The Cowon Q5W is here at last: almost a year after its debut at CES '07 back in January. The product has been available in Korea since May under the Q5 name. Though the company was rumored to be releasing the product in the US in the 2nd quarter of this year, it didn't show up until the end of November.

With its sexy form factor, an enormous 5” touch screen LCD, wireless support for both WiFi and bluetooth, a 40/60GB hard disk storage, and a long list of support for video/audio formats and codecs, it is hard to resist the lure of the Q5W. Oh, and not to mention its optional GPS support coming in a few weeks. The only thing that might take attention away from this player might be the reigning “king” of the PMP market called the Archos 605 WiFi. There is little doubt that Cowon is positioning this player to take down the reign of 605.

Can the Q5W snatch the crown away from Archos 605 WiFi? Read on.

Packaging includes:

• Cowon Q5W Digital Media Player
  
• Stereo earphones
• AV Cable
  
• AC adapter
  
• wireless remote
  
• USB cable
  
• hand strap
  
• installation CD
  
• manual
  

Specifications:

• 5” WVGA Touch screen LCD (800x480)
• 40/60B 1.8" hard drive
• WiFi 802.11g/b
  
• Bluetooth 2.0 support
  
• runs on Windows CE 5.0 Professional
  

Initial Impression

Two things struck me when I took the Q5W out of the box: its enormous screen and its weight. Besides the power button and the two volume buttons on top, this player is all screen. This gives the impression that the Q5W should be very easy to use using just your fingers to control the unit. As you will learn later, this is only partially true; you do need the stylus on many of the screens. Regarding its weight, at 380g, it is definitely one of the heaviest PMPs I've worked with given its size.

The Q5W is clad with an aluminum shell that feels very sturdy and heavy; it can definitely cause some injury if dropped on a body part. As mentioned, the front of the unit is all screen. The screen is recessed slightly to prevent damage when one accidentally drops it. All of the buttons are located on the top: a power/hold button on the left and volume buttons on the right. The top of the unit also houses an IR receiver, an internal microphone, speakers and a stylus. To the left of the unit, you will find a retractable WiFi antenna, a mic input jack, an earphone jack, a USB connector, a USB host connector and a DC in jack. Rounding off the looks department is the proprietary connector located at the bottom. The connector can be used to connect the AV cables or the optional GPS cradle.

User interface

The Q5W runs on Windows CE 5.0 Professional, which was released in 2004. The current version of Windows Embedded CE is 6.0, which has been released since November of 2006. So keep in mind that the unit runs on a 3 year-old operating system. I simply see no reason why Cowon did not put 6.0 on the Q5W.

Cowon's own user interface runs as a shell on top of the said operating system. It gets launched when the unit powers on. The UI consists of two rows of “buttons”, one set on the left of the screen and others on the right. The main functions are located on the left. These include: Media, Office, Utility, Network and Windows. The right buttons change according to what is selected on the left.

Here is how the user interface is laid out

• Media - movie player, music player, radio and Macromedia Flash player.
• Office - photo viewer, text viewer and file browser.
• Utility - voice recorder, settings and bluetooth
• Network - MSN client, Internet Explorer, and WLAN
• Windows – Windows Browser, WordPad, Freecell, Solitaire, Control Panel, Windows (quit the shell)
  

I have no problem with the layout of the user interface; it is pretty standard and quite logical. I, however, have problem with its usability.

First off, the Q5W UI relies too heavily on Windows CE's own user interface. When accessing features such as Bluetooth and Wireless LAN, the Q5W brings up Windows CE configuration screen for these tasks. There are two issues with this. 1) The UI elements are simply too small to be manipulated by one's index finger; the use of stylus is a must. 2) these Windows utilities are not very user-friendly; they do require more tech savvy users to use them.

