This post was published 1 year 4 days ago. This info might have changed or might have become outdated.

My current PMP mania concludes, as today I acquired one of the true heavyweights on the market…a Cowon Q5W 80G. This tiny titan can run just about any video codec on it’s 5 inch, 800×480 screen, not to mention more audio formats then you can shake a digitized orchestra at.

Running Cowon’s proprietary GUI over Windows CE, the Q5W features 80G of storage, WiFi, Bluetooth, FM Radio, Flash player, Office document viewers and more, all in hand sized package. In fact, many people consider this device to be more of a MID then they do a PMP. And of course, all these premium MID-like features come with a premium MID-like price..but is it worth it? Click below for some first impressions and unboxing shots, with a review of the device due in a week.

A big player gets a BIG box.

The inner box is heavy cardboard…Premium apparently means a lot of trees must die.

The presentation is lovely however, I admit. Fine, DAMN the trees.

Premium also seems to mean lots and lots of cables…and a remote control. Now THAT is a first for a handheld device for me.

The Q5W itself…Made of STEEL, the whole thing save for the screen is metal. After so many plated plastic devices, I admit the heft feels good. You’ve gotta love a potential murder weapon that can show video.

Upper edge, with volume controls, power/hold switch and stylus.

The back of the device…even more steel..or is that iron. I feel more macho just holding this thing. Obama may have an iPod, but Chuck Norris has a Q5W dammit.

Power in, headphones port, USB slots and the end of the extendable WiFi whip antenna! Rockin it old school with Chuck Norris’ PMP!

A poor picture of the screen in action, but it really is very impressive.

An idea of relative sizes….an iPod Touch on top, the Q5W and then an Eee 701 on the bottom. The Q5W will NOT fit in your back pocket.

Relative thickness…the iPod Touch on top, then the Q5W then the Eee 701. Yes, the Q5W is nearly as thick as the netbook.

Thus far, I really love this device physically. I will be posting a review soon of performance and the GUI, a strange marriage of Cowon software and Windows CE guts. How does it stack up against other PMP? Is it truly a MID? We’ll see.