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August 31, 2007
Daewoo Portable DVD Player with iPod Dock
Daewoo has a portable DVD player that might be just the thing for the ADD kiddies needing constant input. The DPC-8099PD-I is a flat screen DVD player that is portable and has a 7” LCD screen.It can play DVD, VCD, and audio CDs and you can dock your trust iPod to watch your videos on a slightly larger screen.
A USB port is built-in that directly accepts USB drives for streaming video or images as well as SD/MMC memory cards. Pricing and availability is currently unknown.
Posted by shane at 8:21 PM
Archos 405 PMP Reviewed
The Archos 405 was released yesterday by Archos and CNET published the first review of the device yesterday as well. Overall CNET rated the 405 a 7.7 out of 10.The good points included the big glare free screen above average audio quality, SD expansion and a good price.
The bad were the measly 2GB of onboard memory and average battery life. Overall CNET says the Archos 405 is one of the best PMPs under $200. The price as tested was $169.
Via CNET
Posted by shane at 8:14 PM
August 30, 2007
Sony Launches Walkman NWZ-A810 and NWZ-S610 PMPs
Sony launched a couple new PMPs today called the Walkman NWZ-A810 and the NWZ-S610. Sony says the new PMPs will support an open platform to provide more music download choices.The QVGA screen plays 30 fps video at 320 x 240 resolution. Battery life is up to 8 hours on the A810 and 9.5 hours for the S610. The screen on the A810 is a 2” unit and the S610 gets a 1.8” screen.
Storage capacities for the A815 is 2GB at $140 the A816 has 4Gb of storage at $80 and the A818 has 8GB at $230.
Via TMCnet
Posted by shane at 8:43 PM
Archos Announces New 5th Generation PMP's
Archos announced today that their 5th generation PMP devices will be shipping mid-September. This new 5th generation of players has two products in it, the Archos 405 and the WiFi capable Archos 605.The 405 will be 0.5” thick and weigh only four ounces and is the first Archos player to use flash memory. A 3.5” screen and 2Gb of storage space allow for video playback and expansion is via an SD slot that handles SDHC cards. The price for the 405 will be $169.99.
The Archos 605 has WiFi and allows Internet surfing with an optional browser plug-in and you can stream content to it from your PC using the DVR station software. The screen has an 800 x 480 resolution and it can be had with 30GB, 80GB, or 160GB and a 4GB flash based version. Pricing is $229.99 for the 4GB, $299.99 for the 30GB, $329.99 for the 80GB and $399.99 for the 160GB.
Via Digital Home
Posted by shane at 8:27 PM
August 29, 2007
BOL-LINK PMP with Game Emulator
You are not alone if you have never heard of BOL-LINK and their BMP-900 PMP. In addition to playing music and video, the device has a built-in game emulator as well.Compatible video formats include MPEG4 and AVI, while music formats that can be played include MP3, WMA, AMR, WAV, ADPCM, and PCM.
Images in JPEG, GIF, or BMP can also be displayed. The game emulator feature allows you to play games using third-party software and charging of the device and syncing is done via USB. There is no word on availability or pricing at this time.
Via MobileWhack
Posted by shane at 8:24 PM
Creative's New Zen is the Thinnest Zen Yet
Creative’s Zen is a very slick looking PMP at only 11.3mm thick and weighing only 65g it’s very portable. PMP users who like to store lots of video, music and pictures on their device will be glad to hear you can get up to 16GB of flash storage.Other capacities available include 4GB and 8GB as well. The LCD screen is a 2.5” 16.7 million color TFT LCD with a 320 x 240 resolution. Battery life is reportedly up to 25 hours of audio playback and 5 hours of video.
Compatible audio formats include MP3, WMA, AAC, WAV, and Audible 2, 3, 4. Photo formats supported include JPEG, BMP, GIF, PNG, and TIFF. Video formats that are supported include MJPEG, WMV9, MPED4-SP, DivX, and XviD3. The Zen also has a built-in FM tuner.
