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Samsung YP-D1 (1GB)

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By Edvarcl Heng
Jan 26, 2006

Camera and MP3 player hybrids are nothing new. iRiver had one of the first with its Toblerone chocolate-inspired iFP-1090, though with a 0.3-megapixel resolution, it ought to shut its shutter in shame in the presence of the YP-D1's 2-megapixel sensor. We first covered this picture happy MP3 player back in the middle of 2005 and more than six months later, we are still fairly excited about its impending retail launch. Read the world's first official review here.

Design
We are only too pleased to see cameras shifting into the MP3 realm. As far as frequency of usage goes, we think MP3 players rank right up there with mobile phones and ought to have a built-in digicam of their own. And with the host of MP3 players touting picture display and video playback features, a recording function is a natural technical progression in this mix-and-match world of digital convergence.


Check out the lens on this baby.

The camera sits right on the top end of the YP-D1's back. For fat fingers, it lowers the chances of us blocking the lens by mistake. There's a small mirror for self-portraits as well as an LED light for illumination. We felt the position of the shutter button was a little awkward since it sits on the left in landscape mode rather than the more traditional right. But for mobile phone shutterbugs, the positioning of the button when the YP-D1 is held in the portrait mode resembles a phone's and makes perfect sense.

Compared with the YP-T8, the YP-D1 is a little larger in length, breath and thickness, but otherwise the latter is largely using the same form factor and button layout as the former. Since the YP-D1 is larger, it would have make sense if advantage was taken in maximizing on the increased real estate rather than keeping the display at 1.8 inches.

There are some design improvements such as the repositioning of the microphone to the top rather than at the bottom as in the YP-T8. The audio jack for line recording has also switched places from top to bottom. For the rest of the design details, read our original take on the YP-T8's design.

 
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