The iRiver W10, eh?

Ok, now we're just getting a little confused with iRiver. We know they've been experimenting lately with form factors and devices like some sort of crazed college student, but the hell are they doing making a palmtop device? Apparently the W10, which they were showing at CeBIT (not sure how we missed it), will have something like a 5-inch screen, 60GB drive, WiBro, WiFi, Bluetooth 2.0, T-DMB tuner, USB On-The-Go, and support for MP3, WMA, AAC, MPEG-4 / h.264, WMV9, and DivX. We're a little confused and curious ourselves, but willing to give it a try. What the hell.

[Via GenerationMP3]

[Simioni @ Mar 15th 2006 1:01PM]

what?!

[soundboy64 @ Mar 15th 2006 1:06PM]

looks like a love child of a nintendo DS lite that got drunk with an iBook one night, but the iBook was actually sleeping with a ceramic white PSP...

[bryan @ Mar 15th 2006 1:08PM]

It looks like the bastard child of the toshiba libretto and a nintendo ds.

[RP @ Mar 15th 2006 1:11PM]

Seriously, how many buttons does that thing need?

[slash @ Mar 15th 2006 1:12PM]

wow the specs look great.

hopefully it will be at a low price point.

[Jerome O'Donohoe @ Mar 15th 2006 1:16PM]

that is so horrible i don't know where to start. I've seen something like it in Toys R Us.

[TZK @ Mar 15th 2006 1:23PM]

So its a PMP web surfer?

Neato. Should be a tablet design though!

[Dan Ryan @ Mar 15th 2006 1:25PM]

Maybe you missed it because it's so ugly..

[David @ Mar 15th 2006 1:33PM]

Wow, this makes the Origami look attractive...

[bowzer @ Mar 15th 2006 1:42PM]

Does it come with the flowers too?

[aptmunich @ Mar 15th 2006 2:20PM]

iRiver Boss: "So, erm... how's that iPod-killer coming?"
Employee: "It's not looking good Boss..."
iRiver Boss: "So... how about we knock off something else then?"
Employee: "Like what?"
iRiver Boss: "I dunno, here are some clippings of products featured in the last engadget awards... see what you can knock up."

[George @ Mar 15th 2006 2:33PM]

Spec sounds too good to be true.

If they changed the Apple white design to something a little less crappy and removed the silly buttons around the screen, I'd consider it.

Form factor reminds me of the old Psion devices.

[Lee @ Mar 15th 2006 2:50PM]

#8 - Ugly? It's design is essentially a mini clone of nearly every laptop on the market.

#13 - Why is it that people can't just say, "Hey, that little thing could be pretty cool"? So, why all the bashing seeing as you know nothing more about it than anyone else here?

#10 - It should come with flowers... it's like a mini VW Bug if it were a lappy.

Maybe just put out "skins" for this thing, in a bunch of colors... much like cell phone skin vendors do... that way the people who "hate on" the white design might be able to get a black cover for it, to match their cold, dead hearts.

[Ben Brenker @ Mar 15th 2006 3:07PM]

Now with support for hundreds and hundreds of dollars!

[Jerome O'Donohoe @ Mar 15th 2006 3:14PM]

#1 problem for me is that stupid tiny screen in a huge lid. TomyTastic!

[sracer @ Mar 15th 2006 3:20PM]

#15, don't you see the buttons on each side of the screen?

It looks like this device can fold completely backwards forming a PSP-like device. Bring it out @ $500 or less, and it could be a winner.

[bryan @ Mar 15th 2006 3:25PM]

it looks like it even has a little miniature powerbook latch button on the front edge. considering the pathetic state of U.S. handhelds in general, I would give one of these a look.

[Akshat @ Mar 15th 2006 3:35PM]

It seems its gonna cost 1000 Euros ... so um .. not exactly an ipod killer then ... this is from generation mp3 i think ...

[George @ Mar 15th 2006 3:59PM]

#14 - Lee,

The comments I have made are valid. The design has excess buttons and is unattractive to me. How are you qualified to say that my views are wrong? After all, you know nothing more about it than anyone else here...
...And I didn't realize our taste in design had to conform to yours.

[Lee @ Mar 15th 2006 4:14PM]

20, dearest friend George.

You indeed implied that this design was "crappy" by sating just that. FYI, look closer, it's designed to look exactly like the little brother od nearly all laptops currently out, including the little "eraser nub" pointer.

Thus, how is "make it less crappy" a "valid" point in any situation, unless you're talking about the state of a porta-potty that's designed to clean itself and isn't working properly?