Via Creative
Posted by shane at 8:15 PM
August 28, 2007
Samsung Announces YP-P2 and YP-T10 Bluetooth PMPs
Samsung is getting ready to release a pair of new Bluetooth enabled PMP players designed to allow users to listen without wires. Both the YP-P2 and YP-T10 will play WMV9 and MPEG-4 video files as well as MP3 and WMA audio files.
Both players will also feature FM tuners, voice recording, and JPEG storage/display capabilities. The P2 has a 3” LCD that has a 480 x 272 resolution and will come in 4GB and 8GB flavors.
The T10 will have a smaller 2” LCD screen and it will be a mere 0.3” thick, putting it in the iPod Nano range and will come with only 4GB of storage. No pricing is announced at this time, but we can expect to see them in September.
Via PC Magazine
Posted by shane at 9:06 PM
Toshiba Gigabeat T401 and T401s PMPs Announced
Today Toshiba took the wraps off of two new PMP devices called the Gigabeat T401 and T401s. The T401 has built-in WiFi and is very thing at only 9.9mm.The screen is a 2.4” QVGA resolutions and storage is 4GB of flash memory. Supported music file formats include MP3 and WMA.
The device runs Windows Mobile and can sync to Windows Media Player 11 directly. The only difference in the T401 and T401s is that the latter device lacks WiFi connectivity. Both devices should be available in September in Japan. Red, black, and white colors will be available.
Posted by shane at 8:57 PM
August 27, 2007
Wolverine EPS 250GB PMP & Storage Device
Wolverine isn’t a brand that I am familiar with, but they have a PMP device that has a huge storage capacity of 250GB. Couple that huge storage capacity with a built-in 7-in-1 card reader and you can snap digital pictures all day long, even in RAW format, and store them on the ESP.
Other features on the device include video playback and a FM tuner. The card reader works with CF, SD & SDHC, MMC, MS, MS-Pro, and XD cards. Supported video formats include MPED-1, MPEG-4, and WMV9.
The TFT LCD screen is 3.6” and the device measures in at a small 5.3” x 2.8” x 0.9” and weighs 10.2 ounces. This player has lots of features in such a small unit. Pricing for the devices is $649.99.
Via I4U
Posted by shane at 9:27 PM
August 24, 2007
viliv X2 AIO PMP has FM Transmitter and GPS
It seems like new PMPs have been coming out of the woodwork recently and the Korean firm viliv has a new one they announced today called the X2 A.I.O.. It’s certainly a nice looking device that features a built-in DMB TV receiver and a GPS receiver.Storage capacity is either 30GB or 60GB and the screen is a large 4.3-inch LCD panel made by Samsung. This is the second PMP announced this week that has a built-in FM transmitter and the X2 is powered by a rather fast AMD AU1250 CPU running at 600 MHz.
Other features include a video player and a built-in dictionary. It seems that while the device has a GPS receiver, there is no software included to really take advantage of this feature.
Via I4U
Posted by shane at 8:29 PM
Apple Legal forces Some Sites to Remove Leaked iPod Nano Photos
A few days ago I posted a story that I found over at Gizmodo with some grainy pictures claiming to be leaked shots of the upcoming iPod Nano. As with all supposedly leaked shots of electronics, the image was met by lots of people saying it was real and lots saying it was total bunk.Apple themselves have confirmed the images accuracy in a way to many by forcing 9to5mac, Gizmodo and Engadget to remove the image that you saw in the post from the 22.
In its place are mock ups that look virtually identical to the leaked shot. The question here is would the Apple legal department bother if it was total bunk? Lots of people say no they wouldn’t, therefore the images must be the real deal. Rumor has it that on September 5 apple is having a special event that will launch the new iPod’s, so in a few weeks we will see how accurate the shot was.
Via Gizmodo
Posted by shane at 8:23 PM
August 23, 2007
Venzero Introduces FREQ PMP with FM Transmitter
One thing that most people who use their PMP in the car a lot want is a FM transmitter, assuming your car has no aux in support. Venzero has introduces a new PMP called the FREQ that is the first PMP with an integrated FM transmitter.The device offers video, audio and image playback via the large 2.4” TFT 262k color screen. In audio mode ID3 tags are supported and music lyrics can be shown as the track plays if you want.
