|
Physical Controls (7.50)
 The X-Fi has a different control setup than you're probably used to seeing. Instead of a d-pad, the X-Fi sports a 9-key array, none of which are labeled in any way. The center key is select, while the buttons directly adjacent to it serve as d-pad buttons. The buttons in the left corners are home and end keys and will jump to the top or bottom of a menu. The keys on the right are a bit less straight-forward. They'll skip through lists either up or down, but we're not entirely sure what determines how many items they skip over. For example, if you start with the cursor at the top main menu item, then press the bottom right button, you'll skip to the Extras menu. Start with the cursor on the second item in the menu and you'll still skip down to Extras. Once you move down a few more items, however, you'll skip to the item after Extras and so on. It seems as though the X-Fi has specific places it wants to skip to, as long as that item is 5 or more items away. In any case, the buttons will help you navigate lists, even if they do work is slightly mysterious ways.
There are also four other keys that are evenly spread out above and below the keypad. The top left button is the menu/back button. When you press it it serves as a back button, but if you hold it it'll jump to the home screen. To its right is the options button. Simply push it while in a menu to view the options available to you. The bottom left button is a customized shortcut button. You assign the button by first highlighting a feature or menu, then pressing and holding the button. The bottom right button is good ol' play/pause .
Display
Screen resolution (5.54)
The Creative Zen X-Fi display is QVGA, meaning it has 320 x 240 resolution. This is a standard resolution for modern media players. Some higher-end devices or media players focused on movie playback will have much higher resolutions. For example, the the Archos 705 has a resolution of 800 x 480. If you held the X-Fi up to the Archos 705, you'd notice the difference. Since few people watch videos on two devices simultaneously, most won't have any problem watching their video on the X-Fi.
Screen size (6.15)
The X-Fi's screen has a 2.46-inch diagonal. This is a good size; it's above average for media players and slightly bigger than the average cell phone screen. We'd recommend a slightly bigger screen for users who plan on watching a lot of videos. Typical users or music-only people should be fine with the X-Fi's screen.
Pixels per inch (4.94)
The numbers of pixels per inch (PPI) of screen is what allows images to be sharp and colors to be vivid. Spread out pixels (low PPI) mean washed out colors and blurry lines. A slightly larger than average screen holding an average resolution leads to a slightly below average pixel density. This means colors will seem ever-so-slightly washed out and lines won't appear to be as sharp as they do on higher-quality displays. If you plan on watching a lot of video, the X-Fi will be adequate, but there are many devices out there with a better picture.
Screen brightness (8.91)
The Creative X-Fi has five different brightness settings, and was capable of outputting 536 cancelas per square meter. This is a great output potential, making it a better make-shift flashlight than the Archos 5 or iPod Touch, both of which have c/m2 measurements around 300 and 400 respectively.
Built-in Speakers (6.47)
The X-Fi does have a built-in speaker, which is capable of 82.0 decibel output. The quality of the sound it output wasn't great, but it was acceptible for such a tiny device. Overall, we're simply happy that the speakers were included in the first place.
Cable Connectivity (8.10)
The X-Fi uses a mini USB plug to connect to a PC for data transfer or battery charging. While we definitely prefer a standardized port for data, we were a bit disappointed by the absurdly short cord the X-Fi came with. The cord itself is barely 4 inches from end to end, and that's including the parts that would actually fit into your computer and the device. This means you'll realistically have a 4-inch tether for your media player. While this is fine on a laptop, the shortness is a bit silly on a desktop computer: the device will dangle from the USB slot like low-hanging fruit. The headphone jack, on the other hand, is a standard 1/8-inch affair, which is far more professional.
Internal Storage (7.04)
While the Zen X-Fi might have 16GB of total storage, not all of that can be dedicated to your music: some has to be reserved for the device's operating system and other software. In terms of actual storage space, the X-Fi will provide you with 14.9 GB. This is 1.1 GB off from the advertised 16GB, which is a bit much, but not enough to make the 16GB figure an outlandish claim.
External Storage (11.00)
The Creative X-Fi will accept SD or SDHC cards. Currently this means you have the option of adding at least another 32GB of memory to the device. SDHC cards keep growning, however, so as soon as 64GB cards or higher are available, you'll be able to use them.
Typically media players do not support any type of external storage, especially with the capacity to triple or quintuple your current storage space.
Battery Life (1.83)
We test battery life by starting a looped playlist and letting it play until the battery runs out. The Creative X-Fi lasted for 6 hours, 5 minutes, which wasn't very good. At this rate, you'll have to charge the device every night. Also, we noticed the X-Fi tends to crash when it gets very low on batteries and wont' respond unless you use the reset button. The manufacturer-stated battery life for the X-Fi is 24 hours. Though the X-Fi's actual battery life is significantly off from this, most of the media players we've tested have also fallen short of their maker's expectations.
|
