Playing regular and MP3 CDs

You can get a portable MP3 player to play those digital audio files, or you can get a portable compact disc player to play standard music CDs. But if you need a device that can play both formats on a CD, you may want to check out the Mambo-X P300 Portable MP3 CD player from Tagram.

The Mambo-X's unique feature is its ability to play MP3 files stored on a CD-recordable disc (CD-R) or on a CD-rewritable disc (CD-RW). MP3, short for MPEG-1 audio layer 3, is the most popular format for storing music on the World Wide Web and personal computers.

To generate MP3 CDs, you will need a computer with a CD-R or a CD-RW drive and MP3 decoding software such as MusicMatch, which is available free from www.musicmatch.com. You can store your MP3 files in any way that you like on the disc, even in subdirectories.

Because of MP3's high audio compression capability, 150 to 180 songs can be burned on a standard-length disc. That's roughly 10 times more capacity than if you recorded the songs in the format of store-bought CDs.

The Mambo-X P300 features a nice infrared remote control and 45-second shock absorption. On the downside, the player and its nonadjustable headphones feel a bit flimsy. The package sells for $200. For more information, see www.mambox.com or call 714-545-5088.