S9 -- Engadget

Cowon S9 gets pulled apart, put back together again

by Joseph L. Flatley, posted Jun 5th 2009 at 2:16PM

It was bound to happen sooner or later -- this poor Cowon S9 got the vivisection treatment and the startling pics have been posted in the Anything But iPod forums. And guess what? It's choc full of tiny components, a little bit of "wax paper or something," and let's not forget that world renowned AMOLED touch screen. This endeavor hasn't been undertaken in vain, however -- the good doctor has included tons of pics and step-by-step instructions in case you ever have to conduct the operation yourself. You know, in the name of science.

Cowon's 32GB S9 PMP goes on sale in America

by Darren Murph, posted May 3rd 2009 at 4:44AM

We knew you'd do the right thing Cowon, we just knew it. Barely a fortnight after the company introduced its most capacious S9 to date over in South Korea, said player has made its way stateside... at least that's the impression that we get. Listed now as "in stock" on Amazon, the 32GB Titanium / Black unit is shown as being sold by JetAudio, which just so happens to be Cowon's official online home for sales. If you surf over to the S9 section on JetAudio's website, however, the 16GB model is still listed as the largest one available. We're guessing the latter's admin hasn't had time to update things between that Friday night rave and that six pack of Dos Equis on Saturday, but we hear Amazon has a pretty good reputation, anyway.

[Via PMP Today]

Lenovo netbook with built-in 3G hits the FCC -- destined for AT&T?

by Nilay Patel, posted Apr 15th 2009 at 7:39PM

The Lenovo S9 and S10 have already been approved by the FCC, so the appearance of this mysterious nine-inch Lenovo netbook in Uncle Sam's all-knowing database is certainly thought-provoking -- especially since it's got a built-in AT&T-compatible 3G card in it. That suggests to us that Ma Bell's about to start offering a subsidized S9 alongside its current stable of laptops, but we haven't seen or heard anything definitive yet -- do let us know if you spot something amazing in the SAR reports, would you?

Cowon releases 32GB S9 PMP in Korea

by Darren Murph, posted Apr 14th 2009 at 12:14PM

Cowon's done a commendable job in making the S9 a force to be reckoned with in the PMP arena, but the 16GB maximum has likely caused quite a few music aficionados to look elsewhere. At long last, the company is releasing a 32GB flavor over in South Korea, though it'll cost you a stiff ₩379,000 ($287) for the privilege of ownership. There's no word on a US release, but we'd wager that it'll be here within a month or two. Right, Cowon?

[Via PMPToday]

Version 2.10 beta firmware makes your Cowon S9 a new PMP

by Darren Murph, posted Mar 12th 2009 at 4:04PM

Slowly but surely, Cowon has been issuing firmware updates to make its sleek S9 PMP the music player it ought to be. According to a recent leak of the v2.10 beta, it's about to become even more formidable a rival. Reportedly, the forthcoming update -- which can be downloaded now for those kosher with all things beta -- adds in support for widgets, WMV7/8, pitch correction, full screen mode in TV-out and color tags for subtitles. As for improved functionality, we're heard that the entire navigation process has been smoothed over, particularly in the area of browser scrolling. Check the read link for a download URL as well as the full changelog, and if that lucky individual that won our S9 giveaway doesn't give this a go and report back, you all have to right to throw stones until he / she does.

[Via AnythingButiPod, thanks Joseph]

Reminder: Cowon S9 giveaway ends tomorrow!

by Darren Murph, posted Feb 1st 2009 at 11:02PM

Didn't take three seconds out of your immensely busy schedule to enter your name to win an 8GB Cowon S9 portable media player? Fret not, as we're reminding you to do so right this moment. The contest ends tomorrow night (full rules are listed in the read link), so you've only yourself to blame if you let this opportunity pass you by as well.

Engadget Giveaway: win a Cowon S9 PMP!

by Darren Murph, posted Jan 26th 2009 at 7:58PM

For no other reason than we're just in a particularly generous mood, we're giving away Cowon's latest portable media player, the S9. In case you've been absent for the past month or so, let us remind you that this thing has been unboxed, reviewed, posted in a weekly episode of How Would You Change and even updated a time or two by Cowon itself. If you're ready to take this gently used player into your own loving hands, here's what you need to do. Read the full rules below, and if you're eligible for entering, just leave a comment below with your favorite character from Sesame Street. Or really, just any comment. Good luck!

The rules:

Leave a comment below. Any comment will do, promise!
You may only enter this specific giveaway once. If you enter this giveaway more than once you'll be automatically disqualified, etc. (Yes, we have robots that thoroughly check to ensure fairness.)
If you enter more than once, only activate one comment. This is pretty self explanatory. Just be careful and you'll be fine.
Contest is open to anyone in the 50 States, 18 or older! Sorry, we don't make this rule (we hate excluding anyone), so be mad at our lawyers and contest laws if you have to be mad.
Winner will be chosen randomly. The winner will receive one (1) 8GB Cowon S9 portable media player. Approximate value is $199.99.
Entries can be submitted until Monday, February 2nd, 11:59PM ET. Good luck!
Full rules can be found here.

