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Of course the main duty of a device like the Zen will be music playback, and here Creative has done its best to cover all the bases. As well as the expected MP3 and WMA standards, the Zen also supports Apple's AAC codec for the first time. This means that you'll be able to playback any content that you've ripped to AAC via iTunes - since iTunes defaults to AAC at install, many users don't even realise that they're not ripping to MP3 when they start to feed their CD collection into their computer.

Initially, the Zen will be able to handle AAC files up to 256kbps, but a later firmware update will enable the player to support higher bit rate files. Unfortunately, lossless AAC isn't supported, so if you're the audiophile type and have ripped all your CDs using lossless AAC for playback on an iPod, a switch to a Zen may be off the cards. Personally I'd like to see FLAC support, thus allowing lossless encoding without being tied into an Apple player.

Unsurprisingly, DRM protected AAC files won't play on the Zen. So, if you've been silly enough to buy loads of DRM tracks from the iTunes store, you're going to be tied into your iPod for the foreseeable future. Of course if you have more recently bought some non-DRM tracks from the iTunes store, those should play fine on the Zen.

Creative players have a good reputation when it comes to sound quality, so I fully expected the Zen to fare well in this department. Luckily I had my trusty Shure E500 earphones in my bag, so I plugged these into the Zen to give it the best possible crack of the whip. Sound quality was pretty impressive, especially considering that these Shures will highlight a poor quality source. Listening to a variety of tracks and styles (Creative was kind enough to load the player up in advance), the Zen seems to boast an impressive range, with good clarity at the top end, coupled with full bass that didn't overpower proceedings. Obviously when I get my review sample I'll test the Zen's audio capabilities more fully, with a selection of different styles and genres.

Navigation is handled by a four-way pad with a selector button at the centre. This is pretty much standard for most handheld devices and is understandably intuitive to use. It is however, not as slick as Apple's wheel interface, or even as Creative's old touch interface. That said, considering the Zen's dimensions, Creative didn't have too many options when it came to navigation and I was still able to scroll quickly through a long artist list to find the music I wanted to listen to.

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