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iriver hits a(nother) low note with Siren DP150
After witnessing iriver's gorgeous lineup in person at CES, we can't help but shed a tear each time one of these Siren DAPs taints the image a touch more. Nevertheless, the totally bland DP150 (the DP100's successor, by the way) weighs in at 24-grams, is available in pink, blue and gold motifs and will arrive in 1GB and 2GB forms. Users will also find a built-in equalizer, MP3 / WMA support and a 128 x 32 OLED display to boot. Sure, this critter will last for around 17 hours sans a recharge, and it is priced at just ¥6,980 ($65) / ¥8,980 ($84), but we still think know iriver could've done better than this. Yeah, so we've got high expectations -- like that's a bad thing?[Via Tech Digest]
iriver prepping handwriting-friendly e-book / tablet?
To wrap up its CES week, iriver has some pictures and scattered Korean text about its booth experience and product reception in Vegas over the past days. Tucked below all the self-congratulation, however, is what looks to be an as yet unannounced prototype from the ever-active iriver designers. The product appears to be an e-book of sorts, but with handwriting recognition and potentially a color display. Obviously, there's no more info at the moment to go on, iriver has been feeling a little protype-ish of late, and we never got much of a product out of iriver's last e-book, but hopefully we'll be hearing more about this one soon.
Video: iriver's wee CES 2008 booth tour
Besides having one of, if not, the best product showings at CES 2008, iriver also had one of the most high-tech booths. Gone were the booth babes and ignorant product hacks -- replaced instead by virgin-white cases and interactive displays which allowed their products to speak for themselves. Fortunately, we also had the chance to confirm one of the most peculiar icon choices in CE history: the raised-dog icon on their S7... yes, he's really treating the booth like his own personal fire hydrant. See a video tour of the booth after the break.%Gallery-13462%
iriver says iPhone-like interface just proof of concept
We hit the show floor excitedly looking for iriver's GSM phone which they showed off earlier in the week, but when we got to their booth, the little guy was nowhere to be found. We managed to wrangle a chat out of some of the company's product designers and marketing people, and they explained their hesitation at continuing to show the W7-cum-GSM-phone due to the similarities of the phones UI to an all-too-familiar device. According to the iriver people, the iPhone-like interface which was showcased originally was only meant to demonstrate what the phone was capable of, not a finalized version of the OS. Of course, it's little consolation to us, having seen a brief snippet of the phone, though we're assured that some new hotness -- or hot newness -- is on the way from the cats in Korea.
Video: iriver's Unit 2 hands-on
If you've been wondering how a portable media center, speaker dock, VoIP phone, and folding keyboard work together then you're in luck. We've got the elevator speech from iriver on what the Unit 2 is and how it works. Hitting the US in early 2009 for about $700. We ask you, can you wait? Video after the break.
iriver unveils ten Swarovski-encrusted Mickey Mouse MP3 players
iriver's been playing a lot of peek-a-boo with some pretty hot gear at its CES booth, but it's probably for the best that they left these ridiculous Swarovski-coated Mickey Mouse MP3 players locked safely away, since they basically ruin any credibility devices like the Spinn and Wing bring the company. Yep, there they are, just a-glittering away: 1GB of storage and a whole lot of trashy.
Hands-on with iriver's Lplayer PMP
We can't say too much about iriver's tiny, tiny, tiny Lplayer except that... well, it's tiny. We can't stress how small this is. Despite its size, they still manage to cram up to 8GB in this guy, and top it off with a 2-inch screen. Check the gallery below and witness the micro-sized wonder. P.S. -- It's tiny.%Gallery-13316%
iriver's CES tease-fest continues
iriver's favorite pastime is toying with our heartstrings, and while the latest barrage of fragmented, high-resolution images does just that, at least we've been able to wrap our paws around some of what we're seeing. Hit up the gallery below for today's pictorial treasures. %Gallery-13335%
iriver's E100 flash player revealed
Announced a few days ago, iriver is now showing off the 2.4-inch E100 flash player with stereo speakers to the world. Its D-click navigation sits atop 4GB, 8GB, or 16GB of storage which is augmented by a microSD slot. We'll try to hunt these down for a hands-on later in the day.%Gallery-13219%
iriver 3-inch touchscreen "GSM phone" headed for the States
Iriver's been pushing out all sorts of product at this year's CES, but this is the biggest surprise from the company yet. The "iriver GSM phone" is an iPhone-esque handset featuring a 3-inch 480 x 272 touchscreen, and a Linux-based UI that is practically mimics the iPhone feature for feature. The actual hardware is quite similar to iriver's own W7. According to PC Mag, the phone has 4GB of flash storage, Rhapsody and other media support, a two megapixel camera (with video, take that Apple), Adobe Flash support, GPS and mobile TV (it's unclear what type). While we're not sure what sort of wireless options this has, like WiFi or 3G, and what carriers will support it, iriver has committed to bring this to the States. Iriver's Owen Kwon promises the phone will be "more affordable" than the iPhone, but otherwise there's no other info on release. There's video of the phone after the break.
