There's always a type of gadget out there that the techno-literate are drooling for long before the regular public becomes aware of its existence. The MP3 player is a great example; there were MP3 players, and CD players that played MP3s, and the Creative Nomad hard drive-based player, none of which made much of a ripple on the public consciousness; then there was the iPod.

My vote for the next technology likely to blow up is the personal multimedia device. These little packs of technology have everything going for them. Movie and music playback, hard drive storage, even television recording, applications and games all stuffed into a portable, rechargeable package with a tiny LCD screen. Of course, producing a good multimedia player that the public will actually buy is a tricky proposition. Pricey components, battery life and the variety of competing video formats all conspire to make manufacturing a good portable entertainment device rather difficult.

The potential of these devices is tantalizing though. In a package considerably more portable than even the smallest laptop, you can conceivably pack all your favourite movies and television shows, not to mention music, for your enjoyment on the move. It's small wonder that most of the computer technology companies of the world seem to be moving to produce their own players.

Today we have the pleasure of looking at PQI's newest entry into this soon-to-be crowded field, the mPack P800 portable entertainment centre. From it's nice 3.5" LCD screen outwards, this miniature media powerhouse is loaded with features, some of which we have yet to see on any competing player.

To start with, the PQI mPack P800 supports a pleasingly large array of formats. For video, MPEG 1,2 and 4 (and DivX) are covered, along with XviD, WMV and ASF. An equally wide range of audio formats including OGG, AC3, AAC, WMA and WAV files are supported in addition to the traditional MP3. To top it off, the mPack P800 even supports a range of picture formats beyond the expected JPEGs. GIF and BMP pics can be viewed, and even RAW images, something that should make photography enthusiasts smile.

Coupling well with its photo-viewing abilities, the mPack P800 sports another handy feature which is surprisingly uncommon among other players: its own Compact Flash slot. This thoughtful addition makes the player much more flexible to use and transfer data with, especially when away from home.

PQI mPack P800 Includes: Users Manual, AC Power adaptor, tripod, cary case, remote, software, headphones, audio and video cables, USB cable, lanyard, rechargeable battery.

Let's take a run though the rest of the PQI mPack P800's feature list before we get down to the meat of the review.

• The 3.5" LCD sports a 320 x 240 resolution. Brightness and contrast are adjustable.
• A 20, 40 or 80GB Samsung 2.5" hard disk is used for media storage. Our test model featured the 40GB drive. The PQI mPack P800 is a USB 2.0 capable device which appears as a removable drive to Windows XP and 2000, meaning it can also be used as a portable drive.
• The Compact Flash slot accepts all compact flash storage cards.
• SPDIF output for 5.1 external speakers.
• Composite input for A/V recording from TV or other video sources, including high-definition TV.
• Voice recording can be accomplished via the built in microphone. PQI does not specify the quality of the created MP3 files however.
• Virtual 3D spatializer sound effect for audio.
• The FM radio playback and recording function allows users to tune in radio stations, store favourites and create MP3 files.
• An infrared credit card sized remote is included which can perform all control functions, and includes some buttons not featured on the unit itself.
• The included earphones come with an inline remote which can be used with any set of headphones.
• The unit possesses a built in mono speaker and a stereo headphone jack. The speaker is about as good as you'd expect, which is not very. It will suffice for listening to sports on the radio, but for music playback, it's best to use the headphones.

Advertised battery life is 4.5 hours for video playback and 10 hours for audio playback (with screen off). Photo viewing battery life should fall somewhere in between. The mPack carries a one year warranty from PQI, and the battery is not user replaceable.

The mPack P800 uses a pair of Lithium-Ion rechargeable batteries rated at 2200mAh. You can also run the device from the included AC adaptor and it will charge from your computer's USB port, though you cannot use the player while you are doing so.