"...And I didn't realize our taste in design had to conform to yours." So, who's this, you and your other personalities?
In any case, I've got no need for one of these, but I still don't understand your distaste with it being white... think maybe the color chosen was like the colors chosen for concept cars, when those colors never make it to the market?
Overall, George, I'm saying your utterly baseless negativity is strange, whereas I - like you - know really nothing of this, and am thus looking forward to seeing what it might provide me... you just poopoo it up front, not even knowing what the buttons on the side of the screen might do for you. It's okay to be closed-minded... I just brought it up as the opposite of your perspective. Touchy?

[PEZ @ Mar 15th 2006 4:24PM]

To our friends George and Lee: how about you to have your spat in an email. No one wants to sift through your crap to get to the real comments.

:)

[MrFloppy @ Mar 15th 2006 4:34PM]

It's ugly as hell, but... OMG what specs!!!!!!!!!

[JasonBrewer @ Mar 15th 2006 4:39PM]

With WiBro, it might end up being Korea-only:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/WiBro

[Lee @ Mar 15th 2006 4:51PM]

#23 - having spent a year in Korea, they are indeed a culture of people wholly wrapped up in what the newest, coolest, smallest gadget is... this little thingy will be huge in Korea... especially if it comes loaded with one of those Virtual Pet programs.

[AutoDas @ Mar 15th 2006 5:03PM]

wow guys have you even kept up with iriver since they were organized? There devices are not the sexiest in all catagories, but they do have some of the greatest specs out there. This will most likely be Korean only. Korea is all about the small sizes and these UMPC are like gods to them since they come competitvely priced at laptops there (do not go there and expect to find a new laptop under $1000, it wont happen) Seriously, why do you think a DAP would be hmm I don't know... shaped like a laptop.

BTW iriver dropped the capitalization and I don't want to hear any b*tching about me saying that its just a fact. gawd.

[George @ Mar 15th 2006 5:09PM]

"So, who's this, you and your other personalities?"

No, that would be the others who have made similar comments on it's appearance.

'Crappy' is simply a way of expressing my opinion of the design. It's a shorter way of saying 'i dislike the visual design of this product and feel it is a poor concept'.

If the OS is designed well enough, the extra buttons should not be required. A full keyboard and tracking nub mouse (a feature which I happen to like, by the way) should be sufficient.

"It's okay to be closed-minded"

I'm not surprised you feel this way. After all, it is you who are attacking my opinions (to which we are both entitled, by the way).

If I were being baselessly negative, I wouldn't have said 'I'd consider it'. I'd have said 'I don't care how the final design looks, I won't buy it anyway'.

If you like the design, that's fair enough. On the whole, I don't. You shouldn't be offended by that.

Dearest friend,
George

[Lee @ Mar 15th 2006 5:13PM]

#26 - Indeed, I'd rather have it function properly than be overly sexy... but in this case, they seem to have designed something that the Korean technophiles would snatch up quickly.

Does it look to anyone else like the keys on the left of the monitor are phone keys and to the right would be gaming keys? (the all-white kinda makes it difficult to make out)

[Lee @ Mar 15th 2006 5:21PM]

George, apparently neither of our concerns matter... unless you live in Korea (I certainly don't)... as this little gem won't see the light of day in the US... but the more I look at it, the more it just screams Korea. Tech gadgets are all the rage there and Japan -- how many of those crazy little robot dogs have they sold? (wish I was in on that)

Also, I'm betting a shiny Sacagawea dollar that the screen buttons are for games and phone... thus making them at least partly necessary. Here in the States, they'd all be incorporated, much like phone buttons on the Blackberry... Americans seem to dig "less is more," much like the single center button found on the iPod.

And I'm not offended, but thanks for asking. That's very kind.

[OddManOut @ Mar 15th 2006 6:38PM]

It makes Origami look good ? I...think I'l have to disagree on that perticular point. I'll admit the small screen is kind of a surprise considering this thing is supposed to be a media device to begin with, but Origami ain't got no keyboard or screen protection. Both of which are very important to me.

Ditch the hackneyed 'me too!' white and it will be significantly de-uglied IMHO.

Great specs, but of course that means a high price...ah well...I'll just eBay me up one in a few years...

[TC @ Mar 15th 2006 6:50PM]

I thought the picture was for one of those gadget-themed birthday cakes when I glanced at it! Can someone PS the image and tone the contrast down a little? It's making me hungry....

[onelove4all @ Mar 15th 2006 10:02PM]

iriver DO make electronic dictionery like casio and sharp do.
I bet this is some device sort of that kind. The function is probably the dictionary but they were always open for supporting many formats.
Dic+PMP