A really cool feature allows you to record portions of any song and included software will tell you the artist and song title so you can buy it later. You can also record your own voice. The player will have 2GB of flash storage and will sell for $99.
Via Venzero (PDF Link)
Posted by shane at 9:14 PM
digitalCube S-Station Netforce 2 PMP
Normally most PMP devices have pretty much the same features. digitalCube has a new PMP with a very interesting feature, HSDPA connectivity. The device is called the s-Station NetForce 2 and has a 4.3” 800 x 480 resolution screen. Storage options are 30 GB or 60GB and the unit has an alchemy 1250 CPU and a 5000mAh battery.I would assume that to mean that the device has internet connectivity. What I am not sure of is how exactly the connectivity is access, if you have to sign up with a participating cellular provider or if the manufacture has some other idea for the data service.
They are calling the device the first ever PMP with HSDPA connectivity, but you can get cellular phones with HSDPA that have PMP functions, which makes them sort of the same in my book.
Via I4U
Posted by shane at 9:06 PM
August 22, 2007
New iPod Nano Coming?
Gizmodo has a story up that originate from 9-5 Mac with what is claimed to be a spy shot of a new iPod Nano. If the spy shot is real, which is unknown at this point, the new Nano seems to be a shorter, fatter version of the current device with a larger screen for playing video.Honestly, the device looks a lot like the Zune to me, especially the brown one. Other than the image you see here, little is known about the device.
Conspiracy theorists may have something to say about this, but the 9-5 Mac site has removed the image you see here with a statement saying Apple requested it be taken down. I have to wonder if the pic wasn’t accurate would Apple have bothered.
Via Gizmodo
Posted by shane at 8:41 PM
August 21, 2007
iLuv i1055 Plays DVDs & Works with iPod
CNN has a review from CNET of the iLuv i1055 which is obviously intended to work with the iPod. The device is a portable DVD player with a 7” widescreen display. On the rear of the device is a dock for your Video iPod and when plugged in your videos playback on the larger 7” screen.The device is made by a company called JWin and it can be had online at about $180. The device measures in at 6” x 10.25” x 2.75” and weighs 3 pounds with your 80Gb video iPod attached.
You can prop the device up on an included stand like you would a picture frame or you can secure it to a car headrest with included Velcro straps. Overall, CNET scored the device 6.7 out of 10, earning it a good ranking.
Via CNN
Posted by shane at 9:06 PM
Venzero Tube Portable Video Player
The Venzero Tube has a 3.5” backlit LCD display with a five-step dimmer. Internal system memory is 32MB and expansion is via SD cards with a 1GB SD card included.The Tube can play TV shows via a built-in tuner and has enough battery life for 3.5 to 5 hours of TV watching. Audio formats supported are MPEG-4 and AAC-LC.
Supported image formats include JPEG, BMP/GIF. Music formats include MP3, AAC and WMA with a 12 hour playback time. An external passive antenna is included as well. The Tube measures in at 128 x 70.8 x 18.8 mm and weighs 170 grams.
Via Venzero
Posted by shane at 8:56 PM
August 20, 2007
Foryou PMP with Massive 7" Screen
I haven’t seen a PMP with a screen this big it was grafted onto a boom box. The PMP710 form the Foryou Group supports MPEG1/2/4, MP3, WAV, AAC, and Jpeg files. Behind that massive screen is an equally massive hard drive.You can opt for a version with a mere 20GB of space or go the full monty with a giant 40GB hard drive.
A stereo line out and NTSC/PAL output are included and the device has a built-in FM tuner. If 40GB of storage just doesn’t cut it for you a SD card slot is built in as well. No word on pricing or availability at this time.
