Linked by Eugenia Loli-Queru on Thu 4th Aug 2005 16:26 UTC
There have been many rumors lately about a potential video iPod that's around the corner... However, what about the existing mobile A/V solutions? We took the RCA Lyra RD2780 for a spin, the audio/video recorder/playback jukebox that's currently selling for only $219 at Geeks.com.
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Member since:
2005-07-06
The use case of an mp3 player is this:
- select a song (more likely a playlist)
- push play
- drop the unit in your pocket
- do something worthwhile
Notice that at no point does the user interact with the unit for long periods. They don't stare, they don't watch, they don't fast forward. That's the whole point. Minimal interaction. So why try to put video playback on one of these devices? It's not the same use case.
As I've said before, the only people who bought portable TVs in their "hayday" were Radio Shack hangers-on (today's geeks) and creepy loner types who lived in cabins in the woods. That's the same market these devices target. All the people I know who bought them found out later on that they had no use for them. I mean really, when would you use something like this?
Long mass-transit commute? Lots of travel? I could see the use. Damn near anything else? Worthless. It just doesn't seem to justify the hype and expense.