the front looked really weird pushed to the right. The green line coming from the purely decorative circle around the joystick looked odd as well. I like the layout now, even though it seems better suited for left-handed users, but I admit that it took some getting used to.

Same goes for the joystick. I actually didn't know until I had the player in my hands that the joystick was even a joystick. From all the press photos, it looked more like an OK/enter button in the middle of a multidirectional controller (like the one on the Sony mylo). I'm still surprised that the surrounding circle has nothing but aesthetic value.

Even though it's really small, the joystick is responsive and easy to use. It protrudes far out enough so that you don't need to smash your thumb onto the surface to get ahold of it. The slightly bumpy texture ensures a secure grip; I've never encountered any problems with my thumb slipping off of it.

On the left side of the player are the power/hold switch and pinhole reset button.

On the right are the volume controls and record button.

The top is packed with ports/jacks: line-in, headphone, and USB. I really like that all of this is built into the player because having to carry around a separate subpack/dongle (like with the ZVM) is a pain.

There's nothing but the lanyard loophole at the bottom. While it may seem strange to hang the V upside down from your neck, it actually makes a lot of sense when you want to view the screen. Just look down and the screen is right-side up. The display can also be rotated (more on this below) to appease onlookers who think that the device is defective or you're an idiot.

The back of the V features Creative's now-standard Zen ripple, which gives the player some character and an interesting texture.

Display
The Zen V is equipped with a 1.5-inch OLED 128 x 128 display. The advantages of an OLED over a TFT are low power consumption and excellent viewing angles, but personally, I don't think either of these outweigh the disadvantage: image quality. OLEDs aren't as crisp, bright, or colorful as their TFT counterparts. Text appears a bit jagged and detailed album art has a certain original NES Super Mario quality to it. The screen isn't horrendous, but I was definitely less than impressed when I turned on the V for the first time. I may have even let out a little "ugh" or "yuck," but that's only because I'm used to oohing and aahing over bigger and better screens. So my initial reaction should be taken with a grain of salt.

The stock photos preloaded onto the device look decent, but I'm not sorry that the V doesn't have video capabilities.

The display's saving grace is its ability to rotate in 90-degree intervals. The joystick's directions rotate accordingly as well, so you don't have to retrain your brain when you want to make your way through the menus.

Graphical user interface
The V is equipped with a similar version of the GUI found in Creative's other players, most notably the ZVM. At this point, it's basically an unmitigated fact that the interface is the best one around. Even Apple agrees (you may recall the lawsuit that ended with Apple shelling out $100 milion to use Creative's patented system in the iPod). There's very little to say about it, then, other than that it's highly customizable, intuitive, and easy to use.

Navigating through the system is incredibly simple. It's so straightforward and logical, in fact, that the patent seems quite silly. Organizing a lot of music according to artist, song title, album, and genre isn't a mindblowing invention, but I suppose that's beside the point.

To illustrate the simplicity of using the V, here's a mini tutorial on how to play an album.

1. Turn on the player by sliding and holding down the power switch.
2. Use the joystick to highlight "Music Library" in the main menu.
3. Push the joystick down or to the right to go the "Music Library" screen.
4. Use the joystick to highlight and select "Albums."
5. Select an album and hit the play/pause button.

Since the V maxes out at 4GB, it can only hold a limited amount of music. This is actually a blessing in disguise because the joystick doesn't have a rapid-scroll feature. The scroll rate is more than adequate as it is, but a boost in speed is always a good thing.

Sound quality
With so many DAPs out there, it's easy to forget that the most important aspect of any music player lies underneath the shiny bodies and beyond the bells and whistles. Questions about what a device looks like, what it comes with, how long the battery lasts, what kinds of accessories are available, and what else it can do overshadow what should be the real concern: how it sounds.

So how does the V sound? In a word, fantastic. Sound quality is highly subjective and depends on what's plugged into the headphone jack, of course, but Creative has always been regarded as one of the leading manufacturers of devices that produce exceptional sound. Even in professional tests using audio analyzers and other instruments, Creative consistently scores high marks (and it comes out on top in terms of signal-to-noise ratio).

Even more relevant than audiophile test results is what everything sounds like to you. To me, the Zen V sounds great: clear and crisp with no distortion even at high volumes. There's a 5-band customizable EQ for the audio-savvy and 8 preset EQs for people like me. I'm really happy using the Rock EQ with the Bass Boost turned off. It's the perfect setup when my Sennheiser CX300S IEMs are plugged in or I'm hooked up to the Klipsch iGroove.

