The latest MP3 player from Creative Technology.

Following the recent announcement of Creative's latest hard drive based MP3 player, Creative Zen Neeon, www.hardwarezone.com® takes a trip down to the press event to find out more about its latest offering.

The first impression on the Creative Zen Neeon is that it looks simple and sleek, which is a different design approach compared to its predecessor. Though there are 10 different brushed-metal back plate colors to choose from, all of them have a similar reflective piano black finish. If the black finish doesn't fit your preference, Creative has throw in a free "Stik-On" decorative skins that sticks on to the faceplate. The "Stik-On" skin can be peeled off and be reused up to 30 times. There are 16 designs based on four different themes – Eden, Funky, Safari and Kawaii. They are available in sets of two or four priced at S$9.90 and S$15.90 respectively.

The first batch of “Stik-On” skins available for launch.

The Creative Zen Neeon is much lighter (75g) and smaller than Apple's iPod Mini and features a simple control and interface without any buttons on the face of the player. Navigating the menus is done solely via the scroll control on the side. As you turn on the player, you will be greeted by seven different attractive LED backlight colors.

With a 5GB hard drive (sourced from Seagate), users can transfer about 2500 songs with support for MP3, WMA and WAV formats. Music and file transfer functions are facilitated through the bundled MediaSource and Zen Explorer software respectively. This small player is also packed with FM radio, Line-in recording via a 1.8mm connector and built-in microphone recording features. For Line-in and built-in microphone recording, users can choose the different bitrate recording quality of up to 160kbps. For music playback, there are four preset EQ settings (Classical, Jazz, Pop and Rock) to choose from that suits different music variety. The player offers 18 hours of continuous playback and charges via a USB cable. Take note however, the battery is non-removable.  

Creative offers many accessories that complement the player such as an AC Power Adapter, Line-in remote, matching colored I-Trigue 3400 and Vivid 60 speakers, EP 480 and Creative Digital Wireless headphones based on Bluetooth technology are available now.

Matching Speakers that complements the "Stik-On" skins.

The Creative Zen Neeon is available from most retail shops with a RRP of S$329. The package includes earphones, USB 2.0 cable, pouch, neck-strap, installation CD and a "Stik-On" skin.

The accessories for Creative Zen Neeon MP3 Player.