It may come as a shock to some, but there are still millions of people who don’t use their phones as their media players. For iPhone owners, that must be a huge shock. Android-smartphone owners are now growing a similar sentiment thanks to Google Music. With so many people using their phones as their media devices, the Portable Media Player (PMP) is dying out. However, not all phones make for good PMPs. Android’s media center gets better with each passing day, but is still light years behind the simplicity of both iTunes and Windows Phone 7 with Zune. At the same time, not everyone wants to use their phone as a PMP. Some people just want a dedicated device to listen to music to, or to view all media on. Whether it’s for a jog or a family car ride cross-country, PMPs are still a necessity, and these days they come at better prices than ever before.

iPod Nano

The iPod Nano is still the king of the run. There’s no better companion than the tiny music machine, which not only stores 8/16GB of music, pictures, and podcasts, but has a full FM radio and multi-touch touchscreen to boot. Even with just software updates and a slight price drop, the iPod Nano is the best PMP of it’s class, and a great device in general. It also makes a great gift…perfect for the stocking, or for a game of find-the-gift.

iPod Touch

Like the Nano, the iPod Touch only received a software update, to iOS 5.0, but it’s still the best PMP available to date. It’s a shame that no cosmetic or technical improvements have been made, such as a boost like the iPhone 4S received (over the iPhone 4), yet even with just a firmware upgrade the iPod Touch has access to all of the App Store’s apps, as well as the full catalog of iTunes music, movies and TV shows. There’s no better full-size PMP than the iPod Touch.

Galaxy Player 4.0/5.0

Apple may seem to be the only competitor in this field, but earlier this year Samsung showed off the Galaxy Player, similar to their Galaxy S phones. While the Korean and Asian models included functions to watch TV over the air, the US models are strictly on-device or Wi-Fi media players – no over the air. In two models, 4″ and 5″, the Galaxy Players are the first Android-based PMPs on the market.

Like the iPod Touch, both Galaxy Players run on last-year’s Galaxy S hardware, and still fully-capable of meeting all of your media needs. But unlike the iPod Touch, the Galaxy Players come with only 8GB of internal memory and include a MicroSD card slot that supports up to 32GB per card. The Galaxy Player also has an FM Tuner, though you’ll need headphones to activate it.

The more musically-inclined will enjoy the Galaxy Player 4.0, though it’s music store and media organization pales in comparison to iTunes (except for Google Music), while the Galaxy Player 5.0  is smaller than a tablet, but has a great size for watching movies or TV shows on the go. 

So what should I get?

For exercising or music always on the move, the Nano is the obvious choice. The real question comes up with the full-size media players, between not only the iPod Touch and Galaxy Player, but between the iPod, Galaxy Player 4.0 and 5.0. For strictly music and gaming, the iPod is by far the best, with the biggest App Store for games and iTunes for excellent music purchasing and synchronization. For video, the iPod Touch certainly surpasses the Galaxy Player 4.0 because of it’s Retina Display, though lack of flash playback means the 4.0 has access to a significantly larger amount of content.

But when it comes to the 5.0, hands down the Galaxy Player wins. The larger display, plus access to flash video while still being pocketable (and practically acting as a tablet) makes it more comfortable to watch videos on in any conditions, be it a cramped airplane or at home on the couch.

Still seeking that 3D experience but not ready to plunk down a few grand on a compatible LED TV?  Fear not my furry friends, Brando has you covered.  The electronic retailer is hocking the Gadmei P83 PMP Player, which claims to be a 3D PMP sporting an 8-inch 1280×768 that doesn’t require those pesky 3D glasses.  Course, finding compatible video and images will be entirely up to you since there clearly isn’t a store, at least that we’re aware of, that sells such movies.  However, it should be compatible with your favorite brand of 3D capable point and shoot camera, which are still fairly few and far between, but in existence nonetheless.  Storage is a scant 4GB, though it is compatible with USB sticks and SD cards.  If you’re willing to take the dive, you can grab one for $179.

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Pictures of 7th generation iPad Nano reemerged yesterday.  As discussed in a previous leak, the next gen iPad Nano will include a 1.3 megapixel camera.  A source that is supposedly close to the project stated that the new Nano won’t have a built-in clip, unlike the current gen version, to make room for the camera.  However, we believe – assuming the rumors are true – that Apple will just bore a hole into the clip to allow for both features to exist in harmony.

Keep in mind that the 5th generation iPod Nano included a camera.  So readding such a feature to a smaller form factor could very well add some sales to the product.  But, the Nano is so small that it would be difficult, or at least a tad trying to hold the device and shoot a photo without blocking the lens.  Perhaps Apple will add a running feature that snap photos as you jog a set distance.

