Player Blog Category Archives: PVP
July 15, 2004
A Pair of Sony HMP-A1 Reviews
A pair of reviews on the new Sony portable video player, the HMP-A1, have recently hit the web. The HMP-A1 is one of several new devices from Sony, this one is a 20GB PVP with a 3.5" color LCD. The first review comes from Portable Media World. The review is in French, but they have lots of photos, a video and do include an English translation:
The first moments with the HMP were nice. The design is superb. The materials used give a "luxury" touch to the device, without making too big a hole in your wallet (430 Euros; available from June 26).
The interface is driven by buttons that are really responsive.
The screen is a beaut, with terrific brightness. Watching videos and movies on this device is pure pleasure.
Next up is the review from Gizmodo, who also seemed positive on the device:
So my advice? Wait for one of the new iRiver or Archos players -- or maybe that new DVX-Pod; that looks sort of hot -- instead of paying the importer's premium for a device that isn't much of a video player, isn't much of an MP3 player (and I didn't even try, but I can just tell from the size and interface it's probably not what you want), and doesn't have much hope for firmware upgrades or the like from Sony in the future. It is cool, though, and that's something. I'm starting to warm up to the idea of a video player on my portable hard drive player now just a teensy bit more. It's not that I want one, exactly, so much as I wouldn't mind one.
I just bought an hmp-a1. I wouldn't say it's as bad as what the gizmodo review said, but it defintaley can be better. The screen is nice, but its highly reflective surface is very bothersome when viewing while outdoors. It's almost to the point where you cant make out pictures or video even at full brightness.
I think the biggest problem with the device is the picture veiwer. If you want to buy a picture veiwer, do not buy this one. Pictures take a long time to load, and there is no way to organize photos. It would be convenient to be able to organize photos in folders or seperate lists, but this is not possible with this device. Zoom would also be a nice feature that this device does not have.
One of the biggest gripes for me is that the software prohibits the user to upload more than 1000 image files. What's the point of a 20 gig hardrive when you can't upload more than 1000 files?
However, there are plus sides to the hmp-a1. The image and video quality is very nice. The audio player also works very well (but im not going to get rid of my ipod anytime soon). I was also was more than impressed with the battery life on this machine. All the buttons are highly responsive, and if it decides to lag, it lets you know by displaying the word "loading"
Overall, i think this device is a keeper. Definately a cool toy you can show off to your friends with.