Customer Reviews

Viewsonic Moviebook VPD400 4.3-Inch HD Digital Portable Player

5 star:		(4)
4 star:		(8)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Overall I'm very happy with this player. Not perfect but pretty much what I wanted and expected. I wanted a player that doesn't use a hard drive (more reliable and longer battery life). Since that means less memory I also wanted a slot for memory cards so I can take a lot of movies when traveling. I wanted simple drag and drop file management, no special software. This player fit the bill and the price was right.

Pros:
- Not a touchscreen so no fingerprints on screen.
- Larger screen and higher resolution than many media players.
- Plays MPEG2 Video files
- Even though it includes an AC charger that plugs into a separate jack, it can be charged through the USB port. So you can use any USB charger when traveling and can use external USB batteries for long plane rides such as Satechi iCel 4400 mAh Battery Extender Pack and Charger for iPhone 3G & 3Gs, iPod, Flip & Vado HD Camcorders.
- Play movies directly from microSD cards. Can carry lots of movies when traveling.
- Simple file/folder management. Behaves like USB flash drive. No special software needed.
- Remote control when connected to TV
- Composite video output for older TVs using menu settings and green RCA plug on inlcuded cable (undocumented) but image is considerably cropped.
- Can display text files in book mode.

Cons:
- Only about 4 hours battery life when watching movies.
- Not a touchscreen, navigating with buttons on side takes some learning.
- It is easy to push side buttons accidentally while handling.
- No HDMI output for TV, only component (480i, 480p, 720p) or composite (480i)
- On/Off switch is confusing. It is really battery power on/off. You turn the display on/off using the play/pause/stop button.
--- On/Off switch must be in On position to charge, otherwise battery status says "No Battery".
--- On/Off switch must be in On position to use in battery mode.
--- On/Off switch doesn't matter when using external power.
- Must download user guide from Viewsonic web site but no clear instructions provided on where to find it. Go to the VPD400 product page then click download.
- Cheap earbuds
- No carrying case included but Lowepro Volta 30 3.5-Inch and 4.3-Inch GPS Carrying Case (Black) fits almost perfectly. There is even a small pocket inside that will hold the remote or memory cards.
- No stand to sit on tray table.

I love this player. The navigation is easy enough, and there is no complicated setup. It plays WMV, MP4 and AVI with no problems. These are the only formats I have tested, so I can't tell you about anything else. I have not tested playlists either. I only planned to use it for video.

At any rate, it is great for video. One of my concerns was resolution. The resolution on this little guy is as good as I needed at its size. I did not want anything smaller than my Blackberry Storm. This is bigger, so it worked out.

The first time I used it, I managed little more than 2 hours battery life. I was very concerned about this, and originally review the product based on these results. I try to keep my movies at the highest quality I can get away with, so the movies I was watching (MP4) were around 3 Gig. That seemed to be the problem. I later tried this player with smaller videos, and the battery life increased dramatically. Still not 6 hours, but I knew going in that I wouldn't get that. I got more than 4 hours, and that makes me happy happy.

I think this is a great player. I highly recommend it to anyone needing a pocket sized video player with good resolution.

The only draw back for me is that I could not get the component output to work with my TV. My TV says "Device not supported." This sounds like a limitation of my TV, not the player. It's worth mentioning, as it is likely my TV is not the only one that will have this problem.

I bought this player strictly for watching video, not for music or digital books. For choice of format, there is no comparison. This thing plays every format I know of, plus WMV which is not listed in the product description. The battery life is fine, I got about 5 hours out of it before it needed charging. I gave it 4 stars for a few quirks. The firmware can be a bit cumbersome, and the updater on the Viewsonic website was incompatible with Vista, but worked with XP. The resolution is a slightly more narrow than 16:9, so you have to either re rip the video or live with it. There is a slight cheap feeling to the unit, but for $120, I can live with that. The screen is quite nice and the sound is also good. The memory is flash so you can drag and drop, witch is SO much easier than having to use a proprietary software package. Additionally, this thing comes with a bunch of cables so you don't have to shell out for more. In conclusion, if you don't want to deal with the transcoding software of the other two big players in this market and want a player for ANY video format, this is for you. I would like to see a second gen of this product make the $150 range with better quality and better firmware.

There are no claims here that the vdp400 has a touchscreen interface, but there was also nothing to reveal that the screen wasn't touch sensitive. So you'll know, control is via buttons along the top edge, and it's far from efficient. The vdp400 is NOT a touchscreen device.

The box includes a component video output cable, stereo audio line-out cable, earbuds, remote control, and an AC adapter with USB cable. There was one music file on board, but the device couldn't see it. There seems to be a flaw reading media tags, as the only way I could access my MP3 files was by file browsing the internal storage. Sorting by album, artist, genre, or song are listed options, but all report zero content. The same songs show up with album art and other tags in place when I access them from my computer.

