4. Samsung YP-S2 2GB

Samsung’s budget offering does not compromise on quality. The lack of a screen may be a turn off for some, but this is not meant to be a main player. The ‘Pebble’ not only looks gorgeous, but sound quality is fantastic too, rivalling that of top-of-the-range players. The Samsung is offered in Black, Purple and Pink varieties, and whilst 2GB of memory might only be enough for about 500 songs, you’d be hard-pressed to find a better-sounding basic MP3 player for this money to use at the gym.

Price: £25.99; amazon.co.uk

telegraph.co.uk