Cowon's D2 PMP now available in 16GB form

As lovely as the D2 is, we've always had a secret wish for it to offer up a bit more internal capacity. Apparently the higher-ups at Cowon have heard our inner cries, as a 16GB edition of the player is now available through JetMall. Aside from being more capacious, nothing else has changed, but if this was just the thing to push you over the edge, you can hand over your $240 right now and join the club.

[Via AnythingButiPod]

[Derek Bradley @ May 9th 2008 11:27PM]

$240 for 16gb and such a great player really is a great deal, I have the 4gb, gonna sell it to get this. Anyone wanna buy??

[Jeebus @ May 11th 2008 12:43PM]

Careful if you plan on playing FLAC. Since firmware 2.53, FLAC 1.2.1 files will not play.

[joegeoghan @ May 10th 2008 2:12AM]

Maybe is this thing didn't look like its UI was designed around XP media center and a 2001 mp3 player i'd bite, but its just too ugly for me.

[Kimleng @ May 10th 2008 2:45AM]

You have one less reason not to bite, then. The UI is skinnable. There are dozens of skins already made for this player. The picture just shows a default skin. Also, this thing must be seen and held in person to be fully appreciated. Pictures don't really do it justice. It's freakin' small and incredibly multi-talented for the size.

[The Dude @ May 10th 2008 12:06AM]

Pitching a tent here, Cowon; waiting for your next goddamn HDD DAP successor to the X5--not pitching a tent as an an erection.

[happy_penguin @ May 10th 2008 6:43AM]

That's a visual I didn't need. :p

[Trent Boyett @ May 10th 2008 12:12AM]

I've got the 4GB one too and ya, it's a fantastic player.

Price seems kinda high for this though...you can get the 4GB model for $150 and an extra 16GB SDHC for 70$...makes it 20GB total for $220.

[Drew @ May 10th 2008 12:19AM]

Why does this look like the back of a camera.

[MeatyPi @ May 10th 2008 1:09AM]

Hmm, the 2.154 people per billion that own these should be disappointed that theirs is only 4GB :{

[kr @ May 10th 2008 1:45AM]

I love my 4GB D2....you can't beat 52 hours music and 10 hours video...

[YpoCaramel @ May 10th 2008 1:43AM]

Definitely great, though I figure if people wanted the capacity they'd already shelled out for the memory card. So the new max is 48GB with a 32GB memory card now?

[error2k2 @ May 10th 2008 1:48AM]

Gah! I Just bought the 8GB D2 with DAB radio since I live in the UK! When will the DAB version for the 16GB D2 come out!?!?!
I guess I could just wait for the 32gb SDHC to come down in price...

[Ace b @ May 10th 2008 2:12AM]

So,I wonder.Is this truly any good?
Anyone wanna fill me in on their personal experiences.I'm interested in getting one.

[supergoat @ May 10th 2008 3:54AM]

Batter life is great. Same with usability. The UI is really simple (and fun) to use. nice and responsive. Great size. the screen is big enough to see, yet small enough to fit in ur pocket. I have a cowon A2 and a Zune, so i got the D2 primarily for the size reduction. The sound quality is great, same as the A2 (which is one of the best), and waaay better than the zune (which sux ass.)

You can use it in ur pocket as well, since when on hold the volume buttons change to FF and RF buttons. and the middle menu button turns to PLAY/PAUSE.

[John Bailey @ May 10th 2008 7:20PM]

I got the 2 gig last week. I'm very happy with it. It has an SDHC slot, so the internal capacity isn't really that important. Especially conssidering how cheap SD cards are now.

The sound is excellent, Battery life is amazing, and it is a really nicely built little player. It is about the size of a credit card, but feels solid and good quality in your hand. Not cheap and plasticky.

Read up on the tech specs as sites such as Anything but ipod. Worth every penny as far as I'm concerned.

[hotdogson @ May 10th 2008 3:03AM]

I've had the 4 gb one and it was a fantastic purchase. Since then, I've switched it out to ipod touch and there are many functions that I miss from the D2. Comparing between the two, D2 offers a lot of flexibility; however, the video files still need substantial conversions in order to be compatible with the player (in terms of resolution). The UI can be customized with different skins and with the new firmware, makes flash skinning possible. I had no problem with this but I felt that the D2 community isn't big enough to churn out really cool custom UI's quickly as much as the ipod community on improving its player. Just my thoughts.

[Valgas @ May 10th 2008 3:29AM]

I'll wait till I hear some news about a potential D2 follow-up. And also wait till Amazon gets it and drops the price.


No..... maybe i'll just go ahead and get this.

[David @ May 10th 2008 6:01AM]

The is the BEST MP3 PLAYER EVER..no contest..check out iAudiophile for more infos..but seriously been using this for a few month and it kills the iPod so bad.

