The Cowon A2 is a portable media player/recorder with a 30GB hard drive, a widescreen 4-inch LCD, and an integrated FM tuner. Its video and audio playback capabilities are good, the design is attractive, and the interface is fairly easy to use, but we're a bit disappointed in what we feel is the device's main feature: video recording. There are also some file-compatibility issues that need to be worked out before we can get really excited about this product.

The Cowon A2 is a portable media player/recorder with a 30GB hard drive, a widescreen 4-inch LCD, and an integrated FM tuner. Its video and audio playback capabilities are good, the design is attractive, and the interface is fairly easy to use, but we're a bit disappointed in what we feel is the device's main feature: video recording. There are also some file-compatibility issues that need to be worked out before we can get really excited about this product.

At 5.2 by 3.0 by 0.9 inches and 10.5 ounces, the A2 is bulkier and heavier than the Archos AV500, despite having the same-size screen (4 inches diagonal, 480 by 272 pixels). The analog controls are minimal and located well; buttons labeled A, B, and C behave differently depending on context, and the menu interface clearly tells you what each will do in a given situation. You browse files via a Back button and a four-way joystick. To select menu items, you push the joystick straight in; this is something we wish would just go away, since most manufacturers seem unable to make a joystick that's easy to push straight in without it accidentally slipping to one side. Two speakers and a microphone are built into the top of the player, and a panel on the side opens to reveal line-in and line-out ports, a USB port, and a USB Host port. The hold switch on the bottom of the player also toggles between the built-in LCD and an external monitor.

True to Cowon's product legacy, the A2 is packed with tons of features, including an FM tuner, audio and video line-in recording, voice recording, and an alarm that doubles as a recording scheduler. The rechargeable battery, alas, isn't removable. It is, however, rated at a surprising 10 hours of video playback time and 18 hours for audio. On our real-world tests, we got just over 7.5 hours of video playback using the default settings and included earbuds—which is still pretty good; for audio playback, we got a somewhat respectable 17 hours 14 minutes. The device ships with a decent-looking case, USB and USB On the Go cables, A/V cables, an audio line-in cable, an AC charger, and video conversion software, but no remote control.

When we plugged the A2 into our PC, it was quickly recognized as a USB drive, with no installation necessary. The manual is fairly informative, and it's worth at least a brief skim before getting deep into the product. The battery won't charge via USB if the hold switch is on LCD; it will charge on AV Out, but PC recognition is slow. The A2 doesn't work with Microsoft Windows Media Player, so we used Windows Explorer to load our test audio, video, and photo files.