We haven’t heard too much from Cowon in the past few months, but the South Korean corp. still has a lot to offer. And when you say Cowon, you mainly talk about media players (that seems to want to stick around despite the rise of portable tablets). On that note, the company has recently announced the release of yet another PMP device, known as the Cowon C2. Designed to capture the spirit of its predecessor, the cowon D2, the 2.6-inch C2 player is said to arrive with either 4, 8, or 16GB of internal storage at your choice, alongside a USB 2.0 hub, microSD slot, a composite video output, up to 55 hours of audio playback from a single battery charge, and wide range of formats support. There is still no word about price but the release date would early in the May. Stay tuned.

[via Korea Newswire]

What do you think the new trend in media players? For those of you who answered “Android OS“…you were right. First it was Archos who wisely added Google’s burgeoning platform into its latest PMP series, and now it’s Creative’s turn to do exactly the same. The new model on stake is the Android 2.1-based Zen Touch 2 player which packs a 3.2-inch resistive touchscreen on top along with WiFi, Bluetooth, an accelerometer module and inbuilt speaker under the lid. In addition, there’s also a 2 megapixels camera, an FM radio, GPS, digital compass, and microSD slot. Storage wise, you get to choose between 8GB and 16GB capacities while the smallest one runs for £149.99 and the bigger edition is priced only £10 more. Let’s go Android! let’s go.

[Creative]

It’s been two months already since Archos officially announced a new package of products, comprised of Android-powered tablets and personal media players, and today is the day that we finally get to see some of them going live across the US market. As a matter of fact, it’s the new Archos 43 PMP that we speak about (The Archos 32 version continues to be available), which for those who are still unfamiliar with it, runs an Android 2.2 platform and packs a 4.3-inch touchscreen along a 1GHz ARM Cortex A8 processor, rear 720p camera, 16GB of storage, an HDMI output and expandable microSD slot. Sure, it also boasts a WiFi connectivity on board, but to get a chance to play with it, you’ll have to wire transfer $249.99 and not a single dime extra from your pocket.

[Archos]

While some folks strangely cling to the belief that PMPs have gone obsolete, others hold on to the idea there is still a lot of untapped potential with this specific department. Well, mainly strong names like Cowon, that has recently launched a brand new player of its own. And it’s been pre-named for your convenience as Cowon X7, so if you’re planning on getting one, mind you it’d cost 339,000 KRW in local currency or about $304 in US silver coins. The 4.3-inch player which was designed explicitly to consume audio and video content will pack 160GB of storage and is allegedly capable of playing up to 10 hours of video playback or 103(!) hours when switched to audio mode. Besides that it will also include a Bluetooth 2.1 connectivity, and is said to deliver a very wide range of codecs support. Availability wise, the South Korean users will probably be able to get one immediately, but Western fanboys will likely have to wait just a little bit more.

Update: While still unavailable Stateside, the new 4.3-inch Cowon X7 player has apparently begun to show up in some European countries. With a built-in bluetooth connectivity on board but NO WiFi at all (shame), the 480 x 272 screen resolution PMP will run you in France for €299 (120GB) or €329 (160GB). Wanna see more? Check out Le Journal du Geek hands-on cover before you buy your own.

[via Akihabara News]

Hey! What’s this…A new Samsung PMP running Android OS inside? Though not official yet, it still looks and feels like the real thing for us, and judging from the rumors, it’ll probably make an official debut soon – South Korean style. For a nondisclosure price you would get yourself a 4-inch Super AMOLED display, paired with 1GHz processor, WiFi, Bluetooth, 3mp camera and last but not least – Google’s Android OS platform swiftly running inside. The name is YP-MB2, in case you wondered, and y’all should stay tuned  for more juicy details to come.

[via Samsung Hub]

Here’s where your brand new tablet won’t be helpful – under the water. Which might explain why Sony has recently launched a new water resistant Walkman series, the NWZ-250, which offers either 2GB or 4GB of internal capacities at your choice, along  four kinds of flavors, including silver, black, lime green, and magenta, with battery that can handle up to 11 hours of  audio playback and minuscule weight of 43 grams only. Count 60 bucks for this little fellow when picking it up, later this month. Full PR after the break.