Secondly, accessing any of the Windows CE's applications (MSN Client, Internet Explorer and Microsoft WordPad) completely shuts down Cowon's user interface and takes the user to the Windows CE Explorer shell. You then have to deal with all kinds of issues using the shell like double clicking on the tiny icons, locating task bar, right mouse clicking, etc. To get back to the Cowon interface, you need to double click on the icon labeled “Cowon Launcher”. You do need a few tries though, because double clicking doesn't always work.

Thirdly, the on-screen keyboard does not always get activated when needed. I find this very frustrating when I wanted to input my WPA password but there was no way to type it in. The same problem when I launched MSN client only to find that I could not type in my user name and password. To get around the problem, I discovered that I had to turn the “auto hide” off on the task bar. I then could enable the on-screen keyboard by tapping on the keyboard icon in the system tray.

This leads me to my last issue with the user interface. The keys on the on-screen keyboard are simply too small to use. Again, using the stylus is a must. The keyboard, which is actually Windows CE's own, has two sizes: big and small. While typing on big keyboard is hard enough, attempting to do it on the small keyboard is next to impossible. To remedy this, one might just want to invest in a Windows CE compatible Bluetooth or IR keyboard to use with the unit.

Features

There is no doubt that the Q5W is big on features. No player comes close to the Q5W in terms of what it can do. It's got a powerful Alchemy 600 Mhz processor, a 5” touch screen, a 40/60GB hard drive, WiFi and bluetooth.

In terms of supported file formats, you can pretty much throw any media file at it, and it should have no problem playing it. Like other Cowon products, it not only supports the usual high-compression file formats like MP3 and JPG but it also supports various lossless file formats including FLAC for audio and NEF (RAW format for Nikon cameras) for photos. The only major file format not supported by the Q5W is Apple's AAC. But this is nothing new since none of the products from Cowon has ever supported AAC, anyway.

Features like USB Host (for offloading photos from a digital camera), Bluetooth 2.0 and optional GPS support put the Q5W way above other players. These kinds of top notched features (and forward thinking) are simply not found in other PMPs. And since it runs on Windows CE 5.0, just throw in a bluetooth keyboard + mouse and you get yourself a fully functioning tablet computer.

Video playback

Playing videos is what this player excels at. As advertised, the movie player can play movie files encoded in DivX, XviD, WMV and MPEG4 at various bit rates. At 30 fps and 720x480, the movies plays on the Q5W as smooth as silk. The 600 Mhz AMD Alchemy kept the frame rates up to the maximum without dropping any frames for most of the movies I played.

This is not to say that the player was able to keep up with all the movies I threw at it. An WMV file called “bear.wmv” that came with Windows Vista as one of the video samples brought the player to its knees. I wasn't exactly sure why since the the resolution of the file was the same as the others.

The player was not able to natively play any of the high definition WMV files I downloaded from Microsoft Windows Media Video Showcase page . This could be because they were encoded for 720p or better resolution. Upon converting them using the JetAudio application, they were able to be played fine.

When I attempted to play a Quicktime file (.mov) on it, the player crashed and I had to restart the application to get it going again. I contacted technical support about this issue and was told that the player does not support that file format. I was well-aware of that fact. However, a good application should always anticipate that kind of problem. The player should have known that before it started playing the file.

Audio playback

The music player on the Q5W is as impressive as its video player. It not only plays the standard WMA, MP3, WAV and ASF files but also lossless file formats such as FLAC and a more superior Ogg Vorbis encoding.

Like the iAudio 7 that I tested a few months back , the audio quality coming out of this player is beyond clear. Playing FLAC and Ogg Vorbis encoded files on the Q5W is pure joy. However, you can enhance your listening pleasure further by utilizing Cowon's JetEffect sound enhancement. As I mentioned in the iAudio 7 review, this technology could breathe new life into your music files, even the measly 128kbps MP3 ones.

Cowon has always been known for making audiophile quality media players. This fact still holds true with the Q5W. iPods can't even come close to producing the audio quality produced by Cowon's players. And this coming from a long-time Apple fan.

