How to Transfer Songs From the Sandisk Sansa MP3 Player to a Computer

By C. Taylor

Use the Sansa's internal memory to transfer songs to a computer.
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The SanDisk Sansa MP3 player appears as a portable device on your connected Windows 7 computer, allowing you to access the Sansa’s internal memory through Windows Explorer. As long as the default settings are maintained, the Sansa functions as a mass storage device and dragging song files from your Sansa transfers them to your computer. If your default settings have been changed, adjusting them through the Sansa's Settings menu quickly restores drag-and-drop capabilities.

Step 1

Scroll to "Settings" on your SanDisk Sansa and select "USB" or "USB Mode." Select "Auto Detect" or "MSC" to enable USB transfer. Older machines may require manually selecting "MSC" to allow drag-and-drop transfers.

Step 2

Connect the Sansa to your computer using its USB cable. One end has a standard USB connector that plugs into your computer's USB port. The other end has either a smaller USB connector or a larger Dock connector that connects to the Sansa.

Step 3

Click the "Start" button on your computer and select "Computer."

Step 4

Double-click your SanDisk Sansa player from the list of attached portable devices and locate the song files you wish to transfer. These may appear on the portable device or an external memory card sub-folder.

Step 5

Drag-and-drop the song files into a folder on your computer to transfer them.

Step 6

Click the USB icon in your Windows notification area and choose the option to eject the Sansa portable device. If you do not see the USB icon, click the small triangle to the left of the notification area. Detach the device after ejecting.

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