Epson P-2000 Multimedia Storage Drive, Viewer, and Audio/Video Player (B31B174011) | 
 enlarge
| Brand: Epson
Category: Photography
List Price: $519.99
Buy New: $279.00
You Save: $240.99 (46%)
New (1) Used (3) from $190.00
Avg. Customer Rating:  26 reviews
Media: Electronics
Autographed: No
Memorabilia: No
Batteries Included: No
Hard Drive Size: 40
Native Resolution: 3.8
Display Size: 3.8
Removable Memory: CompactFlash Type I
Shipping Weight (lbs): 5
Dimensions (in): 0.1 x 0.1 x 0
Digital audio player
MPN: B31B174011
Model: B31B174011
UPC: 010343852112
EAN: 0010343852112
ASIN: B0006SKK4C
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
|
| Features:
| • | Large 3.8-inch Epson Photo Fine LCD and portable 40 GB hard drive | | • | View, share, and store photos, videos, and music | | • | Transfer files with a Hi-Speed USB 2.0 interface | | • | Rechargeable lithium-ion battery with AC adapter | | • | PC and Mac compatible; 1-year warranty |
|
| Accessories:
|
| Similar Items:
|
| Editorial Reviews:
Product Description
Enjoy the freedom of multimedia portability with the Epson P-2000, featuring a 40GB hard drive and 3.8" LCD to view, store and playback photos, videos and music-all without a computer. Exclusive Photo Fine LCD technology ensures brilliant color and vivid detail. A perfect companion to any digital camera, the P-2000 makes it easy to download files to and from any CompactFlash or Secure Digital memory card through its built-in card slots. And, with an optional third-party adapter, it supports additional memory cards. Designed with a Hi-Speed USB 2.0 interface, this portable device transfers photos, video and audio files in a snap. Windows and Macintosh compatible, the P-2000 features an intuitive menu that enables users to easily browse through files or create new folders for easy accessibility. This travel-friendly battery operated device is ideal for any application-both personal and professional. Share photos with friends, or display a digital portfolio for business use. A versatile multimedia storage viewer, the Epson P-2000 offers on-the-spot downloading and playback of photos, videos and music-anytime, anyplace. Connect to a TV or projector with an optional third party video cable Create folders to categorize and group your files for easy access and viewing Supports JPEG and select RAW image files, MPEG4 and Motion JPEG video files, and MP3 and AAC audio files Prints directly to select Epson printers Rechargeable Lithium Ion battery with AC adapter Windows and Macintosh compatible
|
| Customer Reviews: Read 21 more reviews...
 Epson p-2000 January 9, 2007
2 out of 2 found this review helpful
Does an excelent job and has a lot of versitility, but is heavy and slow to load the pictures each time you try to initially view them. (This pertains to the pictures that are already in a folder on the p-2000. I would have expected these to be faster to view then pictures being downloaded.) Once you've been through the "slide show" once, the images load quicker the second time. Had no proplems uploading and downloading from my computer. No problems downloading directly from my camera's card. Overall I am quite happy with my purchase. Screen gives a very good image. Very clear and crisp. Worked great while we were traveling. I used it to unload my camera card so I didn't have to bring extra cards.
Very, very nice January 5, 2007
4 out of 6 found this review helpful
Pros:
- Field backup of your photos
- Nice display
- Easy to understand and use (compared to, say, your camera)
Cons which, if corrected, would put it in the 5 star:
- Slow to load from CF to internal HDD
- No external battery charger
- Cannot zoom in on camera RAW files
- Price $200 less (might as well dream)
4 stars. Worth owning.
Needs some improvement, but what an awesome device! July 19, 2006
20 out of 22 found this review helpful
I've been a professional photographer for about 20 years, but I did have a hiatus in that span in which photography fell by the wayside. I've gotten back into the craft and for the most part, I have kissed film goodbye - and I would have bet my left arm that would never happen. I just bought a new digital outfit to begin my new venture into the photo biz and asked an acquaintance who is a freelance photographer and who is sent on assignment by such publications as Time & Life. He recommended the P-2000 when I asked his opinion on the best device out there to use in the field to clear out CF cards and after getting to handle one in person, I agreed with him and bought mine 2 weeks ago.
