The Market for Personal Media Player's is undoubtedly dominated by Archos's high end units, whose media players have led by prime example. Among some of the more budget friendly of P.M.P's comes the Ministry of Sound's MOSMP100X10, but how does it fare?

First of, the MOSMP100X10 is relatively pleasing on the eyes. There's nothing glamourous about it, but at the same time there is not a lot wrong with its unobtrusive black styling. The screen size comes in at 3.5 inches.

Also in the box you get a pair of headphones, USB cable for transferring audio and video files to the player, battery charger, lanyard, carry case and an AV cable enabling you to record video direct from your television. It also works when recording DVD's, though most DVD's may be copy protected, as was the case when testing this feature.

The media player allows you to store four hours of video and six hours of audio, which is actually not a lot for a personal media player. The absence of a hard drive means SD or MMC cards are the only means of saving your data. Customers are supplied with a 1 gig SD card. It supports MPEG4, MP3, WMA DRM, and ASF formats.

Sound quality itself is satisfactory but at times could sound a little clear and crisper, though it coped well with many of the more bassy tracks on Kanye West's Last Registration album such as 'Hey Mama' and even the piano tunes and the high-pitched Adam Levine on 'Heard 'Em Say' for example. Sound quality does improve when using different headphones however.

The quality of video images on the Ministry of Sound offering is again like the sound, satisfactory, especially for the price when compared to the more 'high-end' personal media players. But when compared directly to the Archos media players there is no comparison. What you won't get is a crystal clear picture; however images are rather decent, once again taking into account the price, plus being able to record from television using the supplied AV cable is a handy feature.

Where the MOSMP100X10 most lets itself down is the menu system. The layout and look of it is rather basic, perhaps too basic for a personal media player. This makes the unit feel cheap. Of course the price is good, but the menu shows it.

Those used to using the scrolling wheel of the iPod are not going to enjoy having to continually press the scrolling switch in the side to choose the functions and songs or videos; this hinders the enjoyment of using the media player. While still easy to use can seem like a chore at times, being able to look at stored photos while listening to your music is a plus though.

All in all, the Ministry of Sound's MOSMP100X10 is a rather basic media player with the functions you would hope to expect. Sound quality is ok but if you were to compare, a video iPod offers clearer richer sound and can store much more with out the need to purchase SD cards. This is one for those on a budget and don't mind fiddling around with controls for an entry level unit. Does the job, but is rather basic.

The MOSMP100X10 is available for £149.99

Rating: 6/10