Mintek portable players: your thoughts?

[Gotham_Knight]

I've had my eye on a widescreen 10.5" Mintek portable (don't recall the model number) at Suncoast. Being that I don't know dick about their hardware, I was hoping those of you that do could voice your opinions on it.

I'm concerned with the basics:
-A/V quality
-price in comparison to other portables
-quality of the machines themselves (user friendly? do they overheat or underperform in any way?)
-anything basic I may have forgot

Also, since I'm in the mood for a portable, what are some other brands to keep an eye on?

[drmoze]

Minteks are OK and definitely one of the better low-priced options. As far as display quality, I really like the smaller (5-7") panasonics. The LS5 is awesome and extremely portable--the size of a regular cd player. Also check out battery life if that's important. The stock Panny battery gives 3+ hrs, and I picked up an aftermarket one (4000 mAh) for $50 that gives probably 6 hrs or so. (I've never run it all the way down.) Dunno how well Mintek batteries last.