Olympus FMD-250W
Written: Sep 27 '01 (Updated Oct 07 '01)
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Pros: Incredible picture and sound
Cons: Expensive, lack of noise cancellation technology
The Bottom Line: --Olympus FMD-250W--
This is a great piece of techno-gadgetry. Very impressive.
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| showbiz5's Full Review: Olympus Eye-Trek FMD-150W |
This is definitely the coolest piece of electronic gadgetry out there right now. I'm sure the shine of "high-techness" is coloring my opinion right now, but anyone willing to shell out $700 for what is basically a gizmo appreciates that shine.
Olympus managed to shave weight and add features to the FMD-250 (as compared to the FMD-150). The built-in SRS sound is open and airy with some 3-D cues similar to the effect produced by the Sennheiser DSP-360 surround sound processor. The drawback here is the lack of noise cancellation technology. Most of my use of the FMD-250 is on aircraft. I have become a big fan of noise-canceling headphones and use a pair of Sennheiser HDC-451's with the Eye-Trek when in the air. Be sure to test how your noise cancelling headphones fit with the FMD-250--some are much more comfortable than others.
The FMD-250 is designed to fit just about any face. The frames and nosepiece are adjustable. I wear glasses and the FMD-250 fits comfortably right over them. The design is "open", meaning the viewer's peripheral vision is unimpeded. This is good if you need to pay attention to what is going on around you, but it degrades the image in brightly lit situations. If you anticipate using the FMD-250 in such situations (auto passenger in daylight), buy the optional side shades.
The image itself is huge, sharp, and convincing. Contrast and brightness are easily adjusted. I use the FMD-250 exclusively for viewing DVDs, so the 16x9 widescreen mode is indispensable (the lower model does not have widescreen capability). I can imagine spectacular results using video games like PS2. The FMD-250 takes any NTSC video signal, but it won't take a digital signal from a PC.
Finally, if you do buy the FMD-250, you should consider the Panasonic DVD-PV40 a required option. In addition to being one of the smallest and lightest portable DVD players available, the Panasonic has outputs dedicated to the FMD-250--and that includes power. That's right, you won't need a separate power supply for the FMD-250 when used with the DVD-PV40 (less cords/wires = good). The DVD-PV40 goes for $280 at bhphotovideo.com.
Overall, it's probably difficult to justify spending this much on a device you won't use every day, but if you do, you won't be disappointed with the experience.
Recommended:
Yes
Amount Paid (US$): 699
Operating System: Other
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Epinions.com ID:
showbiz5
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Location: Southern California
Reviews written: 10
Trusted by: 2 members
About Me:
Studio exec, techno-junkie
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