The Creative Vision:M Vs The Apple iPod

Talk about an epic battle of the Gadgets and this is probably what you meant. From the ever-popular Apple iPod to the Creative Zen media players, who would emerge victorious when it came to their features and just plain ‘Shayne-durance’ (put through their paces by yours truly – rough translation)? So I pitted these two players against each other, the Apple Video iPod and the Creative Zen Vision:M , both 30GB models and lets see what the outcome was. Who would emerge battle scarred but victorious in this, “The Battle Of The PMPs”.

Design
Both players may be similar with respect to certain parts of their technicalities. For example, both are equipped to look like little portable hard drives with 2.5 inch QVGA TFT displays with a resolution of 320x240 pixels. They also have their ‘Hold’ switches and 3.5mm earphone sockets located at the top with the propriety USB connectors on the bottom. However the Creative sports 256k of colors whereas the iPod has only 65K.

The iPod’s circular roll dial system does have its merits when it comes to maneuverability through the menus and the simplicity of having hardly any buttons at all, or having them all in one place does simplify the navigation. The Zen’s separate key system with a vertical scroll pad also helps distinguish the varied options of the player, which makes it much easier to navigate and choose selections. But unfortunately the sensitivity of the pad is a problem, even after reducing it manually.

The menus are quite similar but the fonts vary a bit. The fonts on the Zen are a wee bit larger so that makes them a little easier on the eyes. The iPods are a bit small but clear - but this round goes to the Zen.

When it comes to the over all design shape and feel good factor when you have it in your hands, I’d have to go with the iPod. It just looks a whole lot sexier than the Creative, even though it’s limited to just two colors and the Creative has plenty to choose from. But hey, who can go wrong with black and silver right. Plus the Creative whose dimensions are - 4.89 x 2.93 x 0.79 inches and weighs 8.4oz is definitely bulkier than the slim iPod that has dimensions of 4.1 x 2.4 x 0.43 and weighs just 4.3oz. So taking all these factors into account, I’m going to have to go with the Sexy iPod over the cute looking Vision:M. Oh, and don’t forget there are tons of accessories ranging form cases to dock stations for the iPod but unfortunately there are hardly any for the Vision:M. Score one for the iPod.
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Features
Features make a huge difference when it comes to choosing either of these players. The most significant difference are 3 main features. You’ll notice them almost immediately; the iPod comes with a couple of simple games and the Creative Vision:M has an FM radio with a recorder and a separate voice recorder as well. Except for Solitaire and the Music quiz games, the others are dull and simply a way to pass time when you’re absolutely bored out of your mind. But the Vision:M can be used as a dictaphone to record conversations and most importantly you have the radio. In a country like ours that thrives on its airwaves, this is definitely a PLUS. The FM recorder only becomes a bonus feature, and the pick up is good.

The Creative also has a choice of six different color schemes to suit your mood. But what I’m a big fan of is the separate options that open up for all the various functions. For example, while a video is playing you have options to make the video ‘Fit to screen’ or stretch the size. The side menus also give you direct access to the settings menu to make other adjustments. The Image menus allow you to zoom in to particular images, rotate the image and make other changes as well. To have direct access to various options and settings is for sure, a good choice.

What I also like is the fact that you can delete files directly from the player itself and create playlists as well. So there’s no need to keep connecting the player to your PC. There’s also the search options available in both players. While the iPod allows you to move from one alphabet to the next and locates files according to your selections, it also allows you to type the full name of a specific song or artist, to narrow the search. The Creative on the other hand, has the alphabets located at the side of the lists themselves. All you need to do is go to the alphabet and it’ll locate all the songs in that order. Unfortunately you can’t search for any specific song or artist’s name.

I also have to admit that the battery life of the Vision:M rocks, while that of the iPod… well…. just ‘Pop’ rocks. The Battery life of the Vision:M was exceptional as compared to the iPod. It seems like the older the iPod the worse the battery got but the Creative’s battery remained quite standard from an older version to the newer one. So when it comes to features, the Creative is out in front with the iPod not too close behind.
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What I also like about the Vision:M is the fact that it has a graphic EQ that can be customized to your preference manually as well as plenty of presets to choose from. It also has an option for Bass boost and a Smart volume function that adjusts the quality to a decent out level even if the volume is full. The Earphones provided are clear and handle full volume quite well.

Now the iPod on the other hand, only has presets. Although I’ll admit, the sound quality is quite good as is; you don’t get the flexibility of adjusting the various levels of the track to your personal preference. The iPod also has a bass boost function and the earphones handle the full volume almost as well as the Vision:M. If not better. The earphones of both the devices are pretty much the same in design or quality and they’ll both sit better in your ears if you use the cotton covers.

So the sound quality of the iPod is better but I prefer the customizable EQ and Smart Volume of the Vision:M. Neither of the players’ earphones thrill me any; I’d sooner get my own. So this round is definitely a tie.

Image and Video
When it comes to the picture quality of the photos, only on really close examination will you notice that the iPod’s clarity is actually better. I say this even though the creative actually displays more colors. The reason is the contrast and colors seem just a tiny tiny bit less impressive on the Creative. The difference, although negligible is nevertheless present.

Although I prefer the ease of transferring and converting videos for the Creative and the fact that you can adjust the size on the screen itself, with regards to quality, the iPod still has the creative beat. Even though most of the videos you have, will have to be converted and the conversion takes awfully long. Chalk another one up for the iPod.

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Connectivity
Both these players, as I stated earlier, have propriety USB connectors. Just in case you’re not sure what that means – The companies viz. Creative and Apple, have chosen to keep their players exclusive when it comes to charging or PC connectivity. In other words, if you want to connect it to your PC or charger, you can’t use any other normal USB or charger cable except for the ones the company prescribes. It keeps it restricted in that context.

So as I was saying, the Creative comes with a special adapter that provides for a pretty standard sized DC charger port as well as mini USB connector and an AV out for your TV too. This adapter allows you to use standard USB, AV and DC charger cables. The iPod unfortunately has a few issues when it comes to charging the device without connecting it to the PC but on the plus side, the earphone socket doubles as the AV out. Special USB chargers (that aren’t too cheap or small in size) and adapters have been designed by Apple for these purposes. Both players can be charged through the PC as well. So when it comes to connectivity, the Creative has the iPod beat.

PC Software
I Know that iTunes is hugely popular, and honestly, it’s easy to transfer and convert music for the player. Even the creation of playlists and most other functions are a cinch to use. My only hitch is that the iPod doesn’t accept most video formats and the conversion process is too slow. This is where the Creative’s Media explorer is really handy. In case the video is supported by the player (and quite a few formats are), the software will let you know and simply transfer it the player. Plus you have the option of choosing the quality and also if you’d like to trim the screen to suite your preference. Conversion and transfer is also faster than iTunes.

Creative’s Media Explorer plays audio and video only through the Browse media option but with no settings to adjust for the music like a normal player. There is a separate software called Audible Manager that does that. That’s just a pain to have separate software for different purposes pertaining to a single device. So iTunes comes out on top in this category As it’s all in one place.

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The Bottom Line
The battle for best 30GB video PMP was close with both these players belting out some heavy hitting in the various categories. But at the end of the day, given the choice, which would you take home with you? With a thousand rupees difference in price – The Zen Vision:M at Rs. 10,750 and the iPod at Rs. 9800, you’ll have to see what your budget is like first. But in book, the winner is – The Apple iPod, but that’s only by a very small margin.

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