The image quality is STUNNING. There is no other way to put it. Colors are crisp & sharp on the moderate-sized display and the controls are iPod-ishly intuitive and easy to operate.
There are some things I believe should be done to make the next incarnation a 5-star achiever:
1.) This puppy really needs to have a firewire port. Say what you will about USB 2.0 - on a Mac, Firewire is simply faster. I have a USB 2.0 port on my iMac, but this thinig is too freakin' slow in importing images via USB to the computer. This is a device for professionals - I'd say can the SD slot in favor of a firewire port!
2.) The charging port is on the opposite side of where the lanyard attaches. ... so, if you want this to charge while in its protective case, you have to turn the lanyard in the case and have it charging in an awkward position.
3.) They seriously need to come out w/ an external battery charger. I do not see the point of buying a separate battery if there is no charger other than the unit itself.
4.) The delay between clicking on a thumbnail and/or zoominig in is WAY TOO LONG. Sometimes, it's zooms in fast, and other times it feels like an ice age is going to pass you by while you wait.
5.) It is way too picky on video formats. The example/demo video that came w/ the unit is a .mov Quicktime file - but I have quicktime files that play fine on my Mac that won't play on this thing. Granted, I will primarily be using this as a professional companion in photoshoots, not as a video player - but you get the idea.
6.) Where you put in the CF card, it needs to be labled more clearly on the orientation so you don't jam it in backwards.
7.) When the disk is full and you want to import the photos into iPhoto - it takes FOREVER. I have imported photos from external hard drives, CDs and DVDs before, but this is the slowest EVER. I shot a wedding rehearsal and the wedding itself - well over 2000 photos in about 14 hours of activities over 2 days. I got home and hooked this puppy up at 4pm and started importing photos. I went about my day, took a nap and about a few minutes to midnight, went to look at the photos and they were STILL importing! Only about 75% had been imported. I don't know if this is a 2000 rpm drive or if it's a USB 1.0 or what its shortcomings are in the speed dept., but yikes, it takes way too stinking long!
Despite its shortcomings, it is a fast downloader from CF to the drive while in the field. Not as fast as I'd like, but decent. I used this device yesterday during a photoshoot in which I took bridal portraits for about 3 hours. I imported over 700 photos and the bride viewed many of them, zooming in on several - and half the battery life remains. This device pays for itself in just saving the cost of larger capacity CF cards over time. Thus far, I am very pleased with this purchase.
 Very nearly perfect August 5, 2005
74 out of 77 found this review helpful
I can't imagine going on a shoot or traveling without one of these!
It works just like you'd expect it to, very easily, you drop in your CF or SD (it supports both) and you can download and create an album in a matter of seconds/minutes depending on card and file sizes.
The only thing that really irks me is the time it takes to cache the images, you have to cycle through the entire album once for it to do so, and that can take forever if we're talking about a 1GB card. It takes about a second to cycle through each image (jpeg format from my 8mp digital slr) If it were a touch faster, it would be rockin'.
I also dislike how finiky the unit is regarding movie files. It claims to be able to play AVIs, but it wont play the avis' that run on my computer, but it will take the ones from my compact camera. Okay...! Not a big deal for me since I'm using this for purely on the go storage in lui of lugging a laptop around, but still, they could've made this easier.
The case that comes with the P2000 is okay... Lookswise, it's kinda silly looking. It has a pull tab on it. As for protecting the case, I mean, it's slightly padded, but I would've liked to see a case included that you could store the P2000 in while using it. The one that is included is soft foamy material. The sell cases on ebay specifically made for the P-2000 that are made of leather, and they store memory cards, all while holding the unit. I'd reccomend picking one of those up instead of the included case.
The design is REALLY sleek and nice. Images look simply beautiful on the big screen. It really looks similar to a Sony PSP, people get mixed up and ask me all the time what game I'm playing.
The battery life is GREAT, I've only recharged the battery once, and I read in Popular Photography that you can transfer up to 13 cards before having to make a new charge.