Photo support

Photo viewing is pretty much a standard feature for any digital media player on the market. What makes the Q5W unique is the support for Nikon's RAW format called NEF. It is one of the very few players that can support this flavor of RAW format. The support for NEF is not that significant by itself though; most consumers would rather just view JPG files and not NEF on a small screen.

However, if you combine the USB host mode with the support for NEF, it can be a photographer's dream come true. With the USB host mode, a photographer can connect his Nikon camera directly to the Q5W and transfer photos shot in NEF format to the unit's hard drive without using a computer. He can then view the photos directly from the Q5W's screen. By the way, this feature is not only unique to Nikon cameras, the Q5W's USB host mode supports several other cameras as well. For a complete list of cameras that the Q5W supports in RAW format, please go here.

The photo viewer itself is nothing special. You can view thumbnails and plays a slideshow just like any other photo viewer. The viewer supports simple gesture-based controls. You can use your finger to swipe the displayed photo to go forward or backward on the photo list. The gesture-based controls are not as extensive as the ones available on the Archos 605 WiFi or the iPod Touch/iPhone however. For example, you cannot pan nor zoom using Q5W's photo viewer.

FM Radio

The FM radio is nothing to write home about. It does its job. The reception is decent. One requirement though, it needs the earphones to be attached to the unit for it to work. This means that you can't listen to the radio while using Bluetooth headphones. I feel that Cowon could have at least used the WiFi antenna for this purpose.

WiFi

The player's ability to connect to wireless access point is not unique. Other media players like the Zune, Sansa Connect, Archos Generation 5 and the iPod Touch have them too. However, the WiFi support needs to be better utilized other than allowing the MSN client and Internet Explorer to connect to the web.

WiFi support on the Q5W needs to have a purpose. Zune uses WiFi to share songs with other Zunes. Sansa Connect uses it to stream music from the web. With Archos, you can download firmware and buy plugins from its store wirelessly. And for the iPod Touch (and iPhone), WiFi support allows listeners to purchase songs directly from the player. On the Q5W, WiFi is just another feature.

I would also like to mention that setting up WiFi on the Q5W was not an easy task. First off, the flimsy retractable WiFi antenna needs to be pulled out in order to get good reception. Secondly, you have to deal with Windows CE's own wireless setup utility. This is fine for geeks but general consumers should not be exposed to this level of complexity. Lastly, the on screen keyboard does not automatically get activated when it needs to be. It took me a few hours to find the workaround to get the keyboard activated for me to key in my WPA password.

Also, the Q5W was not able to find my WPA-enabled signal right away. To get around this problem, I turned off the encryption completely. Once the encryption was off, the signal finally showed up and I was able to connect to the access point without any problem. This led me to believe that the unit was not able to handle encrypted WiFi signal. But after I turned the encryption back on, it was now able to see the signal again. I can only hope that this experience was just unique to just me and not other users.

Bluetooth

Unlike most other media players on the market, the Q5W supports Bluetooth 2.0 with A2DP (Advanced Audio Distribution Profiles) and AVRCP (Audio/Video Remote Control Profile). This means that you can listen to your music wirelessly using a stereo Bluetooth headphones like the Motorola S9 or the BlueAnt X5. Though I was able to pair my S9 to the unit, I was unable to remotely control the Q5W via my headphones. Pressing next/previous buttons had no effect on the Q5W

[Update] I was able to remotely control the Q5W via my bluetooth headset after all. For a few days, this functionality didn't work. Yesterday, while taking some video footage for this review, I was surprised to find that the A2DP support works. I can now play/pause music, skip to next/previous track and fast forward/rewind within the track.

Other media player makers should follow Cowon's lead and make stereo Bluetooth support a standard features on their media players. You just can't describe the feeling of being able to listen to music wirelessly.

