SmartDisk FlashTrax

This product has a very compact and ergonomic design. It came with a 5-volt converter, a USB cable, a remote control (don't seem to be useful), a video cable (so that you can view the image on TV), and a nice little carry case. Menu nevigation is intuitive and does not require a whole lot of reading. I used a Sandisk Ultra II 256MB to do a test. It can download 22 full cards (with minimal use of LCD screen) before the device running out of power and can not download anymore. When the battery level is high, the average download time is a little more than 3 minutes. However, when the level is below the indicated 60%, the download time is significantly longer. When the battery reach 60% or 0%, a warning message will appear on the screen. You can ignore and continue your download, or recharge the battery immediately. Even with 0%, you may have a chance to download one or more flash card. The battery indicator is almost useless. It only shows 100%, 60% or 0%. You do not need to turn on the device in order to download. Just stick the flash card in, and press the button. The LCD screen, although big, does not have a very high resolution. Retrieving images is somewhat slow, especially it takes 3 seconds to view a RAW images. The device does generate some heat while being used intensively. But it in no way can damage the LCD screen. I never test its MP3 function.

- good mechanical design - relatively long battery life - easy to download

- nearly useless battery indicator - somewhat slow (but acceptable) image retrieval time - some heat (but acceptable)

I had bought the device for a trip to Asia, during which it worked great. I saved close to 20 gigs of raw Nikon, and listen to 1 gigs of mp3 with no problem. Although my flashtrax was alway warm to the touch after 5-10 minutes, I did not realy mind. I mostly use it in an air conditioned room. Back to the States, first time I went jogging with it(45 minutes), the heat burned out the LCD display. I return it to the store (after 8 weeks) and got a replacement. Now I nolonger use it for anything else except as a back up hard drive(an expensive one).

Big display screen, portability.

Expensive, Short battery life, Heat problems, slow performance.

none

not known

I got my new flash trax last week. I enjoy it very much, but the battery drains too quickly (1.5 hours of music playing) and the photos are displayed too slow.