Refine search for Storage

  Leave a comment      Email this to a friend TrustedReviews Newsletters

Click to Enlarge
Click to Enlarge
Click to Enlarge
Epson Photo!4
Epson PhotoQuicker

Images and any directories from the CF card are automatically copied into ‘Card Case’ folders on the P-1000, and each new card folder is named according to the date it was downloaded along with a three-digit extension that denotes the folder number (e.g. ‘20040621.001’). Favourite images from the card folders can then be copied into one or more ‘Album Case’ folders, which have a ‘.ALB’ extension. It’s therefore worth noting that images copied over from your PC to the P-1000 will only be displayed if they’re placed inside one of the existing folders, or inside a new folder that has been properly named using the convention I’ve just described.

Images on the P-1000 can be displayed as thumbnails or in full-screen format. By repeatedly pressing the OK button, you can also zoom in to take a closer look at any detail and then pan around using the four-way controller. However, I wasn’t particularly impressed with the display speed when viewing full size images. It typically took about 4-5 seconds to display each new image from a four megapixel camera, with a six megapixel image taking roughly twice as long still. This made the P-1000 feel rather sluggish to use, especially when viewing larger images.

As far as software goes, you get a copy of Epson Photo!4 for viewing, organising and transferring photos to and from the viewer, as well as Epson PhotoQuicker, which allows you to print digital photos using a variety of layouts. However, because the P-1000 behaves like a standard external USB hard disk, there’s actually no need to install the (rather basic) Epson software, and personally I found it far simpler just to use Windows Explorer for transferring files instead.

Verdict

There’s no doubt that the P-1000 offers you the freedom to take many pictures with your digital camera without worrying about how much space is left on your storage card. In addition, the LCD display is one of the best you’ll find on a device like this and will prove invaluable for checking the quality of any important photos while out and about. However, the slow USB 1.1 interface, relatively meagre 10GB hard disk and the sluggish display speed all make the P-1000 difficult to recommend at the current sale price.

Add your comment