In October 2005 EchoStar Communications introduced to the rather technology crazed market a new portable video player which it claims is capable of upsetting the reign of current market leaders. The new PocketDISH player was introduced not just a portable movie video player but as a portable media center where a user can play games, watch TV, look at pictures and listen to music. Moreover, the PocketDISH is able to get TV shows from a Dish Network DVR instead of buying them. Also, the media device can download record and play various contents from a PC or Mac. It is also compatible with digital cameras and different kinds of mass-storage devices.
When the EchoStar released the PocketDISH, they immediately came out with three models which basically vary in terms of storage capacities and LCD displays. There’s a 40 GB hard drive and 7″ widescreen display; a 30 GB hard drive and 4″ display; and the 20 GB hard drive and 2.2″display. The company released the portable media player in response to the news back then that Apple’s iPod was going to release a model that have video viewing capabilities (which the company really incorporated in their recent iPod models).
And because they were intended to be rivals, there’s practically no choice but to compare the two. The PocketDISH and the video iPod have basic similarities with regards to hard drive capacity. But it seems that the PocketDISH has bigger advantages than the video iPod. The Pocket DISH is capable of storing 15,000 songs, up to 300,000 photos or up to 120 hours of video. Another advantage would be the pricing. It may be hard to admit, but an iPod costs a lot more than the latest offering from EchoStar.
Aside from the iPod, the PocketDISH has also been fitted against other portable video players. EchoStar has included a couple of bundled into the PocketDISH package. The can play MP3, WMA or WAV formats. Games range from brain-teasers to role-playing and adventure games, PocketDISH makes sure that their users will get to maximize the potential of their portable media center.
When it comes to battery life, according to EchoStar, users of PocketDish can play up to 20, 30 or even 40 hours of music or video files. Some press releases even claim that when it comes to other media files, the PocketDish is capable of maintaining a capacity of 80 hours for the 20GB, up to 120 hours for the 30GB and 160 hours for the 40GB models.
