Is MP3 on the way out? Is it time to go lossless?

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Just pondering on this today as I am fiddling with my Zune which is capable of playing lossless format audio (FLAC etc).

I'm wondering if, with ever decreasing costs and ever increasing storage capacity, is it worth encoding audio to MP3 format any more? Is lossless the way to go?

Do any of you favour lossless over MP3? Or maybe another format over MP3?

Just trying to garner some opinion as I'm thinking of ditching MP3 alltogether in the near future. Right now I'm considering a trial run with a few bits and pieces to see how it goes.

 

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I think MP3, or any compressed format will be around for some time. Especially in small devices that do not have much capacity, i.e. ipod shuffle where the emphasis is on portability over sound quality. My ancient I-River can play lossless formats, but I still put MP3s on it - albeit with the highest sample rate available. When you are on the move or at the gym, I do not think the improvement in quality with lossless would be all that perceivable.

 

True, I don't mind so much for my Shuffle but I use my Zune HD in the car all the time which has some nice speakers in it. Even with what I have in there (just entry level 6x8's, no amp, no sub, no intention of buying either) you can tell the difference in quality between a good and bad encode.

Hence I'm wondering if for consistency maybe I should switch to Lossless? Also for home listening I use Shure e4c's with a mini-amp and connector so again, quality plays a factor there.