Oh, the excitement of watching movies on your very own big screen. Yet, no matter how much you fancy the flatness, it’s next to impossible to take your 50-inch plasma TV on an airplane (even if you are a cocktail-swilling big shot in first class) or toss it in the back seat for the kids to watch while driving over the hills and through the woods to grandmother’s house. A handheld portable media center producing a pixel-packed picture might be just the thing to give your trip that video (music and photo, too) zing. One of these three 20GB models ought to do the trick––the only question is which one (and which hand)?
Features – Archos AV420
Features? It’s no contest. The AV420 is the heavyweight champion. (Think Muhammad Ali versus Pee-wee Herman.) Aside from doing all the standard stuff (video, music, and photos), the AV420 sports a built-in Compact Flash memory card reader and an optional 4-in-1 adaptor for other cards that allows downloading of digital photos without using a computer. It’s also an audio and video recorder with PVR capabilities––including an infrared emitter that can be used to turn on and tune VCRs, set-top boxes, cable boxes, and satellite receivers. There’s an included docking cradle with A/V in/out connections for use in your equipment rack.
Winner: Archos AV420
Audio Performance – Archos AV420
The AV420’s internal speaker is the worst performing of the three. Feeble is the word that comes to mind. The earphones Archos includes with the AV420 sound rich; but, unfortunately, they turn out to be the least comfortable. The good news is that the earphone jack has plenty of output to handle a more serious pair of earphones such as the Shure E3c. The bad news is that the internal speaker doesn’t automatically cut off when the earphone plug is inserted. You have to navigate to a menu setting to turn it off.
Winner: Samsung YH-999 GS
Video
Performance – Archos AV420
With a 704 by 480 pixel screen, you’d think that the AV420 would simply smoke the 320 by 240 pixel spread on the other two handhelds. It turns out that it’s hard to tell a resolution difference when looking at compressed video on screens under four inches. You can, however, tell which is better in terms of brightness and color fidelity––and the Archos wins best overall picture quality hands down. The images are bright, the colors are rich, and the dark scenes aren’t washed out.
Winner: Archos AV420
Look and Feel – Archos AV420
The most important part of any portable media player is the layout and responsiveness of the buttons. The Archos wins here on both counts. The buttons are nicely arranged for one-thumb operation, and the player balances perfectly in your hand as you press the navigation pad and control buttons. In addition, all the buttons are highly contoured so you can feel them without looking, and each requires just the right amount of force. Its industrial design look might put some folks off, though.
Winner: Tie (Archos AV420 & Creative Zen PMC)
Archos AV420, $499.99
www.archos.com; 949.609.1483
RATING: EXCELLENT
