Features Of Portable Media Player
A portable multimedia player (PMP) - sometimes referred to as a portable video player (PVP) - is an electronic device that is capable of storing and playing digital media. Digital audio players (DAP) that display images and play videos are considered as PMPs. Like DAPs, the data is typically stored on a hard drive, microdrive, or flash memory. Other types of electronic devices like cellphones are sometimes referred as PMPs due to their playback capabilities.
PMPs are capable of playing digital audio, images, and video. They are usually built with a color LCD or OLED screen. Various players include the ability to record video - with the aid of optional accessories or cables - and audio, with a built-in microphone, or from a line-out cable or FM tuner. Some players include readers for memory cards, which were advertised to equip players with extra storage or directly transferring media, emulate an personal organizer, or support games like the iriver clix (through compatibility of Adobe Flash Lite) or the PlayStation Portable.
- Audio Playback - As with any other DAP all portable media players have the ability to playback audio. Often players can also play formats other than MP3 and have the ability to play files in higher bit rates.
- Photo Viewer - The color screens an all portable media players allows users to view photos, though most users will prefer a large screen PVP as resolution is important to view the detail on a still image. Advanced players also often include expansion slots such as SD and CompactFlash (both common with cameras) so that users can transfers photos from a camera with a computer.
- Video Playback - As a portable media player there is some form of video playback. More advanced players such as PVPs have higher quality LCD screens and format support. A number of players also have the ability to output the video to an external display such as a Television.
- Computer compatibility - PMPs are usually packaged with an installation CD/DVD that inserts device drivers (and for some players, software that is capable of seamlessly transferring files between the player and the computer). For recent players, however, these are usually available online via the manufacturers’ websites, or natively recognized by the operating system through Universal Mass Storage (UMS) or Media Transfer Protocol (MTP).