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The Chumby 8, Chumby’s latest alarm clock/app device showed up at our door step this week.  We finally got around to an unboxing, which we assure you is nothing special.  However, we did have a chance to play with the device before writing this post.

It looks better, sounds better, feels better and we’re confident if we could eat the Chumby 8 it would taste better than the last iteration, the Chumby One.  Gone is the friendly bedside alarm clock foot print.  The 3.5-inch screen has been replaced with a larger, more responsive, 8-inch 800×600 touchscreen.  Thanks to the bigger screen the UI has been improved and is far cleaner.  The processor has received an almost two fold speed bump from 454mhz to 800mhz and the RAM doubled to 128MB.  This has resulted in a far speedier and more fluid user experience.  Pandora sounds vastly better and there is now a more finger-friendly QWERTY keyboard that makes punching in stations a snap.  Course, you still need to verify your Chumby before accessing Pandora, but once you do so you’ll also be able to add select apps to the device without the need for a computer, though your choices will be rather limited.  Chumby has also added CF and SD card slot, making it ideal for viewing photos, though thanks to the WiFi tapping into your favorite photo sharing site is a no brainer.  The 2W internal speaker is now in stereo – fortunately there is a headphone jack for adding your own speakers.

Expect a review soon, but if you can’t wait the Chumby 8 is available now for $199.99.

As we’ve seen, the Samsung Galaxy S phones are darned impressive, definitely some of the best phones out on the market today. Then the company announced to do something very similar to Apple and make a strictly media playing device, without telephony. Meet the Galaxy Player.

Of course, this isn’t the American, or even worldwide version. This is the Korean version which will ship later this month only in Korea. It’s big and fat, and feels bigger than the Fascinate. As you can see below, they’re about the same size.

That thickness, which is the exact opposite of what I expected, is for two reasons: first, the Galaxy Player uses an LCD display using Samsung’s SuperClear technology, not SuperAMOLED like the Galaxy S phones. This makes the glass thicker, and thus the device thicker. Secondly, the Korean model supports wireless TV, which is available in South Korea, so they can watch TV anywhere and anytime.

Why not SuperAMOLED? Low supply, one Samsung representative told me, which confirms growing suspicions that OLED in general is in short supply. A marketing person was quick to point out that the current display is significantly brighter than OLED screens, which would make viewing media easier in the sunlight, as good a reason as any if you live in Korea and want to watch TV outside.

I played around with the Galaxy Player, and it’s blazingly fast. It uses the same TouchWiz 3.0 software as the Galaxy S phones, and is essentially identical in every way, except that it doesn’t have the phone. That may be the best thing about the Galaxy Player, especially for iPhone owners, or for someone who wants Android but isn’t necessarily ready or willing to switch phones.

There’s no current set price or release date for the Galaxy Player in the US or worldwide outside of Korea.

5 out of 5 stars

Pros:

• Best design yet, excellent screen and feel
• Faster, thinner, lighter
• Facetime and 720p video recording

Cons:

• No FM radio, no numerical battery
• Low resolution and low quality still photography

Product perfection is next to impossible. There’s no way to please everyone, and as we all know, the minute you buy something new, something new and better has just come out. In our everlong search for perfection in anything, gadget or otherwise, the iPod Touch aims for kingship. Does it take the throne?

With the iPhone 4, a huge makeover to the handset promised to reshape Apple’s media player, and it did. Including the iPhone 4’s A4 processor, Retina display and front-facing camera for Facetime, the 4^th generation iPod Touch includes almost everything the tech giant’s latest phone introduced. It accomplishes all this while still thinning down and shedding weight, from the already absurdly-thin design.

The iPod Touch 4G makes older models look fat in comparison. The mirrored back surface still scratches easily, and rounds the glass off to an almost razor-thin edge. Past iPod’s had much larger, rounder edges – this iPod is by far the sleekest. The power/standby button has finally been moved over to the right side, as on the iPhone. The volume rocker has thicker, rounded buttons which are easy to press, though iOS4 on the iPod does not support quick mute like on the iPad.

The 2nd Gen iPod Touch left of the 4th Gen

4th Gen iPod Touch, Top, with it’s rounded, separated volume rocker above the 2nd Gen

Past iPod touch models had qualities that made them seem less professional, less clean. The Wi-Fi antenna showing, thick rounded edges, etc. The iPod Touch 4G, however, does not. It’s clean, crisp, and looks and feels great. The thinness of the design is excellent for holding in a pocket, though like the Nano, it’s easy to forget because it’s so light and thin. Yet with that miniscule frame, the iPod is still tough. Users can safely play a game of ball with the Touch in a pocket. I’ve on more than a few occasion forgot it was even there.

