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Cowon X7 materializes from the ether into a real life FCC applicant
Alright, so this isn't quite like seeing Duke Nukem Forever popping up on Walmart shelves, but the Cowon X7 has been a long time in the making. Rumored since 2007, the Korean company's portable media player has now finally sauntered up to America's Communications Commission to dot some Is and cross some Ts. We're let into the knowledge that it'll come with a Bluetooth radio and a HDD of some kind, which GenerationMP3 speculates will be a 1.8-inch unit. Really now, a spinny thing in our PMP feels better suited to good old '07, but then if Cowon can combine some capacious storage with a large screen, it could still have a winner on its hands. Particularly if the rumblings of Android as the OS turn out to be true.
Cowon's V5W PMP: a V5 with 100 percent more WiFi
What do you get when you marry a V5 with WiFi? Why, a V5W, of course! Cowon's sexy V5 portable media player -- a device we (mostly) loved on back in March -- has just gained the primary feature that we argued should've been included from the start. It looks as if all of the other specifications have remained the same, meaning that you're still looking at a 4.8-inch 800 x 480 touchscreen, Windows CE 6.0 underneath, 16/32/64GB of internal storage, USB 2.0 connectivity, HDMI / composite video output, a solid list of supported file formats and the best audio quality this side of the Mississippi Indian Ocean. Pricing remains a mystery for now, but we suspect it'll list for around the same as the original (which still needs a price drop, frankly).
Cowon adds 32GB model to J3 media player lineup
Our one hang-up regarding that ultra-slim, ultra-sexy Cowon PMP? Not enough of it! Up until now, that is. The company's just announced that it will be making a 32GB model available in Japan for ¥29,800 (roughly $325). That is, of course, in addition to the 8GB and 16GB models already on the streets. If that weren't enough, a company called JetMall has the thing listed as "in stock" for $299, available in either white or black. Hit the source link to see for yourself.
Cowon J3 ships to America, we go hands-on
Nary two full months after we first caught wind of Cowon's dainty (albeit super sexy) J3 portable media player, the award-winning device has both gone on sale and arrived on our doorstep (along with a few others, according to a few jovial tipsters). As of today, prospective consumers in the US can order one for $199.99 (8GB) or $239.99 (16GB), both of which have microSD slots for capacity expansion. Per usual, Cowon's packaging here was nothing short of delightful, and the 3.3-inch AMOLED display struck us just as the S9 did oh-so-many months ago. Unlike the larger V5 we reviewed back in March, we greatly appreciated the capacitive nature of this touch panel, and finger presses were accurately and immediately recognized. The user interface was also far more streamlined, and whizzing about from area to area was no issue. As with every other Cowon player we've ever laid ears on, the audio quality out of this one was second to none; if you're a self-proclaimed audiophile, yet can't exactly accommodate your Marantz KI Pearl on the subway, this is about as good as it gets. The video player was similarly impressive, loading up clips with minimal fuss, and showing no lag whatsoever during playback. Unfortunately, for all the things this gorgeous unit does right, the only spec that matters to some is wrong: pricing. We hate to point out the obvious, but an 8GB iPod touch is also just $199, and unlike the J3, Apple's alternative can surf the web over WiFi and bring you face to face with 100,000 (or so) apps. From a value proposition standpoint, there's simply no comparison. 'Course, the J3 may still stand out if you're all about audio quality (and nothing else), but we've yet to actually meet someone who didn't care at least a smidgen about the extras. Vote with your wallet, as they say. %Gallery-92787%
Cowon's award-winning J3 PMP spotted in the wilds of France, available there next month
The gang at Le Journal du Geek have got their hands (or someone's hands) on that Red Dot design award-winning Cowon J3 PMP, and we must say that the 3.3-inch AMOLED wonder looks pretty, pretty good. And with its TV output, Bluetooth audio support, and support for any number of standards (from the typical MP3, WMA, and WAV to the less-than-typical, but much-appreciated OGG, FLAC, APE, Div-X and Xvid) we're sure that the iAudio 9 is mighty proud of his big brother. Journal reports that this will see the light of day in France next month, look to spend about €249 (about $335) for the 16GB version.
Cowon's all-metal J3 PMP gets official
We'd already gotten a early look at Cowon's new all-metal J3 PMP earlier this month courtesy of the red dot design awards, but the company has just now gotten fully official with it, and detailed its complete specs. As expected, this one packs a 3.3-inch AMOLED touchscreen, along with 4GB, 8GB or 16GB of storage, a microSD card slot for further expansion, a built-in DMB TV tuner and FM radio, Bluetooth support, a built-in speaker and, of course, that brushed metal case -- not to mention a few familiar UI elements. Unfortunately, there's still no indication of a price, nor is there any word of a release over here. Update: At least one website has listed prices of between 189,000 and 359,000 South Korean won, or roughly $166 to $316. [Thanks, David K]
Cowon J3 PMP looks cool in its brushed metal case
Hot on the heels of giving our opinion on Cowon's (relatively) big-screened V5 media player we have some news on the next player in line from the company. It's called the J3 and, while Cowon has officially acknowledged its existence, its specifications have only been unveiled thanks to what looks to be an internationally coordinated effort on behalf of gadget lovers everywhere. The J3 is said to have a 3.3-inch AMOLED touchscreen with a resolution of 480 x 272, pulling content from 4, 8, or 16GB of internal storage -- content that can also be routed to a TV. There'll be Bluetooth to pump tunes wirelessly and a new metal case that's said to improve the quality feel of the player. That, of course, we won't know about until we can feel one of the things, and according to the company some folks will be able to do just that before the month is through.
