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Philips GoGear Cam 8 GB MP3 Player (Silver)

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Philips GoGear Cam 8 GB MP3 Player (Silver)

(54 customer reviews)

List Price:	$89.99
Our Price:	$69.97
You Save:	$20.02 (22%)
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SKU:

PHLSA2CAM8

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Features

FullSoundTM to bring the CD listening experience to MP3
Integrated camera for snapshots and video recording
2-Inch full color display for smooth and intuitive navigation
Composite TV-out for playing and sharing videos on TV
Philips Songbird to discover play and sync

Description

The GoGear Cam lets you seize the day with a built-in camera and simple software to upload videos and photos on your favorite websites. It also comes with FullSoundTM and comfortable earphones to let you enjoy music to the fullest.

Product Details

Product Length:	1.92 inches
Product Width:	0.5 inches
Product Height:	3.77 inches
Product Weight:	0.18 pounds
Package Length:	7.1 inches
Package Width:	6.8 inches
Package Height:	1.8 inches
Package Weight:	0.55 pounds
Average Customer Rating:	based on 54 reviews

Customer Reviews

Average Customer Review: 3.5

( 54 customer reviews )
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

7 of 7 found the following review helpful:

Compared to similar players, this is one is annoying... Jan 20, 2011 By S. M. Robare "smurfwreck"
I've played with a few "nano" sized MP3 players over the last few years, mainly from Samsung and Apple, and I have to say that the Phillips GoGear was hands down the worst experience. The overall design of this device is schizophrenic, not knowing whether it's mainly an MP3 player, extremely low-end video camera/camera, or a video player. It's not great at any of the three between problems with song file sorting/tag editing (the included software is similar to an iTunes light that is nowhere near as useful), as well as it's low megapixel rate.

To add insult to injury, the physical design of the click wheel is atrocious. Far and away my biggest complaint is with the un-intuitive and clunkily designed outer ring around the main click wheel which switches between modes (camera, mp3, etc.) It's way to easy to accidentally move just by handling the device which is super annoying. My player also kept freezing up when I'd accidentally move this wheel in mid video recording, requiring the use of a needle to push the super tiny reset button on the player.

Lastly the player is very light and just feels plastic-y and cheap. Coming in at the same price as the iPod Nano or the Samsung touch screen mp3 players, both of which feel sturdy, this was a shame.

I'm not a fanatic for any one company or device when it comes to playing digital music, but I can safely say I wouldn't purchase a Phillips brand device and would try anyone else before I did.

3 of 3 found the following review helpful:

Best MP3 Player Ever? We'll see... TBC Oct 27, 2010 By Working Mom "Working Mom"
Things We Love:
+ Easy to switch between music and pic or video mode
+ Convenient 3 way cord, hook to TV or computer with same cable
+ Plays MP3 AND MP4 files!
+ Great sound quality
+ User interface very intuitive
+ Videos are very clear

In case you're wondering:
= Music stops when you switch to another mode
= We haven't had any luck getting songs from iTunes, but SongBird is cool
= Earphones are OK, but not exceptional
= SD Slot has cover, no worries about losing it
= Recharges from your USB port, no wall charger

GoGear MP3 player is an awesome little gadget. So far, we've not been able to get this to work with our TV. I'll keep trying and update the review when I get it working.

MP3 player is awesome. Camera is good, but has no zoom. Video recorder is pretty good, perfect for YouTube type stuff and fun for kids. Again, I'll update this review when I see how the videos look on the TV screen.

UPDATE 10/28/10: Not only was I not able to get this to work with my TV, but the left speaker port stopped working, so no matter what pair of earbuds I tried, there was no sound in the left side. I called tech support and they tried to help me get it working. After their attempts were unsuccessful, they cheerfully offered to send a replacement saying that a few units with port issues had gotten out. Philips tech support was very helpful and I only had to wait about 5 seconds before I got a real person.
When the new unit arrives, I will test it and update this review. (To be continued...)

UPDATE 11/28/10: Tech support sent another unit, the new one works fine as an MP3 player, but I've not been able to get it to work with our TV. Have been too busy to spend another hour on the phone with tech support, so have not called back yet. But it is a good MP3 player.

2 of 2 found the following review helpful:

A Great MP3 Player That Made My Holidays More Special! Jan 13, 2011 By J. B. Hoyos
I sing in the choir at Woodland Heights Baptist Church in Chesapeake, Virginia. For our annual Christmas cantata, the choir director gave us copies of the music on CD. Unfortunately, my car's CD player began scratching my CDs and distorting their music. Fortunately, the Amazon Vine Program sent me the Philips GoGear Cam 8 GB MP3 Player for me to use and review. It was a godsend; in fact, it made the holidays more special for me!