Performance is stellar. It seems silly that each new i-device is considered snappy and fast thanks to performance boosts, yet the same applies with this iPod Touch. There isn’t a faster mobile device on the market today.

Many have thus far been impressed by the Retina display, boasting a higher resolution 960×640 display and 326 pixels per inch. I’m not. Yes, it looks great, and yes, it is much clearer than older every other screen I’ve tested. But having switched back and forth between my iPhone 3GS and the iPod Touch 4G, it really isn’t that big a deal. Some journalists have openly stated that the upgraded screen makes the iPad useless, but I couldn’t disagree more. There is certainly a difference, but that’s not worth upgrading for alone.

What is more significant is the improved brightness and contrast. The difference in lights and darks has been significantly improved over previous models. It’s not as good as the Super AMOLED displays used on Samsung’s recent Galaxy S mobile phones, but it’s a significant step forward in LCD displays. That contrast is far more important than the picture clarity because the human eye is more sensitive to the differences in lights and darks than it is to anything else, except for motion. So unless you plan on spending inordinate amounts of time reading – for which the pixel density and higher resolutions do matter  – the update in contrast and brightness is most noteworthy.

For gaming, however, pixel density changes everything, or at least it can. Games with heavy graphics can look amazing on this screen, though few have helped flaunt the upgraded hardware thus far. More importantly, the upgrade in processing speed, screen quality and overall build, help to push the iPod ahead of mobile gaming competitors. This iPod is easily the most powerful gaming device, not to mention the smallest, most useful and most inexpensive (through cheaper downloadable games).

The addition of not just one, but two cameras is huge, but not as big as it could have been. The main camera in the back is capable of shooting 720p video. A few test videos I shot proved to be noisy and a little fuzzy, but picture quality was fine, above par for what we’ve come to expect with 720p-ready cellphone cameras. Reducing the size to 480p improves the quality.

The lack of a proper still camera is more frustrating. Both the rear and front (640×480) cameras can shoot stills, but only at low resolutions with mediocre quality. The rear camera is limited to about one megapixel. It was my biggest hope to see the iPod Touch become a competitive photographic device, but Apple’s obviously more intent on leaving that with the iPhone for now. Maybe next year…

Using Facetime has been a blast. Calling family and friends is gimmicky, but fun. It works perfectly, and the results of several dozen calls proved that the technology is solid. The bigger problem is how we communicate as a society. Conversation becomes awkward quickly – with Facetime, you can’t do anything besides for look at the person on the other end and speak. Your appearance matters. You can’t play with your hair or do something else. In a way, it puts more pressure on the conversationists. Facetime demands a person’s full attention, one which we as a society will need to adjust to.

FM radio, which made its way to the iPod Nano, is still missing for the Touch, though one could argue the point that with Wi-Fi and apps, an FM transceiver is unnecessary. I argue that Touch owners who plan on using the device to exercise won’t be carrying a Wi-Fi signal with them, and we all can’t live in Mountain View. There is also no numerical battery life indicator, which I always use instead of the graphic battery bar.

With this fourth iteration of the iPod Touch, Apple brings sweeping upgrades, but not sweeping changes to their acclaimed media device. Those upgrades are fantastic: a powerful processor, more memory, a vastly better screen, all while maintaining excellent battery life. The few changes – the inclusion of two cameras – are a start in the right direction, but not the leap we’ve seen Apple take so many times before. The company is quickly closing in on a perfect, do-everything device, but this isn’t it.  Still, the 4^th generation iPod Touch is by far the best portable media player, and the closest one to perfection.

Ah yes, perfect for the campsite as pictured above.  Taking the whole Vizio thing a couple steps further, The TV Hat is ready to take you to a introverted place of the likes in which you’ve never seen before.  The TV Hat uses a 2.5x magnification screen to broadcast the image from your PMP with the privacy shield blocking out everyone else except for little old you.

Mega cheap at $30, I can’t imagine the price dictating the quality.  Anyone use one of these?

[via RandomGoodStuff]

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Zune users rejoice, 4.5 has been bestowed upon your PMP.  Just plug in the device and get a syncing.

So what does it add? Smart DJ, which we showed you last week at the Zune House here in LA.  Microsoft has also increased the codec compatibility of the player by adding AVI support.

I’m just waiting on Microsoft to kick out a Mac compatible build of their software so I can play with the super sleek device.

