The Gateway MP3 Photo Jukebox arrived in the classic Gateway "Cow" spotted
packaging. When I opened the box I was surprised at how thin and light the
Gateway MP3 Photo Jukebox was in comparison to the iRiver MP3/data-only player
that I have been using for the past couple of years. Actually, the Gateway unit
is so lightweight that it initially felt cheap. However, after spending time
testing the unit, I really appreciated the units feather-like design and functionality,
especially when carrying it around in my pocket.
Depending on which side of the fence you fall (music or photo), you could
consider this to be a 6GB MP3 player with basic photo functionality
or a 6GB photo ptorage device with very good MP3 playback capabilities.
The bottom half of the Gateway MP3 Photo Jukebox contains 4 buttons and a 4-way navigation
pad. The top of the unit features a slide switch that locks all controls, allowing you to
handle it without pressing a button or turning the unit on or off by accident. The top of
the unit also features a standard headphone mini jack.
The right side of the unit features a volume rocker that is easily
controlled with your right thumb or fingers depending on which hand you hold the unit with.
The bottom of the unit features a pin-hole size reset button and the USB / docking connector.
Learning to use the navigation and button controls of the Gateway MP3 Photo
Jukebox took only a few minutes. The interface is very user friendly
and is one of the few that can compete with Apple's iPod when it comes
to navigation. When viewing a folder that contains larger images (above
2 megapixel's) the navigation stalls for a few seconds as it loads the
thumbnails of photos - but scrolling through photographs, even large
8-megapixel ones, was very quick.
This is not a device for photographers who want to be able to connect to a TV
to give slideshows or who want the ability to zoom in on a photo to check detail.
The main reason for the screen on this unit, at least as it pertains to photography, is to
give you the ability to view and verify the photo's you just transferred.
Yes, you can pass it around to do slideshows, but with a 1.6" screen would you really want to?
Speaking of slideshows, the Gateway MP3 Photo Jukebox has a slideshow feature with
three selectable timing and transition effects. You can also select a song to automatically
play during a photo slideshow and you can listen to music while manually navigating
through your photographs. If you're manually navigating high resolution images and listening
to music at the same time, you'll notice a delay between pictures, which I found annoying. This
delay was not apparent during automated (slideshow) playback. The delay also disappeared when
viewing smaller (lower resolution) images.
Comparison Photos
In the following set of pictures I placed the Gateway MP3 Photo Jukebox side-by-side with other gadgets,
in order to show you its size relative to other products. In the first photograph, the Gateway unit was
placed next to the iRiver iHP-120 MP3 player and Palm Treo 600 phone. I have also included a ruler, in
case you are not familiar with the other items.
In this set of photos I have placed the Gateway MP3 Photo Jukebox next to a credit card (sorry, had to hide my number),
and the new Sprint PCS MM-A800 camera phone that I'll be reviewing shortly.
