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April 29, 2007

Xent X3 reviewed

The cradle-docking, eye-popping, uber-shocking Xent X3 has been reviewed by PMP Inside. Even though it's not slim, it's pretty darn sleek. This one's not out in the US, but here's a paraphrased snippet of the translated review:

"All the features make it a weapon powerful enough to take the place of your entire entertainment arsenal."

Full translated review from PMP Inside

Posted by eric at 8:03 AM

iRiver B20 begins world rollout

First revealed at this year's consumer electronics show (CES), the iRiver B20 will be heading out to various parts of the globe now. The B20 boasts features that make it just about the most advanced iRiver yet.

The 2.4" screen can play back MPEG-4 and WMV9 videos. In addition to a miniSD slot (can you say "dead format"?), the player comes with either a 2 GB or 4 GB hard drive.

Via DAP Review

Posted by eric at 8:02 AM

Tablet DVD player with PVP input

Here's the Xoro HDS 7510, a new portable video player that can read from SD cards and play back MP4 videos. Of course, the main draw is the DVD player...and the fact that it's presented in a convertible tablet format.

The resolution chimes in at 800x400 pixels, providing a 9.2" widescreen picture.

It's available now in the UK, priced at around £215 ($420).

Via Gadget Centre

Posted by eric at 8:02 AM

PMP market heading for an upswing?

Electronics analysts at iSupplie are predicting a growth for portable video players in the next four years, as one of the few products in the consumer electronics industry with a positive projected future.

Even though iSuppli says CE products in general are expected to decline in sales by 3.6% from 2006 to 2011, it says that portable media devices will grow at a rate of 13% over the same period.

Of course, one area that PMPs will need to compete with is mobile phones. However, experts say that cell phone video is not going to make a major impact in the marketplace in most areas of the world in the next few years.

See more details from the report at Circuits Assembly

Posted by eric at 8:01 AM

The adult swim Zune

As a personal fan of adult swim myself I'm pretty excited about this story. And for all you other readers that love Venture Brothers, Aqua Teen, Sea Lab, Harvey Birdman, and Robot Chicken, here it is... the Zune "adult swim" edition. There are two down sides to this exciting annoncment. First of all it's still a Zune, and second of all it's a limited edition, only 500 will be made and given away as a promotional Turner event.

Obviously these units will have pre-loaded content, including photos, music, and, naturally, such classic shows as Assy McGee, Metalocalypse (rawk), and even a new program titled Lucy, Daughter of the Devil (on screen).

Now if only we could get Microsoft to continue making Zunes with new colors and etchings, surely that will distract us all from the fact that they haven't actually done anything to improve the platform since launch (or launched any new devices, for that matter).

Via engadget

Posted by eric at 6:38 AM

April 18, 2007

Cowon D2 2 GB PMP reviewed

Carlos Bergfeld over at the Wired blog has reviewed the new D2 2 GB portable video player available from Cowon. Among its features are a touch screen interface and support for a ton of video formats.

Quote: "Its gorgeous 2.5-inch LCD isn’t just for looks—the D2 sports a slick touch-screen interface for navigating through audio, video, image, and even text files. Add in playback for open source, lossless, and other obscure audio formats (ever heard of Monkey’s Audio?) and you’ve got a player even the crustiest of techno snobs can get excited about."

Read the full review here

Posted by eric at 7:51 AM

Wolverine ESP to make retail debut at Circuit City

Despite its name, the Wolverine ESP has nothing to do with psychic powers of X-Men characters. Instead, it's a portable media player with capacities of 80 to 160 GB. With a 3.6 inch TFT LCD, it can play MPEG-4 and WMV videos, as well as videos recorded directly onto the player from any input source.

In addition to the fairly large hard drive, the device has a 7-in-1 card reader.

The price of the 80 GB version will be $379, with a bit more for the 160 GB model. It will hit Circuit City stores across the country next week.

Press Release

Posted by eric at 7:37 AM

Clix 2 iRiver brings a dose of sleeky goodness

We've seen a lot of small PMPs, but for some reason this new iRiver makes me want to coin a new acronym - UPPMP (ultra portable portable media player). Think it'll catch on? The Clix 2 sports a 2.2 inch OLED screen and can play back MPEG-4 and WMV movies (at 30 FPS).

Since the iRiver name is well known, the company didn't do anything to really change the overall functionality. It just made it a little bit smaller.

Oh yeah, and it also has support for Flash-based content. I suspect this will become much more common in the next year or two.

Via T3

Posted by eric at 7:28 AM

Korea's Atree UJ10 - a cell phone PVP that's not a cell phone

It looks like a phone and smells like a phone (that's what I've read anyway), and yet it's not a phone. The key layout looks just like a trusty Nokia, but they're really just PMP controls.

The 3.2 inch screen can show off OGG files, as well as MP3 and WMA/V. It's available in 2 and 4 GB, and currently only setting its sights in Korea.

One thing's for sure -- even though it has no calling capabilities, I'd love to have a phone that looks just like this little guy.

Via DAP Review

Posted by eric at 7:20 AM

Beetle-based PVPs heading out from Volkswagen

Beating Edsel to the punch, the Beetle portable media player (PMP) was announced at a Seoul auto show that just wrapped up. Available in classic Beetle colors, Volkswagen and LG are offering the player in 2 GB and 4 GB varieties.

The 2.6 inch LCD screen can play MP3, WMA, OGG, MPEG-4, and WMV files. Seems like a great "get one free with a test drive" idea to me.

It's certainly not a feature-packed player, but when was the last time we saw something actually worthwhile from a car company other than cars?

Via Engadget

Posted by eric at 7:06 AM

April 9, 2007

PMP eye candy: the new G40

Yet another interesting portable video player design comes from Blusens, a Spanish company who has unveiled the G40. It's a 2.5" LCD screen player that can show MPEG-4 videos, and is packed with 1, 2, or 4 GB of internal capacity.

For as small as the buttons are, and as condensed as they are on the device, there still seems to be quite a bit of excess non-screen space. Nonetheless it still looks pretty portable.

Via Coolest Gadgets

Posted by eric at 5:40 AM

April 4, 2007

Sleeky slim YP-K3 hits retail

The sleek candy bar-style digital media player, the Samsung YP-K3, is now available in stores. Right now, stores in the states only offer red and black versions of the player. They're available in both 2 GB and 4 GB flavors.

Cnet's review had this to say about the K3: "The Samsung YP-K3 may not be a Nano-killer, but it's definitely a solid choice for those who want a simple, sexy player that's not too hard on the wallet."

See the full Cnet review Full here.

Posted by eric at 11:53 PM

The 'Eye River'

Here's one for the "so crazy it makes you smile" files. The Eye River not only rips off the iRiver name, but it also blatantly rips off the design of Microsoft's Zune. Piling on to the copyright infringement is a user interface that looks remarkably like the iPhone.

Video support on the player, which comes packed with a 16 GB hard drives, includes AVI, DivX, and H.264. In addition, it can of course play music and it has a bunch of PDA-type basic applications (calculator, games, etc). This video player comes to us from Tibet of all places, and given the obvious potential legal issues around it, we probably won't ever see it in the US.

Via DAP Review

Posted by eric at 12:21 PM