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Yesterday, Microsoft finally made it official and announced the 64GB Zune HD.  That very same day we were invited to the Zune House in LA where we got a hands on look at the yet to be released software update for the player, 4.5.  The biggest take away: their DJ feature which is like Apple’s Genius.  It’s hard to say which of the two will be better, but since we just got our hands on a 32GB Zune HD we’ll let you know as soon as the software is made publicly available.

The Zune HD wasn’t a huge hit upon its release, and while I doubt it will ever be as popular as the iPod family, that doesn’t mean it isn’t a nice product. Microsoft is still supporting the device and has announced a 64GB version, while reducing the prices of the 16GB and 32GB models. Maybe that will draw new customers to the sleek OLED-display device.

The new Zune comes in a wide variety of colors:  Black, Blue, Red, Green, Purple, Platinum, and Magenta. In addition, the 16GB and 32GB Zunes will now be $199.99 and $269.99, respectively. Meanwhile, the Zune HD 4.5 firmware is expected soon, and new details on it will be coming out this week.

The 64GB Zune HD hits April 12th for $349.99.

We’re excited to share that Zune fans will be able to purchase a new 64GB capacity of the popular Zune HD device for $349.99 starting April 12th through ZuneOriginals.com. By increasing the Zune HD capacity to 64GB, users will be able take up to 16,000 songs, or 20 hours of high definition video from Zune Marketplace, or 25,000 pictures* on the go! Customers will be able to customize their Zune HD 64GB through ZuneOrginals.com, available in their choice of Platinum, Black, Blue, Red, Green, Purple and Magenta colors.

In addition to introducing the new 64GB capacity, we are also reducing the prices of the 16GB and 32GB devices. Starting today, price lists are being distributed to retailers, setting the Estimated Retail Price (ERP) for the Zune 16GB device at $199.99 and the Zune HD 32GB device at $269.99.

With its OLED multi-touch screen, built-in HD radio, HD video out capabilities and Internet browser, Zune HD is a full-function media player which has received accolades from press and consumers. We’ve also announced details of an upcoming firmware update which will add even more features to the device, such as Smart DJ auto-playlists directly on the Zune HD, ability to browse, stream and acquire music from Zune Marketplace on your TV (while the device is connected to a TV set through the A/V dock) and expanded codec support allowing users to play more video formats natively from the device.

We are excited to be offering a great range of storage capacities for the Zune HD at a competitive price point and will be sharing more news on the availability of the 4.5 firmware in the coming days.

*Music estimates based on 128 Kbps WMA files with length of 4 minutes each. Pictures transferred to Zune will be optimized for Zune screen size; video estimates based on 500 Kbps WMV files with 128 Kbps WMA audio tracks.

With the South African World Cup looming around the corner (150 days from now), Mobile TV is something you might need for your iPhone.  Also doubling as a battery extender, the i30 has a built in speaker and a retractable antenna for grasping  that all important signal.

No word just yet on pricing or availability but we haven’t seen to many products offering real time TV on the iPhone so we’ll just have to wait and see how good things thing performs.  Really, beyond the limited information found here and elsewhere on the net there were no real images to be found as well.  I had to scan this picture from the brochure they gave us.

Cydle had some cool looking PMP’s at their booth by way of one HD radio and Mobile TV players.  Each were priced at a decent subscription free $120 and should see shelf time around March of this year.  The players could be viewed vertically and horizontally and had a host of other features besides its core offering.

Each player, the P29A (Mobile TV), and the P29H (HD Radio) has a high resolution touch screen, gravity sensor, music player, voice recorder, and more.  We like how small and fair priced these units were and looking forward to some more “hands-on” time with them in the future.

What’s 130 smackers get you these days?  The Viewsonic VPD400, a 4.3-inch screened media player.  It rocks an 800×400 resolution, 12 hour battery life (3 for video), video output, microSD card slot and 8GB of storage.   It’s not exactly wafer thin at .5-inches, but should suffice for those carrying a small bag or some sort of man purse.  Apple users can look the other way, though, since it’s only compatible with Windows 98/2000/SE/ME/XP/Vista PCs (no Windows 7 support?).

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Doubling as a hacky-sack, the MovieWedge is a convenient way to view media horizontally on your iPhone or iPod touch.  The MovieWedge is lightweight and portable beanbag-esque cushion that supports your iPhone for prime viewing.

Embracing a brutally simple design aesthetic, the MovieWedge can effectively adapt to most any surrounding.  Capable of changing shape to a small degree, the MovieWedge can easily fit in where ever you need it.  From a stiff but moving airplane tray table, to your bed or your grassy backyard, the MovieWedge is unlike any iPhone stand you have used before.