Extras
Although the V isn't equipped with an FM radio or video player, it still has a nice set of features.

Photo viewer
The photo viewer is more of a secondary feature, but since the OLED doesn't make for a particularly thrilling viewing experience, I'm lumping it together with the other extras. Photos are arranged in folders and can be set as wallpaper or played in a slideshow (3-, 5-, 10-, and 15-second increments) with or without music. There's also a zoom feature, which would be more useful on a bigger screen with more resolution and improved clarity/crispness.

Voice recorder
The built-in microphone is good for recording short memos and reminders about where the car is parked. The output files are in WAV format and sound okay. I don't think bootleggers are running out to buy the V, but it does its job for a personal voice recorder.

Line-in recording
The line-in feature is one of the best extras I've ever seen on a DAP of this class. The supplied line-in cable enables direct encoding from just about anything with a headphone jack, which is perfect for recording from a CD or even another DAP when there isn't a computer nearby. An external mic can also be plugged in for recording large events or class lectures.

Organizer
I like gadgets with PIM functionality, even if it's very limited. (You may remember that the lack of PIM was one of my complaints about the Sony mylo.) The Zen V's organizer function comes with a read-only calendar, task list, and address book that can be synced with Outlook and edited using Creative's Media Explorer software.

Removable disk
Being able to partition a portion of internal memory for use as removable storage is a little silly for a 2GB player, but it's still a great option. Although nothing stored in the partition (which can be set at standard capacities between 128MB and 1.5GB) is playable or viewable on the V itself, the feature is useful for shuttling documents and other files between different computers.

Battery life
Creative rates the non-removable battery at 15 hours, which I've found to be accurate when listening to 192kbps MP3s at mid-volume. By today's standards, 15 hours is actually on the lower end of the scale. However, unless you'll be escaping from civilation for a few days, battery life is more than sufficient for typical usage. And since the V charges via USB, you can keep the player plugged in all day at the office and leave work with a full charge.

Conclusion
The Creative Zen V is well priced at $80 (1GB), $110 (2GB), and $150 (4GB) through Amazon. The included accessories are a joke and the OLED is far from impressive, but the player shines in the area that matters most: sound quality. Screen rotation, line-in recording, and other extra features make the V (and ZVP) not only a notable contender in the flash DAP market but also a holiday gift that's sure to please just about everyone on your list.

Comments

[Utew]

Creative got several things right with this diminutive little player and the price is one of them.

But the deal killers for me at least, are the quality (or lack thereof) of the OLED screen, the stubby joystick and the lack of a variable speed menu scroll, which makes long lists of songs a chore to get through quickly. The type face doesn't do it for me either.

All-in-all a nice little flash player at a great price, with just a few issues.

Nice Review, Jenn...

[Jenn]

I don't mind the joystick and scroll rate, but I could definitely live without the OLED. Viewing angles don't matter with a screen that looks like this!

I still want the pink ZVP though, even if only to give my pink ZVM a playmate. Looks like it'll be available before the blushing K5...

[Utew]

A pink K5 would make me go..eeeeekkkk!

But in Zen V/V+ form it might look like of cute, due to the design of the player itself. =)

[Utew]

..make that "look kind of cute"

Got the 4GB +. Whish I had waited for the 8 GB, but early bird gets worm-infested fruit right?

Only issues I have is Zencast does not auto-translate vid casts (even though I have settings set to do so) and... this rally bugs me. They have eliminated mp3 functionality from Mediasource. YOu can only rip to windoze media, not to industry-standard mp3.

[Jenn]

I've never used Zencast or Mediasource. If your auto-translating settings are correct, though, and the program isn't doing what you want it to, you may want to contact Creative or head over to the epizenter.net forums for help.

I don't understand why some music apps don't rip to MP3s (iriver plus 3 is like that, too). Have you tried ripping with Media Monkey instead?

[slideshow well i'd love to see where]

hmmm, this is definately a piece of junk.90 bucks worth for not one iota of support on how to even add a slideshow. oh yes, it does give instructions, however, they are null and void when i havent got a slideshow button like it talks about. i mean get for real people. 89 buks for a pos! so for all of you who are considering buying this, just throw your moneys my way! i'll be sure it doesnt go to waste on something this lame.

my only problem with it right now is that i don't know how to change the wallpaper. and it's bugging me.

[Jenn]

To set a photo as wallpaper, select the image you want, press and hold the "back" button to bring up the context menu, and choose "Set as Wallpaper." You can zoom into any portion of a photo and set it as wallpaper, too.

