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Latte iVu Portable Media Player Conclusion
Submitted by jwhitakr on Tue, 04/28/2009 - 15:09.
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Audio Sound Quality
Even with the internal speaker this device has a decent volume level. For crowded situation a good set of earphones would be better, but quiet areas need no extra accessories. The speakers are built in to the front of the iVu so watching the display points the speakers towards you. Unlike some other media players whose speakers are on the bottom or side. These are properly placed on the front.
For the people who listen in the car, the iVu's built in fm transceiver is handy. It's sound quality was slightly better than the external fm transmitter I normally use. For crowded metro radio waves, it can be hard to find a channel that work though. This is a problem experienced by most every fm transmitter you can buy because they are limited by the FCC in their total power output. One important note is that the headphones act as an antenna for the FM transceiver. You must have the headphones plugged in to use it. I think this is what causes it's fm output to be a little better than other devices.
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| Front view | Car Charger | Back view |
Text Reader
The eBook software leaves some to be desired. Working with text books means that the formatting is very limited which almost make the small screen a no-go as a text reader. It would be fine in certain situations, but this isn't a feature to buy this device for specifically.
Digital Camera
The 2.0 MegaPixel camera is reminiscent of many cellphone cameras on the market. It's pictures require the right light, no movement, and a steady hand to get any kind of quality. The digital zoom is poor at best, and the slow autofocus is the culprit for the movement blurring. No flash included, although that usually not a standard feature with cellphone cameras. The video recording portion is just as bad quality wise. This might be fun to snap a few shots of friends, or take pictures in a pinch, but don't buy this as your everyday digital camera.
Battery Life
Battery life is always an important part of any portable device. The internal Lithium-Ion battery on the iVu has decent battery life compared to other media players. The system specifications say 3-4 hours of video playback. I personally found this to be closer to 3 than 4, especially when you make frequent pauses to do something else. Uninterrupted video might lean closer to the 4 hour range.
Audio was impressive with the battery indicator showing empty after 8 hours of use. This means if you charged your iVu all day at work, then used it on and off each night, you would never have battery problems out of this device. If you do run out of juice, a charge is gonna set you back between 1.5 and 2 hours. You really need two hours to get a good full charge though.
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| Overhead view with nickel | Side view with nickel |
Latte iVu Portable Media Player
While not perfect by any means, the Latte iVu is a very solid and dependable media player that is feature packed. It performs all of its intended functions well, with the exception of the eBook reader and some drawbacks in the camera quality. The easy-to-use interface and 16:9 display are outstanding features. At the inexpensive price point, it will be hard to beat this device for it's functionality, screen quality, and battery performance.
Pros:
- Small size
- Excellent picture quality
- Adequate sound quality
- Good FM transmitter
- Supports multiple audio and video media types
- Solid battery life
Cons:
- User interface, especially with volume control in video mode
- Lack of external connector
Rating: 4.0 out of 5
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