Creative ZEN X-Fi2 Available To Pre-Order [X-Fi2 Touchscreen Specifications & Features]

Following on from yesterday’s news concerning Creative’s 2^nd Gen Vado HD Creative have also announced a new version of its ZEN X-Fi portable media player in the form of the ZEN X-Fi2 PMP which, apart from touting a 262K color 3″ TFT touchscreen, is also billed as offering enhanced sound quality thanks to the bods as Creative tinkering with there X-Fi audio processing technology.

The new iteration of the ZEN X-Fi to a large degree, not withstanding the new touchscreen and the purported upping of the sound quality, largely unchanged though a notable addition is that of integrated TV out connectivity allowing for the viewing of videos on somewhat less spatially restrictive displays such as TVs.

Apart from these improvements, as noted above, the ZEN X-Fi2, which comes in a somewhat more compact form, comes with the same feature set of its predecessor such as an integrated FM tuner with 32 presets, microSD card support for bolt on additional capacity, an onboard microphone allowing for voice memos as well as speaker and, of course, pretty liberal file format support taking in MP3, WMA(DRM9), Audible4, AAC, FLAC audio and WMV9, MPEG4-SP, DivX 4/5, XviD video formats along with offering JPEG and BMP image support for those that like to pocket a few digital images.

“In setting out to design our next generation player, we felt it was essential that we start with the sound quality of the ZEN X-Fi player and make the ZEN X-Fi2 sound even better by implementing the latest X-Fi technology. We wanted to have X-Fi improve the audio playback across all modes of entertainment including music, video and FM music from the radio,” said said Joseph Liow, Vice President, Personal Digital Entertainment Products of Creative Technology Ltd and General Manager of Creative Labs Asia. “Next, we added features to significantly enhance the user experience for music, photos and videos, all in a player with a sleek design. We wanted to make the ZEN X-Fi2 even more fun to use by implementing a touch screen interface. To upgrade the video watching experience, we increased the size of the display with a stunning 3-inch touch screen. The combination of adding a touch screen and a larger display also substantially enhances photo viewing, as now users can quickly and easily scroll through photos.”

In terms of pricing the Creative ZEN X-Fi2 comes in three versions offering 8GB, 16Gb and 32GB capacities with pricing coming in at around a not in the least unreasonable $130, $180 and $230 which, considering what’s on offer here makes the ZEN X-Fi2 a more attractive proposition than some PMPs we could mention. Still, that said, it would take a brave man to set about parting me from my Touch.

Interested parties can pre-order the Creative ZEN X-Fi2 8GB here, the 16GB version here or the 32GB capacity variant here.