A
portable multimedia player (
PMP), is a
consumer electronics device that is capable of storing and playing
digital media.
Digital audio players (DAP) that can also display images and play videos are PMPs. Like DAPs, the data is typically stored on a
hard drive,
microdrive, or
flash memory. Other types of electronic devices like
cellphones are sometimes referred as PMPs because of their playback capabilities.
History
In 2002,
Archos first widely sold a portable media player, the
Archos Jukebox Multimedia. Manufacturers have since implemented abilities to view images and play videos into their devices.
In 2004,
Microsoft attempted to take advantage of the growing PMP market by launching the
Portable Media Center (PMC) platform. It was introduced at the 2004
Consumer Electronics Show with the announcement of the
Zen Portable Media Center, which was co-developed by
Creative. The Microsoft
Zune series would later be based on the
Gigabeat S, one of the PMC-implemented players.
Typical features
Creative ZEN
PMPs are capable of playing
digital audio,
images, and
video. Usually, a colour
LCD or
OLED screen is used as a display. Various players include the ability to record video, usually with the aid of optional accessories or cables, and audio, with a built-in
microphone or from a
line-out cable or
FM tuner. Some players include readers for
memory cards, which are advertised to equip players with extra storage or transferring media. In some players, features of a
personal organizer are emulated, or support for games, like the
iriver clix (through compatibility of
Adobe Flash Lite) or the
PlayStation Portable, is included.
Nearly all players are compatible with the
MP3 audio format, and many others support
Windows Media Audio (WMA),
Advanced Audio Coding (AAC) and
WAV. Audio files purchased from
online stores or ripped from CDs may include
DRM copy protection, which most modern players support. Some players are compatible with open-source formats like
Ogg Vorbis and the
Free Lossless Audio Codec (FLAC). Every device has a bitrate limit on each compatible format.
The
JPEG format is compatible on all players that are capable of displaying images. Some players, like the
iPod series, provide compatibility to display additional file formats like
GIF,
PNG, and
TIFF, while others are bundled with conversion software.
Most newer players support the
MPEG-4 video format, and many other players are compatible with
Windows Media Video (WMV) and
AVI, now mostly used as a
container format. Recently, more and more players are enabling compatibility to the
DivX video format and its open-source parallel,
Xvid. Software included with the players may be able to convert video files into a compatible format.
Software
PMPs are usually packaged with an installation CD/DVD that inserts device drivers (and for some players, software that is capable of seamlessly transferring files between the player and the computer). For recent players, however, these are usually available online via the manufacturers' websites, or natively recognized by the operating system through
Universal Mass Storage (UMS) or
Media Transfer Protocol (MTP).
Several independent software developers provide solutions that support PMP's.
Hardware
As with DAPs, PMPs come in either flash or hard disk storage. Storage capacities have reached up to 64 GB for
flash memory based PMPs, first reached by the
3rd Generation iPod Touch, and up to 320 GB for
hard drive PMPs, first achieved by the
Archos 7
A number of players support memory card slots, including
CompactFlash (CF),
Secure Digital (SD), and
Memory Sticks. They are used to directly transfer content from external devices, and expanding the storage capacity of PMPs.
A standard PMP uses a 5-way
D-pad to navigate, however there have been many alternatives used. Most notable are the wheel and touch mechanisms seen on players from the
iPod and
Sansa series. Additional buttons are commonly seen for features such as volume control.
Sizes range all the way up to 7 inches. As well, resolutions also vary, going up to
WVGA. Most screens come with a color depth of 16-bit, but higher quality video oriented devices may range all the way to 24-bit, otherwise known as
Truecolor, with the ability to display 16.7 million distinct colors. Screens commonly have a matte finish but may also come in glossy to increase color intensity and contrast.
More and more devices are now also coming with touch screen as a form of primary or alternate input. This can be for convenience and/or aesthetic purposes.
Some portable media players include a
radio receiver. However this feature will eventually phase out as more advanced features for PMP use are introduced.
Some portable media players have recently added features such as simple camera, built in game emulation (playing
Famicon or other game formats from ROM images) and simple text readers and editors.
See also