Cowon V5 review
Cowon's V5 has been out and about in South Korea for just over two months now, but thankfully for the Yanks who are downright flustered with the existing PMP options here in the States, the company has decided to bring this beaut stateside. Boasting a 4.8-inch resistive touchscreen (800 x 480 resolution), a Windows CE 6.0 underlying OS, HDMI / USB sockets (via adapters from a proprietary socket), a voice recorder, integrated speaker, 3.5mm headphone jack, 8/16/32GB of internal storage, an SDHC expansion slot, a battery good for 45 hours of music playback (or 10 hours with video) and a format support list that would drive you batty to read, there's a lot (lot!) to love about this thing on paper. We were fortunate enough to get our hands on one of the first units to ship to America, so hop on past the break for our two pennies. %Gallery-88214%
Cowon W2 shown in its natural tradeshow habitat, running Windows 7
Werefore art thou, UMPC? Oh look, Cowon found you. The Cowon W2 MID / UMPC / tablet / something has been spotted in the wild, running Windows 7 and thwarting typical efficient interaction methods. The Atom-powered device was caught by AVING running in both portrait and landscape modes, and even paired up with a pint-sized USB QWERTY keyboard. It does look a little chunky under those harsh tradeshow lights, but there's a certain charm to the device's OS optimism. Hopefully we'll be able to play with one soon, but there's still no word on a US launch.
Cowon V5 HD gets extensive UI video demo
There's little point in trying to disguise our interest any time a 4.8-inch multifunctional device is mentioned, so let's get straight to the good stuff here. Cowon's V5 HD already got a little teaser video and a full spec dish ahead of its Korean launch, but for the vast majority of us non-Korean folk, this PMP remains a distant and unfortunately mysterious object of desire. Sure, we know it can pump out 720p and has HDMI and Composite outputs, but what's it like to use? The video after the break does a pretty thorough job of going through the UI, and though it alarmed us with its extensive stylus use, we were eventually soothed by some buttery smooth video playback. Go check it out. [Thanks, x3v]
Cowon W2 spec'd, priced, and dated for Korean consumers
That lovable little Windows 7-powered Cowon W2 MID has gotten two steps closer to reality this week with a price tag and release date. In order, 599,000 to 739,000KRW (equivalent to $533 and $658 in US, respectively) and Monday, January 25th. Unfortunately, those only apply to Korea only, but if you are thinking of importing, how about we take a look at the full specs list: 4.8-inc WSVGA screen, 1.3GHz Intel Atom Z520, 1GB RAM, 60GB or 80GB HDD, Bluetooth 2.0, 802.11b/g WiFi, two USB one miniUSB ports, and a battery promising 10 hours idle / 7 hours video playback. Yeah, we're not sure about that netbook-caliber processor either, but surely that MID form factor makes up for something... right?
Cowon's Atom-powered W2 MID gets teased, gets Windows 7
When Cowon's latest leaked back at the beginning of November we knew just about everything we really needed to know except for one crucial bit of intel: what it looked like. Now the company has thoughtfully taken care of that, throwing up a teaser page for the product that shows off a simple, sophisticated brushed metal exterior punctuated only by a pair of buttons on either side and three LED status lights. It's perhaps a bit chunky, with a wide bezel and a little more depth than we'd like, but it should be reasonably comfortable to use whenever it releases. The 4.8-inch, 1024 x 600 touchscreen LCD is confirmed, backed by a 1.3GHz Intel Atom processor that is probably going to struggle a little bit to keep up with Windows 7, which the company has chosen to bless this device's (unannounced) storage with. That's all we know for now. [Thanks to everyone who sent this in]
Motorola Droid and Dell Adamo latest to get Gorilla glass
Corning's darn-near-impenetrable Gorilla glass certainly isn't new -- in fact, we spied it in a few of Motion Computing's tablets just a few months ago -- but it's still not commonplace on mainstream gizmos. Yet. SmartPlanet sat down with Dr. Donnell Walton, senior applications engineer at Corning, in order to discuss the merits of the display technology as well as its importance in the gadget space. The discussion also mentioned that both Motorola's Droid and Dell's Adamo (not to mention Cowon's S9 PMP) are sporting the glass, which acts to make displays "damage-resistant." Not surprisingly, the company is seeing huge demand in the smartphone arena, where touchscreen-centric phones are being shoved into pockets at random and then costing manufacturers big bucks as return rates creep up. It's a pretty interesting read if you're into that type of thing, and yes, we did just give you permission to try and split your Droid display wide open in a moment of frustration. Just don't count on Motorola to accept that as a valid excuse for your RMA. [Thanks, Jeff]
Cowon V5 HD set for South Korea debut on January 1
