Zvue recently released the Elvis Presley preloaded media player.  It is a 1GB player, that is expandable to 5GB with the addition of a microSD card, and comes loaded with 10 of Elvis’ classic live performances.  With the anniversary of Elvis’ death on Aug. 16, what better way to show your love for the King, then with a special player in his honor.  I, myself, am a huge Elvis fan, so I would not want any substandard product to bear his name and likeness.  Does this media player measure up?  Is it something I will want to hug like a Teddy Bear or maybe it will need to be Return-ed to Sender ?  Read on to find out.

Presentation

Most people are probably saying, ‘Why do I care about the packaging?  I’m just going to rip the gadget out, and through the rest away.’  Well, whether we want to admit it, we all still ‘judge a book by its cover’.  If I take a look at a product, and its not visually appealing with the device and packaging, I might just turn and walk away.  Plus, a company willing to put thought and work into presentation will most likely put that same kind of care into its product.  In this area, Zvue does an excellent job with the Elvis Presley MPM.

The black and white photography along with a touch of blue give it a touch of class and sophistication.  Plus, I love the picture of Elvis they picked, excellent choice!!!  The player itself looks like its just floating, and really draws your eye to it.  Take a close look at the front of the player, the line drawn around the screen and control pad form the outline of an acoustic guitar.  Nice touch.   Inside the box, you’ll find a set of earbuds, a user guide, and a usb charger cable.  The addition of an AC charger would be a nice extra to throw in.

SIZE & APPEARANCE

The first thing I noticed when I took the player out of the box was how light it was.  It practically weighs nothing (2.1 oz), but that is not a worry as the player feels solidly constructed.  So, you don’t need to fret if your player is All Shook Up.  The Elvis player is similar in size to the Zune4/8, but does have the MS player beat in the screen size department.  The Zune screen is 1.8″, while the Zvue screen is 2.4″.

Having the larger screen size is a definite plus, especially since both screens offer the same resolution at 320×240.  The thickness of the two products is nearly identical with Elvis at 0.43″, and the Zune at 0.40″.  Given the player’s overall small size (2.31″ x 3.61″), it makes it a great companion for the gym.  The shiny black front of the device and screen are a fingerprint magnet, which is true of all devices with this finish.  The brushed stainless steel back with the picture of Elvis with is signature is very classy looking.  Along the sides of the device is where the ports and switches are located.  The side closest to the navigation pad has the standard headphone jack, microSD slot, and mini-usb charging port.  A big bonus for having a standard, not proprietary, charging system.  The other end of the player has a strap eyelet.  Plus, there is a hold/on switch along the top of the device.

USING THE PLAYER

The controls and menus are very intuitive and easy to use.  The directional pad is hard rubber, and navigation is accomplished by pushing the pad left or right, up or down.  The main menu includes the following categories:  Music, Video, FM, Photos, Text Reader, Voice, and Setup.  Files are loaded onto the player via drag ‘n drop.  The computer considers the device as a portable hard drive, so any kind of files can be stored on the device.  However, the Text Reader can only read .txt files.  I love having the portable hard drive feature.  It saves the trouble of carrying a flash drive around with you.  In the music playback department, the sound is excellent.  I noticed no difference in quality between the Elvis player and my Zune.  The music is crisp, and the bass comes through loud and clear, but is not overwhelming.  Its got the power to make any Jailhouse Rock.  The included earbuds also delivered good quality sound.  The comfort level I would put on par with any pair of earbuds.  Personally, I can never get earbuds to fit comfortably, so I did most of my listening via by Bang-Olfsen earphones.  One feature that audiophiles will love is the equalizer.  There are 6 preset equalizer, as well as a custom equalizer.  I found that the rock setting was best for me.  The player also gives you an option to create a custom playlist from any of the songs in your library.  Currently, you can only have one playlist.  However, I spoke with someone from the Zvue help center, and they said that was a feature they were working to update.  Another thing that impressed me with the player was the fact that if the battery ran down completely, and shut-down the device; once it was recharged, you could pick up right where you left off.  None of my other players do that.  I have long playlists, and I like to go through the whole thing, but I never remember where I left off.  This saves my already poor memory.  One of the cool little extras in the music and photo department for this player, is the slide show feature.  You can create your own shows to run while you are listening to music.  Zvue includes the software to generate slide shows right on the Elvis player.

Speaking of photos, the photo viewer, itself, is easy to use.  When selecting the photo you want to see, there are a list of thumbnails to pick from, and not just file names.  I find this so much easier than trying to remember file names.  Most cameras just designate photos with numbers, and if you don’t take the time to change the file names, figuring out what is what, can be hard.

Elvis - '68 Comeback Special

Being an Elvis themed player, the highlight of the player is the Elvis videos pre-loaded on the player.  There are 5 from his 1968 Comeback Special, 5 from his Aloha from Hawaii concert, and 2 special bonus videos.  As any true Elvis fan will tell you, those are 2 of Elvis’ most well known and popular concerts.  The 1968 Comeback Special being my personal favorite.  Of the 2 bonus videos, one is his arrival in Hawaii, and the other is a press conference from Madison Square Garden.  The press conference was very funny, and a special treat for all Elvis fans.  As for the video performance of the player, I thought the colors were crisp, and the videos ran smoothly.  The small screen size was no issue at all for these videos clips.  A full length movie might be more of a challenge.  One slight annoyance was due to the glossy finish of the screen, any time there was a lot of black in the video, it acted as a mirror.  I tried to play around with the angle at which I was holding the player, and that gave some relief.  The player also comes pre-loaded with software to convert videos to the correct file format.

The battery life for the player is rated as 10 hours for music, and 3-4 hours for video.  I had the player going for 6.5 hours of music non-stop, and only used the first bar on the battery meter.

One area of the player that I found that could use some work is the fact that the two memory inputs, internal and microSD, are completely segregated.  Instead of a 5 gig player, you have a 1 gig with a 4 gig.  In order to play music from the microSD card, you need to go to the Set-up menu, select memory, and select the micro SD option.  In order to view the content stored on the internal memory, you need to go through the exact same process.  If Zvue could find a way to integrate the memory, that would put this player rating from very good to excellent.

The Zvue Elvis Presley player can be purchased at Wal-mart for $49.88.

OVERALL:

Pros:  Pre-loaded Elvis content & software, excellent sound quality, large screen, light weight, low price

Cons:  Separated memory, no AC adapter, glossy screen makes dark colors in videos difficult to view

When I first received this player, I had a bit of a Suspicious Mind, but now, I’m ready to grab my Blue Suede Shoes and do some dancing.

Zvue has also produced speciality players for Journey and  Solange.  I would love to see a Beatles one with a Yellow Submarine design or possibly Madonna.  I know I will be looking forward to whatever Zvue has as their next project.