[Via SonyInsider]

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It seems as we have almost forgotten about this PMPs phenomena, in light of recent excessive talks about sleeky slates and quirky tablets. Even though, Singaporean company, Creative has vowed to convince us they’re still here – live and kickin’. In fact, the company has just announced its new ZEN X-Fi Style and ZEN Style lineup, in a desperate effort to win our hearts again. The first of the two, ZEN X-Fi Style, boasts a 2.4-inch non-touchscreen display, with your choice of  8GB/16GB/32GB capacities, FM radio, built-in speaker, microphone, TV out, RSS reader and X-Fi sound enhancement support – with prices range from $80 to $170 at most. The second, ZEN Style 100 and 300 models, both to endorse a 1.8-inch display and 4GB, 8GB or 16GB capacities to choose from, with the 300 version to include an FM tuner as well as a built-in speaker on top – starting at $50 and up to $80, respectively, with shipping to take place from April 14 and on.

[Creative]

Alright, enough with all those tablet verbiage for the next…5 minutes. Media players, remember? Coby, remember? Well here’s a new and stylish mp3 player, courtesy of the US company, which carries the most forgettable name – Coby MP570. With no price or availability dates, at this point, this Red flavored audio gem is claimed to carry only 2GB of flash storage, without any slot extension attached, but a basic range of codecs support including MP3 and WMA formats that will run for up to five hours of audio playback at a very uncertain quality. At least we like the color, and that’s probably a lot these days, isn’t it?

[Coby]

This isn’t the best year to find new media players at the CES show in Vegas. Still, if you look closer, you just might see a few, hidden, while walking down the halls. One of them, which looks quiet similar to the Cowon S9, is iRiver’s 3.5-inch K1, also known as “Smart HD”, which may give you a sense of what it can play, besides the usual batch of formats we all know. Screen resolution is at 480 x 320 and the PMP itself boasts a DMB TV tuner,along WiFi, web browser, a built-in mic and integrated FM tuner. Internet support is definitely the trigger that caught our attention here, but mind you, it can also be used as a mini e-book reader, out of the box, the moment it comes out in South Korea at the end of the month. No price or US release info at the moment.

Update1: It looks like iRiver’s K1 PMP will go live initially in Korea only. It will be offer in variant flavors, including the basic 8GB version, priced at ₩229,000 (about $205), while a DMB mobile TV tuner add-on will run for ₩279,000 (about $250) and the 16GB model for ₩299,000 (about $265). In case you’re into the full fledged pack with WiFi, DMB tuner and 16 gigs of storage, the K1 will cost you ₩349,000, or $310 US dollars.

Update2: We’ve added a new video after the break which demonstrates the new and surprisingly cool user interface that is installed in iRiver’s K1 touchscreen player. It has variant homescreen platforms inside along Cover Flow-like albums engine and well designed circles panel up on front. Apparently, someone in Korea was paying close attention to some worldwide trends, eh?

Not sure whether it’s a new trend or not, but we’ve already seen Samsung’s MyFit storming out to the pond, and now it’s Philips’ turn to get the spot. It’s a fitness MP3 device called Activa and it would tell you when to start a calories-burn activity and when to stop. The body is relatively tiny and packs either 4GB or 8GB flash storage inside, but most importantly, it would match your music playlist with the phase of your workout. As for debut, check April 20 in your diaries, 130 bucks with your banker and PR after the jump.

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Despite market flotation, we keep seeing more and more entry-level players surface up in the wild, targeting non-deep pockets, at the time where branded ones are out of their reach.  This way or another, some manufacturers, like Korean iRiver, occasionally offer both. From one hand we have a pricey touchscreen media player such as the P7, which costs hundreds of dollars, and from the other, the E30, that represents the slim and light lineup. The late, that enters into Chinese markets these days, packs a 1.8-inch display and either 4GB ($59) or 8GB ( $79.99) capacities to choose from. Besides that it sports a 52 hours battery and runs almost every known format, available around.

Update: Amazon now has it, up for order both in 4GB and 8GB storage capacities.

