Creative's palm-sized entertainer

Just when Creative appears to have lapsed into MP3 ho-hum with two basic Zen Stone offerings to date, it's added back some hurrah to homegrown creativity with its latest portable media player outing.

Having teased the press for close to a week with an e-invite to "experience the Pure Magic of digital entertainment", the Singapore-based company finally announced what appears to be an update to its Zen Vision:M, and then some.

Never mind that the PMP resembles the Meizu Mini 4GB, the design faux pas is forgivable for the big features that come bundled in this little package. About the only thing that felt like a handful (or, more aptly, mouthful) is its rather literal name: The Creative Zen Digital Media Player.

But otherwise, it's really less than a palmful at a petite 55 x 83 x 11.3mm; smaller than a credit card and thinner than the already anorexic Moto RAZR V3xx. Creative's lab has been experimenting with miniaturization, so not surprisingly, it's taken what we believe is the Vision:M, retained its 2.5-inch TFT screen, and shrunk just about everything else.

True to form, Creative has packed an elephant into its wee unit. There's FM radio, voice recorder, photo viewer, album art, and support for expandable SD memory. The 65g player is also the smallest PMP in its stable able to play almost any native video format (WMV9, MJPEG, MPEG4-SP, compatible DivX 4/5 and XviD formats). But what's new and really cool is its support for DRM-free iTunes Plus music and videos. More power to you if you can get ahold of a US credit card or a stored value card from countries with iTunes Stores.

Quick update after Wednesday's press launch which had the theme of magic, and a magician plying his tricks. We're told the flash-memory PMP will come in 4GB (S$249), 8GB (S$349) and 16GB (S$499) flavors, with the first two capacities reaching Singapore by September 1 and the 16GB on shelves around mid-September. For the rest of Asia, the PMP will roll out progressively starting end September to Australia, Japan, Hong Kong, Taiwan, Malaysia, Thailand, Korea, New Zealand, Indonesia, the Philippines and the Middle East.

The Zen Digital Media Player will launch in black only, although Creative is not discounting other colors if demand is there. As has been seen with previous launches, the Zen Digital Media Player comes with an accompaniment of optional accessories including the ubiquitous armband with player enclosure (S$39) and leather case with integrated stand (S$39).

Get a visual close-up here. And here's our hands-on preview of the device for you.

Crave is...

The name says it all. Crave is our new blog about cool gadgets and other crushworthy stuff.

Drop us an email if you have tips or suggestions.

Crave for...

» Mobile Phones (826)

» Digital Cameras (451)

» Notebooks (548)

» PC & Peripherals (588)

» Handhelds (282)

» Printers (45)

» Home AV (549)

» Music & Play (457)

» Gadgets (1045)

» Future Tech (184)

Previously...

2008

2007

2006

2005

2004

Subscribe to
Crave

Today on CNET |  Reviews |  Crave |  Blogs |  CNET TV |  Digital Living |  Downloads