Digital Home Thoughts - News & Reviews for the Digital Home

"Zen fans have been looking forward to the next big thing from Creative. These fans clamored for a Zen Vision:M replacement which is, in my opinion, the best blend of MP3 players and PMPs to date. Creative’s last biggest release, the Zen, didn’t seem to hush this cry for something new, because it couldn’t yet natively play high resolution XviD/DivX files, failed at integrating the SD slot, and had cost-prohibitive 30GB+ capacities. The brand new Zen X-Fi is basically a refreshed version of the Zen, but with added wireless features and X-Fi sound enhancement. Will this be enough, though, to satisfy the Zen fans who have been patiently waiting for Creative’s latest addition to the family?"

If you have any interest in Creative's latest version of the Zen, check out the detailed look at the linked article. If that's not enough for you, you can look at the full disassembly they did afterwards.

"New details have been leaked about Creative's answer to the iPod touch and Zune, a wireless music player with Wi-Fi media sharing capabilities called the Zen X-Fi. Pictures show the device sporting a chrome-and-black plastic look that's vaguely reminiscent of the iPhone, along with a nine-point directional pad. Besides certain internet features, X-Fi will also come with an SD card slot and a built-in speaker."

The only internet feature I see mentioned is the ability to be used for IM, which is not really a big deal to me, but will probably be killer for a subset of users. I really liked the fact that they included a built in speaker though. This is one thing I would like to see more of. Combined with a clock/alarm, it makes a great addition to the travel functionality of the device.