Photos look amazing. There are several samples included. Video is also incredible on the 800 x 480 screen. I haven't tried output to a TV, so can't comment there.

At under $120 I'll still rate this a decent buy if Video is your main interest. Hopefully Viewsonic will come up with a firmware update to fix the tag reading failure. Right now there is no way to play across all your music files, as it limits itself to whatever is in a folder you've accessed. Don't buy it for music playback.

The Good:
- Price
- 4.3" screen
- Plays variety of video formats
- Includes lots of accessories (AC charger, USB cable, A/V cable, earbuds, remote control, and component cable)
- Compact size
- Expandable Memory
- HD output

The Bad:
- Cheap plastic construction (Squeaks when torque)
- Fingerprint magnet
- No build-in stand
- Very, very, very short battery life (2 hours max for me on a typical MP4 movie)
- Inaccurate and totally useless battery status indicator
- Awkward navigation controls (buttons too small and bad placement/layout)
- Speaker volume too low (Can only be heard in a quiet environment)
- Screen too dark (Lack details/shadows)
- Build-in battery (Can't replace on your own if it goes bad)

The Ugly:
- Basically, you get what you pay for. This unit would be a great player if it weren't for the Bad listed above. It's one of those things that looks really good on paper but in reality, it's far from it. It seems more like a toy you would give to your teenage sons or daughter than a serious player you would keep for yourself. All in all, it's an OK unit but I wouldn't recommend it for others to buy.

Some points not covered by others here:

1. The screen is beautiful. At 800 pixels wide, it's perfect for DVD quality playback (720 pixels wide). If you use HandBrake to create an MP4 file you are all set. I wouldn't bother with higher resolution than DVD. Why burn the batteries? Screen is plenty bright for indoor use.

2. It re-sizes images very nicely. Good for slide shows with music. Movies can be re-sized to fill the screen. Most wide-screen flicks basically fill the screen.

3. Audio playback (not with video) can be sped up or slowed down without affecting the pitch! Listen to lectures fast!

4. I love the geeky battery graph! Shows you current and voltage for the battery, and estimate of charging time.

5. You can actually delete (or copy) files right on the device! No computer needed to delete stuff.

6. Manual is basically useless. But the menu system is pretty easy to figure out.

7. Lots of play modes (like to have it play all your movies back to back and repeat all day. . .)

It ain't perfect, but there's lots to like about this player. I highly recommend using Altec Lansing IM4 speakers with it.

It does not play all video formats it claims to do.Viewsonic Company Tech guy simply told it was a typo ! in the manual & specifications.

(Doesn't Plays FLV - Youtube downloaded or flash movies)

I bought it one month ago from Microcentre and it doesn't play FLV format video. If i want to return the product Microcentre will reduce 15% restoking fee and an aditional shipping charge $15.

Got call back from the customer service and gave me $50 off .But still i see their manual shows "it plays FLV media !" wonder why they are not updating their website ?

Just what I was looking for, an easy to use video player. I didn't want a touch screen, I can use it without looking at the buttons now anyway. Nice drag and dropping of files, like a HD, additional slot for mem card, stereo speakers, my upgraded earbuds sound wonderful with this device. I've looked at and tried quite a few different so called video players, most are just a pain to convert files with. This and the PSP are the way to go for mobile video. I use DVDFab, convert to MPEG2 at 800 X 480 and I'm set(iphone setting). Nice job people! Oh, haven't tried music files yet I'll report back when I have done so, looks simple enough. Oh and I called customer support with a couple questions, great service! Also has a 1 year warranty.

NOT a touchscreen and NOT android OS and NOT a steel brick, but it IS among the best if not THE Best video player around $100. If you do the research you will find dozens of players with lots of features, most that do everything but make coffee. I use an MP3 player for music, I use a netbook for portable Internet and I use my phone to make phone calls. But if you need a small video player with decent battery life, mini-USB charging and connection, 800x480 pixels (vibrant), MicroSD expansion, and able to play MANY common video formats (even AVI) with NO conversion..... take a closer look at Viewsonic VPD400. Compatible with Win7 (as long as you choose Scan-Without-Fixing when dialog box comes up) despite what some users claim. Yes, you do have to press a few buttons to get your movie started, but it's NOT as awkward as some reviewers claim. The AC charger is proprietary and NOT a common size plug, but is chargeable via the common mini-USB input. After testing a dozen or so videos, I saw NO stuttering or stalling, just smooth & steady playback. It's proportion makes it easy to find a makeshift case/cover, fitting most GPS's or My Passport (USB HD) or look for 4.3" cases. Despite a lack of a few minor conveniences, this is a very good video player.

Actually this product is a rebranded ainol v6000hdv player with fm(transmitter and receiver) and games removed, player was not playing youtube flv files, but after loading the firmware from the ainol site i was able to view flv's and wmv's that i was unable to use earlier, it has made the player infinitely more useful now and i get better battery life, around 10% more, great buy if you load the ainol firmware