Creative Zen Vision:M 30GB
Page 9
Comparisons
| Specifications | Creative Zen Vision:M 30GB | Apple iPod 5G 60GB | iAudio X5 30GB | Creative Zen Vision 30GB |
| Picture |  |
 |
 |
 |
| Dimensions (inches) (mm) |
2.4 x 4.1 x 0.73 62 x 104 x 18.6 |
2.4 x 4.1 x 0.55 61 x 104 x 14 |
2.4 x 4.1 x 0.56 61 x 104 x 14.3 |
2.9 x 4.9 x 0.79 74 x 124 x 20 |
| Weight | 163g/5.7oz | 156g/5.5oz | 145g/5.1oz | 239g/8.4oz |
| Capacity | 30GB | 60GB | 30GB | 30GB |
| Battery Life (Music) (Video) |
14hrs (MP3/FM), 8hrs (WMA) 4hrs |
20hrs 3hrs |
14hrs No info |
13hrs 4.5hrs |
| Battery Type | Lithium Ion | Lithium Ion | Lithium Ion | Lithium Ion |
| removable? | No | No | No | Yes |
| Frequency Response | 20Hz - 20KHz | 20Hz - 20KHz | 20Hz - 20KHz | 20Hz - 20kHz |
| Signal/Noise Ratio | up to 97dB | No info | 95dB | up to 97dB |
| FM Tuner | Yes | No | Yes | Yes |
| Recording | FM/Voice | No | FM/Voice/Line-In | FM/Voice |
| Realtime Encoding | No | No | Audio | No |
| Built-in Speaker | No | No | No | Yes |
| Connectivity | USB1.1/2.0 | USB1.1/2.0 | USB1.1/2.0, USB On-The-Go | USB1.1/2.0, CompactFlash, CompactFlash adapter |
| Remote Control | No | No | Optional (Wired with LCD) | Optional (Infrared) |
| AV Out? | Composite (640x480) (cables not included) | Composite, S-Video (Universal Dock & cables not included) | No | Composite |
| LCD | 2.5" 320x240 262,144 colours |
2.5" 320x240 >260,000 colours Transflective |
160 x 128 260,000 colours |
3.7" 640 x 480 262,144 colours Transflective |
| Specifications | Creative Zen Vision:M 30GB | Apple iPod 5G 60GB | iAudio X5 30GB | Creative Zen Vision 30GB |
| OS Support | Windows XP | Mac OS X, Windows 2000/XP | Windows 98/98SE/ME/2000/XP, Mac OS 9/X*, Linux* *data transfer only |
Windows XP |
| Formats | Video: AVI, MPEG-1, MPEG-2, MPEG-4 (SP), WMV 9, Motion-JPEG, DivX 4/5, XviD (SP/ASP without GMC) Audio: MP3, WMA (including DRM), WAV Picture: JPEG, BMP*, GIF*, TIFF* *transcoded |
Video: H.264 (Baseline Profile 1.3), MPEG-4 (SP) Audio: AAC (including protected), MP3, Audible, Apple Lossless, AIFF, WAV Picture: JPEG, BMP, GIF, TIFF, PSD, PNG (transcoded) |
Video: XviD MPEG-4 (transcoded) Audio: MP3, WMA, OGG, ASF, FLAC, WAV Picture: JPEG |
Video: AVI, MPEG-1, MPEG-2, MPEG-4 (SP), WMV 9, Motion-JPEG, DivX 4/5, XviD (SP/ASP without GMC) Audio: MP3, WMA (including DRM), WAV Picture: JPEG |
| Upgradeable firmware | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Audio effects | 8 EQ presets 1 5-band Custom EQ Smart Volume Bass boost |
20 EQ presets | 5 EQ presets 1 5-band Custom EQ BBE Mach3Bass MP Enchance 3D Surround |
8 EQ presets 1 5-band Custom EQ Smart Volume Bass boost |
| Can use as external HDD? | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Price (USD) | $330 | $400 | $266 | $380 |
Summary
| What's good | - Good video support for a DAP - Sounds great, as usual. Smart Volume is back - Bright screen, doesn't suffer from limited viewing angle and reflection problems of the Zen Vision - Smooth video playback with nice colours - Highly matured software makes it easy to use the Zen Vision:M despite the many functions - Touchpad is easy to use and is an improvement over Zen Touch and Zen Micro - Tag Converter makes it easier to manage music with non-English tags - Despite 320x240 screen, video output is still 640x480 - On-the-fly rating for music and pictures |
| What's bad | - Over-saturated colours when viewing photos - 0.5 to 1 second pauses every 7 to 10 minutes of XviD video playback. * - Player can only resume playback for the last played video - Media Explorer and Video Converter unable to check if XviD file has been encoded with GMC, and allows file to be transferred - Player sometimes does not detect when plugged in to AC power - Uses proprietary connector, and requires sync adapter for connecting to computer, and charging - Ill-fitting pouch means extra bulk, and player is prone to drop out of pouch if put in a bag - Noticeable aliasing on the screen when watching videos (or viewing pictures) larger than 320x240 - MediaSource and Audio Converter do not support Unicode tags and file names - Player is prone to scratches, especially screen portion. Oversized pouch does not help |
*fixed in updated firmware (as of 15 Jan)
Conclusion
The first thing you will notice about the Zen Vision:M is that design-wise, it has deviated greatly from the usual Creative players. Creative has gone for the clean look with the Zen Vision:M. But don't let the looks fool you, for they managed to squeeze two buttons at the sides of the touchpad. Features-wise, they are similar to past Creative players, with a few extras. Audio playback is what you have come to expect from Creative. Video playback was inherited from the Zen Vision, which translates to wide video support. Little extras such as on-the-fly ratings, themes and customisable wallpaper are the toppings of an already good cake. As the Zen Vision:M operating system matures, so does the applications that come with the Zen Vision:M. The Media Explorer is stable, and very easy to use, such that MediaSource becomes unneccessary unless you use that to manage your music library. While some of the software still do not support Unicode tags and file names, the fact that Tag Converter was included shows that Creative is at least taking the steps towards non-English support.
Still, the Zen Vision:M is far from perfect. Video playback issues mar the experience. However, keeping in mind that the Zen Vision:M is marketed as a DAP, Creative probably does not expect users to watch full-length videos on it. Requiring the use of a sync adapter adds inconvenience, and is like taking a step backwards. The saturated colours are good for video playback, but bad for photo-viewing. The Zen Vision:M also suffers from aliasing due to poor resizing method, causing jagged edges.
Finally, Creative still needs to work on making its players thinner. Compared to the iPod 5G, the Zen Vision:M is huge. A thickness of the 60GB iPod (0.55"/14mm) would be reasonable.
If you are willing to overlook some of the issues, the Zen Vision:M is actually a rather good player. It has lots of features, yet is easy to use. If you are into podcasts, then ZENcast would be a big plus. Video playback is satisfactory, which is a bonus for a DAP. The Zen Vision:M is a good player, but it can use some improvements. However, the Zen Vision:M operating system and applications bundle are excellent, which means Creative is on the right track. I can't wait for Creative's next DAP.
8 out of 10
Like this review? Link to us, either to our main site at http://monsternet.org or this article itself at http://monsternet.org/reviews/zenvisionm/.
Please contact us at mail@monsternet.org before using any part of this review.