Pioneer unveils Inno XM2go portable XM radio/MP3 player

Pioneer has just taken the wraps off its Inno XM2go player, and it sure does look like a big improvement over the first generation of XM2go devices. For starters, it's a lot smaller and lighter at 3.7" x 2.2" x 0.6"n and just 4.5 ounces.  It'll also give you both live XM satellite radio content and the ability to store up to 50 hours of XM content, or you can fill it up with your own MP3s or WMAs. The Inno also has a built-in FM transmitter that'll let you shoot that satellite signal to any radio. The unit also has a full color 180x180 TFT that you can use to get stock quotes, sport scores and, of couse, song info.  The one thing they haven't given deets on is battery life, which could make the deal a little less sweet. Look for it sometime this quarter at a MSRP of $399.

[Hole @ Jan 4th 2006 11:49AM]

Right here is an example as to why Sirus sucks. They spend all their money on Stern and not into R&D. Why can't their unit have live Sat Radio like XM?

[SJS @ Jan 4th 2006 11:57AM]

Live sat radio (direct to sat) only works if you stand still and hold the unit above your head. Hence them increasing the whimpy 5 hour storage to 50 hours.

[ET @ Jan 4th 2006 12:00PM]

$399? Good grief. What are the XM fanboys gonna say now (they raised holy hell about the S50 price).







Oh wait, they are gonna say it receives live content...oookay.

[Kurt @ Jan 4th 2006 12:15PM]

Live sat radio works great even when not standing still. The key to this unit is Repeaters and because XM blows Sirius away with their number of repeaters it makes more sense for XM to release an item such as this.



I hope it gives you the ability to pause live radio (similar to the SkyFi2)

[ChillyWilly @ Jan 4th 2006 12:18PM]

So where's the Sirius portables? The S50 is cool, but not portable for live listening.



These new XM radios are pretty cool looking, but not enough to get me to switch to XM.

[Daniel @ Jan 4th 2006 12:31PM]

Your right on the price, ET. I've never heard of introducing a product at a price premium for early adopters followed by price cuts as production and consumer acceptance increase. I expect this unit will be at the launch price of $399 forever.

[Eagle117 @ Jan 4th 2006 12:37PM]

>>>Live sat radio (direct to sat) only works if you stand still and hold the unit above your head.

[RT @ Jan 4th 2006 12:45PM]

XM2go is great. I take mine to the gym, in the house, in the car and everywhere I go. Reception is dependent on where you live. Mountains and other large barriers can prevent a signal, but as stated above the repeater network helps this. These next gen radios are exactly what most XM users have wanted. With the mp3 capability, color screen, and larger capacity, these are awesome. Also hearing about possible sat TV streams from XM. This may be the reason for the color screens. Just my 2 cents.

[Jim @ Jan 4th 2006 1:11PM]

What a moron - I've had the MyFi for over a year (which has an inferior antenna to these devices) and the sat reception is excellent here in Los Angeles.



These players are phenomenal.

[Lex @ Jan 4th 2006 1:20PM]

I know from personal experience that the live portable satellite radios suck~ even with repeaters ~ it is useless when it is in your pocket~ so you have to hold the thing out like a scientist and try to get a signal~ this will be a great product in the future~ just not now ~ the technology needs to get better

[C @ Jan 4th 2006 1:20PM]

This looks like a nice little device. XM definitely has the nicer hardware. The problem though is that the Sirius content is so much better. When I got my new car it came with an XM radio built in and 3 free months. It was decent but when the trial period was over I went out and got a Sirius receiver for my car. I would have liked to have it built in like the XM but even without that convenience Sirius was the better choice. Their content blows away XM. I am not just talking Howard Stern. Personally I never listened to him when it was free and I probably won't now. My main concern is music and sports and when it comes to that Sirius just can't be beat. It is a shame that they can't come out with the hardware that XM does but in the end that is secondary to me. I am not a fanboy one way or the other. I really wanted to like XM more. I realized that while I had XM I was still frequently switching back to FM stations to hear music. In over a month of having Sirius I have not done that once.