Cowon has finally made its latest and greatest PMP official, and the spec sheet does not disappoint. Mixing appealing curves with a 4.8-inch display, the V5 HD offers 720p video playback that can be channeled out via HDMI or Composite outputs. On the software front, there's the usual litany of wide-ranging file compatibility and basic apps -- cortesy of Windows CE 6.0 -- as well as a world clock, RSS reader, Flash games, voice recorder, and an optional T-DMB tuner. We still don't know what's doing the dirty work under the hood, but you won't be wanting for storage, with integrated memory options up to 32GB being augmented by SDHC expandability. Battery life is rated at 10 hours of video or 45 hours of music, and the Korean landing date is January 1 with prices starting at 299,000 KRW ($256). Until then, you can check out more pictures after the break. [Thanks, The DarkSide]
Cowon V5 HD PMP turns up in ad ahead of launch
We're not quite sure if this is an actual teaser ad or one that just slipped out ahead of the proper launch, but it looks like the brief commercial after the break is the first anyone has seen of Cowon's new V5 HD PMP. Unfortunately, the ad doesn't offer much in the way of actual details, although it does appear that the PMP boasts a reasonably large touchscreen, which may or may not actually be HD. Head on past the break to check all 18 seconds of it for yourself.
Cowon iAudio 9 and iAudio E2 media players make the scene stateside
Cowon-heads of the world, you are in for a treat today. It looks like not one but two of the company's snack-sized media players are finally hitting the big time. First off, the iAudio 9 PMP is due to hit the states within a week. Available in 8GB and 16GB denominations, for some reason the domestic version will be available only in black. Aside from supporting the usual compliment of media files (MP3, FLAC, Ogg, WAV, APE, WME, XviD, and WMV videos) this guy sports composite video out. Get your hands on the 8GB version for $129, or go wild with 16GB for $169. If video isn't your bag, the enigmatic iAudio E2 (all 2.5-inches of it) is also available. Sporting a bevy of EQ presets, 4GB of storage and a not entirely terrible 11.5 hours of battery life, this is the keychain you've always wanted -- but never wanted to pay $65 for. Additional glamor shots after the break.
Cowon iAudio 9 ships soon for €180, gets pictured a few times over
We had reason to believe that iAudio 9 would be making itself official sooner rather than later, and while Cowon has still yet to say anything publicly, we'd say this gallery of hands-on shots is more than enough to consider it a done deal. Across the pond, the iAudio 9 has been outed as having a 2-inch LCD display, integrated FM tuner, a microphone, TV output, broad format support (MP3, WAV, OGG, WAV, FLAC, APE, AVI, WMX and XviD, to name a few), 16GB of internal memory and bundled earbuds that you'll probably be happy to discard. We're told that it'll go on sale (at least somewhere in Europe) for around €180 ($265) here in a few weeks, and you can dive into the read link if you're hankering for some images.
Atom-powered Cowon W2 leaked, could be crowding in on imaginary tablet territory
If there's one thing we like more than a flesh and blood slate tablet PC, it's one with zero launch specifics or imagery, and hopefully a dearth of specs. Cowon's delivering the former in spades, with the leak of the Atom-powered W2 MID on a Bluetooth.org certification page. Of course, calling it an internet tablet might be reading in a bit much, but it seems a good fit for Cowon's sensibilities and background up against that Atom processor under the hood. We suppose we'll just have to wait around to learn more, but this could be the start of a beautiful rumoring relationship.
Cowon teases iAudio 9 portable media player, waits for a reaction
It seems that the above pictured splash page has since been removed from Cowon's website, but given the outfit's long, long history of teasing products before they're actually introduced, we'll give 'em the benefit of the doubt here. Reportedly, the decidedly ho hum looking media player will ship with a 2-inch LCD, built-in FM tuner, a microphone, TV output, internal speaker and support for plenty of formats. As of now, storage capacities and pricing remains a mystery, but we're certain Cowon will be clearing that up in short order. Ahem.[Via AnythingButiPod]
Cowon's UM1 thumb drive for lovers, stalkers
If you thought Cowon's iAudio E2 had reduced the digital audio player to its stylish, diminutive core, think again: With the UM1 the company takes things even one step further by eliminating the "audio player" from the DAP altogether, leaving us with an elegant USB thumb drive that stores up to 16GB (75,900 Korean Won, or about $64). Featuring a little loophole at the top for a chain and the inscription "Don't Forget Me," this is practically begging to be presented as a gift, packed full of specially picked MP3s for your sweetheart / object of obsessive stalking. Just keep in mind that he or she will then need something to listen to the tunes on.[Via DAP Review]