The MovieWedge is pretty durable due to its impressionable footbag design.  I can see at some point down the line it becoming a bit worn or frayed from general wear and tear but with any amount of TLC, the MovieWedge should last for years.

For only $10, the MovieWedge is a great gift idea for this coming holiday season for anybody that owns an iPhone, iPod Touch, or any PMP or smart phone that displays media horizontally.

The only thing I didn’t like was the made in China tag dangling off of the MovieWedge.  I would have liked to have seen the logo embroidered on the cushion itself but it’s not a huge sticking point.

Any consumer would be happy with what the MovieWedge provides for the price and anyone looking for an iPhone stand/pillow should look no further.

It can also be used to clean the screen of your iPhone no problem!

Pros:

• Cheap
• Versatile
• Lightweight and durable

Cons;

• None

Buy it here for $10!

**Update**

Since the posting of this review, news has come in about a new tag that is now attached to the MovieWedge.  While still not embroidered, the new tag looks much nicer than the previous one.  See Pic below.

WedgeWorks has debuted the MovieWedge as a low-cost high-quality choice for those needing a horizontal device stand.  Made from a flexible micro-suede, the MovieWedge will work with a variety of mobile devices from iPhones to PSP’s to Blackberry’s.

Capable of sitting on/at a variety of surfaces and angles, the MovieWedge will hold your device in any case it’s in without slipping.  Competitively priced at $9.95,  the WedgeWorks MovieWedge is available now.  Way cheaper and nicer looking than many other similar products, the MovieWedge could be a great gift for you or someone you know.

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I got some big chuckles from the Family Guy where Stewie tells Bill Gates that no one cares about the Zune.  I myself have never even touched one let alone know somebody that has one.  In recent news however, Microsoft has announced that they will no longer produce “non” touch screen Zunes to make way for Microsoft’s newest version, the Zune HD.  It’s probably for the best as beyond minor firmware updates, the “clickpad” Zunes have not seen any improvements since 2007 nor an improvement in sales.  The hard drive based Zune 80 and 120 will also be included in this discontinuation, but you can still buy them until they run out.

The Zune HD ships on September 15th for $220(16GB) and $290(32GB).

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Creative announced the availability of their ZEN X-Fi2 today.  It’s a 3-inch touchscreen PMP that is compatible with a variety of video and audio codecs including iTunes Plus and FLAC (lossless) files.  And for those that like to show off their photos or videos they’ve added a video out port for attaching the ZEN X-Fi to your large screen TV.  Other than that, the 11.6mm thick (iPhone sized) PMP boasts a similar feature set as the original, which includes a FM radio, microphone, microSD card slot and 3 storage capacities (8GB, 16GB, and 32GB).  Amazon has the ZEN X-Fi2 up for pre-order for $129.99, $179.99 and $229.99 respectively, but makes no mention of a ship date.

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Despite looking like Sony has struck a deal with Disney (the button configuration looks like Mickey Mouse) the Walkman S540 appears to be a relatively formidable PMP.  Launching next month, the 10.2mm thick body sports a pair of speakers and a battery life that Sony claims is good for 42 hours of music or 6.5 hours of video on a single charge (less if the speakers are used).  It remains to be seen if the speakers will sound like something made out of a tin can, but its 2.4-inch 320×240 screen surely can’t hurt.  Expect the 8GB model to retail for $110 and the 16GB for $130; reasonable considering the competition.

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Although it still won’t have the masses flocking to retail stores to pick one up, Leyio, which we saw a few months ago, will receive a firmware update next month that will enable the player to pull DRM free tracks directly off the iPod’s stored, playable contents.  Note, I said ‘playable’, which in the past has meant that the content can’t be transferred from the iPod to any other machine regardless of DRM.

There’s a quick demo video after the ‘leap’, but in short you’ll be able to plug your iPod into your Leyio and transfer the tunes to its 16GB of flash memory.  Again, it’s nothing ground breaking but it’s the first time I’ve seen music transfered from an iPod’s playable material to another device without the intervention of a computer or a hack.

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Microsoft got official today and says that the Zune HD will ship on September 15th.  Actually, the news is no surprise since we saw a leaked display stand yesterday and Amazon, which now has the product page back up, leaked the price a few days prior.  So if you want a brand new shiny PMP you’re gonna need to plunk down $219.99 for the 16GB or $289.99 for the 32GB.  There’s still no word on a 64GB version, but I guess you never know.

Read – 16GB Zune HD
Read – 32GB Zune HD
Read – Zune Website