Coming To A Large Screen Near You
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When it comes with watching videos, I leave it to the large screens. At the very least, I want to watch them on my 15” widescreen laptop. Better if I hook that laptop up to a plasma and watch it there. While my Glofiish X500, and many other portable media players for that matter, can handle video pretty well, their (small) screens make it not want to use that feature so regularly. Not until I came across the myvu Crystal that is. If it’s changed my perception of watching videos on the go (and small screens for that matter), it just might with you as well.
myvu Crystal allows you to watch videos from any device that supports TV out capabilities, to a certain extent (which will be discussed shortly). The glasses, a cool black (there is an amber version out there too), is where the video is projected while audio is taken care of by the included ear phones. Retailing starts at $299.95, depending on the kind of setup you choose, and at such a price, many wonder if it’s really worth it. Well hopefully this review helps you answer that question.
What’s In The Box?
The unit I was sent was similar to the All-in-one which retails for $344.85 but you can get it for $324.85 here (a $20 savings). It comes with everything you need to get you started which includes:
Crystal Viewer
This is where all the magic happens. Unlike many personal viewers which I have encountered in the past, this one sure looks cool. You might still get some stares, as your truly did when taking it out, but more often than not, strangers will be highly impressed with it. It looks bulky but it’s rather lightweight and does not totally block your field of vision. What this means is that you could be watching a video on while walking the dog. So you can still be aware of your surroundings (if you need to) while indulging in the latest episode of Heroes.
The Crystal Viewer is not just a video haven as it also includes ear phones from Ultimate Ears. These are really comfortable in-ear ear phones which not only provide you with great sound but also isolates ambient noises as well.
Pendant
If the Crystal Viewer is where the main event takes place, the pendant is the brains behind it. It is the link between your media player and Crystal Viewer. Not only that, it also allows you to adjust both volume as well as brightness and contrast from here as well, allowing you to leave your device in the bag once you press Play.
Because it’s the brain of the operations, it needs to be fed to keep it going. Located at the corner is a 
mini USB port for you to connect and charge the pendant. I had some trouble finding it at first because it was pretty well hidden and had a dust-cover which was a nice touch. The cable for charging is that of a typical USB to mini USB charger which you can hook up to your computer for juicing up. While this can take a long time, there is the faster option of using a wall outlet which you can buy as a separate accessory.
When turning on the pendant, it will blink a different color, depending on the status. For example, a solid blue means it’s on and has detected a video signal while a blinking blue means there is none. A blinking orange comes on when you are charging, a slow blinking orange signifies low battery and a solid orange means you can go for quite a while (fully charged).
Cables
Since your media player will not be transmitting videos to the Crystal Viewer wirelessly, you’ll need one of these cables to connect to it. The one for the iPod works with all generations of iPod as well as the iPhone when it’s in airplane mode (according to myvu).
Then there’s one that allows you to connect to your Zune players as well as 5th generation video iPod. We also have another for you to connect to the Nokia N95 and finally a universal AV cables for pretty much everything else.
If your device does not support any of these cables, then chances are, you’re not in luck to use the myvu. You could contact them to ask if they will every support such a connection though as this current generation supports more devices than previous ones.
Carrying Case
There is a soft cloth carrying case included in package as well. If you buy the All-in-One package, you would be given a premium carrying case which is what I felt myvu should have included as standard package. Considering how much you are spending on this device, you’d definitely want the best protection when transporting it right? If there’s any consolation about the carrying case, it’s that it doubles up as a wipe cloth so you can conveniently wipe of any smudges on the Crystal Viewer, much like you do with a pair of Oakleys.
Ear Buds
If the ones that came attached to your viewer feels too tight or too loose, fret not because there are 2 other pairs that you switch with to get that perfect fit. That means you get 3 ear buds to use with your ear phones in all.
Setting Up
It couldn’t get any easier. The ear phones are already attached to the Crystal Viewer which in turn is attached to the pendant. Choose the right cable to hook up to your media player, power it on and you’re all good to go.
When I first hooked it up to an i-mate Ultimate 8502, the video came out immediately but that was not the case with an iPod Touch. Turns out that the iPod Touch will only transmit videos when you are playing a movie and not all the time like the 8502. So results will vary and be sure to check before thinking the Crystals don’t work (which was what I thought when I didn’t see anything).
To get the right fit, you can adjust the nose pad until it rests comfortably on your nose. The viewer fit me rather comfortably, and I thought I had a big head. If the video is too dark or too bright, there’s brightness and contrast control on the pendant that you can adjust to just right.
Unfortunately, those are the only changes you can make. One thing I noticed is that the viewer was designed for those who do not wear glasses. If you do wear glasses like I do at times, wearing the viewer over your glasses can be really cumbersome. On top of that, the picture is not as you expect. To overcome this, myvu has the RX clip for those of us with 4 eyes. It is an additional accessory but it’s good to know that this is not limited to those with perfect vision and contact lens wearers only.
