Today, many of us have the luxury of being able to listen to music anytime, anywhere. Thanks to small devices with high storage capacities, and convenient compression standards like MPEG-3, it's possible to have a practically infinite choice of music always at the ready. This trend shows no signs of abating, with portable music players supporting the popular MP3 format currently the hottest items going.

Where consumers used to look to traditional manufacturers of hi-fi equipment for guidance (JVC, Pioneer, Sony, to name but a few), the market today is increasingly being shaken up by bids from newcomers. Foremost among these are Taiwanese firms, who are enhancing the quality of their music devices in response to pressure to expand their traditional business segments.

Shortly before Christmas, MSI sent us two of its latest portable MP3 players, which we tested over a two-week period.