CowonD2
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Cowon D2+ PMP now shipping to the US
It just made its official debut a little over a week ago, but Cowon's new D2+ PMP is now already available to order for folks in the US, and at pricing in line with the previous D2 model, no less. That means $139.99 for the 8GB model and $179.99 for the 16GB, which are each otherwise identical, and pack a 2.5-inch QVGA touchscreen, an FM radio, line-in and TV-out ports, an SD card slot for further expansion, and support for all the usual audio and video formats. You will, of course, have to make do without that DMB TV tuner found on the Korean model, but If that non-functional omission isn't too much of a deal-breaker, you can get your order in by hitting up the read link below. [Via DAP Review, thanks Michael]
Cowon intros upgraded iAUDIO 7, D2 players
We heard rumors of a beefed-up D2 way back in July, but Cowon has just now made that upgrade a reality, and it's giving its iAUDIO 7 player a storage boost for good measure as well. Both upgrades will apparently only be available on the red versions of the players, with the D2 now topping out at 8GB and the iAUDIO 7 pushing things all the way to 16GB. Otherwise, both players appear to be the same as before, with the former boasting a 2.5-inch LCD, an FM radio, and a promised 52 hours of playing time, and the latter packing a 1.3-inch LCD and an even longer 60 hours of purported battery life. According to Cowon, both should be available any day now (if they aren't already), with the new top-end D2 running $250, and the upgraded iAUDIO 7 setting you back $300.
Cowon's iAudio D2 touchscreen PMP reviewed
CNET Asia just tossed up an "excellent" 8.4/10 rating along with their Editor's Choice award to Cowon's new 4GB iAudio D2 multimedia player. As you'd expect, it gets high praise for including a "crispy and sharp" touchscreen on a digital media player making the "gorgeous" new interface even more intuitive to use. While it works just fine with your grimy finger, they also include a quirky triangular stylus (resembling a guitar pick) which is tethered to the device on an elastic cord. A bit annoying, but beneficial when slotted into the back of the D2 allowing it to stand on a tabletop. There's a long list of positives: the usual audio format support in addition to OGG Vorbis, FLAC, APE; the ability to expand from the on-board 4GB to 8GB via the SD/MMC card slot; the battery which lasted an "astonishing" 46 hours and 23 minutes; and a quick 5.33MB per second drag-and-drop transfer speed. Other than some slight lag when viewing pictures and the occassional "scratchy" radio reception... there's just not much to harsh on. Oh, 'cept the fact that you still can't get one off the shelf in North America or Europe. [Via Impress, thanks woopieboy]
Cowon D2 goes legit, but just for Korea
Media player maven Cowon just got official on that Cowon D2 we'd been seeing around. It's a DMB device, so it's naturally Korea-only at the moment -- and boy are we jealous. Capacities range from 1 to 4GB, the 2.5-inch LCD is of the QVGA variety, and you can upgrade the memory via SD. We can't decide if the touchscreen interface or 45 hours of battery life (in MP3 mode, 8 hours on DMB) is our favorite part, but we suppose that's why Cowon included 'em both. There's also TV-out, hefty format support, FM radio and voice recording, and Cowon manages this all in a mere 0.65-inches of thickness. Still no word on price, and we won't give up hope on a DMB-less version that might, just might, grace our shores, but it doesn't look like we'll be getting no D2 in our stockings this year, that's for sure. Keep reading to view the rest of the colors.[Via dapreview]
