review: creative zen vision portable media player

Creative ZEN Vision occupies its own position in a portable media player (PMP)market.
Unlike the Archos AV and PMA series, it does not record videos, nor does it have a fifth Small
Replace the iPod, but it\'s gorgeous 3. 7-
Inch screen provides a very comfortable photoand video-
Watch the experience, despite some viewing-angle issues.
Overall we like the vision but we do have a wish list for improvement like adding line-in recording (search)
The ability to make video playlists.
All four units we tested had background noise issues in some audio playback.
Creative is aware of this issue and is working on a firmware upgrade. At 4. 9 by 2. 9 by 0. 8 inches and 8.
4 oz, vision is smaller and lighter than Creative\'s initial product, the Creative Zen Portable Media Center. The 8. 4-
The Oz is visually smooth, and the anode magnesium oxide shell and measures 4. 9 by 2. 9 by 0. 8 inches.
Thankfully, the smooth surface of the magnesium shell does not have a fingerprint like its predecessor.
The device is in black or white with a hard drive capacity of 30 gb.
Good control. laid-
On the right side of the screen, there is a volume button at the top of the device next to the power/hold switch, built-in-in microphone. The USB 2. 0 port (search)
Dock connector (
For optional docking brackets)
At the bottom and CompactFlash card (search)
The slot is on the left.
The headphone jack is on the right (
It makes sense considering the overall shape of the vision)
, Next to the/V output and power jack covered by A rubber baffle.
While the manual says that installing the music transfer manager that requires the installation of the Vision driver and Creative, we just need to plug the device into the USB port of the PC and sync it with Windows Media Player 10 without any problems
Standard USB 2.
The 0 high speed connection replaces the proprietary connector of the Creative Zen Portable Media Center, making the transmission fast.
We load vision with video, photos and music.
You can also sync contacts, tasks, and calendars using the PIM software that comes with Microsoft Outlook and Creative.
But even though you can put your vision to work
Drive mode for transferring music and data by draggingand-
Drop, you cannot load photos, videos, or anything else without Windows Media Player (search)
Or creative software.
Also, there is no Mac support.
The interface has been simplified a bit and goes beyond many other such devices with clear, intuitive menus and controls.
You can browse the music through the iPod tag (search)
And photos and videos arranged by file name.
The pane on the right side of the interface allows you to jump to a specific letter-
But only for video and audio, not photos that are browsable through folders and thumbnails only.
The main menu is customizable and we found it very convenient for faster navigation.
Audio format support includes MP3, WAV and WMA, as well as WMA files protected by wm drm 10, such as files for online music and video subscriptions, leasing and downloading services.
There are some problems with subjective audio quality using default settings.
Although the bass is deep and the treble is clear, as mentioned earlier, on some tracks we can hear the background noise clearly and sound like the sound you get when you over-compress the music.
The idea claims that the noise can only be heard in classical music, but we hear it in jazz, ballad, piano solo and any music with a quiet part.
The included earbuds are actually very good and more effective than most. The built-
However, in mono speakers, it is almost useless because its output is very low.
Our formal test of ear plugs included showed that the frequency response was stable in the medium term
Bass, below there is an admirable slow rolling.
We noticed a lot of distortion at the Max volume, but the player was at 25-
Step Volume scale.
The output power through the headphone jack is quite strong: we measured the continuous 104 dB and 110 dB peaks on the Rock test track.
We looked at some of the EQ settings but none added anything to the sound quality.
Even at normal hearing volume, rock presets can cause significant distortion, although jazz does not distort even at maximum volume. The custom 5-
Band EQ gives you 12 dB in any direction, but in our tests more than half of the sliders cause distortion.
Watch JPEG photos and videos (DivX, M-JPEG, MPEG-1, MPEG-2, MPEG-
4 Simple profiles, WMV and XviD)on the built-
This is a pleasure due to the 640-LCDby 480-
Pixel screen, significantly higher-
Higher resolution than most players on the market display.
Actually, Epson P-2000 (
LCD with higher resolution)
It\'s the only device we \'ve ever seen with such a beautiful screen.
We were also able to view the content recorded by the Media Center PC without any problem.
The image is clear and bright, but the angle of view is not as wide as it should be: except for the head, from any angle
You don\'t see real black people.
Even a few degrees from the left, the image will start to look negative.
In addition, the high reflective properties of the screen make it very difficult to watch in bright lights or in direct sunlight.
Regardless of the screen problem, the video is smooth and clear
Synchronize audio on two built-in devices
On screen and TV Display (
Use the/V cable provided).
We were a little surprised to find that there was no repeat function for the video and slides
Show playback, the video is not played in order or in the playlist (
You can only play one video and then you are brought back to the file list).
For large video files, the vision is not doing well.
When we try to play 2
7 gb test, player lock.
You can check the EXIF data for some of our favorite photos, but you can\'t see the camera model.
The recording is a little weak.
We like graphic input-
Level gauge, but built in-
The microphone is not very sensitive and cannot be adjusted.
After selecting to start recording, there is still a few seconds delay until the recording starts.
The FM tuner supports up to 32 presets and receives stations well, and although you can\'t make timed or timed recordings, you can record the station content.
Vision\'s CompactFlash card slot is perfect for photography enthusiasts who want to uninstall and view photos of digital cameras.
Creative sells optional adapters for other memory card formats.
There are also many other accessories including dock and remote control (
Infrared receiver for vision).
The product comes with a charger, a/V cable and a soft storage bag. The 3.
We played 5 hours of video on the battery run-out test, which is less than the company\'s claimed 4 hours, but it is still respectable for devices of this size. The scant 8.
5 hours of audio playback is terrible
We tested (using a real-
World mix of files encoded in 128 to 320 Kbps)
Because we can\'t believe it ourselves, especially since Creative claims that the battery should last for 13 hours during audio playback.
Easy to disassemble battery, Creative offers optional high
It says that the capacity storage unit runs twice as long as the capacity storage unit is included, and we recommend selecting the capacity storage unit.
In general, vision is a very good product that provides a compelling audio-visual experience.
Although the screen has a narrow viewing angle, it looks very good and we don\'t think this is a big problem.
We would also like to see other HDD capacity, USB host features and lines-
Recording (
Also video)facility.
We hope that some flexibility will be added to future firmware updates, such as duplicate slide show, continuous backlight, and even Mac support.
About $400, Creative Zen Vision is a good value considering the high quality of the screen, but the same money will give you a 60 GB iPod with twice the original hard drive capacity
Although there is a smaller, lower
Resolution screen.
As for the background-
Noise issues, although not widely reported in the media, we did experience it on four different units, so we wanted the firmware upgrade to provide a solution.