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First Portable Media Centers Hit Store Shelves
An anonymous reader writes "After months of speculation and hype, the first Portable Media Center based on Microsoft's 'Windows Mobile software for Portable Media Centers' has finally hit store shelves. The Zen Portable Media Center, from Creative Labs, is now available at Best Buy and Fry's Electronics, priced under $500. That money basically buys a 3.8-inch color LCD screen, ultra-fast USB 2.0 port to transfer video, music, and digital photos from your PC, and an internal 20 GB hard drive."
http://www.archos.com Archos has been at this for well over a year.
>Unlike Apple's iPod, on which DRM is an optional consequence, Microsoft requires that you re-encode all video using DRM-encumbered technology.
That would be really interesting, if it were true. Jackass.
I actually own one of these things, and I can say 100% that you don't HAVE to re-encode your music to a DRM enabled format. Indeed, it is not even the default setting-- by default, your music is not encoded. If you DO set it to re-encode for space purposes, it does NOT drm the content-- you're free to copy it as you like (unless it was already DRMed, of course.)
jrjBlog
there are a number of superior devices readily available:
Archos AV3xx
Archos AV4xx
iRiver PMP-1xx
RCA Lyra 27xx
All of the above at LEAST play mpeg 4 video. Most can record Audio, some video, and one is ever a PVR. Educate thyself, consumer.
And if you're a linux nut, I believe both the Archos and iRiver are Linux based however neither appear hacked to any great degree.
LilMikey.com... I'll stop doing it when you sto
Quoth the FAQ:
These devices will play video, music and photos that are transferred from a PC running Windows XP. The devices will playback Windows Media® Video (.wmv), Windows Media Audio (.wma), MP3 and display JPG images. The device is also compatible with other file types including MPEG, MPEG2, DVR-MS, ASF, WAV and MIDI.
So we can stick to MPEG for no DRM.
ah, mod points
This from the Creative FAQ:
File transfers to the player are very slow (less than 100 KB/Sec). What do I do?
You may be transferring files that may be configured for other devices and formats, or your computer's CPU does not meet the recommended system requirements. Windows Media Player 10 changes or transcodes files before transferring them to your player.
Files that exceed the following specifications may require more time to change or transcode:
This should be less than or equal to Bitrate - 800 kbps Video or image resolution - 320 x 240 Frames Per Second (FPS) - 30 WMA Profile - Simple (SP)
Please read my Canon EOS tech blog at http://www.everyothershot.com
Gizmodo linked to http://pmw.sorobangeeks.com/news_51.html about an iRiver portable media player. It doesn't look like the same as the one pictured in TFA. On a lighter note, I just can't see shelling out for any of these damned expensive gadgets.
-end of post.
The Archos AV4xx series is a handheld PVR. Have it record your favorite shows directly on the device --direct to Divx-- and watch them on your commute. Hell, it even includes a remote.
Also, the Archos 3xx series supports recording video directly to the device however they don't have the fancy PVR-style features.
LilMikey.com... I'll stop doing it when you sto
I wonder if this version has the same problems as the other Jukebox models. There were many problems connecting to PC that used the nForce onboard USB 1.0 and Firewire ports.
*looks at Zaurus, which is running a framebuffer-based system (Qtopia) and not X11*
I would note here that anyone who buys a PC at Wal-Mart is BEGGING for trouble. We have sections here called Wal-Mart "blitzes" that deal with the multiple issues with the computers we sell at Wal-Mart, the reason being that Wal-Mart demands the lowest prices of all the retailers we sell to, and thus we have to use our lowest-end components in these PCs.
It's better to vote for what you want and not get it than to vote for what you don't want and get it.
- E. Debs
Archos has had lower-case "portable media centers" on the market for over a year, but this is the first "Portable Media Center" -- as in, a satellite device compatible with Windows XP Media Center.
I happen to run XP MCE at home, and I like it quite a lot, but I don't want a pocket video player that's tethered to it or to Windows Media Player 10. I'm much more likely to end up purchasing the brand-new Archos Gmini 400, which was officially released about a week ago and should have a street price around $350 once it starts showing up in stores.
It is a fraction of the weight.
You basiclly wanted to show how smart you are eh. Oooh you can buy a totally different device for 100 dollars more so it is crap. Kinda like saying a mercedes is bad car since for a few thousand more you can buy a lorry.
MMO Quests are like orgasms:
You may solo them, I prefer them in a group.
Or shift to audiobooks. Eyes out the window, minds on harry potter or whatever they like most. The kilometers just fly by. And the kids never seem to get tired of listening to the same book over and over, either. Make your car stereo an mp3-capable cd player and you've got 6 hours or more of audio per cd.
The gizmo geek in me keeps glancing hungrily at these things, but then I remember how much I *like* my kids staring out the window rather than at a screen while we're driving.
The list of System Requirements says it all.
I'll buy this kind of device only if it is recognized as a Mass Storage Device when plugged on the USB port, not if I have to go through WMP to use it.
My Compaq PDA has all of these features except that all your fles are stored on external memory. In addition, I can connect to the network due to it's built-in WiFi capability so I can manage my calendar, my email, browse websites I've saved and make cellphone calls.
Oh, and it's also ~$500.
If all you have is a hammer, everything looks like a nail.
Averatec 3120V
Of course if one prefers to watch movies on 4'' screen, then PMC is the perfect match.