Epson Photo Viewer P-3000 40GB MultiMedia Storage Viewer

This is an excellent machine which, for me, serves many purposes and removes the possible need for several portable devices.

It not only plays music, video (which can be films ripped from DVD) and shows/prints photos - but can also be used as a portable photo backup device as it has a camera card reading capability and USB port or, of course, plain and simple computer files...

You should refer to the Epson website for the full specification and capability, as this unit supports a wide-range of file formats...for example, I have now got a Canon EOS digital camera which can take images in RAW format; I have just 'discovered' (as I hadn't noticed it was on the specification !) that this Epson player can display RAW images (and of course easily access them via the CF slot !).

Improving on the P-2000 and 4000 designs, this model (which includes the P-5000, differing by having a larger hard-disk capacity of 80Gb) the screen is larger, the battery has a higher capacity (2600mAh vs 2300).

Perhaps most importantly, it now has both USB slave AND host sockets built-in; this means that various types of USB device can be attached and accessed, as opposed to just allowing printing and connect to a PC (as was the case before) using the full-size 'normal' USB socket which sits alongside the mini-USB socket

For example, I use the now defunct Smartmedia cards in my smaller digital camera, but there is no Smartmedia card slot on the Epson; so instead I can just plug in a travel USB card reader (ie one of the small portable unpowered efforts) which accepts Smartmedia cards to access the digital photos.

The power requirement of the USB device you may want to connect is an issue, so don't go thinking you can connect one of the larger USB hubs.

My Canon digital camera is already supported with the Compact Flash reader and future-proofing is there as a SD card reader is also present....

The quality of the 4-inch display is excellent and the overall build quality is superb. The functionality is logical and simple yet very powerful utilising just 4 multi-functional buttons (+/-, a 4-way 'ring' button and an 'OK' button) You can zoom photos to 400% and 'pan' around, pause and wind or skip forwards/backwards (both video and audio). Audio tracks are played consecutively (a feature apparently missing on other devices...) and displayed playlists can be scrolled up/down at great speed.

As mentioned earlier, refer to the Epson website to view the product user guide for full details...

File access times are good; a 12Mb RAW image is displayed in around a second. A fully-charged battery easily allows a 1hr45min film to be watched using the speaker for sound.

I have never got any where near to using the full capacity of the 40Gb hard-disk, even when backing-up the larger file-size Canon digital images whilst on holiday. If space did ever start to be a problem, you do of course have the option of deleting any stored ripped DVDs (which tend to have the largest file-size, of around 500Mb or so) already watched or deemed 'missable'. This is usually possible as you can always copy them back to the hard-disk once returned from holiday ready for the next trip !

I have 2 small gripes : the maximum volume possible can be a bit on the low side (I have it at the highest setting virtually all the time and I am not hard of hearing !) and the siting of the speaker a bit odd (it is on the underside), especially if you sit the unit down for use as the speaker is then blocked-off !

I have seen products from other manufacturers which are of a similar design and appear to have more capabilities. What I would observe (especially as I've read the user reviews from them) is that with the Epson you get everything required for use in the box (save an external/separate battery charger - but see 'tip' 3 below...) and mine has never had a system 'crash'.

Finally, 3 tips :

1. Whilst Album/Artist/Track data for music ripped under Windows Media Player is fully supported, it took me some time to appreciate that the correct way to copy the music files was by using the included 'Epson Link2' software, otherwise the album title/track information is not transferred properly and you end up with everything being called 'Unknown' !

2. For software updates, use epson.com and not the Epson uk/europe websites. The USA website is more reliable and includes updates (eg firmware) not always listed on the Epson uk/europe websites !

3. Whilst the non-branded spare batteries available do not hold as much charge as an Epson original (partly because they have a smaller capacity, but also because of quality issues I'm sure), they are a LOT cheaper. It is also worth getting an external/remote charger (believe it or not, one isn't supplied as standard) to save having to plug the unit into the mains to recharge batteries, which also restricts portability, usage and avoids the risk of damaging the unit itself if the electrical supply is 'dodgy' (you only trash a cheaply replaceable charger unit as opposed to needing to pay for a VERY expensive repair to the P-3000 itself). I say this from experience !

This is one of those products that exceeds expectations and is arguably "undersold" (except on price!). It is beautifully constructed and with a 4 inch screen that looks bigger than you would expect. The image quality of the LCD has to be seen to be believed - it is simply stunning. The device also plays a wide range of files, photo, video and music. Battery life is very good too and the menu system is clear and logical. The downloading of files from SD or compactflash cards is easy and the Epson P-3000 fits nicely in the hand and can be readily passed around to show off your photographs. Overall, an exquisitely engineered item of the highest quality, albeit, you do pay for it!

I bought my P3000 just before Christmas last year, having been impressed by a friend's P2000, though not by the speed at which images appeared after being selected. This issue seemed to have been resolved if the reviews were to be believed, so I took the plunge. The main attraction was the ability to download images from CF and SD cards, both of which I use, thus clearing the cards for further use. In this respect the P3000 has met all my expectations, setting me free to take pictures without any worries of running out of memory cards.

The bonus of course is being able to immediately review the pictures taken, though you do have to be a little patient while the files download. Once they're on the machine, reviewing the images is as pleasurable as it could be, with very little delay once the image has been chosen. The zoom facility is very useful for checking image sharpness.

The naming of folders etc is possible via the on-board system but is long-winded and a little tiresome, so it's best to name the folders using the USB connection to a computer.

The image quality is superb, and it is a pleasure to look at. In my opinion the P3000 can give the impression that the pictures are sharper than they actually are, so in that respect it can be rather flattering!

As a DVD viewer or MP3 player I can confirm another reviewer's report that the sound volume is on the quiet side, though with decent headphones the level is quite sufficient for most situations. The best headphones I have found for this are the Sennheiser HD280s, which damp out peripheral sound very effectively and give a fantastic sound quality with the P3000. The speaker on the P3000 is absolutely awful, IMHO, and headphones are a must. I don't expect a machine of this size to produce Bose-quality sound though, so this criticism doesn't affect my 5-star rating.

Build quality is excellent, ergonomics good, and it is an intuitive machine to use. I have easily and successfully updated the firmware via the Epson USA website, and I feel that this is a device that I will be enjoying using for many years to come.

Highly recommended!