Intro

Well, I think we're about the last site on the net to offer a review of the Zen Vision: M. Sorry about that but the ZVM was released in the USA right as we hit CES 2006 and my order took several weeks to arrive. By the time I got it, we had already reported on a dozen or more reviews. I figured I might as well take my time and test it out for a month before putting together my thoughts.



Specs, Features, Overview

• 30gb hard drive, 1.8-inch
  
• Size: 104 x 62 x 18.6mm
  
• Weight: 163g
  
• LCD: 2.5-inch TFT LCD, 320 x 240 pixels, 262k colors
  
• Battery life: (up to) 14 hours audio, 14 hours radio, 4 hours video
  
• Supported Audio formats: MP3, WMA (including DRM10/Janus), WAV
  
• Works with music subscription services like Yahoo Unlimited and Napster
  
• Supported Video formats: DivX, XviD, MPEG-1, MPEG-2, MPEG4-SP, WMV9, Motion-JPEG
  
• Supported Image formats: JPEG, BMP, GIF, TIFF
  
• SNR (signal-to-noise ratio): up to 97dB
  
• FM radio, radio recording, 32 station presets, can name presets
  
• EQ: 8 presets, 5 band customizable
  
• USB 2.0 transfer interface
  
• Connects to Windows XP via MTP interface, no drivers required
  
• Configurable MSC partition (512mb to 16gb)
  
• PIM functions: Calendar, Contact, Task list
  
• Clock, with a configurable alarm
  
• Charges via AC adapter (2.5 hours) or through USB (6 hours)
  
• TV output through composite AV port, supports NTSC and PAL
  
• View photos while listening to music
  
• Voice recording with built-in mono microphone
  
• Album art during playback
  
• Photo display features include slideshow, thumbnail preview pages, zoom & pan
  
• Main controller: touch-strip with
  
• Dock connector on bottom side (desktop dock not included, mini-dock included)
  
• Includes a mini dock with AC port, USB port, and AV out port (AV cables NOT included)
  
• Retail package includes AC adapter, headphones, USB cable, cloth protective pouch
  
• 3.5mm headphone jack with wired remote support (remote not included)
  
• Media must be loaded through a PC with Windows XP
  
• Main controller: touch-strip for navigation which rocks left/right for playback control
  
• 4 dedicated buttons: Play/Pause, Back button, Context menu, and Custom
  
• Custom button can be mapped to just about any function/feature
  
• Combination On/Off/Hold switch on top edge
  
• Plastic construction
  
• Available in 5 colors
  
• MSRP $330
  

Features NOT found on the ZVM

• Line-input audio or video recording
  
• Digital audio output
  
• Voice and radio recording to MP3 (ZVM supports recording only to ADPCM)
  
• Support for AC3, OGG, and FLAC audio
  
• Gapless playback, crossfading between tracks
  
• Text file viewing
  
• Games
  
• Wireless remote control
  

ZVM = Shorthand used throughout the review for Creative's Zen Vision: M
MSC = Mass Storage Class/Compliant (aka UMS)
MTP = Media Transfer Protocol (Microsoft)
DRM = Digital Rights Management
Divx & Xvid = Implementations of the MPEG-4 video codec
WMA10 DRM/Janus = An extension of Windows Media Audio, supporting subscription-based content

This review is based on the firmware that ships with the ZVM at the time of this writing, version 1.11.01. I checked Creative's support webpage and it also seems to be the most recent firmware available, dated January 12, 2006.

article index
page 1 - current : Introduction
page 2 : Package, Build Quality, Design
page 3 : Controls, Screen
page 4 : GUI, Library Organization
page 5 : Video Playback, TV output
page 6 : Audio Playback, Bookmarking, Playlisting
page 7 : FM Radio, Image Viewing, Voice Recording, PIM
page 8 : PC Interface, Software Interface
page 9 : Battery, Battery Life, Value
page 10 : Conclusion
page 11 : ZVM vs. iPod (g5) & Your Comments