Charging & Run Time
Rated at 4 hours of play time, it takes 3 hours to charge using the Fast Charge method (which I assume is via the wall outlet) and 6 hours with a USB charge. This is according to myvu on their website.
Considering that those charge times are rather long, especially since a wall charger is not shipped with the unit, it might put some people off. While I did not do a battery test, I have found that the device performs really well and not once did I encounter a dead battery on the pendant. I take it to work on the subway which is about an hour’s of traveling either way. At night, I just plug in to charge and it’s ready to go the next day.
So in terms of practical use, it’s definitely usable. Now, if only myvu told me about the battery capacity of the Crystals, I could hook this up with the Mobile Solar Charger from Proporta when I hit the outdoors.
Experience
The Crystals performed really well, especially when you consider that it’’s a viewer for portable media devices.
Video Quality
In terms of video, I had really high hopes for this. Never mind that myvu only claims that it’s capable of a 640×480 resolution. I was under the impression that videos would be really clear. Like HD clear.
That was not the case but that was not really the fault of the Crystals. More like it was me watching to much HD that I have come to accept that as the standard (remember, I don’t watch videos on my device).
When you get over those expectations, you’ll be amazed at just how great the quality of the video is. For a portable media player, it’s almost as good as non-HD TV. I was definitely impressed. No longer did I have to squint if I wanted to watch video on the go. The myvu Crystal does a great job of it.
In case you are wondering how all that magic is possible, the Crystal supports full VGA resolution (640×480) and 24 bit color depth videos. And since it features Kopin’s Cyberdisplay technology - the highest pixel density and sharpest resolution, you start to understand how it all becomes possible.
Sound Quality
Of course video is just one component of experience, the other being sound. I guess one of the reasons the Crystal is priced in that range is because of the high quality ear phones from Ultimate Ears. These were really great ear phones, so much so that if they were removable, I would use them on all my other media players.
If you were initially skeptical about the ear phones being fixed to the viewer like I was, you can safely dispel those doubts. The ear phones work really well to deliver stereo sound to your ears. Very rich stereo sounds I might add. They also do a great job of isolating ambient noise, thanks to them covering up your ear hole completely.
Remember that your experience may vary and it is all dependent on your device and encoded video files. If your device only supports QVGA resolutions, then that’s what the viewer will show. If you encoded the videos at a low resolution to save space, then don’t expect the kind of results that I had.
What I Liked About It
- Works great with tested devices.
- All-in-one package comes with a wide selection of cables and ear buds.
- Video quality was amazing.
- Sounds is crystal clear (no pun intended).
- Ear phones does a great job of isolating ambient noise.
- Really portable.
- Does not block your vision when in use.
What Could Be Improved
- Provide a more durable carrying case.
- Include a wall charger.
- Provision of a removable batteries.
Conclusion
The myvu Crystals is definitely a step in the right direction and I would not have not known about it if not for Doug. It’s definitely changed my perception of watching videos with my media devices. With more and more Pocket PCs now supporting TV Out, the myvu Crystal would definitely be a great companion on those long train or airplane rides. Or when you just want to chill out in your room or waiting for the next bus.
The price of the Crystal is on the high side for an accessory but then again, how do you put a price on something that just enhances your video watching experience by many folds. In fact, myvu wants you to be satisfied with your purchase that they even have a risk free trial policy here. How’s that for satisfaction guaranteed?
Manufacturer: myvu
Model: Crystal
Price: $299.95 for Standard (only iPod connector) and $324.85 for All-In-One
Available Colors: Amber and Black
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I am disappointed that there were no pictured of you actually wearing them.
Funny you make that comment about the case. The original MyVu had a hard shell case. I hated it. The thing was huge.
A wall charger would be nice. And I agree, a replaceable battery would have been a good idea. Though since the battery is in the pendant, I am not sure that it is not just cheaper to replace the whole pendant anyway.
As for your comments about the HD. The MyVu Crystals are a significant improvement over the previous MyVu models, which featured QVGA screens. This is the first to feature VGA, and it really shows. The problem is that most devices cannot handle HD quality. And those that can would not be able to necesarily output it. I use the MyVu Crystals all the time with my iPod Touch. I absolutely love them.
Doug
Well I didn’t want to scare readers away from this article so I didn’t take one
As for the case, my only concern is because these things cost quite a bit and it would only be natural to want to protect it as much as possible, hence the hard case. Though it would be great if they could supply both so users can choose.
As for the video quality, I do agree that there are no (mobile) device I have seen so far that supports HD so even if you encoded and put it on, the device would not show it. Nonetheless, I am really happy with the quality of the Crystal. If only they let me keep it