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Old 04-18-2007, 09:29 PM
craigf
Pupil
Join Date: Apr 2004
Posts: 22

Nice review, but I had a different set of cons than you did:

Quote:
Cons
* Does not support High Definition graphics (720p, 1080i, or 1080p);
* Only supports the SD memory card format;
* Batteries in controller are not rechargeable.
While the last two bullets aren't concerns for me at all (all my devices use SD cards except my D-SLR; NiMH AA cells are de rigueur in our household), the main, if not only significant, con is that the device currently makes a lousy media player. As you said, it doesn't do HD. But more importantly, it doesn't play any standard optical media (CDs or DVDs), nor does it have optical audio output, nor does it play any media files natively except for MP3 audio and Quicktime and motion-JPEG (?) video.

Does it have to suck at being a media player? Absolutely not. All it would take is some extra software to open up a world of different media formats via networking (e.g., a simple UPnP media streaming app would be wonderful, since most of us already run some kind of UPnP streamer on a networked PC somewhere in the house) or via the SD card (a 2GB card offers enough capacity to hold at least two full-length XviD movies in 480p resolution). The hardware is capable and willing; we just need better software to make this very nifty device into an indispensible family room fixture.
 
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