Documentation

This is where Cowon really needs to work on. The “manual” that comes packaged with the Q5W is simply a 5-page quick guide translated into different languages. The guide is written in poor English and is full of misspelled words (ie. Bluethooth, paring). There was even an upside down image printed on one of the pages. I was hopeful when I was given the option to install the manual from the CD ROM. However, when I opened it, it was the same 5-page guide as the printed one.

There is a 30-page manual available on the Q5W product page. But that, too, is filled with poorly written English and misspelled words.

There is simply no excuse to shipping this kind of poorly-written manual with the product.

Technical support

Cowon makes up for its poorly-written manual with its top-notched technical support. You can contact tech support via Cowon's Live Chat system available from their web site. The technical support staff is available from 9:30 AM to 5:00 PM weekdays. I find them to be very knowledgeable, responsive and above all, courteous.

But how does it compare to the Archos 605 WiFi?

This seems to be question on everyone's mind. The answer is “it depends.” Do you favor features over usability? If so, go for the Q5W. With its bigger screen (5” vs. 4.3”), a stereo Bluetooth feature, an audiophile-quality sound production, an FM radio, a NEF file support and a wide-range of media support, the Archos 605 simply cannot compete with the Q5W.

However, if you want a media player with an easy-to-use interface and just plain works, stick with the Archos 605 WiFi. Its user interface is far more superior to that of the Q5W. The icons on the 605 are larger and better laid out. Though its screen is smaller, it is easier to manipulate the controls using bare fingers on the 605 than the Q5W. The 605 also has physical keys which is an added bonus. On the Q5W, some screens are just impossible to use without the stylus.

Conclusion

The Cowon Q5W is a feature-packed digital media player marred by poor user interface. Though it dwarfs other players in terms of features and performance, the lack of integration between all the different elements makes this player short of a sure hit.

[Update] I guess, I didn't make myself clear when I wrote about the poor user interface on the Q5W. I've seen many articles that misquoted me on this. Let me make this clear: Cowon's own user interface is not that bad. It is decent. However, having to deal with Windows CE's own interface is my major concern. If Cowon would only shield the user from having to interact with Windows, it would make using the Q5W much more enjoyable.

Fortunately, the firmware upgrades will be coming to correct some of the issues I encountered during the review. But that's in the future. In its current form, however, the player falls short of taking the crown away from the Archos 605 WiFi. Only time will tell when the Q5W will have a chance of going up against the 605 again.

Comments (97)

Marc said:

Thanks for the review - very informative. Although the Q5W is not without its issues it sounds like it is the PMP for me. Audio quality rocks and the feature set is impressive. Firmware upgrades will clear up some of these issues I'm sure.

December 04, 2007

Marc said:

Oh, almost forgot: First!

December 04, 2007

dirkkid360 said:

Thanks for this very detailed review for the Q5W. I've been waiting for this since its introduction at CES'07 and it looks like everything I want and more. I only problem is the small HDD availability and like you mentioned, the sketchy user interface. I've waited this long, I can wait a little more until I see better user results with its interface and when there is an increase in the HDD (hopefully 160gb in the near near future

December 04, 2007

razmanz said:

Great Job on the review. You confirmed what I had gathered from initial impressions across the web. Thank You.

December 04, 2007

Lamentation said:

How does the UI compare to the UI on Cowon music players (X5, D2, etc.)? At first I thought they were crappy, but I have since gotten used to that and have been unable to give up the unmatched sound quality.

December 04, 2007

Sceptic said:

Does the Q5W ship with AV cables? I see them in the picture but they're not explicitly mentioned...

December 04, 2007

luckk said:

Lamentation, I have only worked with the iAudio 7 before reviewing the Q5W. I have also seen the D2 interface. Both of these players have better UI than the Q5W for the most part.

December 04, 2007

luckk said:

Sceptic, it does come with an AV cable. I have updated the article to reflect this.