I have been faithfully using this MP3 player for nearly three months. It's a wonderful entertainment system for the active person who is constantly on the go. First of all, I used my HP personal computer and ripped the music from the CD containing my church's Christmas cantata. Using the USB cable that came with the MP3 player, I was easily able to transfer the Christmas music into the MP3 player and listen to it while driving. (I realize that this is not recommended for safety reasons but it was an emergency; I listen to my music at a low volume and always keep both hands on the steering wheel.) Thanks to the Philips GoGear Cam MP3 player I was able to learn the music for my church's Christmas cantata. It especially helped during the long ten-hour road trips that I made to Maryville, Tennessee. I drove there and back for both Thanksgiving and Christmas. I listened not only to my Christmas music but to all my favorite albums. I was able to download at least twenty albums into my MP3 player. Also, the ear buds that came with the MP3 player are great. I expected them to be inferior but they were of high quality and the music could easily be heard when the volume was turned down low. Also, the audio jack is standard and I could plug in my head phones as well.

Downloading the music was easy. The Philips GoGear Cam MP3 Player has its own program, Philips Songbird, which can be easily installed on one's computer at home or work. The first thing I did after unwrapping the MP3 player was charge it by connecting it to my home PC using the USB cable. (Always charge your camera or MP3 player before its initial usage.) The Philips Songbird automatically installed itself onto my computer. However, my HP has Microsoft Windows that is set to automatically rip a new CD when I insert it into my computer. Once ripped, the album can be easily transferred into the MP3 player by using the mouse and dragging it into the MP3 player's hard drive. The same can be done with photographs and videos that are stored on one's computer's hard drive or are located on a flash card or flash drive.

During the Thanksgiving and Christmas holidays, I went several times to McArthur Center in downtown Norfolk. I ate lunch and dinner, shopped and exchanged gifts with friends. I used my Philips GoGear Cam MP3 Player to snap several photographs and make a home video that was rather comical. I took photographs of my Christmas tree and e-mailed them to my parents. The photographs were grainy and not as high quality as the ones I take using my Kodak EasyShare M341 Digital Camera. However, my friends and family thought they served their purpose. As an amateur photographer, I think my Kodak camera is far more superior. However, the Philips GoGear Cam MP3 Player makes a great backup in case my Kodak camera is rendered useless. As far as the videos are concerned, the quality is just as good as those made by my Kodak camera. I was able to easily play them on my home's HP computer.

The FM radio for the Philips GoGear Cam MP3 Player is a great convenience to have. While working on my computer or driving my car, I love listening to music from my favorite inspirational radio station K-LOVE on 90.5 FM. Inside my car, this station is difficult to tune in because of atmospheric interference; there is too much static. Thanks to the MP3 player, I can always enjoy listening to K-LOVE. In fact, the MP3 player will automatically search for and program twenty FM radio frequencies. Now, K-LOVE is easy to find whenever I need it. In fact, all my favorite songs, photographs and videos are easy to find on my MP3 player's hard drive. One can easily navigate through the user-friendly menus.

I purchased a Kingston 4 GB microSDHC Class 4 Flash Memory Card from Amazon. I used it to add a slew of family- and friend-related photographs that I had downloaded onto my Seagate Freeagent GoFlex 750 GB Ultra-Portable Hard Drive. With the Philips Cam MP3 Player, I can easily access the photographs and view them using the slide show feature. Thanks to the micro flash card, I don't have to ever worry about not having enough memory to store my albums and photographs.

The user manual for the Philips GoGear Cam MP3 player can be easily printed from the MP3 player's hard drive. It comes in three languages: English, Spanish and French. It is thirty pages long and the print is large enough to comfortably read without eye strain. Also, the instructions are clear and easy to follow. This is an improvement over many other user manuals that I have downloaded. I have scanned and posted the Technical Data for the MP3 Player. I thought this would be easier than typing it here.

I enjoy my Philips GoGear Cam 8 GB MP3 Player much more so than my Eclipse 180RD 4 GB MP3 Player. Besides having less than have the storage capacity, the Eclipse doesn't have a built in camera and a slot for a Micro SD Card. However, I am able to take the Eclipse to my high security job because it doesn't have a camera. The Philips GoGear has to either stay at home or stay locked up inside my car. Overall, I highly recommend spending a few dollars more and purchasing the Philips GoGear; it would make an awesome gift for that special person who is constantly on the go. With its built in digital camera, video recorder, voice recorder, FM radio, and MP3 player, the Philips GoGear Cam MP3 Player is essential gear for the active person on the go. It is one of those electronics items that will make you wonder how you ever lived without it. It definitely made my holidays more special, especially on those days when I was snowbound; I was able to listen to my music and browse my photograph collection of beloved family and friends.

