jazPiper MVR64P Specifications
Memory Capacity	Built-in memory 64MB
Memory Socket	SMC Socket (16MB/ 32MB)
Voice Recording	ADPCM format up to 50 tracks / 120 minutes 64MB for up to 4 hours recording
Telephone Directory	Up to 250 telephone numbers
LCD Display	Graphics LCD up to 12 numbers, 16 English letters. Can support English, Japanese and Korean characters.
Battery	Two AAA size general/rechargeable batteries for up to 10 hours of playing time
Dimensions	66mm x 90mm x 18mm (WxHxD)
Weight	74g (without batteries and belt clip)
Case Type	Plastic

 

When Sony first launched the Walkman in the late 1970s, their intention was to make audio portable. Hence, consumers would be able to enjoy their favourite music anytime, anywhere. Over time, and as technology progressed, these devices employed newer technologies where they became smaller and offered better audio quality.

The MP3 player is a newcomer compared to other portable audio solutions like the trusty Walkman or the hugely successful Discman. In such a competitive and saturated market, the MP3 player has to establish a name for itself and offer more functions to make it a viable portable audio solution.

Walkmans are unshakeable because they use the cassette tape as a form of storage and no matter how hard you shake, it's unlikely that the audio head will stray away from the tape. Discmans on the other hand use laser beams to read the discs and because the reading head does not make any physical contact with the discs, track skipping may occur if you shake the unit. As technology advances, this problem was soon minimised by using buffer memory in these Discmans. However, these buffer memories are limited and depending on the size, can store up to 40 seconds of audio. Thus, you will still experience track skipping if the player is continually shaken for more than its buffer size. In addition, Discmans are pretty bulky in size, and this makes them unsuitable as a portable audio player. (Note: Walkman and Discman are registered trademarks of Sony Corporation.)

Welcome to the world of MP3 players... Now if you haven't already known, MP3 players are solid state players which means that you can take them out for a thrashing and they'd still work fine. That's because MP3 players use memory or SmartMedia/Compact Flash cards, which does not contain any moving parts. Because it is fully electronic, we can truly enjoy skip free audio with a reasonable quality ;)

The jazPiper is no newcomer to the market as it has been around for quite some time, but now, it's given a new facelift. So, what's new? Well, read on and find out!

Up close & personal - The jazPiper MVR64P

 

One of the few reasons why I prefer an MP3 player over an MD Walkman is probably because of its weight. The jazPiper MVR64P is definitely lighter than the Sony MZ-R90 and MZ-R55. Nonetheless, it felt slightly heavier than a Nokia 8850 when it was loaded with 2 AAA batteries.

The jazPiper MVR64P is undeniably one of the most feature packed MP3 players around. FM Radio, voice recording and a Smartmedia card slot are all standard while the digital camera snap-on is an option.

I shall not attempt to dwell on the audio quality of the jazPiper MVR64P because I strongly believe that audio quality is subjective and it may sound superb to some while others might find it horribly wrong. All I can say is that I'm satisfied with the audio quality, and if I were to put on my stringent standards to rate it, I'd still rate it as reasonable. Of course, if you want better audio quality, you can always replace the supplied earphones with better and costlier earphones.

Figuring out how to work the jazPiper is extremely easy, as with all other MP3 players. All you need to do is, upload the MP3 files, press play and you're off! I liked the DSP feature of the jazPiper MVR64P. The default settings are Normal, Pop, DSP Club, Rock, DSP Live, Classic, DSP Hall and one that allows to customise your own settings. Needless to say, I prefer to set my own DSP (pretty much the same reason why drivers prefer manual transmission over auto).

I feel that the 3D audio was a redundant feature... Why? Although the audio really became 3D to a certain extent, but the audio quality deteriorated until it sounded real bad. It's probably not meant for every type of music.

The FM tuner is a nice addition and provides the listener some relief after exhausting the whole 64MB of MP3s. The jazPiper MVR64P also stores up to 15 preset stations, but once you swap your batteries for new ones, the stations are lost, at least that's what I experienced. The included earphones sounded alright, but I still prefer to use my Sony MDR-E741 or Aiwa HP-J30. Voice recording is fine, and acceptable if the source is up to an arm's length. It's a pity that there isn't an option for an external microphone as it will come in handy for those who need a more sensitive microphone, to record lectures, interviews etc.

The digital still camera attachment is a new innovation and it's unique to the jazPiper MVR64P, meaning no other MP3 player in the market has it yet. However it has its drawbacks (will be mentioned later). The camera utilises the unused portion of memory from the internal memory or the "external" Smartmedia cards. You might be thinking that this will 'eat' up the memory meant for your beloved MP3s right? Well, not to worry, because I managed to stuff about 19 MP3s (each 96kbps) and still leave about 20MB left for photos and and some voice recordings. The key to squeezing MP3s into such players is to encode them at a lower bit rate, in my case, I use 96kbps, because you won't be able to tell the difference when you're listening to it while you're travelling. The train is already quite noisy and so is the bus. If you're driving, then well, you shouldn't be listening to the jazPiper MVR64P at all in the first place :).

64MB of memory is generous, though having a little more like 96 or 128MB would heighten the price, but it would be something consumers would fork out for, as opposed to the highly expensive Smartmedia cards. Still, 64MB is the largest built-in memory you'll find in most portable MP3 players.

Last of all, I like the jazPiper Desk software a lot and it works very well. In fact, I find the transfer rate of the jazPiper MVR64P to be a little faster than the Samsung YP-E32 that I've previously used!

jazPiper Desk Software

 

Not every product is perfect and I do find several grouses with the jazPiper. First is that the jazPiper still connects to the PC via the parallel port, which in my opinion, should be updated to use the USB port. The parallel port is definitely too slow!

The digital still camera attachment also consumes battery power when it is hooked onto the set, which means to extend the battery life, it's best not to attach the digital camera until you're absolutely sure you want to take a photo. Also, the image quality is not something you'd want to scream about, it looks rather like Creative's Webcam Go to me, the picture is rather grainy. The lack of a flash (most crucial) and an LCD screen makes it difficult to snap and preview your pictures. It comes with just a piece of small lens and a viewfinder. The lens focus is fixed and it's not good if you're taking images of objects up close. I've included a sample picture of the roadshow we had at Nanyang Technological University. The quality is acceptable for such cameras and you shouldn't expect professional quality from a low-cost addition like this.

The battery life is also greatly dependent on the batteries you use. I used several kinds of batteries while testing this unit, and I found that Energiser and Duracell provide the longest usage hours. If you want to buy those cheap AAA batteries that retail for about S$1 for a packet of 4. Playing time won't be more than 3 hours. The best bet? Buy a set of rechargable AAA batteries and use them. :)

I've run into several problems while using the jazPiper Desk software in Windows 2000 Professional, despite having the latest edition of the software from jazPiper's website. You can't upload more than 2 MP3s at one go and neither can you upload more than 2 pictures into the computer. There were no such problems in Windows 98 SE. I guess there's still some minor problems that need to be ironed out.

Sample pix taken during our roadshow in NTU.

 

The jazPiper MVR64P is definitely one of the most feature packed MP3 player around, and that gives it the X-factor. I love the extremely customisable DSP settings which allows you to separately adjust your bass and treble. The digital still camera attachment is a cheap option to consider should you need a handy and simple digital camera. However, you shouldn't expect much since the images cannot be compared to expensive digital cameras like Canon or Nikon. If you want high quality pictures, you'd be much better off saving the money buying a proper digital camera instead.