| Manufacturer | Creative Technology |
|---|---|
| Retail availability | 2007–present |
| Operating system | ZEN UI 1.21.03 |
| Storage capacity | Available in 2, 4, 8, 16, and 32 GB flash memory |
| Display | 2.5 in (64 mm) backlit TFT LCD Screen 320 × 240 resolution 24-bit color depth (16.7 million colors) |
| Input | 4-way directional pad, 9 buttons, power/hold slider |
| Connectivity | USB 2.0 |
The ZEN is a portable media player designed and manufactured by Creative Technology. The flash memory-based player is the de facto successor[1] of the ZEN Vision:M and was announced on August 29, 2007, to be available in capacities of 2, 4, 8, and 16 GB, as of September 14.[2] A 32 GB model was announced on December 4, 2007, setting a record for storage capacity among flash players.[3]
The player has a width of 83 mm (3.3 in), a height of 55 mm (2.2 in) and is 11.3 mm (0.44 in) thick—making it the slimmest Creative portable media player and the second slimmest Creative player of any type (other than the now-defunct MuVo Slim[4]) so far. Because of its dimensions, the ZEN is advertised to be the "size of a credit card".[5] This is the first Creative player to have a SD card slot (enabling the support of SD and SDHC cards; an optional adapter is needed for microSD and miniSD cards), support for DRM free iTunes-encoded AAC (in a ".m4a" extension), as well as a truecolor TFT LCD display.
Contents |
The ZEN MX is a derivative of the ZEN launched in 2009. The form factor is exactly the same as the ZEN, though less than a millimeter thicker at 11.9 mm (0.47 inches), but there are a few notable feature differences. The ZEN MX does not support .AVI, .MPG, or .AAC files natively. In order for them to be played back on the device, they must be transcoded using the bundled converter. The player's button layout is slightly altered, merging the play/pause button with the power button. The MX version also allows for music to be imported from the SD card to the player's internal memory and library, in addition to the ZEN's original picture import mode.[6] Because the ZEN MX features the MSC/UMS transfer system that makes the player compatible with Apple computers, it makes use of a slightly altered firmware which may not be installed on the original ZEN or vice versa.
| Feature | Description |
|---|---|
| Capacity | 2/4/8/16/32 GB |
| Memory type | Flash-based |
| Dimensions | 82 × 54 × 11 mm/3.26 × 2.16 × 0.44 in |
| Weight | 65 g (2.3 oz) |
| Screen | 2.5 in (64 mm) TFT LCD |
| Screen resolution | 320 × 240 pixels (QVGA) |
| Color depth | 24-bit (16.7 million colors) |
| Battery life | Audio playback: >30 hr Video playback: >5 hr |
| Video formats | MJPEG, WMV, and AVI (MPEG-4 SP, DivX, Xvid), while MPEG-1, and MPEG-2 are supported, but must be transcoded with the included software (Video must not exceed the player's dimensions at 320 × 240 pixels). ZEN MX: AVI, WMV, MP4, MPG, ASF, MOV, M4V, DAT (all transcoded into Creative's proprietary CMV format) |
| Audio formats | MP3, iTunes-encoded AAC (unprotected ".m4a"), WMA (including protected), not in ZEN MX: WAV and Audible 2, 3, and 4 formats |
| Photo formats | JPEG (other formats would be transcoded) |
| Battery | Removable, rechargeable lithium-ion battery |
| Signal-to-noise ratio | Up to 97 dB |
| EQ types | Pop, jazz, rock, disco, vocal, new age, classical, acoustic, and 5-band custom setting |
| Album art source | ID3 tag/jpeg file in album folder |
| Microphone input quota | 10 hr |
| FM radio presets | 32 |
| Connection type | USB 1.1/2.0, SD memory card |
| PIM | Synchronises with Microsoft Outlook contacts, calendar, and tasks |
| System requirements | Windows 7, Windows Vista or XP. For Linux, see libmtp (Native support as a mass storage device is available on Ubuntu 9.04+, and possibly other linux distributions). Third party programs such as XNJB add transfer-only Mac OS X compatibility. |
Numerous firmware updates were released very soon after the player's launch, fixing a variety of bugs, but Creative did not add features to the SD Card functionality. The SD card functionality is considered to be poor by many people who own a Creative Zen because these people had expected the SD card to function more along the lines of a RAM expansion pack or additional non-volatile RAM instead of a separate drive with limited functionality, which is how Creative designed it to act. The ZEN MX requires an entirely different firmware.
The earlier ones have reportedly caused players to occasionally result in a white screen of death.[7][8]
Version 1.10.05 was released on October 23, 2007. Thai language support was added, while video playback was improved. Adapter charging and startup time were quickened.[9]
The prior version,[10] 1.20.02, was released on December 19, 2007. Transferring content via the SD card slot is enabled, though only image files are viewable.[8]
Firmware version 1.21.01 was released on February 28, 2008. It improves the player's playback performance of WMA (.wma) files.[11]
The latest version, 1.21.03, was released on January 19, 2009, which improves FM radio player operation.[12]
Creative states that the ZEN supports the AAC audio format. However, only iTunes-encoded files can be played by the player hardware. iTunes's implementation has been licensed by Apple from Dolby and is proprietary. These files are in the .m4a format, which is the same as the Apple Lossless Audio Codec. Creative has acknowledged this issue in a support article.[13]
The latest version of Nero-AAC Encoder (1.3.3.0) "Solved compatibility issues with some hardware devices".[14] Including ZEN. This update makes Nero-Coded AAC files playable on ZEN.