iriver's CES teaser site fleshes out Lplayer, Spinn
Last time we were talking about these two, iriver was a bit short on images, which is pretty much criminal given the kind of design going into these PMPs. Iriver's ongoing teaser site has now been updated with a bevy of Spinn images, plus the first Lplayer shots we've seen anywhere. All we really picked up from the Spinn shots is that it'll be available in pure white or brush metal, but the Lplayer shots solved a couple mysteries. It looks like iriver is positioning the Lplayer as a sort of Clix mini, with a 2-inch display surrounded by almost zero bezel, and that same D*Click interface. Iriver looks to be further stressing the simplicity of the device with an ultra-minimal interface, but is spicing things up a little with a color selection of white, purple, brown and cyan. Check out the gallery below of all the sexiness.[Thanks, alsyl]%Gallery-13006%
Hands-on with iRiver's new toys
iRiver was being awful coy with its stable of hot new gear -- we couldn't even get their reps to say anything would be out in North America, much less finagle pricing or ship dates -- but the new Spinn, iAmoled, and Wing still managed to charm us from behind the glass. We did get to poke around with the W7, P10, and the Unit 2 -- which was still impressive, even though it crashed -- and the Dicple D30, all of which had amazing build quality. Hopefully we'll see this stuff hit our fair shores soon, but for now, check 'em all out in our gallery! %Gallery-13159%
iriver's crystal ball predicts upcoming PMP sexiness
While iriver is bringing plenty of love to CES 2008, it looks like there's more in store for the patient DAP-lovers out there. Some of these we've already seen, like the P10, Unit 2 and W7, but the new Spinn and IAmoled P20 (pictured) and Wing are easily worth the price of admission. The Spinn uses iriver's new SPINN analog toggle wheel that we spotted on that APlayer DAP, but also tosses in a 3.2-inch 480 x 272 screen, Bluetooth 2.0, Flash 2.0 gaming and DMB in regions where available. Capacities hit 4GB, 8GB and 16GB of flash memory. Iriver is also prepping the IAmoled Photo Tank media storage unit, which packs a 80GB or 160GB HDD and 4.1-inch AMOLED screen. The unit uses the same SPINN interface and matches the Spinn on specs, but adds TV out and SD / CF slots. Finally, iriver's Wing ultraportable handheld features the Windows CE Pro OS, WiFi, a QWERTY keyboard and 4GB of flash memory. There's also a SD card slot and plenty of VoIP and web-friendly features, including IM and a browser. Obviously we have no idea when these will be hitting the market or for how much, but hopefully iriver will have them ready before the middle of the year. Peep Spinn and Wing after the break.Update: The iAMOLED is actually the P20 in two prototype flavors: a prototype 1 model for consumers (pictured) and a 120GB / 160GB photo storage solution for photogs. iAMOLED appears to refer to a partnership between iriver and Samsung to bring the world's first AMOLED display on a handheld device.
iriver's new E100 and LPlayer PMPs
If iriver's PMP lineup isn't quite extensive enough for you yet, the E100 and LPlayer might fill that void in your heart where a QVGA screen should be. Both players take a cue from the Clix+ and offer D*Click navigation, along with 320 x 240 screens, FM tuners and voice recorders. The E100 rocks a 2.4-inch LCD and built-in stereo speakers, with flash capacities at 4GB, 8GB and 16GB, and a slot for microSD expansion, while the LPlayer sports a 2-inch LCD and 1GB, 2GB and 4GB capacities. Sadly, we haven't tracked down pictures of these, and there's no word on price or availability for either.