December 04, 2007

charles said:

Great review, thanks for the info. One thought though, I personally bought an Archos 605 Wifi and had to return it. The picture viewer did not show up any thumbnails, and the player did not support many languages such as japanese, etc and I had to return it. Archos' UI also pretty much requires the use of a stylus as well, so I don't know why that is such a negative aspect of the UI in this review. All in all, I will definitely be buying the Q5W for more formats and better performance.

December 04, 2007

luckk said:

Charles, I've been using the 605 for a while now and I did not once use the stylus to control the unit. If you just look at how much smaller things show up on the Q5W, you might agree with me. I have just updated the article with a few more comparison photos between the 605 and the Q5W. I hope this helps.

December 04, 2007

dan said:

Two Questions: Did you have any chance to test out the GPS capability, and if so, how was it? Second, since this is essentially a Windows CE tablet, I wonder if you can reformat it and install the latest WinCE (or Linux!) on it. True you may lose the front end, but I have no problem using other programs, the functionality will still be there.

December 04, 2007

Ed said:

Thank you for the initial review! Was seriously considering this, but am now quite tentative. Did you throw any OGM video files at it? And I know it's not on the feature set, but did you attempt any MKV containers? Archos' 605 doesn't support either format, which just kills it for me. But Cowon's upcoming A3 supposedly supports them ... if the Q5W CAN, well, I might be able to forgive it in lieu of a future update.

December 04, 2007

luckk said:

dan, the optional GPS cradle is not available yet. I was informed by a representative at Cowon that it is coming in a few weeks. Regarding installing another a new version of CE or Linux on it, it is not trivial since the operating system is embedded in the hardware. You can not simply install an embedded operating system like you install software on a computer.

December 04, 2007

Gary Stephens said:

Does the Q5W play back VOB files without transcoding? I bought the cinema plugin for my 605 WiFi and I love not having to transcode. I would prefer the 5 inch screen, but hate to transcode.

December 04, 2007

luckk said:

Ed, I ripped a chapter off a DVD in OGM format using Handbrake. However, I was not able to play the file though. I will be contacting technical support on this. Regarding MKV support, I did not attempt to play any file of that type.

December 04, 2007

luckk said:

Gary, it does not support VOB files. I don't think many players support that file format natively.

December 04, 2007

seth brundle said:

I was wondering how the screen brightness was compared to the Archos 605 wifi or iPod Touch. I have the 605 and the iPod Touch and prefer the Touch screen as the Archos isnt bright enough.

December 04, 2007

George Cervantes said:

Nice review, this is my first time visiting the site and I gotta say, good job luckk, although you have answered most of my questions by replying to other people, I must ask, is there any way you can show us some comparo pics alongside the A2 or your impressions perhaps? - I am seeking to upgrade, and yup I have an A2; what do you think?

December 04, 2007

Slappym said:

I am a current owner of a Cowon D2 as well as an Archos 604wifi. The talk of the 605 being superior has be curious... is the audio-out better on the newer machine? Reviews I have read seem to indicate that it is not. I know that my 604 has not been turned on (not an exageration) due to very poor audio out quality, since getting the D2 (anyone want to but a 604wifi?). This makes me more than a little negative to the Archos products. The Archos was almost unusable in my car due to very poor volume out and extremely loud background noise (hiss). I liked the form factor and interface, but when the output is this bad, it defeats the purpose. I also find that most interface complaints, especially after only using any device for a short period of time, can be misleading. The learning curve is always there and always must be overcome. Switching from my Treo 650 to a Windows mobile device was tough, but you could not pay me to go back to a palm device now. I don't consider myself a Cowon diehard, but having owned an Archos device as well as a Cowon device, I know which product I prefer... and suffice it to say, I find it highly unlikely that I will purchase an Archos device in the near future.

December 04, 2007

luckk said:

George, thanks for writing. Welcome to gadgetaholic. Your request, though, I might not be able to fulfill. I don't have an access to an A2. However, the representative I correspond with at Cowon informed me that the A3 will be coming in a week or two. I will be reviewing the A3 then. So look for it in a few weeks.

December 04, 2007