2GB USB MP3 Digital Music/Video FM Player w/Folding Panel 3" LCD & Camera (Black/White) Review

Average Reviews:

(More customer reviews)This device is packed with a whole lot, and does some things very well.I've had mine for a little more than a week, and have had a chance to familiarize myself with the interface, navigation, and the various functions.Here's what Ive found:

Camera:The camera is essentially a webcam.The pictures are about 1 megapixel and the video it shoots is choppy and low-res.

Music:You can easily upload music, and you have playback choices such as random, play in order, and repeat.Navigating the fast forward/rewind buttons is a little tricky and unfortunately you can't listen to one track while searching for another.There's no choices to organize or find music by artist, album, and genre, so I uploaded folders of music.You also can't create playlists or randomly play songs from multiple folders.The thing WILL play music, but it lacks versatility in playback that most other players have.

E-books:Basically, you can upload .txt files.I've found this handy for making shopping lists, downloading Nintendo manuals, and yes, you can even find e-books in .txt format.(I downloaded "Robinson Crusoe" from [...]for free.)Unfortunately, the battery life isn't stellar, and you can't listen to music while you read.It is a very basic but functional e-book reader.

Video player:I haven't had much chance to watch video other than what I recorded with the camera.I tried to upload mp4s from I-tunes, but the device didn't recognize any files.I'll have to keep working on this one.Of course, with only 2GB to work with, you're not going to fit much video on anyway.

Dictionary:This option just makes me laugh.The dictionary has a ton of words, and many even have audio files for pronunciation.Unfortunately, even though the words are in English, all of the definitions are in Chinese.It's an amusing little detour, but not of much use.

Audio recorder:Functional.You can pause and resume, and then play your files back.I haven't checked how large the files are, but chances are you could convert them down to mp3 with freeware.The recording I made had good volume, but sounded tin and tinny.Was that the recording, or the built-in speaker?

Games:I've saved the best for last.If you grew up on Nintendo (actually I was in college) you probaby still have very fond memories of them, and can probaby still remember some of your favortite games.As it turns out, it's very easy to download just about any NES game, and I am having a blast re-playing some of the better games produced for that console.Although the sound and graphics are shockingly low-quality by today's standards, good gameplay is good gameplay, and since downloads are free, you can try all the games.
I have found very few gliches with the player, though the LCD refresh rate is a litle slow, which means Mario might dissapear for a second if the action gets too frenzied.With the shockingly low price for the player and free game downloads, this machine is a very good deal as a handy portable gaming toy.
One downside...you can't control the volume of the speaker while playing games.It's either "OFF", though you can still very faintly hear the game, or "ON" full blast.Niether is much fun.

Other:

Weight/Battery Life:The shipping weight is clunky because of the box, charger, book, cables and drivers.The player itself is pretty light for it's size, and folds up nicely to fit in a pocket.The battery life is average...which for the price was a pleasant suprise.Between listening to music on the built-in speaker and playing games, I killed a fully-charged battery in about 2 1/2 hours.Not too bad, really.The battery should last longer if you are just listening to music through headphones.

Accessories:I can't believe this thing comes with a audio/video input/output cable!You can actually output to TV, though the crummy resolution looks so much better on a 3" screen.
The driver disk is DANGEROUS!It uninstalled quicktime on my computer, so I-tunes wouldn't run anymore, and had some negative affects on the functionality of my Windows 7 explorer.I eventually went through and uninstalled everything, and I can still upload files.I didn't find any utilities or drivers on the disc that were necissary or helpful.

Charger:
the device charges with a 2-prong plug-in similar to a cell-phone charger.You plug in the USB end of the sync cable to the charger, and plug in the other end to the player.I THINK you can also charge the player from your computer, but I had some problems when I did that.Perhaps because the auto-shutoff option is disabled by default, and when I unplugged it from my computer I forgot to shut it off.

Caution:
Although the description says it takes an SD card, the slot is too small for one to fit.I tried a friend's memory stick pro card, and that went right in, but it didn't read the card.Perhaps when I have more time I can format a card and try for more success.Just don't run right out and buy expansion memory for this thing, since it's not clear what type of card it will take

There is no video capture option on this machine.Although the box (with MULTIPLE typos) and manual says you can inport video with the supplied cable, there is no "import video" option in the menu, which is where the book says to start the procedure. I was dissapointed to discover this, but not shocked.With the way the video camera and dictionary worked, I'm sure the capture quality would have been dismal anyway.

Uploading files takes FOREVER.For some reason transfering files seems to take longer even than USB 1.0...which is quite slow as it is.The 60 MB video I uploaded took almost 30 minutes.I can download files faster than that from our satelite internet.

Overall:A lot of stuff jammed into this little player.A few functions are really cool (gaming, e-books) some are mediocre (music, camera) and some are a waste of time (dictionary, video input/output)I'm happy I have it for the games, but happy I have a different device to listen to music.

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Product Description:
This 2 GB USB MP4/MP3 Digital Media Playerpacks loads of entertainment in a lightweight portable package. From music, video, photos, games to radio, all your bases are covered with this mobile accessory.A convenient folding panel design protects the large 3.0-inch TFT LCD screen from nicks and scratches while in transit. Turn the device on and simply scroll through the planets on screen to find the function you're looking for. You can listen to music, watch videos, view photos or play Internet-downloaded games (none included). There's even an FM radio function for when you get sick of your music collection.Use the built-in camera to take pictures on the spot or make mini DV movies with the DV movie function. Want to record an important lecture? Feel free to record audio with the voice recorder function. Additional features include an E-Book reader, calculator and notepad. Transferring files to and from your PC is easy with the USB interface.The player already comes with 2 GB of built-in memory, while there's also room for expansion via Mini Secure Digital Card card slot. What more do you need? Order this 2 GB USB MP4/MP3 Digital Media Player today!