iriver's new APlayer, Volcano and MPlayer Season II DAPs
We had some inklings about these ones, but iriver is taking the covers off its new fashion-centric DAP lineup. The APlayer already ran away with our hearts with its sexy looks, and while it lacks a screen, the FM tuner, voice recording and 8GB max capacity almost make up for it. The player is controlled with iriver's SPINN Lite dial, and also comes in 2GB and 4GB capacities. Next up is the Volcano (pictured after the break), a "minimalist" USB stick player that features a small screen and otherwise similar features and capacities to the APlayer, along with multiple color choices. Last up is the MPlayer Season II player, which looks to be just the new selection of colors for the existing 1GB Mickey Mouse flash player we've already seen floating around. No word on price or availability for any of these, but if that APlayer doesn't make it to the States we're going to cry.
iriver's new D30 e-dictionary and M20 GPS navigator
Just to make sure it got all its bases covered, iriver is tossing a new e-dictionary and a new GPS device into its CES 2008 lineup. The new D30 (above) is set to be iriver's flagship e-dictionary, and sports a 4.3-inch touchscreen, full QWERTY keyboard, 2GB of storage and over 50 dictionaries. Iriver is also packing in DMB where available, Flash games, an FM tuner and voice recorder. On the nav front, the new M20 sports GPS navigation and regular PMP functions on its 7-inch LCD, along with DMB in applicable markets. No word on price or availability for either of these, and we haven't spotted a picture just yet.
iriver's "a player" redefines fashionDAP
While iriver's P10 is undoubtedly a looker, the "a player" (or perhaps the "homme," it's hard to tell which is the actual title) pretty much just makes everybody else manufacturing mini-DAPs look bad. There's virtually zero info on this player, at least in English, but that never stopped us from gawking before. There does seem to be a small screen on the flip side of this player, but that may be the "a player II." Again, our failure to grasp the Korean language sets us back. Hopefully iriver will be fleshing out some release info this week at CES.%Gallery-12737%
iriver's P10 PMP finally to see the light of day?
We've been drooling over iriver's P10 ever since June, but it looks like CES might finally be the PMP's time to shine. Iriver has one of its trademark teaser sites up for CES 2008, and the P10 is up in all its glory. Among other interesting specs, the player runs on a 1.3-inch hard disk drive, sports T-DMB digital TV, a 800 x 480 4-inch LCD, 600Mhz processor and TV out. The P10 controls with iriver's bezel touch tech, but it's unclear if there's a touchscreen here -- seems unlikely. Still no word on price or when this thing is going to hit the market, but it seems like it's just around the corner.[Thanks, Calvin P]%Gallery-12728%
iriver's D5 electronic dictionary gets whitewashed
We know it's not natural to get all funny about an e-dictionary, but we can't help it -- iriver's little D5 gets us hot under the collar. You may remember seeing this multi-use, flip-open device in its original black, but luckily for us the company has decided to issue a new color that we can oggle. As before, the D5 features MPEG-4 video and MP3 audio playback, a 480 x 272 TFT display, an FM radio, voice recorder, and USB connectivity. Also as before, you'll need to hit Korea if you hope to get your hands on one -- cause this puppy doesn't seem to be headed Stateside.[Via Akihabara News]
iriver's clix+ with DMB now available
We're sorry for being selfish, but we can't hide our disappointment at this clix+ packing an upgrade for Koreans and Koreans alone. Don't get us wrong, DMB is a great upgrade that any PMP should be proud of, we just wished it did more for own portable viewing experience -- we're still stuck in that early 20th century model of downloading content and transcoding it for our later viewing enjoyment. Anyways, enough about us. The clix "plus" is just a basic 4GB or 8GB clix DAP with the addition of a DMB tuner, so not much more to see here. The 4GB goes for 218,000 won (about $235 US) while the 8GB is 278,000 won (about $300 US).