Via PMPToday
Posted by shane at 10:27 PM
August 17, 2007
TMS V888 PMP Has Game
Thomson (TMS) has a interesting new PMP that has sliding control panel underneath the screen. The device has what looks like the original Nintendo controller from my youth and can actually play some games. The screen is a large 4” TFT with 16 million colors.In addition to playing some games the device plays MP3, WMA, WAV, and FLAC lossless audio formats. It can also show photos in PEG, BMP, PNG, TIFF, and GIF formats. Oddly missing from the specs is JPEG compatibility.
Video formats supported include MPEG, MPEG4, Divx, Xvid, MOV, WMV, AVI, ASF.VOB, and H.263. The device also will display PDF, html, and TXT files. The price is right at $132. It appears you can get white or black colors, the black looks way better to me.
Via PMPToday
Posted by shane at 8:08 PM
August 16, 2007
Brando's MP4 Music and Video Playing Watch
Brando isn’t known for being purveyors of the best looking gear on the market. They have a new MP4 watch that brings special meaning to the work ugly. This thing is huge and has a 1.8” LCD for a watch face.
In addition to being able to play AVI video the watch plays MP3 and WMA music as well. JPEG images can be shown on the screen and a built in speaker allows you to listen without using the included ear buds if you desire.
A FM tuner allows you to listen to radio and a sound recorder is built-in. One additional feature that probably won’t be welcome is the look ladies give you if you wear this thing in public. If you are self confident and have poor taste you can get your own MP4 Watch II for $118 for the 4GB version or $92 for the 2GB watch.
Via Brando
Posted by shane at 10:21 PM
Go Video Boom Box
Anyone around during the 80’s will remember the boom box. I have childhood memories of guys with parachute pants carrying massive radios on their shoulders. These days the PMP is more the rage with iPod’s and other devices as prolific now as boom boxes were back then.
The Go Video boom box adds something to the boom box that makes it somewhat more appealing to today’s music lovers. A seven inch LCD on the front allows you to play DVDs wherever you feel like taking it.
The box can also play CDs and it has a built-in AM/FM tuner. There is no digital music player though, so MP3’s are out of the question. The Go Video boom box is available for $160.
Via Sci Fi Tech
Posted by shane at 9:53 PM
August 15, 2007
SanDisk Cuts Sansa Connect Price by $100
SanDisk has updated pricing on its WiFi connected Sansa Connect PMP. The price has dropped from the previous $250 to $149.99. That’s a full $100 discount, which should be plenty to woo shoppers considering buying a Zune or iPod to check out SanDisk's wares.I have a Sansa connect and it is way better than the Zune in my opinion. The Sansa connect specs remain the same with a 2.2” TFT LCD, WiFi connectivity, internet radio streaming capability, 4GB of flash storage, and more.
You can also find free WiFi access for the Connect with AnchorFree. The only problem I had with the Sansa Connect was that it wouldn’t work with my SSID being set to not be broadcasted.
Via SanDisk
Posted by shane at 10:44 PM
August 14, 2007
SAFA Launches DIA PMP in Korea
SAFA is set to launch a new PMP device in the Korean marketplace. The player is called the DIA and has a diamond shaped touchpad, hence the DIA name. The device has a 2.4” LCS screen with 260k colors.It plays videos and can display eBooks as well as playing four games that are included. Storage space can be expanded via its miniSD slot.
Voice recording is a feature and a FM tuner is built-in as well. One rather odd feature is repetition mode where it says words over and over for you to presumably learn the language. The player will be available in Korea at 139,000 KRW for a 2GB version and 199,000 KRW for a 4GB version.
Via AVING
Posted by shane at 9:48 PM
Samsung's YP-P2 PMP Leaks Out
Not much is known about eh Samsung YP-P2 PMP other than it looks very nice and has a bit of the iPhone and Prada phone in its appearance. Images I have seen show that eth device will have Bluetooth.Other features I could make out include an FM tuner, video playback and a file browser. The P2 looks to be about the same size as the iPhone.
That’s really all that is known right now. There is no mention of the price of the PMP or when/if the device will be available in North America.