[via gmp3]

It’s small, black (with golden touch) and looks like Hello Kitty, have you guessed? Well, that wasn’t hard, was it? I guess not, especially when it comes from a company – AKA iRiver – that already launched Mickey Mouse players to the pond. This time it’s a cat, THE cat, if you take Garfield out of the equation. The DAP itself offers either 2GB or 4GB storage capacities at your choice, along a USB cable and color matched ear buds bundled inside. Japan release is set for December 18, just before the holidays, with prices around ¥7,980 ($90). Miao

[via Akihabaranews]

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Korean manufacturer SAFA has rolled out a new mp3 player, SAFA XING LED, cramming both audio and style in one  small device. The Xing LED, which comes with 27 LED lights that can be tweaked with various icons at your choice or used for playing simple enjoyable games like Rock, Paper, Scissors or Dice, packs a 12 hours battery, paired with a G-sensor mode, one USB connector, a mono speaker lump and 4-directions touch keys. Price and availability are yet to be released while storage capacity is still under examine – well, nothing that’d stop us announcing the XING as our new fashion accessory.

[via Safa]

You didn’t really think Archos was going to give up the Vision 1 mp3 lineup, after already launching Vision 2 and Vision 3 in the past few months, did you? Well, given the fact a vision 1 device, equipped with 4GB of storage and 1.5-inch LCD display is rumored to be out at the end of this month, we’d surely say “NO”. And, despite the absolute lack of video support inside this 28 grams weight and €30 ($45) money, the added 20 hours battery, pumped in one single charge, would probably give this tiny Frenchi chap an extra fervency value.

Update: Archos 1 is now available around Europe, priced at £24.99 ($40), stores up to 4GB of content and plays almost every common format available around, like MP3, WMA, APE, WAV and FLAC for audio, and JPEG or BMP files for photos. Still no word on a US release.

[via LeJournalDuGeek]

It’s not official yet, but word on Chinese streets says that iRiver is launching the N20 mp3 player these days, coming with either 2GB or 4GB capacities at your choice, along with a four lines greyscale PMOLED display, a built-in FM tuner, 26 x 55.5 x 13mm size dimensions and wide range of formats support – MP3, WMA, APE, WAV, FLAC and OGG audio files included. As said, nothing official from iRiver at this point, but this way or another, we hear you’ll probably have to shell out 649 yuan ($95) or 749 ($110), respectively, to have one.

Update1: Mariah Carey fans, this is your day. A special iRiver N20 edition, preloaded with  Carey’s new album, Memoirs of an Imperfect Angel, is just around the South Korean corner. First 5000, you’re on, only $120 out of your pockets, and this LE  DAP is yours. Another image is just after the break. Hurry up!

Update2: Looks like iRiver’s N20 mp3 player, which apparently hasn’t seen Western shores ’till today, now owns a new sibling, the N15, that literally boasts the same tops and looks, only delivers less battery power (12 hours instead of 15) and skips the OGG audio format for no special reason. Flash storage capacities will keep their status at  2GB or 4GB, but price and availability are yet to be determined.

[via imp3]

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Hope you’re not confusing with Cowon’s S9, which is more of a PMP rather than an mp3 player. Anyway, we’re glad to see the Koreans keeping up with the good media-players launching pace, while this time it’s the iAudio 9, which apparently packs a 2-inch LCD screen, along with a built-in microphone, an FM tuner, TV output, an integrated speaker and lots of media codecs to play, including AVI, WMV, XViD, ASF and many more. Regretfully, we’re still missing storage capacities and pricing details, but as you know we’re all over it to bring’em on.

Update1: While Western debut may  look vague at the moment, Asian release is much clearer, as Cowon’s iAudio 9 is expected to see light, in Japan, on mid-November, priced at 14,800 yen (around $160) for the 8GB model, and 17,800 yen (around $195) for the 16GB model.Stay tuned.

Update2: The guys at Le Journal Du Geek were lucky enough to put their hands on a Cowon 9 mp3 player, few weeks before its European start, which suppose to give you, for merely €180 ($265), a 16GB of internal storage, a 2-inch screen display, integrated mic, built-in FM radio, wide range of codecs support and a pocketable sized black/silver body design. Hit the break for one more footage, or click this spot for the entire collection.

Update3: Looks like Cowon’s iAudio 9 is finally up on sale in the US, with prices starting at $129 for the 8GB version and climbing up to $169 for the 16GB one.

[gmp3]

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Despite Microsoft’s Zune HD event, which takes place this coming Tuesday, things look just as usual around DigitalCube’s  Korean headquarters, as the company officially debuts with iSTATION S3 PMP that “surprisingly” sports a 3.5-inch 800 x 480 AMOLED display, which packs underneath an HDMI output and a strong battery, running around 20 hours of audio and up to 8 hours of video. Other than that, the new S3 supports most common files while storage wise, is being offered in 8/16/32GB capacities. Prices and dates of release are yet to be determined. Be sure we’re here to get’em right away.

