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June 23, 2005

U-watch MP3 Player (A Wristwatch PR Launch)

The size of portable MP3 players is furiously being improved on two fronts, storage capacity and dimensions. With their thinking caps on, manufacturers are locked in a race to produce eye-catching devices that are small yet big on features and capacity. Granted the portable flash player market is expected to explode to more than 50 million units being snapped up in retail by 2008, the growth of MP3 players is anything but stagnant. Amongst the many forms of MP3 players available to consumers today, the most exotic looking of all is perhaps watch MP3 players, which as its name suggests are MP3 players disguised to look as inconspicuous as any regular wrist sports watch but with concealed audio functionalities. One such model hoping to make a lasting impression is the aigo F021 U-watch MP3 player.

Available in two different models with the F021 sporting a black face and black strap and the F022 with a white face and either a blue or red strap, aigo's series of U-watch MP3 players are anti-static and resistant to shocks. On both models, time is relayed based on quartz movement and is powered by a regular and dedicated watch battery. To power the audio functions of the U-watch, a built-in 3.7V rechargeable Li-ion battery is dedicated for this purpose. Charging can only be performed by hooking up the F021/F022 to a USB port through a USB wire cleverly blended within the strap of the U-watch and is a process that takes between 1 – 1.5 hours to complete. Playback time for a fully charged U-watch was about 4.5 hours and should be more than enough for any commuter to last through a day's work. Battery life is indicated by the POWER light, which flashes once every second to reflect 1/5 of the remaining charge while quick flashes mean power is depleting in a matter of minutes.

The U-watch is designed as an MP3 player first, timepiece second as there's no date indicator on the face of the U-watch at all. Instead, the face is littered with wordings and tiny LEDs to help users identify/select the mode or equalizer setting that is in use at one swift glance. Even the bezel is etched with words and symbols to indicate the functions of all five buttons located on both flanks of the U-watch. Five equalizer presets are available and each was found to have a perceptible influence on the resultant audio quality to provide different audio environments. The "Rock" preset tested to return the best balance of treble, loudness and bass when paired with the bundled 2.5mm jack earphones. Right next to the 2.5mm earphone jack is a highly sensitive microphone and this enables the U-watch to function as a voice recorder as well. With this many functions packed into a small device that has no LCD display, flipping through the user manual is a mandatory procedure before one starts to utilize the various functions offered by the U-watch.

Although the U-watch is a very functional and convenient audio player in the sense that you do not need to pay extra attention as you would with a separate gadget, its 'plaything' design unfortunately means it might not strike the right chord with consumers who have a strict code of fashion sense. Debatable topic of appearance aside, the U-watch certainly has the audio quality to win over the heart of anyone looking for a capable MP3/Voice Recording/Timepiece device without adding to your gadget count while on the move. The 512MB F021/F022 is currently retailing at S$239.

Posted by sergeg at June 23, 2005 06:08 PM

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