To change the theme, which includes its own wallpaper, go to Menu --> System --> Player Settings --> Theme.

Hope that helps :)

[Michael]

Question - where does the wallpaper show up? I have a picture set to wallpaper, but under the setting the only options I see are for setting the theme, and there is no option to select the photo I have.

Thanks!

[Jenn]

@ Michael: Once you set a photo as wallpaper, it immediately becomes wallpaper. After you select "Set as Wallpaper," you'll have the option of changing the color of the photo a bit by pushing the joystick up or down. If you like the photo as it is, just hit the center button. Otherwise, use the joystick to alter the color and press the center button to set it.

@ slideshow: Go to Menu --> System --> Photo Settings --> Slide Timer. Press the center button and choose between 3, 5, 10, or 15 seconds.

Then go to Menu --> Photos. Hit the play button on one of your photo folders. The slideshow begins automatically, with the pictures changing according to whatever interval you chose in the previous step.

[logan]

OK how do u get one of your pictures on the wall paper for a background?

Answer is posted four comments up.

[Danielle]

Well personally, I like it. It's smal, shiny, stylish and I think its great value for money. Prefer it to my ipod shuffle i had that was more expensive than this, Yeh the screens not great but if you wanted a thing for viewing slideshows...well theres computers for that.

It annoys me how you can't seem to pick which album songs go into like if the track info is wrong it automatically makes new folders and stuff. I don't like that bit.

All in all good player and great value for money

[Sharon Kinsey]

Would like to know about the 50 downloads and what page

[Shirley]

Creative V Plus advertises as being able to play audible (audiobooks) and bookmark so when you turn it on it picks up where you left off. I can't figure out how to turn it on without it going back to the beginning. And it won't fastward on the joystick, but just goes to the next track instead. If I can't figure out how to turn it on and have it start where I stopped listening before, I'll return it and get an IPod.

[Jenn]

I don't have any experience with audible, but this forum should be able to help you: http://epizenter.net/e107_plugins/forum/forum_viewforum.php?32

Good luck!

[kate]

thank you for all your assistance.. i always use your reviews! thanks you!

[Erick Orellana]

Since I bought the Zen V, I had a problem configuring the clock, now I have solved by updating the firmware, if helps to someone

[Ellen]

My audio books won't download from my computer. They did a few weeks ago. I have checked the process from the library to Windows Media. The problem seems to be with the player. Any ideas?

[nerlin]

luv the zen v is the best

[logan]

Can some one email me, bc i want to sest my background to a pic off my comp steese23@gmail.com

[jesse]

i have a zen v but i pluged it into my comp and un pluged it and it doesnt wana work right can some one help me

[Narina]

I just got the zen v, and I am trying to figure out how to erase a song from a playlist without erasing it from the library.

Could anybody help me please?

[Narina]

@Jesse: Did you try running the installation CD on your computer before plugging in the player?

[Geenia]

how do you get a photo to be the backround? i cant figure it out .

[Jenn]

You can find out how to set a photo as wallpaper by reading some of the earlier comments.

Here's a copy-and-paste from the discussion:

**********
To set a photo as wallpaper, select the image you want, press and hold the "back" button to bring up the context menu, and choose "Set as Wallpaper." You can zoom into any portion of a photo and set it as wallpaper, too.

To change the theme, which includes its own wallpaper, go to Menu --> System --> Player Settings --> Theme.

Once you set a photo as wallpaper, it immediately becomes wallpaper. After you select "Set as Wallpaper," you'll have the option of changing the color of the photo a bit by pushing the joystick up or down. If you like the photo as it is, just hit the center button. Otherwise, use the joystick to alter the color and press the center button to set it.
**********

[sam]

go to mininova and type in: creative zen v installation cd

and download it if you have lost your cd.

Hope this helps

[mmr]

hey i used to be able to upload like 100 and some songs to my zen v 1gb but now it only allows 69 songs and it says 512 mb on da removable disk selection. how can u change the settings on the removable disk selection

[ed_training]

hey,

about the sound quality,
What has better sound
Zen V plus, or Zen Stone Plus.