[nyc @ Jan 4th 2006 1:25PM]

I have a delphi MyFi and I was skeptical about it's performance when walking around. But it works fine with no additional antenna attached when walking to work (20 min walk). Not a single dropout. This is in downtown chicago.

[Thought @ Jan 4th 2006 1:35PM]

This to me is a big breakthrough.



To integrate XM Sat radio with mp3 capabilities is a big step forward. It's the best of both worlds.



I wonder how long it will be before Apple starts offering built-in Sat radio with some of its iPods.

[Zak @ Jan 4th 2006 1:49PM]

The Sirius units may not have live sat radio, but they come with a free hand truck for mobility

[Kevin @ Jan 4th 2006 6:30PM]

I disagree on Sirius having better content. Sirius' content is better for people who don't want to stray too far from traditional FM content (top 40). If you hate the idea of hearing songs and/or artists that aren't familiar to you, then Sirius is the best choice.



If you like hearing new songs and artists, XM is the better choice. This is unless something's changed since mid 2005.

[Liam @ Jan 4th 2006 7:51PM]

I just want the black earbuds to go with my black iPod

[david @ Jan 4th 2006 9:41PM]

It seems a bit pricey for a new device, even with the 50 hours of record time. My cell phone doesn't cost that much (Trio). I am a big fan of XM, have several XM devices, but I can see the price tag being a major stumbling block. For $400 I am in range for a laptop or a good MP3 player with lots of storage or even a NAS drive. Nope, I will stick with my SkiFi for now.

[Joe @ Jan 4th 2006 11:39PM]

This looks good - I only wonder how the built-in antenna is and whether or not you will still need another clip-on antenna for a decent signal.



Other than that - as for the people who argue which content is better, its pretty clear that we all benefit from the fact that both services exist, because I certainly enjoy what XM offers over Sirius, but that's just my opinion.



/XM Fungus 53 rules

//O&A Party Rock

[Tonya @ Jan 5th 2006 11:01AM]

I personally like both services. I have 3 XM receivers and 1 Sirius. My husband got the Sirius for Christmas because he lover Stern. I personally can't stand him. There is one Sirius channel that I listen to constantly, Super Shuffle. XM has baseball and as long as it does, it will be in our household. Yes, I know Sirius has NFL, but listening to an NFL football game on the radio is painful. Plus XM has ACC football and basketball. Come to think of it, why did I buy that Sirius receiver for my husband? XM rocks! and this new portable looks awesome!

[Dave @ Jan 5th 2006 1:18PM]

You Sirius fanboys kill me with your no live reception with the XM2GO units. I have an Airware and granted standalone you get spooty reception. But what you fanboys leave out (on purpose) is the 2 types of external antenna the XM2GO units have (The Clip antenna and the combination headphones/antenna). With the clip antenna, I walk around in a very big mall and get perfect reception 98% of the time. Outside its 100% of the time. These new radios have new antenna technology so the reception will be better. If you gonna slam XM2GO, then you should tell ALL the info, not just some of it

[Jim Griffin @ Jan 7th 2006 1:34AM]

I've had XM in the past, but have had Sirius for about a month now and like the content better.



We're not paying for the technology, we're paying for the content. XM and Sirius have very different marketing plans, thus, have different content offerings. Sirius is targeting young males, while has more of an adult offering.



As for one of the previous posters comment about Sirius not having any channels that offer new artists and material hasn't spent much time listening to Sirius. There are plenty of channels that offer new and unique music. Plus, Sirius has more music channels period. You can't deny that.



The addition of Stern is nice, only because he is a *creative* content producer (albeit, sometimes distasteful, but...) and it offsets the talk imbalance that Sirius currently has that caters to right wing conservatives (a la Patriot and Talk Right).



