Samsung Galaxy Player 4.0 and 5.0
Oct 18, 2011 at 12:26 AM Post #2 of 55
Waiting for Sony Walkman based in Android OS.
 
Oct 18, 2011 at 1:11 AM Post #3 of 55
The new Samsung Galaxy Player 4.0 and 5.0 have created a bew super set within which
Apple's iPod Touch now only dimly shines.  It's like saying an eagle is equivalent 
to an aggressive pigeon.  Hereafter, I will refer to the Samsung Galaxy Player as "SGP"
and the iPod Touch as "iTouch".
 
COMMON HEAD-TO-HEAD FEATURES:
 
Back Camera: SGP=3.2MP ; iTouch=0.7
Front Camera: SGP=0.3      ; iTouch=0.3
 
Microphone: yes for both
 
Main Speaker: SGP=2 stereo; iTouch=mono
 
CPU: SGP=1GHz Hummingbird ; iTouch= 1GHz ARM Cortex-A8 (underclockec to 800MHz)
 
RAM: SGP=512MB ; iTouch=256MB
 
Storage:  SGP=8GB ; iTouch=8,32, or 64GB
 
Bluetooth: SGP=ver 3.0 ; iTouch=ver 2.1
 
UNIQUE TO SGP:
1. Expandable Memory via microSD/SDHC card (up to 32GB)
2. GPS (used with cached maps)
3. FM Radio (no WiFi, no problem)
4. Haptic feedback, i.e. vibration mode for silent alarms, games, and UI interaction
5. Phone-like ear speaker for VOIP phone calls
6. Replaceable battery
7. LED camera flash (only on Galaxy Player 5.0, not 4.0)
8. Adobe Flash 10.1 support (no more "Requires Adobe Flash" errors while web browsing on iTouch)
9. Broader file format support (including some open source audio/video codecs):
Video Files: AVI, MP4, 3GP, WMV, ASF, MKV, FLV
Audio Files: MP3, WMA, Ogg, FLAC, AAC, WAV
Image Files: JPEG, GIF, BMP, PNG
Document Files: Word File (doc, docx, xml, txt, rtf, dot, dotx), Excel File (xls, xlsx, csv, xlt, xltx), PowerPoint (ppt, pptx, pot, potx, pps, ppsx), PDF
 
Now comes the bad news: No one is as slick as Apple.  Having an Android device means doing more research and shopping
around for apps and media content.  So, if you are used to the tightly integrated and generally friendly Apple ecosystem, you will likely have some withdrawal symptoms.  Still, there is no denying that the Galaxy Players' hardware features are superior to the iPod Touch's.  Is it worth leaving the smooth road Apple paves in order to use a more advanced device?  That will depend on the individual needs of the consumer.  Whatever one decides, it's nice finally to have an Android-based WiFi-only PMP that is every bit as advanced as a modern smart phone as an option.
 
 
 
 
Oct 18, 2011 at 3:57 AM Post #5 of 55
According to http://www.gizmag.com/sony-walkman-nw-z1000-series-android/19844/
the 16GB Sony Walkman NW-Z1000 will be priced at US$365.  I loved my Sony Walkman
and Discman.  Still, this seems a little steep for something that Samsung has managed to do
with the 8GB Samsung Galaxy Player 4.0 (US$230) and 5.0 (US$270).  Granted, the z1000's processor
will be dual core and it will have 16GB of storage. 
 
It's exciting to see the Android-based WiFi-only PMP competition begin to throw down quality products.
I wonder who will be the first manufacturer to offer a PMPs based on a Microsoft mobile OS... Let the
games begin.
 
Oct 18, 2011 at 9:45 PM Post #6 of 55
With 7" 16gb tablets now at $299, it is very hard to rationalize paying $365 for the Z1000.  I'll be skipping that one.  As for Samsung's offerings my review of the 4.0 is up, and I'm testing the 5.0 now.  That extra inch of screen pushes the 5.0 into the tablet zone.  A thin improvement over my ancient Archos 5.
 
Oct 19, 2011 at 12:53 AM Post #7 of 55
I'm definitely intrigued by the SGP and its wider file support and expandable storage (especially with MicroSD cards dropping in price so quickly these days), maybe it would finally motivate me to ditch my iPod Touch.
 
Oct 19, 2011 at 9:22 AM Post #8 of 55
I'm thinking Amazon or BestBuy will put these players on sale a few times.  There appears to be plenty of markup on them.  Very full featured though.  They come with decent IEMs, and mine sound very good.
 
Oct 19, 2011 at 3:50 PM Post #9 of 55


Quote:
I'm thinking Amazon or BestBuy will put these players on sale a few times.  There appears to be plenty of markup on them.  Very full featured though.  They come with decent IEMs, and mine sound very good.



They seem a little steep @ $230.00 & $265.00 considering Woot was selling the larger model for about $180.00. I agree though 20%-30% off sales in the near future. Mostly positive reveiws so far and from
what I hear will get Ice Cream Sandwich as well.
 
 
 
.
 
Oct 21, 2011 at 12:45 AM Post #11 of 55
I also have one, the 4.0. My mother owns the 5.0. If I could switch I would go with the 5.0 as I think it feels more durable/etc as it doesn't have the removable battery/cover. It does sound quite nice, although I'm not really the one to ask about such things. Also, according to my friend, the 5.0 can be rooted (he recently did a job on one) and the 4.0 cannot, but we haven't checked in quite awhile so not sure as of today. One more thing! Mine also has an issue with playlists on any music player other than the stock Samsung one (Playerpro, Ubermusic, PowerAMP). The issue is that my playlists do not save itself after rebooting the device.
 
Oct 21, 2011 at 6:10 PM Post #12 of 55
looks really nice, does any one know how it compares in sound quality to lets say the cowon j3? i assume the j3 sounds better but the size of the screen the price point and it being android are making me lean towards the player 5. how are the sterio internal speakers? do they sound at least ok, i just kind of like the fact that its stereo.
tongue_smile.gif

 
Oct 22, 2011 at 12:05 AM Post #13 of 55
 
Quote:
looks really nice, does any one know how it compares in sound quality to lets say the cowon j3? i assume the j3 sounds better but the size of the screen the price point and it being android are making me lean towards the player 5. how are the sterio internal speakers? do they sound at least ok, i just kind of like the fact that its stereo.
tongue_smile.gif

I'll have to rank the the built-in speakers the best I've heard on any of the media players I've tested.   No deep bass of course, but there is a nice stereo effect (depending on the music and relative position of the player to the listener. My ears are old and abused though, so trust your own not mine.

 
 
 
Oct 22, 2011 at 12:48 AM Post #14 of 55


Quote:
Waiting for Sony Walkman based in Android OS.



I'm kind of waiting on that too. But the SGP is tempting. I just wish the screen was better, Super AMOLED would have been lovely
 
 
Oct 22, 2011 at 12:35 PM Post #15 of 55
I've been looking for a player to complement my Clip+, and was pretty settled on the Cowon J3 until I came across this. Current pricing on Amazon is high, but if I could get the 5.0 at under $200, I'd have to seriously consider it.
 

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