iRiver's future: WiBro gaming or bust

We have a soft spot for some of iRiver's digital media players, even if they've largely gotten lost in a crowded marketplace. But we may not be seeing too many new models from the company. Faced with the evaporation of its market share, both at home in Korea and in the crucial US marketplace, iRiver is attempting to remake itself as a vendor of portable WiBro gaming consoles. The transition is likely to be a bumpy one. Although iRiver showed off its first gaming console, the G10 (now renamed the Wing), several months ago, that model continues to face delays, and is now expected to show up no sooner than the end of the year, and then, in all likelihood, only in Korea. Sure, the Wing has some tasty features, including a 4-inch LCD, compatibility with most common audio and video formats, WiFi, WiBro and 6GB NAND flash memory. But at an initial price of about $315, it'll be competing directly against dozens of cheaper Korean DMB PMPs, hard drive-equipped players from vendors like Apple and Creative, and gaming consoles like the DS Lite, which will be on the market in Korea well before the end of the year, at a price well below $315. Still, iRiver probably has little choice but to try something drastic: the company's sales have plummeted from close to $1 billion two years ago to just $39 million in the first quarter of this year. We'll be sure to check out the Wing -- and, in the meantime, we'll be on the lookout for fire sale pricing on the Clix.

Read - iRiver's strategy
Read - G10 specs
Read - Wing delays (sub reqd)

[abigsmurf @ May 23rd 2006 10:46AM]

The Wing/G10 needs a proper d-pad and some more buttons.

[Nukes and Candy @ May 23rd 2006 10:52AM]

Marketing Transgressions: Don’t these people know they’re not the only ones competing in that market? Umm, what the PSP? How about that two-screen, no-good DS Lite? What’s that? Beats me!

There’s also the secondary market competitors, the other MP3 players (I dare not mention its iName), the PS3, witch a lot of Asian consumers are saving up for, and the X360.

At $315.00 well earned “good ones”, how is it possible they pretend to get market penetration as quick as it’s well established competitors.

“Pay a lot, and get a piece of a lot, but nothing that works as well as the competition”

PFFFF…. This should never see the light of day. iRiver, you have been warned!

Alexander Wunderlich
.

[George @ May 23rd 2006 11:02AM]

When is the theft and expensive car crashing gonna commence? Isn't that the tradition to a dying company these days?

[narcszm @ May 23rd 2006 11:06AM]

If I were a hand model in Korea, I'd be one hot commodity.

[Ben Freedman @ May 23rd 2006 11:30AM]

Good thing their not trying to put too much into one device. Just like my nGage...

[MrPolarBare @ May 23rd 2006 11:36AM]

If I could get emulators on this thing, I would prefer it to the PSP. 800x480 on a 4" screen? WOW. That thing must be beautiful. Also, 6 GB worth of storage is great. And best of all, it is portable! I love the controls sliding behind the screen when not in use. It should be not much bigger than an iPod, and much smaller than a PSP (or even the new DS Lite). My DS is permanently parked on my toilet for bathroom gaming only. It is too big for me to put in my pocket and go around town with it. I do not have a PSP, but I am sure the same would apply. This thing seems much more portable. I'm not saying this thing is going to beat out the DS or the PSP (and I don't think iRiver thinks so either, and I don't think it is designed to), but I do think if done properly this unit could find a niche place in the marketplace. But, like I said before, it all depends on how they support this little device and how they market it.

[Todd @ May 23rd 2006 11:37AM]

OH SA-SWEET! I want one.

iRiver could quit losing a billion a year if they'd start getting all these cool little gadgets ( I have a U10 and love it ) here in the U.S. quickly and on the cheap.

[Oddmanout @ May 23rd 2006 11:49AM]

"Nukes and Candy" makes a good point. It does seem strange that iRiver somehow thinks that they can significantly improve their fortunes be transitioning from the intensely competitive DAP/PMP market into the intensely competitive portable game system market...

Then again, many people seem to think one of the reasons the PSP is not precisely king of the mountain in that arena is the lack of a killer app (and the subsequent lack of other compelling SOFTWARE).
The game pictured in the above photograph is supposedly the most popular game in Korea (or at least it was). Having the most popular game in a market as huge as Korea's gaming market is could make a real difference.

But iRiver will need to CONTINUE providing enjoyable games if this device is to really be successful. People RAVED about Lumines, but eventually wanted more...and I ain't talkin' about UMDs...

But the $315 price tag is a dangerous price IMHO. The device may even be worth it with 6gb of memory and video playback, but probably most people who might buy his thing already have a DAP/PMP, so the added funtionality probably won't be a big enough selling point to offset the prohibitive cost.

But hey, I recently bought an iRiver H120 and am pretty pleased with it (I still can't get it to mount in windows properly, but I'll see what upgrading the firmware does), so here's hopin' iRiver can pull it off...

[dartisan @ May 23rd 2006 12:59PM]

Are they ctually going to get any decent games on this thing though!?! I think they're makign a big mistake here. It's all good and well putting a nice spec on paper but there's a LOT more to competing in the handheld gaming market than that, and they're already behind the competitors who have some serious industry leverage and brand presence.

iRiver really should be concentrating on the market it's done so well in previously and not jumping ship just because the MP3 marketplace is pretty busy now and their PMP's haven't quite exploded. They should push on their name in the MP3 market, and expand their distribution networks internationally. With that and a little well placed marketing I think they could have everybody but the iPod blown out of the water (and even then they'd remain the 1st choice alternative for anti-iPodders like myself).

[PEZ @ May 23rd 2006 1:03PM]

These cellphone companies (like nokia) and MP3 player companies, like iRivier and Cowan, bla bla, should form a new company and try to penetrate the market - because they WILL NOT do it on their own. Especially if they cant pull their own weight getting developers to make the games. And good ones, at that!

[Spooky @ May 23rd 2006 1:40PM]

Looks Similar to the design I made of an XBOX portable.
http://img150.imageshack.us/img150/5170/xboxportable3fy.jpg

[Demetrius @ Mar 29th 2008 12:42PM]

That dawm thing sucks

[Bob S. @ May 23rd 2006 2:03PM]

iRiver has a really nice lookin gportable PC on their web site...

http://shop.iriver.co.kr/product/product_info_frm.asp?prdtCode=327348&LcatCode=001000000000

Can't see the specs because I don't understand Japanese but it looks similar to this but with keyboard.

[juan @ May 23rd 2006 2:12PM]

I just got the newest newsletter from iRiver.
Check it out here.
http://www.devicetodevice.com

[ted @ May 23rd 2006 7:13PM]

uhm, #11..iRiver is a korean company...and that linked site you provided is in korean

[Matt @ May 26th 2006 4:18PM]

Yeah, I bot an iRiver once. Over-paid, over-rated, and over-touted. I was looking for a good flash-memory player for running but the iRiver sux. Small screen, difficult/impossible to control while one the move. Tried to get a replacement part from iRiver and they were no help whatsoever. As much as I hate Macs, I would prob rather buy a nano. I echo the PFFFFFF, iRiver comment above.

[dx gb @ May 28th 2006 4:54PM]

How on earth can it compete with other Korean consoles like GP2X that have been on the market for more than a year.

[dc @ Feb 4th 2008 6:43PM]

is this even out and if it is where can i get one!?!?!?!