Review: Samsung P2

by Sal Cangeloso posted on January 1, 2008 2:01 pm

Even though Apple has a stranglehold on the MP3 player market we are still seeing some really good devices coming out from the other players in the industry. While no one is expecting to topple Apple's position any time soon, flash memory is cheap and abundant and the iPod is missing certain features so there are chances for other other companies to step in. One of Samsung's hottest new offerings is the P2.

Samsung's portable media player offerings have been confusing but some players are emerging as ones to notice. The last one that really caught my attention was Samsung's K5 which not only looked sleek, but packed in a pairs of speakers. The best way to think of the P2 Widescreen Portable Media Player is as a device that competes with Apple new iPod nano, but with a form factor that is closer to that of the original nano. The Samsung differentiates itself from the nanos in that it has a touch screen and a GUI that is specially designed to work with this feature. Samsung heavily integrated Bluetooth into the device as well.

Just to get the basics out of the way, the P2 (the full name is the YP-P2JCB) is a flash-based portable media player with 4GB or 8GB (tested) of storage. It has a 3″ 480×272 display that runs at 16:9 so it's optimized for watching video (up to 30 fps). The P2 is 3.4″ x 0.39″ x 2.05″ and the weight is 3 oz. The expected battery life is over 30 hours for music and close to 5 hours of video playback. Supported formats are: MP3, WMA, OGG (UMS only), JPEG, SVI, WMV, and TXT.

From a feature standpoint the P2 is basically a 3G iPod nano with a touchscreen. The Bluetooth capabilities that Samsung throws in are cool, but going through the trouble of syncing your phone with an MP3 player is only going to appeal to a small number of users, no matter how cool the functionality might be. The touchscreen also works for all the controls, including navigation and adjustments. The display is not especially sensitive, so accidentally changing something is not as big a problem as I would have expected, though it pays to turn on the lock. Overall the touch sensitive screen is not as quick as the iPod's design, especially its clickable wheel, but Samsung did a good job here. While the Samsung is not very fast from a control standpoint, it is intuitive and easy to use (though the iPod can hardly be faulted in these respects).

One issue with the P2, and Samsung's other players, is the software. Samsung Media Studio 5 is workable, but it is clunky and does not handle music or syncing nearly as well as iTunes. It works in a pinch, but if you are used to iTunes or you have a very large library that you have spent time to organize you will find it disappointing. It does have an integrated store, as well as video conversion capabilities, but the overall experience is lacking. That noted, it is a better solution than Window Media Player.

The major strengths of the P2 are it's ability to be customized and the large screen. As far as customization goes you have a lot of control over the menus, aesthetics, and that sort of thing, but the bigger deal is the EQ. Using the on-board equalizer you can customize sound as well as toggle through preset levels with DNSe sound technology. The DSNe button is placed on the screen whenever music is playing so you can instantly change the sound effect, though I found myself accidentally hitting this button all the time when using the touchscreen.

In addition to the features you would expect, like a photo viewer, alarm, and clock, there are lot of others. These include a text reader, calendar, and world clock, all of which are useful, but not amazing. People will surely better appreciate the FM radio tuner, something that Apple has yet to include, and that can still be a great listening source, even in this digital age of ours.

The Samsung P2 plays video and plays it well. Getting video on the device can be a hassle thanks to Samsung's Media Player, but once it is on there it looks very good and plays without problems. The screen is small enough that you won't want to watch all day, but getting through an hour program is easy. With 8GB of storage you should be able to get through most flights without a problem though the video eats through your storage very quickly.

Getting back to the Bluetooth, it doesn't only let your connect to your phone. You can also connect to wireless headsets and speakers. With upcoming firmware upgrades you will be able to wirelessly transfer files over Bluetooth as well. These is a nice set of features, but again, they don't appeal to an especially wide range of users.

Overall, Samsung's P2 is a very good portable media player. It exceeds in a number of areas where other devices, especially the nano falls behind, and is available for a reasonable price. At about $250 the 8GB model is not cheap, but if you are buying it for the extra features, like the Bluetooth, it can make a lot of sense. As an alternative to the iPod nano, it has some advantages, but most people will prefer the 3G nano because of it's smaller form factor and better user interface. Many people have been comparing the P2 to the iPod Touch (8GB, $299) as well, which makes sense give they both use touchscreens and play video well, but the Touch is a good deal larger and it has built-in WiFi so they really appeal to a different set of buyers.

For the right buyer the P2 could be a great device. It packs in a lot of useful features and it is a prime example of what you can get if you are willing to buy a non-Apple portable media player. The software needs work, but the device itself performed extremely well and though the touchscreen was not as good as Apple's, it's a nice alternative. The typical users will be happier with the 3G nano, but if you wants frills like Bluetooth, FM radio, an on-board file browser, and DNSe 2.0 then it's a good pick.