Epson Multimedia Storage Viewer review

Epson's Multimedia Storage Viewer P-2000 combines a 40GB hard disk with a stunning 3.8in 640 x 480 pixel colour screen that can be used to view stills and video clips from flash media on the move.

Apart from offering a convenient storage and backup solution to burgeoning image files produced by the latest multi-megapixel cameras, the Epson P-2000 is one of only a select few that can be relied on to carefully review and assess stills as part of a digital photographer's workflow.

With support for some of the popular Raw files from Canon and Nikon cameras, as well as Epson's own RD-1 rangefinder camera, the USB 2 viewer is sure to attract a lot of attention from enthusiasts and digital SLR users. Similarly, the P-2000 can also display Tiffs and Jpegs up to 8.9 megapixels, and it plays back MP3 and AAC audio files, and AVI and up to 30fps Mpeg-4 video.

The device looks and feels well-made, but the design of the metal and plastic casing could be better. It's not particularly compact, being roughly 50% bigger and double the weight of the 60GB iPod photo.

The device supports CompactFlash Type I&II, Microdrive, SecureDigital (SD) and MultiMediaCards (MMC) directly, but other formats, such as Memory Stick and xD Picturecard, require an adaptor. Cards are inserted face down and the controls are generally well placed, although the four raised push-buttons are set in a ring, which is an odd choice. It's no match for the iPod and the on-screen menu isn't as slick as we'd hoped.

The system and interface are unintuitive and clunky. The P-2000 copies each card into a Saved Data folder with an option to copy again to an album. Annoyingly, it renames files in the process, but does allow you to organise groups of downloads by type. Fortunately, you can browse memory cards prior to copying, preventing duplication.

Battery life is good, especially considering the size and 212ppi pixel density of the screen. Epson has wisely opted for a replaceable £50 Lithium-ion cell, which adds to the unit's bulk slightly, but does mean you can carry around spares. We managed four downloads using a fully charged battery from a 2GB CompactFlash card, complete with some viewing, before the battery gave way during the fifth download.

Audio files are depicted by an icon and filename, but there's no support for playlists or shuffling. Each image is displayed as a air-sized thumbnail, and Raw, Tiff and Jpegs of up to 8.9 megapixels can be viewed full screen, but you can only zoom in on Jpegs to check their focus precisely.

As a music player, sound quality isn't bad, but the P-2000 really stands out as a photo viewer - it has a great screen, good battery life and supports Raw camera files. To our minds, it's at the forefront of the genre.