[hotdogson @ May 10th 2008 7:33AM]

i go as far as saying that it's the best mp3 player and that it kills the ipod, i think it all depends what you're looking for. For example, if you're looking for a simple mp3/vid player on the go with customizable user functionality, this would be a great choice (works well on the go as well as for the gym.) If you are looking for a player to hold a lot of videos more than the 16gb(+sd card) support provides, maybe the 160gb ipod classic might be your thing, or if wifi functionality and other 'apps' are a factor, then the ipod touch. Again, i wouldn't really say it kills the ipod, just better at serving particular need for some people.

Oh by the way, I think built in mic and fm should be a must for all mp3 players... some people still listen to FM (ie (fm)sports broadcasts)

[hotdogson @ May 10th 2008 7:35AM]

er... i meant 'i wouldn't' in the beginning, doh

[low tech @ May 10th 2008 9:35AM]

I'm pretty sure he's just referring to its direct competitor in storage, the Nano. For that case, I wholly agree if not just for expandable memory. But in all other cases, Cowon's Q5 or A3 would be a more acceptable match up for the Classic or the Touch. Especially the Q5; that thing is just godly.

http://www.cowonamerica.com/products/cowon/q5w/
http://www.cowonamerica.com/products/cowon/a3

[Ruben @ May 10th 2008 11:39AM]

@hotdogson:

Ive listened to the Zune 80, Classic, Touch, and this player (4gb) version with my Shure e2C, and hes completely correct. All those players (the Zune reproducing the audio much better than the Apple variants, but having no audio enhancements kills it) dont compare to the audio quality and sheer power you get from these Cowon players. I dont even own a Cowon, mainly due to the space offered on that 4GB version (which is why i went with a Zune), but im not deaf to facts. The Cowon is the best sounding player ive put through my headphones. And why that feature is no longer relevant to people looking for audio players, i dont know. Maybe its all those 64Kbps files people are downloading from Kazaa.

Ill be picking up a cheap 4gb cowon as soon as it drops to the 100 dollar range, and upgrade it when the time is right with an SDHC. I could use a "utility" player.

[hotdogson @ May 10th 2008 1:21PM]

@Ruben

I completely agree with your opinion on the sound quality, but I was just referring it in terms of extra functions that the device might provide. And trust me, i've never paid much attention to sound quality until i switched from d2 to touch obvious drop off. My current touch is by no means spectacular in terms of the audio output, but i can live with it :/

[Elaine @ May 10th 2008 9:34AM]

You can just add on an 8GB or 16GB SD card. It would be easier and cheaper than upgrading.

Though, this is definitely a great DAP. Sound quality is excellent and is powerful enough to drive some harder to drive headphones without a portable amp.

[Jesse Dula @ May 10th 2008 9:40AM]

http://www.anythingbutipod.com/archives/2007/04/cowon-iaudio-d2-review.php

Great review.

[alicson @ May 10th 2008 1:57PM]

Elaine and others are right --
seems silly to wait on this thing to have 16gb internal before buying, since it's been just as nicely accepting 16gb+ hcSD cards for a long while now. I have a 4gb player with 16gb card that I can swap out with other 2-4gb cards. This is wonderful player and a very reasonable price and I highly recommend it.

[sillyrabbit @ May 10th 2008 1:22PM]

using the SD card on the D2 drains the battery significantly.
i for one like not having to charge my mp3 player daily.

[Motoken @ May 10th 2008 1:44PM]

yeah the one thing i like most is the huge battery life these have!

[Kibi @ May 11th 2008 5:47AM]

Love my 4Gb D2! As others said, it's a pity that you need to run every video through their converter to get it to work, but fact is, the converter works fine and TV-out works well (in NTSC - not very good for PAL).

Sound quality is great for me, though I'm not a huge audiophile - you can expand memory with SDHC, so the 16Gb version is nice but not essential.

I think I'll be keeping mine till Cowon come up with a successor to D2 - anything else would probably be a let down.

[Phillip Black @ May 12th 2008 7:33PM]

The battery life on there things is nuts, I love mine! Not to mention the amount of customization.

[t e @ May 14th 2008 6:56PM]

I loved my D2 till the INTERNAL LCD cracked while in the protective case while resting in a suit jacket pocket. Sent it back to Cowan & they told me it was my fault as I caused the damage, with no damage or sign of damage on the top layer screen. They said there was pressure on the right side of the screen, sorry Cowan but it wasn't that way! It was a month old when that happened. From my experience Cowan's touchscreen design is CRAP! My DS and PDA have taken more abuse and are still with me 2 years later. Tech service is a rip off as $67.00 to replace a screen on a $150.00 device, on something that should have been covered under a warranty. Face it folks we live in a world of throw away technology and Cowan knows it. Follow link and look elsewhere for something a little more reputable.
http://mysite.verizon.net/vze2g6yb/cowan.htm