Portable MP3 players are ten a penny, and everyone knows that buying something other than an iPod will invite ridicule and possible attack on the train. There are not, for example, many Londoners who would allow a non-Apple-branded MP3 player user to go unpunished on the Northern Line. Just the other week, a man was thrown onto the tracks by a fashion critic who took offence at his use of a Creative Zen Sleek. "It had white ear-bud headphones, but there was no way that thing could have interfaced with iTunes," the assailant was heard to remark as police injected him with mace and led him away.
So, it was with a doubtful heart that we unwrapped the Packard Bell Audiostar -- what, after all, can possibly challenge Apple's dominance of the MP3 player scene? What can defeat the millions of iPod zombies who walk around the city streets, lanyarded to their Apple players like prisoners in the stocks? Surely not a little silver box from Packard Bell?
It's a small player, with 1GB of memory. Compared to the iPod Shuffle, it's not remarkably tiny, but does have a built-in LCD to let you know what track's playing into your pert little ears. There's also a voice recorder function which should make it useful for students or freelance interrogators who want a small MP3 player that doubles as a Dictaphone. At a mere 4.7cm wide it won't keep a princess tossing and turning if you put it under her mattress. The Audiostar will go through rigorous tests this week, so expect a review soon. -CS
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