Barclays One Small Step Competition

MCH Media is pleased to announce their entry into the Barclays One Small Step Competition.

Our aim is to win one of the £50,000 prizes, and with this develop a brand new product, the Oi Media Portal. As always this will be designed and manufactured in the UK, all we need to do for now is gather public interest in our idea, then from the 7th June get plenty of votes so that we win.

So to help us we would ask that you click on the below image and follow the link to our page, this will give you an overview of our idea, show you a short video and then in the top right you can "Back this idea". On and after the 7th June we would ask you come back and vote in full, also encourage friends and family to do the same.

Vote for MCH Media Limited in the Barclays Business Take One Small Step Competition

Tutorials

In response to a dramatic rise in support requests we have started to add video tutorials to our FAQ's and Support page.

We aim to build up a catalogue of support files to cater for all levels of user, these will cover basic Windows operations, moving data to your MP4 Player via cut and paste, through to more complex operations such as video manipulation using various software packages so that you Media Box MP4 player can show custom film shows.

If you have a need or suggestion of a tutorial we should add please feel free to let us know and we will do our best to include it.

What's coming in 2010 from MCH Media?

Well its been just over a year now since we launched our first range of MP4 players, the Media Box. On the whole the reception from our customers has been great, once customers have held and used the player for a few minutes most have fallen in love with it. We have had some really good feedback on likes and dislikes, which have been catalogued and will be used on both redesigns of the current MP4 player range and of course new products.

Looking forwards we are now working on 3 new products, we aim to launch 2 of the 3 before the end of Q2 this year. As we are sure you appreciate we can't go into to much detail on these products just yet, but we can tell you they will take the market by storm. The first to launch will be a hand held Media Player, 4.3" screen, WiFi, dual navigation control and multiple format support (not only for music and video but also documents of various types).

The second product range is a really big leap for us as we are looking at the larger screen market, 10" - 20". This range will be primarily designed for household usage, and will incorporate many features including HD, audio streaming, video streaming, email, web access, TV, and we are aiming for a model to include Pico Projection.

We see the market moving away from pure MP4 Players now, customers are asking for more support options for various formats, and trust us when we tell you we will be giving you this soon.

What to look for when buying MP4 Players

MP4 Players come in all different shapes and sizes, each manufacture offers their own "bells and whistles" functions, but once you cut through the fluff there are some basic elements you should consider:

1) Media Player Shape and Size
Your first consideration should be "What do I want my MP4 Player for". Why is this important, simply because this will dictate most / all of the other choices you need to make. The smaller the player then the smaller the screen and battery, not very good if you want to watch full length movies, but OK for just listening to music.

2) Media Player Screen Size and Type
If you intend to use you MP4 player for listening to music, and occasionally watching short video clips you can chose MP4 players with a smaller screen, 1.5" or 1.8" screen. As this priority changes so should the screen size, i.e. the more video you intend to watch with respect to the amount of audio you wish to listen to the bigger the screen your MP4 player should be 2.0" upwards.
Summary -
More Music - Small Screen
More Video - Large Screen
Not Sure - Mid Large Large Screen

3) Media Player Storage Capacity
Storage capacity for MP4 Players comes in two main types – hard disk and solid state.
As a rule of thumb larger-capacity MP4 players use a hard disk for storage, not unlike your PC. This type of storage tends to make these MP4 Players bulkier than solid-state players, but the up side is you can fit more media on to them. Hard-disk capacities vary and you will pay more for higher-capacity models. You can also use many hard disc players to transfer large files between computers.
Solid state MP4 players get their name because they have no moving parts, this storage is based on flash silicon IC's. This technology means MP4 players can be incredibly small and light, and a benefit of this is they are often more robust compared to hard disk MP4 Players. As with the hard disk you can also use this type of MP4 Player to transfer files between computers
Another consideration is expansion slots on MP4 Players. Some MP4 player models come with SD card slots which allow you to plug in more solid state memory in card format and therefore expand your on board memory. These are particular useful for holding films on.
Summary -
If you want to load your player up with your complete DVD collection and all of your music files you will need to look at a hard disk MP4 Player. If you want to rotate your music and video collection, or hold a smaller amount on you player at any one time a solid state MP4 Player will suit you.

4) Media Player Battery Life
Each brand and type of MP4 player will have its own battery life. There are various considerations as to how long your battery will last between charges, the main one being how much video you are watching. The more screen time you have the less play time you will have. Most MP4 players will offer at least 4-6 hours of play as standard, this can be extended by turning the screen off.
Charging takes on average 3-4 hours , but some of the players with larger memory can take up to 5-6 hours. With most models, you can recharge the batteries without removing them. This can be achieved on some models using your computers USB port rather than carrying around a clunky power supply and cables

5) Connections
Most, if not all MP4 players connect to your PC via USB or in some cases Fire Wire. If you choose an MP4 player with Fire Wire you should make sure your PC has a Fire Wire port on it. If not you will need to buy an expansion card. You should also make sure any MP4 Players you are looking at support USB 2.0, this will speed up you data transfer times.

6) Data Formats Supported
You should make sure the MP4 Players you are looking at support the most common media formats, (MPEG) MP1, MP2, MP3, MP4, WMA. WMV. This will be done directly on the player through embedded drivers or via conversion software which will take these formats and change them in the best format for your MP4 Player.

7) Audio Output
There are two types of audio output on MP4 players, these are headphones and/or external speaker. Most mp4 players with an external speaker will also come with a jack socket for you headphones. This is a good feature as if a group of people want to listen to the MP4 player whilst watching video you don't need to share earphones.

8) Bells and Whistles
Once you have you checked the above list covering the above points you can look at the extras. These will range from games, FM radio, voice and/or radio recording, phone book, camera for both video and stills, calendar, Electronic album and picture browser, Graphics Equaliser, multi language, and the list goes on.

Like an MP3 player, you will need a computer to use an MP4 player, and ideally access to the internet.

Follow this link for more helpful information and products based on MP4 Players.