How would you change Cowon's S9 PMP?

by Darren Murph, posted Jan 17th 2009 at 12:22AM

Cowon's S9 portable media player had a lot of folks excited -- and understandably so. A bright, expansive AMOLED display. A sleek, curvaceous design. And a codec support list worth drooling over. During our time with the unit, we found the user interface to still be lacking in a few critical departments, though we certainly found a long list of reasons to love it, too. Now that it's been floating around on US soil for a hot minute, we're asking you how you'd tweak it. Are you completely satisfied with the UI? Are there any video formats that have inexplicably refused to play? Is the build quality up to your lofty standards? Let it rip below!

Cowon S9 review

by Darren Murph, posted Dec 29th 2008 at 11:00AM

On paper, Cowon's S9 is distinct from what most would consider its rivals. It packs a curvaceous design, nary a single front panel button, an AMOLED display and a codec support list chock full of formats that audiophiles admire. Clearly, Cowon is aiming to appeal to portable media enthusiasts who are also sticklers for sound quality, with the core functionality consisting of only the basics that one would expect on a PMP. The sector it's diving into already has a pretty strong list of alternatives on the market, which probably means that you're wondering if it really does (or doesn't) stack up. Follow us past the break as we take a closer look at what the S9 brings (and doesn't bring) to the table.

Continue reading Cowon S9 review

Cowon S9 firmware update adds Bluetooth speaker support

by Darren Murph, posted Dec 25th 2008 at 11:53PM

For early adopters who have already taken delivery of their shiny new Cowon S9, they've already sucked down one firmware update to fix some of the more obvious issues. Now, there's round number two (v2.06) to endure. The company has loosed the second firmware update for its just birthed PMP, with this one adding JPG album art support (for files with the .jpg extension) and fixing a bug that occasionally caused a system reboot after the "remove hardware from PC" message appeared. Most notable, however, is the new inclusion of Bluetooth speaker support, meaning that this device can now stream tunes to BT-enabled sound systems sans cabling or any other black magic. Tap the read link to get your download a-goin'.

Cowon issues first firmware update for S9 PMP

by Darren Murph, posted Dec 18th 2008 at 6:15PM

Yes, already. Before the 8GB S9 has even had a chance to become available, Cowon has already issued the first firmware update for its hot little PMP. If you're one of the earliest of adopters, you may want to give this one a download / install before flinging your device upside the wall. Just to name a few, the patch fixes bugs when changing boundary settings for music playback, when viewing particular picture files, when the upper buttons are pressed simultaneously and when connecting Bluetooth Mono headsets. Hop on past the break for the full alert, and tap the read link to access the file.

Continue reading Cowon issues first firmware update for S9 PMP

Cowon S9 PMP unboxing and hands-on

by Darren Murph, posted Dec 18th 2008 at 12:49PM

Cowon's 16GB S9 may have just started shipping out yesterday, but we just acquired one of the 8GB models a day before it's expected to hit the rest of America. We're planning on spending a little time with this critter to give you our thoughts, but for now, we figured we'd let you toy around in the gallery below to get acquainted. Our first impression upon cracking open the box was along the lines of "wow, this thing is small... and light!" Maybe that zoomed in press shot we've been drooling over had our proportions all jacked up, but needless to say you won't have a tough time fitting this one in your right front pocket. Check out the images below for an unboxing and UI walkthrough that'll surely bring copious amounts of joy into your life.

Update: Full specifications list now posted after the break for easy reference.

Gallery: Cowon S9 PMP unboxing

Gallery: Cowon S9 PMP hands-on / UI walkthrough

Continue reading Cowon S9 PMP unboxing and hands-on

Cowon's 16GB S9 PMP ships early to America

by Darren Murph, posted Dec 17th 2008 at 3:36PM

We know, it's not December 19th just yet, but Santa's being super proactive this year. As of right now, Cowon's 16GB S9 PMP is on sale and shipping to US consumers from JetMall. You already know what the $239.99 will buy you -- the question is, are you able to hold off?

Lenovo Ideapad S9 available now in US

by Laura June, posted Dec 16th 2008 at 7:58PM

If you've been waiting around for the elusive 8.9-inch Lenovo S9 Ideapad, today's your lucky day. A smaller version of the already available S10, this one boasts a 1.6GHz Atom N270 CPU, 512MB of DDR2 RAM, and 4GB SSD, all paired with a 1024×600 resolution. It's available for $344.99 at Geeks and $359.46 at Buy.com, so you might want to burn rubber over there right away. Go ahead and admit it: you love ZZ Top, just like us.

[Via Laptoping]

Read - Lenovo Ideapad S9 at Geeks
Read - Lenovo Ideapad s9 at Buy.com

Cowon ships S9 PMP to US soil

by Darren Murph, posted Dec 15th 2008 at 11:25AM

Remember those off-the-wall delay rumors? Yeah, Cowon just put 'em to bed. All of 'em. As of today, the luscious S9 PMP is off to America, bringing with it a 3.3-inch AMOLED display (480 x 272), 500MHz processor, capacitive touchscreen operation, Bluetooth 2.0 (for stereo headphones), a battery good for 11 hours of video (55 hours for audio), BBE+ sound enhancements, inbuilt microphone, line-in recording and enough codec support to make a grown man weep for joy. The device should be available on December 19th at a variety of e-tailers, and given the $199.99 (8GB) / $239.99 (16GB) price tags, we'd say a certain touch-friendly rival has a lot to worry about. Full release is after the break.

Continue reading Cowon ships S9 PMP to US soil