Via I4U News
Posted by shane at 9:15 PM
August 13, 2007
iriver NV PMP ships in Korea
The iRiver NV GPS PMP is one of the best looking gadgets I have seen in a long time, though it does remind me a bit of the Prada phone which I didn’t like in person.The gadget integrates DMB TV, PMP functions and GPS into one smaller and attractive device. The front is void of controls save for the scroll wheel giving the NV a very Apple look.
Features include a 1.3 megapixel camera, whopping 7” LED TFT screen with an 800 x 480 screen resolution, FM tuner, SiRF III GPS and more. The compatible formats it will play include MP3, WMA, OGG, MP1, MP2, MP2.5, WMA7, WMA8, and WMA9. Dual SD card slots are included, which I would assume means one for map cards for the GPS and one for extra storage. The price in Korea is about $535 here in the states.
Via I4U News
Posted by shane at 9:05 PM
PMP for the Post-Apocalyptic World
If Mad Max had a PMP, this would be it. We don’t need no stinking batteries. The same guy that gave us the hand cranked radio back in the 90’s has updated his tech for the new millennium.Now you can get your hands on the hand cranked PMP device that gets all the power it needs to play your MP3’s and video from the human powered crank. The screen is a 1.8” LCD and there is a LED flashlight on the top as well.
Storage for your video and music is on external SD cards so playback capacity is unlimited in that respect. The crank powered PMP isn’t cheap though, it will set you back $345. However, just think of all the ladies you could pickup if you are the only geek with music at his party after the robots take over and cut off our power.
Via Sci Fi Tech
Posted by shane at 8:51 PM
August 9, 2007
CNET Reviews Venzero Slickr
CNET put up a review this week of a PMP from Venzero called the Slicker. The device doesn’t appear form photos to be that small and as CNET puts it, the device has no features to write home about.The most appealing aspect of the design is the looks, which is very iPhone-like. Measuring in at 3.25” x 2.25” x 0.33 it’s a compact device for sure.
The screen is a 2.8” 320 x 240 LCD with 1.6 million colors. The device has 2Gb of internal storage and can use a miniSD card of up to 4GB giving a total possible storage of 6GB. Overall the Slickr was rated a 5.3 which is average on the CNET scale. Via CNET
Posted by shane at 8:22 PM
Cowon X7 Pics Leaked?
Some pictures along with rumors of a new Cowon X7 media player are making their rounds today. No real specs are known about the player, but a look at the photo shows a very sleek design.You can see a mic built-in so voice recording is a probability. Other than that it’s hard to tell how big or any other real specs of the machine.
The looks of the device remind me of a PBP for some reason, I guess it’s the glossy black color more than anything else. I’m betting if they make this player, it will be popular. Good looks go a long way in life. Via I4U
Posted by shane at 8:13 PM
August 8, 2007
BlingPlayer PMP Looks Right Out of a Rap Video
The BlingPlayer is a PMP device that is inside a big silver necklace replete with lots of crystals to give it the faux diamond look. There are three patters available the skull and crossbones, polished chrome and brushed chrome.All three styles have the same specs with 2GB of flash storage, a weight of 1.33 ounces and measuring in at 2.85 x 1.5 x 0.375 inches in size. The display is a 1.5” 65k color TFT and power comes from a built-in rechargeable battery.
A FM radio tuner is also built-in that features ten presets and an EQ offers seven user chosen settings. Stereo necklace earphones are included as well as the USB 2.0 cable for sync and the AC charger for battery power. Pricing for all three versions is $199. Via MyMediaReady
Posted by shane at 8:10 PM
August 7, 2007
Dell Buys PMP Firm Zing
Dell announced on Tuesday that they had purchased PMP design firm Zing. No details of the acquisition were offered. Many see the move by Dell as a step into making Dell branded PMP devices.In January zing partnered with FON to allow Zing customers to use FON hotspots for free. With this in mind it would be an easy stretch to see Dell bringing a WiFi enabled PMP device to market.
