GoVideo PVP4040 Pocket Cinema Portable A/V Player with 3.5-Inch LCD

by Go Video

Product Details

Product Manual [1.79mb PDF]

• Shipping Weight: 2 pounds
• Shipping: Currently, item can be shipped only within the U.S.
• ASIN: B0001X4VV0
• Item model number: PVP4040
• Average Customer Review: 3.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
• Discontinued by manufacturer: Yes

Product Description

Amazon.com Review

With its ability to provide compact, lightweight video and audio fun for commuters, travelers, and students, GoVideo's PVP4040 Pocket Cinema player/recorder a stylish treat. At a mere 4 x 3 inches and less than a full inch thick, the device is much smaller than a CD player, a minidisc player/recorder, or--critically--a portable DVD player. And it actually records from external devices, generating MPEG-4 video and MP3 audio files on the fly. This little device would be a fabulous tool for single parents traveling lightly with one or more kids.

It's built around a nearly edge-to-edge 3.5-inch color LCD, on which you can view full-motion video as well as slide shows of your favorite digital photos, which is probably how the PVP4040 will be used the most, whether at Mom and Dad's house or at dinner with friends or colleagues. Internal 128 MB memory holds around 2 hours of 128 kbps MP3 files and, at the lowest quality setting, close to that duration in MPEG-4.

With photos only, you'll get more than 300 full-resolution (2-megapixel) JPEGs and many times that if you take the time to scale them for 480 x 240 display before loading them. Need more storage? There's a slot for an optional SD Card so you can add anywhere from 8 MB to 1 GB of additional flash memory. JPEG images look pretty satisfying when they're landscape oriented (as opposed to portrait, which results in a tiny image in the middle of the screen). Just be sure to orient them before loading.

We were impressed with the screen's high brightness, high contrast, and color accuracy, and the screen is remarkably free of line flickering. What it lacks is resolution. Granted, the PVP4040's small size is a selling point. But even at 2.9 x 2.1 inches, the 480 x 240 screen's lack of detail is readily apparent when viewing non-close-up JPEGs. Surprisingly, the lack of detail wasn't as glaring with video content, but MPEG-4 compression brings its own artifacts to the table.

The PVP4040 hooks up to your PC computer (Windows ME, 2000, or XP) via USB 2.0/1.1 using a supplied cable. Loading JPEG images and MP3 files is easy--just drag and drop them onto the PVP4040. Video files, however, must first be converted to MPEG-4 (.asf) or DivX (.avi), a feat performed by GoVideo's included TransCoder software.

Alternately, you can record video content directly from VHS, camcorder, laser disc, non-copy-protected DVDs, and other composite-video sources using a handy cable, also provided. Just plug in your source and hit record. Three modes let you scale the quality to your available memory: 128 MB will give you up to 110 minutes of A/V content in "economy," 50 minutes in "normal," and 30 minutes in "fine" mode. Yes, "fine" is a telling term: the MPEG-4 quality in this mode is still nowhere near as good as what you see on the screen when your program is coming in. That's the price of portability, perhaps, but it would be nice to have the option of true high quality, even with limited duration.

Nevertheless, now you can make the most of your morning bus or train ride by loading the morning TV news while you're showering and eating. Just run an A/V feed from the outputs of your PVR or VCR into the PVP4040, press "record," and let the Pocket Cinema do the rest.

The process works for music, too. You can create your own MP3s (up to 128 kbps) from the headphone output of your portable-audio device (cable included), or from other components using an optional "Y" adapter or cable. With audio only, it's a little hard to tell when recording has commenced, and there's no input level control. Still, the option is there.

We've yet to meet earbud headphones we like--pick up some over-ears, if you don't own a set, for greater comfort and better sound. --Michael Mikesell

Pros:

• Small size
• Light weight
• Stylish appearance
• Bright screen
• High-contrast, accurate colors
• Intuitive audio and/or video recording
• Comes with rechargeable battery
• Strong headphone amplifier
• Convenient accessory pack
• Firmware upgradeable
• Doesn't get too hot during extended use

Cons:

• 480 x 240 screen lacks ability for nuanced images
• Can't view photos while listening to music
• No zoom/rotate features for still photos
• No high-resolution video-capture
• No MP3 shuffle, scan, or programming
• Minimal navigation options

Product Description

Compact pocket entertainment center plays and records video, audio and still images. Transfer video, music and pictures from your PC and enjoy them on the go (USB cable and software included. Comes with Earbud style headphones, rechargeable lithium-ion battery, AC Adapter/charger, A/V cable, keychain stand, carrying case, audio cable)

See all Product Description

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

11 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars very nifty at new price, August 28, 2004

A Kid's Review

This review is from: GoVideo PVP4040 Pocket Cinema Portable A/V Player with 3.5-Inch LCD (Electronics)

firstly there is substitute firmware around, not hard to find, that really makes this unit work fantastic.

secondly the prices of these are half of what you see here so look around.

I am confused at the previous review because I easily get 2 hours on the onboard lilon battery (not to mention the ac and dc adapters). the killer app is that it takes standard sd card flash mememory and one gig cards are now south of ninety bucks. since the pvp4040 can be bought for one hundred bucks that means less than two hundred bucks get's you a very cool device able to hold over almost four hours of mpeg4 video on "fine" (native 480x240) resolution.

it converts easily to mpeg4 with its own decoders (quite cool and simple) and you can record off of your pcr,or as I do off your pc using any dvd you own or any tv program you captuer if you have a capture card like an ATI. I keep 20 full length 90 minute two hour films converted to mpeg4 at 240x480 on my hard drive. they take less than $5 worth of hard drive space and I can stick two of them on an sd card in about one minute (actually my nine-year old can).

my kid loves this unit for the car. it goes anywhere in your pocket and is a lot hardier then portable an easily broken portable dvd players.

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Where to get the latest firmware update!, October 27, 2004

By 

F. Lamaestra (San Jose, CA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: GoVideo PVP4040 Pocket Cinema Portable A/V Player with 3.5-Inch LCD (Electronics)

Goto this Yahoo Group below to get the lastest goodies about this PVP404 unit. Like the hard to find firmware updates.. Join the group and stick around!

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/GoVideoPVP4040/

CONS: the battery life needs to be improved, but folks are already on the case locating cheaper battery alternatives to the Govideo OEM battery..

F.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars I have it for a year and it just got good!, March 31, 2005

By 

S. Killian "Kaiserseal" (Miami, Florida) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: GoVideo PVP4040 Pocket Cinema Portable A/V Player with 3.5-Inch LCD (Electronics)

I bought this a year ago, and was very disapointed. It had very few features, was hard to use, and SD cars cost so much, it was worthless. Now, there is a firmware update you can get through yahoo groups, that adds all the features of the expensive units, and SD cards are reasonable. I love my new year old toy. You can record video with a timer, and on a 512mb SD card hold 6 hours of video. Everything you need is in the box. Very satisfied. Life is good when the stuff you already own gets better..........