Surprisingly, for such a small screen, the video format support is extensive, especially compared to the Philips Aria. Quality of the display is so-so; brightness level is good. Music performance is a little better although we found the bass unfocussed and tending towards looseness, the SR 225 is known for clean bass and the fact that the bass seemed muddy is testament to this players’ performance, or rather the lack of it. Mid-range is also weak – definitely not its forte. The treble extends rather cleanly although is sharply rolled off and certain instruments and sounds that extend into the higher frequencies beyond the 8 KHz range. In fact some piano accompaniments around the 4 KHz mark also seemed to be missing – this is really part of the lower-range of treble and this is pretty unacceptable for a PMP of any sort, irrespective the price. At Rs. 2,400 the Apacer AU824 is a little too light on performance and features to warrant approval, though it is the cheapest player we tested and many who want affordability will want to check it out.
Pros:
Cons:
Apacer AU824 | |
| Compact and affordable | |
Apple iPod Classic | |
| Size matters | |
Apple iPod Nano | |
| Diminutive powerhouse | |
Cowon D2 Plus | |
| The chunky wonder | |
Cowon iAudio 7 | |
| Pocketful of sound | |
Cowon S9 | |
| Jack of all trades | |
iPod Touch | |
| The apple of our eye | |
Philips GoGear Aria | |
| No use hanging around this aria | |
Philips GoGear Opus | |
| Not major league material | |
Samsung YP-P3 | |
| Oh boy! Was our reaction | |
Samsung YP-Q2 | |
| Affordable for sure, but we expected more |