Zing also recently made a deal with Sirius Satellite Radio allowing their programming to be streamed to Zing devices. Dell spokesman declined to comment on potential future devices, my money is on a WiFi enables PMP that can stream Satellite radio. Via PC Mag
Posted by shane at 7:59 PM
August 6, 2007
New PMP from A Team
I’m not trying to work in some 80’s reference to the TV show that made Mr. T famous here, a Taiwanese company choose A Team Computer Co as their name. Their latest product is called the MC-213NF.The device will play both MP3 and MP4 tunes and can play video as well in AVI, MPEG 1 and 2. WMA file are also on the list of compatible formats. A built-in FM tuner allows you to listen to radio on the go.
The display is a 2” TFT-LTPS, sync and charge functions are via USB. ID3 tag display is also supported. No word on pricing or availability at this time. Via PMPToday
Posted by shane at 9:24 PM
Thompson's 3" LCD PMP Makes Bold Claims
Another week, another claim of world’s smallest from a PMP manufacturer. This week Thompson is claiming that they have the world’s smallest PMP with a 3” screen. The device measures in at 82 x 50.9 x 13mm and weighs 87g.The 3” screen is a 16:9 TFT and the device can play AVI (24fps), MP3, WMA and WAV audio. Compatible image formats include JPG and BMP.
Two different amounts of flash based storage will be offered in the PMP, a 4GB version at about $112 and an 8GB version at around $126. That’s not much of a price increase for double the storage. Via Tech Digest
Posted by shane at 9:12 PM
August 3, 2007
Creative Zen V Plus 16GB
Creative has some of the most popular PMP devices this side of the world killing iPod. Creative has taken their tiny Zen V Plus and shoehorned 16GB of flash storage into the tiny player.That makes the current available storage capacities in the Zen V Plus range 1GB, 2GB, 4GB, 8GB, and 16GB. The new 16Gb version certainly isn’t cheap though at $399.99.
For that kind of coin you could get much more storage space in a PMP based on a hard drive. That said the hard drive based versions probably won’t be as small as the Zen V Plus. Via Product-Reviews.net
Posted by shane at 9:30 PM
Commodore C200 Caught in the Wild
Commodore’s C200 Gravel has been caught in the wild. The PMP has a 1.8” OLED screen and 512MB of onboard storage.The unit is also WiFi capable and can play tunes for up to 18 hours on one charge. Video playback time is two hours and supported media formats are Divx, Xvid, MPEG2, MPEG4, WMV, MP3, MP4, WAV, WMA, JPG, GIF, and BMP.
A 2GB version is currently available for pre-order for about $170. There is no word on if the C200 will make to us here in the states. Via Brokenflicker
Posted by shane at 9:22 PM
August 1, 2007
Chinavision Waterproof PMP
If you are leery of taking your MP3 player or PMP to the beach or pool, you are mot alone. It seems that every kid in town wants to splash you when you have gadgets around. A company called Chinavision has a solution to your need for video and tunes at the pool, beach or lake.The Chinavision Waterproof PMP can play videos only in AMV mode, but conversion software in included. Screen resolution is only 128 x 128 and storage space is a lowly 1GB. Video only plays back at 15fps, but at least you can share your home movies with the fish while swimming.
Supported image format is JPEG only and it will play Wma and MP3 music and audio files. The device measures in at 105mm x 50mm x 22mm. A pair of waterproof earphones is also included. Too bad the device looks like a child’s toy. Via Coolest-gadgets
Posted by shane at 8:50 PM
Archos 405 to Ship September 1, French Review up Already
The Archos 405 is pre-ordering on Amazon right now for $169.99 and shows to be shipping on September 1. A French website has already posted a review of the video player.The 405 will have 2GB of storage space and can record TV with an optional DVR station or DVR travel adapter. In addition to playing video you can also play music and look at images. Storage is expandable with a SD card slot over the 2GB of onboard storage.
In the end the French guys found the 405 to be pretty good considering the price, but knocked it for brittle feeling keys and what seems to be a notation that the keys interfere with the screen somewhat.
Archoslounge.net Via I4U
Posted by shane at 8:36 PM