Lastly, as an investor, one thing that bothers me most about XM is how they report their "subscribers", particularly with their units that are factory installed in new cars. They count the unit as a "subscriber" from the moment it is delivered to the dealer. They do not take into account how long the car sits in the dealers lot, nor whether or not the car buyer activates the XM radio. If it is delivered to the dealer, they count it as a subscriber. This, to me, is somewhat sketchy. Think about how many cars were sold in the past two years with XM radios installed that have yet to be activated.



On the flip side, Sirius only counts activated accounts when they report subscribers.



As an investor, I'd lean towards "activated" subscribers vs. "perceived" subscribers.



my $.02

[Dave @ Jan 7th 2006 1:20PM]

"Lastly, as an investor, one thing that bothers me most about XM is how they report their "subscribers", particularly with their units that are factory installed in new cars. They count the unit as a "subscriber" from the moment it is delivered to the dealer. They do not take into account how long the car sits in the dealers lot, nor whether or not the car buyer activates the XM radio. If it is delivered to the dealer, they count it as a subscriber. This, to me, is somewhat sketchy. Think about how many cars were sold in the past two years with XM radios installed that have yet to be activated.







On the flip side, Sirius only counts activated accounts when they report subscribers.







As an investor, I'd lean towards "activated" subscribers vs. "perceived" subscribers"



I think youve got your wires crossed on this one. Sirius is the one that counts subs in cars not activated, not XM. It is widely documented and Sirius was taken to task about this in 3Q subs announcement. I cant believe that as an investor in a company you would have misinformation such as this.

[Jimmy Norton @ Jan 9th 2006 4:36AM]

Sirius stinks and I don't like it.

[James Norton @ Jan 9th 2006 11:09PM]

RAMONE...THE SIRUIS DOG HAS AIDS.

[Chris Jones @ Jan 10th 2006 1:47AM]

I listen to howards first show (torrent) terrible....

not funny at all!



this new XM units will blows away anything Sirius has put out. no matter the cost.

[Tony Cumia @ Jan 10th 2006 8:08PM]

XM2GO is the better platform bar none. I tested it in my lab against the sirius unit. The Sirius unit got so hot I had to turn on the Apollo A/C to get it to work. My friend Greg just got one and he loves it too!

[Johnny Hughes @ Jan 14th 2006 10:57AM]

Looks really sweet. I am already obsessed with the MYFI. It works extremely well in downtown Minneapolis. I can't believe I can sit in the Target Center and listen to my MYFI. With the further expansion of repeater networks, XM will only get better. Way to Hugh and ELO!!

[Norton & Friends @ Jan 14th 2006 11:27AM]

Raaamone...Jim Griffin has down syndrome! Get your info straight b-4 you post and make yourself look like a total a--.

[Colin @ Jan 19th 2006 2:33PM]

If you live in a major city, ie Chicago, LA, NY, and not in the sticks there is no problem with XM2Go reception. Here in Chicago I get reception on my Myfi everywhere that is not underground. Also, i store the unit in my coat, and never experience dropouts. In summation, in major cities XM2Go has no dropouts. Just face the facts, unless you're married Stern and the NFL XM hardware is leaps and bounds superior to Sirius.

[bernard @ Jan 19th 2006 5:22PM]

I actually own 6 yes 6 xm radios and will buy the inno when available. Only complaint is not enough classical selection, three stations, really!

[mckinney @ Jan 25th 2006 2:10AM]

anyone know exactly when the inno is scheduled to hit the shelves?!?! please e-mail me at [e-mail] if you have any info...thank you!!!

[Sisaacs @ Jan 27th 2006 1:31PM]

It would be nice if this has a docking station or somthing to plug it into my boombox

[79Cacti @ Feb 3rd 2006 12:39AM]

i think this concept is amazing. i've had the delphi myfi for just over a year now, and if this price comes down, i'll be switching to this unit. I have no problem with reception anywhere i go (downtown phoenix, or the mountains in northern arizona, or anywhere else in the nation, i travel quite extensively). i enjoy finding new artist constantly, and personally don't understand all the stern fanatics and anyone who constantly blathers on about Sirius being a superior product. their equipment and programming, in my opinion, is all second rate, compared to XM.