Plz help me.
i hope v, but not sure
ty

[Hannah]

my zen V keeps freezing. has anyone else had this problem?

yeah i have it right now

[just me]

hey can anyone help me...my 4 gb creative zen v won't start and i got it just two days ago...it froze the first day after charging and wouldnt shut off now it wont go on...i need help with the darn thing!!!!!!!!!!

try to reset the player, mine also froze the first time i used it and i just press the reset button and redownloaded all the songs, i got no problem after that

[jess]

My zen freezes up sometimes but i always have a peperclip in my pocket to hit the reset button to unfreeze it and it always rebuilds the library

[jess]

I cant change the time on the clock!!!! it has the right date but it is four hours ahead!!! it is soooo annoying HELPPPPPP

[Joe]

After a few months, my Zen V Plus has froze and resetting does nothing more than rebuild the library. Once done, it's still frozen. Any iea how to do a 'hard reset'?

[Jess]

For anyone who is having trouble with setting the time on their clock on the Zen V... All you have to do is go to 'date and time' on the menu and once there hold down the back button until a gray box comes up with choices and then select 'Set time' and that is how you set the time. If you don't want the time displayed in military time, select 'time format' and select '12 hour'. I hope this helps all you people out there.

-Jess

[CaptainEntropy]

Zen V+ is pretty awesome for how small it is. It's only frozen on me once and was easy to reset. I think this player is for people who read instructions - even though it's easy enough without them. Just have a little patience instead of maniacal button pushing.
Sound quality is great.
Screen seems great to me also, maybe they fixed that problem.

[Paul]

This was copied from Anythingbutipod.com.

[Jenn]

@ Paul: I don't take accusations of plagiarism lightly, so I hope you're not suggesting that the actual review was copied from ABI. If you are, then 1) that's a ridiculous claim, 2) the review has obviously not been copied, and 3) when I wrote it, I was still working for ABI (I was there for a little over a year).

[Breaks way to easily]

Hmmm, well. At first, the Zen V was amazing. I was very happy with it. The little string that turns it into a necklace was very handy whenever I work out, it's easier than an armband. But now, just 10 months after I bought it, it's tearing down. One horizontal line of pixels is completely black. There is no sound in the right head phone(i checked this with about 10 headphones, and those headphones weren't all broken). And lastly, the Zen V does a horrid job at shuffle. It's not a huge issue, but does it always have to go through the same songs? I had it on 'all tracks'. I had the setting to 'shuffle'. It played the same 8 songs for 2 hours.

>:(

[Paul]

Sorry, I just compared this with the one at ABI, and there were some similarities with this one and the one at ABI, but I guess it doesn't qualify as plagiarism.
I haven't read the review from ABI in a while, so when I read this one, it sorta reminded me of the one at ABI thus my conclusion of it being copied.
I apologise for jumping to conclusions ect.

[bro]

Every time i try to turn on my zen it tells me the i have a "firmware problem". i have returned it once. WHAT DO I DO?

[Ganesh]

I have bought Creative Zen V+ and i have configured removable disk size as 1 GB. Now i forgot the menu location where i can rechange the size. Any one help me...

[Connie]

I bought my Zen and then got one for my daughter, the Zen I bought for her did not have a CD disk with it but by the time I found that out she had thrown all the paperwork away. Is there someway I can copy my CD for her or where we can download the CD contents.She does not live with me so it is not possible for us to share. What are my options?

Thanks for any help you can be.

[Erica]

I have a question:
Is the Zen V compatible with itunes? I keep getting mixed signals, and i was wondering if you could clear that up for me.
thanks!

[edwin]

i bought a zen v too, but i have no idea how to make it turn 90 degree, does it have anything to do with the fact that your zen v is a 2gb one?

[AJ]

I absolutely love my Zen V - first mp3 I've purchased, about 1.5 years ago. I've used it every day since purchase, and have also used the voice recorder at my job.

My frustration lies in the accessories. I don't use the crappy earplugs it came with, and the little pouch, although cute, is completely useless.

I would like a high quality leather case with attached key fob, similar to the Kroo leather cases currently available for Zen V.

The Kroo cases are a perfect fit for the Zen V, but the leather is not great quality; after 6 months of use the seams have begun to tear. I would like a very high quality case (you know - the kind of leather that "ages" like jeans...and nothing can tear apart)...I've found wonderful high quality leather cases for Ipods, but not Zen...

[AJ]

RE: Freezing issue

Here comes my personal Zen V experience, as mentioned above, I have had mine for over a year and a half - in the beginning it froze once a week or more, it was terrible. I do not know what I did...but in the last six months not one frozen moment or need to reset...(knock on wood...LOL).

I've come to believe Zen's need to age to perfection...LOL

[Tasha]

I need a cd to install my Zen V but mine broke so does anyone know a website or somthing that i can download the cd from!?!?!? HHEELLPP MMEE!!!!
plllllllllllllllllllz plllllllllz!!!