[via Aving]

Apple’s Rock n’ Roll event just went down with Steve Jobs up on stage again, this time suggesting a new colorful iPod nano lineup, available today at the online store, delivering two different storage capacities, 8GB ($149) and 16GB ( $179), to choose from. Other than that, the fifth-generation nano is now offering some neat improvements, with Cupertino unveiling a small video camera, integrated at the back of each player, allowing live video shooting in 640 x 480 video capture resolution at H.264 format, which gets up to 30fps capabilities and including 15 real-time special effects, such as Sepia, Black and White, X-Ray, 2.2Film Grain, Thermal, Security Cam, Cyborg, Bulge, Kaleido, Motion Blur and many others. Additionally, you get a bigger 2.2-inch 376 x 240 display, holding an FM tuner that has Live Pause feature underneath, sitting along with iTunes Tagging support, a pedometer element, built in speaker / microphone  and a voice over trait – all packed into a small sized 3.6 x 1.5 x 0.24-inches body frame that holds a battery which literally plays up to 24 hours of audio and 5 hours of video. Stay tuned for more to come.

Update1: Turns out the new nano camera can only handle video footage without stills. Nonetheless, it still looks pretty amazing, so hit the break and checkout the video walkthrough right away.

Update2: Hey, we know you’re all excited to take a peek at those sexy inner parts of the new nano video cam player. And as we speak, the guys from iFixit were rapidly nabbing a nice blue fifth-gen nano device, tearing it apart and showing its bowels wide. Hit the jump to watch from close, or click the link to look at the entire process done.

[Apple]

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With one more hour to go before announcing some new players, Apple is now reported to quietly slash down iPod Touch, Nano and Classic iPod prices on Cupertino’s on-line store, as follows:  iPod Touch – Apparently, the 8GB model is now priced at $189 (instead of $229), while 16GB version now stands at $249 (instead of $299), and the 32GB flavor is merely $279 (was $399 before). iPod Nano – The 8GB model will now set you back for $129 (instead of $149), as the 16GB Nano is now offered for only $149 (instead of previous $199). iPod Classic - Gets the competitive price of $229 instead of $249.

Update1: Turns out a new whopping 64GB iPod Touch version is now up and available for $399.

Update2: Looks like the $249 iPod Classic player is now being offered in 160GB storage. That’s extra 40GB to its predecessor.

Update3: So it seems a new iPod Touch 3G is out after all, but regretfully without a camera inside. Prices remain the same but the UI looks a little snappier than previous gen. Surprisingly, the guys at iFixit have managed to find a potential spot for a video camera, that Apple has probably allocated in the top of the device. That said, Steve Jobs already made it clear that Apple won’t integrate any footage features at this point. Stay tuned.

Update4: The guys at engadget have thrown themselves all over the “new” iPod Touch 3G, moments before it goes live. Hit the jump to take a look.

[Apple]

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Apparently, SanDisk wasn’t having a lot of success, last time it has launched to the market a slotMusic Sansa machine, almost 12 months ago. Even so, it seems the company wasn’t planning to give up on this category that fast, otherwise, how can you explain Sansa’s Clip+ mp3 player recent launch? A closer look at the unit itself will make you realize it’s literally a similar version of the legendary Sansa Clip, we’re all familiar with for many years, with all the good traits it packs, including a small and attractive body design, easy to use interface menus, mass storage files compatibility (drag n’ drop), FM tuner radio support, 4/6/8GB internal flash capacities, and last but not least – great audio quality. But if that’s not enough, the new Sansa Clip+, is also offering a microSD slot expansion to make your storage even bigger, and three beautiful theme colors  (Black, Red, Blue) to choose from, now, at any local US retailer for $39.99 (2GB), $49.99 (4GB) or $69.99 (8GB).

Update: For some, an inside look into new gadgets’ circuits  is literally a preliminary term before getting the real thing. So there you go folks, SanDisk’s Sansa Clip+ (plus) mp3 player is spread wide open and ready for dissection right after the break (courtesy of anythingbutipod) with all its inner glory, which houses two SanDisk chips that run the entire system, and a long lasting battery that makes it happen. However, ig one gutsy shot isn;t enough, hit the link and get even more.

[via gmp3]

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