Go Play AV: Portable Audio, Video, Media and Game Players

Digital Trends provide a review of the Microsoft Zune portable media payer and are far from impressed:

The MP3 player market easily has more than 5 years under its belt. So you would think by now most manufacturers have the recipe for success down by now; copy the Apple iPod or create something innovative and new. Microsoft must have missed the company memo or something, because the Zune is nightmare wrapped in pretty packaging.

Read complete article: Microsoft Zune Review - Full Review - MP3 Players - MP3 & Media Players - I4U Reviews provided by Digital Trends

Technorati Tags: microsoft, mp3 players, portable audio, portable video, portable media player, zune

Gizmodo reports Amazon is showing the Zune is not selling too well:

According to Amazon.com’s MP3 player sales charts, the Zune is their 18th most popular portable music player. Ahead of it, unsurprisingly, are 12 varieties of iPod (including the top 5 spots). A bit more surprising is the fact that also selling better than the Zune are three flavors of SanDisk Sansas and the Creative Zen Vision: M. Looks like the social isn’t all that social just yet

MYTEXT

Read complete article: Zune Not Exactly Tearing Up the Sales Charts - Gizmodo

Technorati Tags: mp3 players, portable entertainment

Anything But iPod have review the Toshiba S30 and S60:

The highly anticipated third installment of Toshiba’s hard drive based MP3 player has finally been released after many months of waiting. Released in two different capacities, 30GB and 60GB, this player is graced with an amazing interface, powered by Microsoft’s Portable Windows Media Center. This platform allows for many easy to use features such as FM radio, photo browsing, on-the-go playlists, and video-out. Lacking in the file support area, the Gigabeat S supports MP3, WMA, WMV, and WMA Lossless. This media player is compatible with many different music services and some of the new video services. It also integrates with the Xbox 360, Tivo Series 2, and Windows Media Center.

Read complete article: Toshiba Gigabeat S30 & S60 Review

Technorati Tags: gigabeat, mp3 player, portable audio, portable entertainment, portable media player, portable video, toshiba

DailyTech via DAPReview.net, report that Acer is about to introduce a portable video player, the MP-500:

Acer Inc. will be making its way into the portable market when it brings the MP-500 portable media player to Europe, says DAPPreview.net.

The MP-500 looks very different from the prototype pictures presented by the company at CeBIT, but it is common to bring products to the market with completey different aesthetics than initially shown. The unit will feature DivX and MPEG2/4 capabilities as well as MP3 and WMA audio capabilities. Users will also be able to view JPEG and Bitmap images along with GIFs on the 3.5-inch TFT at 320×240 resolution.

Read complete article: DailyTech - Acer Set to Introduce Portable Media Player

Technorati Tags: portable entertainment, portable media player, portable video, Acer

Engadget reports Philips is releasing a new portable media player, the PMC7230:

Remember that Tatung Portable Media Center that first turned up at Computex almost exactly a year ago? No? Don’t worry about it, because it turns out that Philips is OEM’ing it. The Philips version, which is dubbed the PMC7230, comes with a 30GB hard drive (though the version we played with had only a 20GB drive), 3.5-inch display, PlaysForSure compatability, and a little kickstand on the back so you don’t have to hold the thing in your hands for two hours while you’re watching a movie.

Read complete article: Philips PMC7230 Portable Media Center - Engadget

Technorati Tags: portable entertainment, portable media player, portable video, philips

cNet has review the iRiver E10, giving it an excellent 8.4/10

The good: Shockwave Flash support; above-average battery life; intuitive UI; blazing fast transfer speeds; built-in TV remote.
The bad: Limited video format support; lack of bundled video conversion software; proprietary data cable.
The bottom line: At S$449, the 6GB E10 offers astonishing value with a good balance of features and performance.

