JXD301 Review by Wraggster

Hi all today i got my hands on the JXD301 a games console/Media player thats buzzing in the homebrew scene at the moment. Heres my review of the JXD301.

Foreword

I am not an expert on anything even though i webmaster one of the biggest homebrew sites, i am infact a fan just like most others and more of a noobie than an expert, if i dont know i ask, so from me youll get a review in a way that as long as it works then im happy, i am no expert so you wont get a massively technical explanation youll get a straight yes or no.

What is the JXD301 ?

Heres the description:

The JXD 301 boasts a 3.0" LTPS TFT display making it a premier portable media player. It supports many audio files such as MP3, WMA, FLAC and video files such as RMVB, FLV and AVI files. The JXD 301 has the ability to play NES, SNES, SMD, GBC, GBA and Neo Geo games. Being about the same size as the GBA Micro, The JXD 301 is a great little device to bring around for your entertainment needs.

Dimensions: 115x60x12.5mm

Weight: 150g

ADI Blackfin 500mhz processor

2GB Built in memory

3 inch LTPS-TFT display

16 mega color high density display screen

Supports RM/RMVB/AVI/DAT/FLV/MPG/MPEG video format

Support MP3/WMA/APE/FLAC audio format

Uses a seperate audio coding chipset

Plays NES, MD, SFC, GB, GBC, GBA, NEO GEO

Built in E-book reader with pronounciation

USB 2.0 high speed

Features 10 types of surround stereo EQ modes

Support JPG/BMP/GIF/GIF cartoon picture browse;

Built in microphone, Sampling Rate: 8kHz-320kHz

Uses SD cards

Heres Some Photos of the JXD301

The Box

http://jxd301.dcemu.co.uk/P1000080.JPG

Inside the Box

http://jxd301.dcemu.co.uk/P1000081.JPG

All the accessories

http://jxd301.dcemu.co.uk/P1000082.JPG

The Jxd301

http://jxd301.dcemu.co.uk/P1000083.JPG

Sideview

http://jxd301.dcemu.co.uk/P1000084.JPG

Ordering and Delivery

I ordered my JXD301 from USA retailer GP2XStore.com (who sell a lot more than just GP2X). The order was dealt with within the hour and was shipped the same day which was very impressive, nothing worse than ordering and waiting weeks for the console. Shipping and the console were at a good price too, even more so with the weak dollar :).

My parcel was delivered by EMS and i had no Customs Charges something which pleases me no end and even though it was the festive season it arrived within 4 days, yet another plus.

Opening the Packaging

The console comes in a box which tells you what it does etc but no mention of emulators most likely to avoid customs etc. The console itself is a similiar size to a GBA Micro although thinner. In the box was a soft case for the console, Headphones, USB Lead, USB Adapter, Driver Disc, Manual and Worldwide Compatible Power Lead (you just need a shaver plug in the UK).

The Review Itself

Turning on the JXD301 reveals what must be the best GUI on any handheld system ive ever played, its so user friendly and easy to use, plenty of options to change, bright and cheery. A major thumbs up so far.

Connecting the system to my laptop via USB cable was an horrid experiance it just wouldnt work at all, i then went to my PC and it connected straight away, godknows why this happened, but i wasnt happy with it.

I then tried some roms and movies on the console and to my surprise the movies played quite well infact i enjoyed watching heroes on the jxd301 so much that ive got 6 episodes on now :)

On the rom side of things GBA Emulation was a waste of time, sure it booted up but was as slow as hell.

Nes emulation was much better infact quite decent.

Snes emulation was amazing with sound on its crap but the speed was very very nice. I did find the controls a tad strange without L and R buttons.

GB/GBC emulation seemed to be crappy, whatever emulator they ported over didnt work well at all, low compatability and no sound.

Megadrive emulation was also nice enough but sound is rubbish luckily the games play reasoably well.

NeoGeo emulation is also a plus for the console, roms need to be with a .neo extension

The Ebook reader also seemed pretty decent and because i love my harry potter ebooks its great to read when i feel like it :)

Battery time for me lasted about 4 hours ive heard its supposed to be a lot more but thats what i got out of the system.

Conclusion

The JXD301 is a nice console/media player for the price, it has a nice built in battery and 2GB hard drive and the build quality and display on the screen are very good. The GUI is simply the nicest on any console in my opinion, For movies your going to have to try and see what works best for you in terms of encoded quality, the tv shows i tried ran decent although an adult film i tried was a fraction slow but in some ways that was a benefit ;)

On the emulation side of things Snes and Nes with Neogeo trailing were passable but not awesome. GBA was a waste of space and GB/GBC and Megadrive need a lot of work.

But for the price and with some excellent coders already working on the console this could be the budget emulation console of the year. The lack of buttons even though its a fairly powerful machine mean for purists this wont do but for people who play now and again and for collectors of retro consoles then its well worth a try.

Ill give the console a score of 6.8 out of 10 - Lets pray that the homebrew scene can support this console :)