The few annoyances I mentioned above are not even worth mentioning once you have the unit in your hands, it is worth the cost and the time it takes to cache the images!
Love the P-2000 ...Much better than the Flashtrax June 24, 2005
25 out of 26 found this review helpful
Advantages to P-2000
- Menus & Buttons are visual, intuitive and easy to use. Browsing thumbnails display quickly.
- The display is large, sharp, bright and perfect for viewing photos
- Quick downloads
- Memory cards slot design makes it easy to load & remove cards with press of button. Accepts both SD & Compact Flash cards without an adapter.
- Comes with protective case, hand strap & display stand
- Battery is well protected - stored inside device with a door covering it
- Easy handling, no clumsy screen to unfold
Disadvantages to P-2000
- Can't Zoom or do slide shows with raw files If you shoot .nef +jpg, you can still zoom, create slide shows and it will auto rotate the jpg for you. Although you can't rotate raw files I didn't find it an issue since it's easy to turn the device sideways and that way it uses the whole large screen for a larger display anyway.
- No Histogram display on raw files (again if you shoot with a raw+jpg you can view the histogram on the jpg)
- Hard to find one in stock to buy!
Advantages to Flashtrax
- One button download don't need to open cover to start download process
- Better raw file support, can rotate & zoom raw files & view histogram
- Offers a 80GB option
Disadvantages of Flashtrax
- Doesn't come with protective case
- Hinged screen seems vulnerable to breakage if you bend it back too far
- Menus & filelists are hard to navigate - buttons awkward
- Need to move rubber piece to insert memory card each time
- Compared to p-2000 the screen display is poor and protective plastic is flimsy
- Battery snaps on end near hinge and can pop out if you press buttons on side accidentally.
- slow download speeds
- Awkward to hold & balance because you have to unfold the screen. Folding screen also makes hard to adjust screens angle of view if there is a glare.
Prior to buying the P-2000 I owned a Flashtrax & an eFilm PicturePad which I use to download raw digital photos. One day the eFilm stopped reading memory cards, but the other functions worked. Although it was under warranty the eFilm stopped making them and couldn't fix it so bought a Flashtrax to replace it.
I liked the Flashtrax a lot better than the picturePad since it's display, battery life and menus were much better than the efilm. When my husband dropped the FlashTrax on a grassy area, the screen cracked even though it was folded at the time. It still worked fine, the display was just cracked. So don't assume that the folding screen will protect the screen from breaking. SmartDisk replaced the screen but a few weeks ago my photo equipment was stolen so I was back on the market for a portable storage device. After reading a review of the p-2000 I decided to give it a try. (On the p-2000 the glass/plastic on the p-2000 screen & body seems much more solid than the FlashTrax so I think it would withstand rough play a little better even though it doesn't fold.)
Now that I've worked with the P-2000, I wouldn't buy another Flashtrax. The P-2000 downloads from memory cards much faster, and the screen display is bright, sharp and large enough (3.8") to get a detailed view of photos. The menu's are more intuitive due to the more visual nature of the menus and the buttons easier to use. The slide show feature also automatically will create transitions to make the show look polished without any effort. There's no folding and unfolding screens to view making it's easier to hold and adjust the screen to get a direct view without glare.
Bottom Line:
If you are a professional or enthusiast who shoots raw, you'll probably agree that Epson could to improve the raw file support. They need to add the capability to view histograms and zoom on raw files which I'm hoping Epson will do in a future software update that I'll be able to download easily. Shooting a small jpg does work around this but wastes memory space. Most the time I only check my histograpms while I'm shooting to see if I need to adjust settings so this isn't a deal breaker for me. You'll still love the P-2000 for it's great display and ease of use. It's much cheaper than buying 40GB of compact flash cards and smaller and easier/faster to use in the field than a laptop.
If you are an amateur you'll love the p-2000 since its a slick device to store/view thousands of photos, listen to jpegs and watch quicktime movies on.
Definately worth the wait if you can't find one right away to buy.
Epson if you are listening... you have a good product can't you increase production, improve raw file support and come out with a 80GB option?
|
|
|