[Amanda]

RE: Tasha

E-mail Creative's customer support - www.creative.com - they are helpful!

[cameron]

i need sombodys help plz my zen v screen is broke and i need 2 know how to play music!!!

[Drive-In-Freak]

How do you change the battery when it will no longer hold a charge?

[LR]

January 2007 purchased Zen V. Jan 2008, it is a useless piece of plastic. No screen for a couple of months. Now, nothing. It lights up when it is connected to the computer. It syncs. It does not play. Have used all the recovery tools, upgraded firmware. No help. I have a $35 RCA MP3 player that is two years old that still works flawlessly. Are these Zen's built to fail?

[sey]

help, my zen does not start, ive tried to reset it many times but it aint working.... i just bought it last month and freezes many times, i only had to reset it to work then but now it does not even seem to charge.

[JR]

I bought myself the Creative Zen V Plus 4 GB for my birthday about 3 weeks ago and it never seemed to be working correctly. But, at least it was working. I also picked up a Creative Zen TravelSound (which is just so-so) a few days ago to play it through. Well, today I couldn't turn the the mp3 player on. I pressed the reset button and it turned on, only to say "firmware problem". I'm ready to send both of these products back. Any thoughts or suggestions?

[DV]

I bought Creative Zen V Plus for a little over a year for my daughter, and now the LED screen is just barely display. The music still is playing though. Looked like LR posted a similar problem; wonder if you any one of you know where can I get help?

[Lynda]

Thanks for the great review, Jenn!
I bought the Zen-V 4 gb when it first came out, muved up from the muvo 1 gb. I love it! My only problem is it's TOO intelligent. If I load, say, 3 CD's of Steely Dan, I have to create a playlist of Steely Dan to hear them all. Even when I make a single folder, using computer, and move the songs into it, it STILL sees them as 3 albums. Even plain drag-&-drop from Windows didn't do it. The simpler Muvo understood one folder, many songs. I could use some help with that if it's available.

One other nit is that I can't seem to add a track to an existing playlist--it keeps wanting to start a new one. Suggestions?

Keep up the good work. Better believe this site is bookmarked!

[dr]

BEWARE

Pros: ZERO!!! The LCD went black after about three weeks.

Cons: Only three month ""warranty"" on parts. I purchased it in October as a Christmas gift for my daughter. By the time the LCD went black, it was already out of warranty and Creative wants thirty bucks PLUS SHIPPING just for the PRIVILEGE OF SENDING IT BACK! I will never purchase another Creative product again.

Lesson learned: Always read the warranty before spending your hard earned bucks.

[drewbe]

(quote)
beware.
Pros: ZERO!!! The LCD went black after about three weeks. (end quote..)
let me see the display is Organic Light Emitting Diode not liquid crystal! and oled displays are very black to look at when powered off,but you must just have one of those rare things"a bad creative product" ive had two of the zen v,s and now on the new ZEN no problems! but glad i didnt by an ipod the previous one just broke there screens in your pocket and how many broke? not just one or two..oh and this site is top notch and honest .

[megk]

does a creative zen work with real player v. 10? I have been trying to find the answer everywere but i cant find it. I am thinking about getting one but I need to know if it works with real player v. 10 because i bought a bunch of songs on there and i would loose them all if it doesnt work. please reply asap!

[belen]

Lynda said:

One other nit is that I can't seem to add a track to an existing playlist--it keeps wanting to start a new one. Suggestions?

Same problem here!?
How come there is no choice to do such a simple thing?

any suggestions?

[Jen]

Hey!! I NEED HELP, I lost my installation disk for my Creative Zen V, I have a new computer!! Is there anyway I can download the software from a site??..

PLEASE HELP!!

[Ben McGill]

Can anyone tell me how to place a bookmark in an audio book? Each time I try to place a bookmark, I get the message "Save Bookmarks from Now Playing Menu"

[Ray]

AWESOME PLAYER!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

uts awesome thou it would be better if the volume could be louder

[keith]

Got a zen-v 4gb last month they are selling them off everywhere! I paid 72$ just saw them for 69$. Wait or buy another one now, for the price and line in feature for "xm" these players are great.

[holly]

thanks for all this info! it really helped especially with the wallpaper tips thanks! :]

[...]

Hey, the screen on my Creative Zen V is... well, black. It does work, but I don't know which song I'm playing or anything. Anyone else got this problem, or know how to solve it?