Joseph B. Hoyos

1 of 1 found the following review helpful:

Philips keeps making the same mistakes ... Feb 14, 2011 By Steffan Piper
Philips often makes some of the best hardware when it comes to electronic gadgetry, but it just seems that they usually blow it when it comes to the software end of it. Unfortunately, this one is no different.

Songbird ...

Can't think of a better place to start. This software took an unusually long time to load, which immediately made me concerned. I already use iTunes and Logitech's Squeezebox Server for streaming and managing my music. I have a library that's approximately 150 Gigabytes, and this bit of information is important.

It took iTunes 45 minutes to process my library of music. I stopped the download of artwork as that would've had it going for several hours and I'm not too concerned about album art.

It took Squeezebox 2 hours and 30 minutes to process my library of music. Done.

It took Songbird ... are you ready? ... two and half days to process my library of music. I'm not kidding.

As far as the player goes, it's promising but still mostly bad. The scroll wheel is grossly unintuitive and poorly designed. It doesn't function like any other scroll whell on the planet, so you're often caught making navigation mistakes and it not doing what you wanted.

There's also a delay with the clicking which is very annoying. It takes a few seconds to follow-through thus the likelyhood of a second strike on the wheel is hard to resist.

I use different mp3 players in my car everyday and I drive a lot, but the biggst failure of this device was that it just kept freezing up. It froze twice everyday I used it and I needed to actually pull over, find something the size of needle (save your jokes, people) and reset the device with the button on the bottom. Groan.

On top of that, the sound quality when you connect it to your car stereo, whether directly (in one of my vehicles) or via use of a line-in cassette system (the other), the volume and quality is very poor. I was put off by how bad this was but I wanted to ignore a lot of this and try to give it a more positive review than it may have deserved.

The Two megapixel camera is awful, just as you would think it is. Most people's phones can take better pictures these days, so what's the point of this device having a camera or video, especially when it's so bad? I'm perplexed about the decision making behind this product. If Philips would've made this a stand-alone MP3 player with better software and sound quality, they would've had a real winner.

Sadly, in my opinion, this is an embarressment. Songbird needs some hard looking at and is really the achilles heel of this device as well as the other devices that use this software as well. I think almost everyproblem the hardware has, including the wheel, can be solved via a firmware update, Songbird needs a lifeline.

...

1 of 1 found the following review helpful:

Not a bad player, great sound quality, but with wonky controls. Feb 02, 2011 By Method2Madness "Alex"
I'm kind of conflicted with this little guy. On one hand, this has some of the best sound quality I've ever heard in a portable player (with FullSound turned off), but on the other hand the controls are really quite odd and difficult to maneuver. Instead of having all the features (Music, Video, Camera, etc) in one menu You have to select the "mode" through a circular switch surrounding the 4 way D-Pad, which coincidentally looks like a scroll wheel, but it's not. In fact the recessed nature of the d-pad make it kind of weird to press and control. The menus are quite weird, as well. The real kicker is you can expand with a microSD card, BUT! the card does NOT integrate with the built in storage. Meaning if you want to listen to the audio on the card, you have to specifically select the card and cannot integrate its contents in a single playlist. Not sure why Phillips chose this route, as most manufacturers allow the SD card to seamlessly integrate with the database of the main unit. The last manufacturer to use this approach was Creative on their Zen series and this was a common complaint.

Other than that, this is a decent little player. Especially for music. I have numerous players from the acclaimed Sansa series, to Sony, to Apple and to me this is right up there with the SQ of the Sansas, Cowans and Sonys. But you need to keep FullSound turned off. Most of these audio processing gimmicks are just that...Gimmicks. Volume is quite loud at the highest setting and really should be enough for most people. I used both Songbird and Windows Drag and Drop to get music on the player and both worked flawlessly. The player seems very well built with hard plastic on the back and aluminum on the front. The screen is bright and pretty vibrant although at a low resolution. You're able to see everything you need, however. The included earbuds went in the trash the moment I opened the box, so I can't comment on those. Most people prefer to get a better pair of buds/phones anyway, and I highly condone this practice. I tested with a paid of B&W P5's and wasn't expecting the level of audio quality this thing put out. Very impressive.

The video and picture function work as advertised, but are nothing great. Most cell phone cameras nowadays give better picture quality, but if you're in a pinch, this will do.

All-In-All, a decent player with VERY good sound quality, but the janky controls, and lacking user experience take away from the overall desirability.

See all 54 customer reviews on Amazon.com