Average Reviews:
(More customer reviews)UPDATE (9-2-2010) price has really dropped since I bought mine and I still have it / use it / upgraded its drive and firmware / and take it with me on trips. It now works with both my digital cam and my 32GB sdhc cards from my HD DV cam. I thought it was nice that they did not void the warantee if you opened the case to put in a larger disk later on, as I did. My only con after so long is that the DVR ability is limited with digital TV but I think that was a feature they crammed in at the last minute. My unit is still going strong. Original 2+ year old review below -->
MP3 players. I've resisted buying one until they made it close to perfect. Wolverine exceeded my expectations. Here's some features I like - you might think about how you could use it, i.e. empty your digital cam's memory onto the disk inside, zoom way in to check focus, if your cam doesnt support zoom, and have an empty card ready to keep shooting.
My favorite features:
Removable, drop out $30 li-ion battery - keep a spare after 14 hours of songs!
CF/SD/MMC/and more slots for reading memory cards AND saving photos on the hard disk
80 GB hard disk is user upgradable (instructions in the manual) when big ones get cheaper (which they will - you know it!)
Big, BIG screen. 320x240 but wow - it's a display in and of itself. I use it to review photos on the spot from my 8MP digicam with the tiny viewfinder
Video - well they all have video now, so that's an expectation. it's compatible with itunes, so I'm fine - but it does WMA and PC video too!
Microphone built in - record conversations on the spot
separate video/audio outputs for watching video or playing photos - even with a soundtrack!
Separate configuration for screen setup, hard disk timeout, and system power down times.
Easy to zoom in/out on photos for focus checking - wonderful feature by itself to know your shot came out.
Empties both high and low speed CF cards. My 4GB sandisk extreme III dumps to this fast, letting me keep shooting those big photos.
Automatic, well organized file structure. Your last photo will be on the last folder, at the end easy to find.
small built in speaker - not much but enough to verify audio transfers too.
And the features go on and on - too many to list here but I may find the manual to upload.
Basically - you are looking at a video MP3 player on steriods - supports universal formats, has an upgrade path, records audio on the spot, even has a video recording dock and can be setup as a TIVO. USB, 5VDC, dock ports on the bottom, ear buds included or use standard 1/8" stereo headphones with it. Uses common li-ion battery securely tucked in the handle. And with all those fetures, it's easy to use, not too big, and comes with a beltloop case. When the 200 gb disks come out, there's a button to setup one on it. No need to buy the expensive 120GB disk today.
The screen color is wonderful and performance is just flawless. For example - I shoot in Olympus Raw format so I can fix things later without compression loss. This thing understands most SLR raw formats on the market today! And it's firmware is upgradable as more arrive (the factory encourages you to check for the latest version).
I haven't drained the battery yet - but I've moved alot of data to it. You can use it as a USB disk as well. It also charges off the USB connector via a special cable with 2 usb plugs to snag enough power from your pc to juice it up off the USB bus.
It's a winner - Comparing it to my parent's IPOD the size is close, but the functionality is far more impressive. My dad's camera uses SD cards and it cleared his card out just like my CF card - so we both can use it on trips. It even works with my micro-SD cards for my motorola phone (1GB).
At 399 [2008 price] - Amazon's price is great. No shipping - prime members get it in 2 days or less (mine arrived next day for 2 day price - free) and no tax. I'm impressed - I think you will be too.
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Wolverine ESP 80 GB Portable Multimedia Storage PlayerDesigned specifically for busy professional and amateur digital photographers, the Wolverine ESP portable multimedia storage device lets you store and view thousands of photos, songs, and video files in a single convenient device. Digital photographers typically have to purchase multiple memory cards if they want to take a ton of photos while traveling. With the ESP, however, you need only a single card, as the unit's 80 GB hard drive stores the rest. When your camera's memory card is full, simply pop it in the Wolverine ESP's built-in 7-in-1 card reader. With the press of a button, the device transfers all of your photos and digital camera video data into a portable, self-powered mass storage unit. Once the contents of your card are safely stored in the ESP's memory, you can re-fill your memory card with brand-new photos--all without going anywhere near a computer. And because the device is battery powered, you can literally save your data anywhere in the world. It's perfect for traveling, sharing data during meetings, and just about any other on-the-go situation.
The ESP also includes a razor-sharp 3.6-inch LCD screen, letting you view stored photos and videos without plugging them back into your camera. Among the compatible photo formats are JPEG, Bitmap, Tiff, Text, and RAW images, while compatible video formats include MPEG-1, MPEG-4, WMV 9, and XviD. And as with many digital cameras, the ESP prints directly to a printer to save time and energy. The device is no slouch from an audio perspective, either, with support for MP3, WMA, OGG, WAV, ACC (MP4 audio), and CDA formats. In addition, the unit's drag-and-drop functionality makes it easy to transfer music files from your computer and play them instantly. As a final bonus, the ESP includes a built-in FM radio with 18 presets that lets you listen to and record your favorite FM programs.
Other details include zoom, rotate, and slide show functions; an included A/V cable for connecting the ESP directly to any TV, projector, or stereo system; and compatibility with a separately sold cradle system that lets you record directly from a TV, DVD, VCR, camcorder, or other video source. The ESP measures 5.3 by 2.8 by 0.9 inches (W x H x D), weighs 10.2 ounces with the lithium-ion battery, and is backed by a one-year warranty.
What's in the BoxWolverine ESP (with battery), AC charger, USB cable, A/V cable, earphone, carrying case, software CD, user's manual.
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