Read complete article: iriver E10 (6GB) - Review : Music & Play - CNET Asia

Technorati Tags: iRiver, mp3 player, portable audio, portable entertainment, portable media player, portable video

PC Magazine have reviewed the Creative Zen Vision:M and also found it to be a worthy iPod alternative, giving it 4.5/5:

Bottom line: The Zen Vision:M is our new favorite iPod alternative and should appeal to lots of people, but we have a feeling it’s still not going to sway the iPod-loving masses.

Pros: Good design. Excellent screen. Very good audio and video quality. Broad feature set.

Cons: Short battery life. Requires a dongle to sync, charge, and output to TV

Read complete article: Creative Zen Vision:M review by PC Magazine

Lookup on Amazon:

“Creative Zen Vision: M 30 GB MP3 and Video Player Black” (Creative Labs)

Technorati Tags: creative zen vision M, digital audio player, mp3 player, personal video player, portable audio, portable entertainment, portable media player, portable video

TrustedReviews have provided an excellent review of the 5G iPod:

There’s also a fairly strong consensus that the iPod is still the best looking MP3 player out there. It’s just beautiful to look at. With its sleek frontage and the silver back it’s a desirable piece of tech jewellery. However, it is susceptible to scratches and finger prints so I’d recommend buying a protective case at the time of purchase – there’s certainly a wide choice available

In the review they do highlight one thing which we’d like to bring attention to - since we totally agree:

While £300 will buy you four times the capacity that you got nearly three years ago, Apple is certainly stingier with the accessories. Way back in early 2003 my 15GB iPod box contained a dock, a Firewire cable, a wired remote and a wall charger. None of that is now included. Where will this end? Will the box for the sixth generation iPod even include an iPod?

Enough said.

Read complete article: TrustedReviews - The UK’s Premier Source for IT Reviews & News

Lookup on Amazon:

“Apple 60 GB iPod with Video Playback Black” (Apple Computer)

Technorati Tags: Apple, digital audio player, ipod, ipod video, mp3 player, personal video player, portable audio, portable entertainment, portable media player, portable video

TrustedReviews provide a review of the Creative Zen Vision:M and liek everyone else, are quite impressed:

ou’ve got to hand it to Creative. Or at least feel sorry for it. No sooner had it helped create the portable digital media player market with its Zen Jukebox, when Apple swept in relatively late in the game to sweep up all the plaudits with its iPod, the latest version of which I’ll be looking at tomorrow. To add insult to injury, it turns out that Creative even owns the patent on the interface that Apple used to such good effect - only Apple slapped a nifty wheel on the front of its device and the rest, as they say, is history. The sales figures speak for themselves.

The Zen Vision: M is the best media player Creative has yet released and as such, demands attention. The quality of its display is its biggest asset over the fifth generation iPod, and it offers navigation innovations such as a shortcut button. It’s still not as stylish as Apple’s player or quite as effortless to use, but its the best case yet presented on why you should consider a media player other than an iPod.

Read complete article: TrustedReviews - The UK’s Premier Source for IT Reviews & News

Lookup on Amazon:

“Creative Zen Vision: M 30 GB MP3 and Video Player Black” (Creative Labs)

Technorati Tags: creative zen vision M, digital audio player, mp3 player, portable audio, portable entertainment, portable media player, portable video

cNet UK review the Archos GMini 402 Camcorder and give it a disappointing 6.3 out of 10:

The Gmini is a strange hybrid — a cut-down version of the company’s other media centres, with a tacked-on ‘camcorder’ element and tiny 4:3 screen. Lacking the ability to record from TV, you’d better have a collection of DivX video. The screen is of a high quality, but it’s too small and the wrong format to enjoy movies on. The tacked-on camera is no reason to buy the device, but it is cheap

Convergence is good on one hand, but if any of the contained devices aren’t up to scratch, then the whole suffers.

Read complete article: Archos Gmini 402 Camcorder Overview, Reviews & Prices at CNET.co.uk

Lookup on Amazon: “Archos Gmini402 20 GB Camcorder and Multimedia Player” (Archos)

Technorati Tags: archos, archos gmini, portable video, camcorder