Media Player
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Sarotech T2 offers NAS relief to media fanatics in a diminutive, HD-friendly package
Sarotech's newest might not be the wildest media player in town, but if you're looking to get down to business in a svelte (4.5 x 3.75 x 0.85-inch) package, the T2 should be more than up to the task. This bad boy sports a Sigma SMPS8653 CPU (500MHz), support for Full HD MKV, H.264 videos, DTS and Dolby sound, and 1080p HDMI 1.3 output. If that weren't enough, this will also apparently function as a NAS functions (including FTP and Samba), 802.11n WiFi, and it has a USB port for external storage. Available now in South Korea for 160,000 won (about $143).
Seagate FreeAgent Theater+ HD media player gains Netflix streaming
Seagate's FreeAgent Theater+ HD media player has quite a few competitors surrounding it, and for the most part, it didn't really offer a huge competitive advantage when we peeked it back in September. 'Course, that's before support for Netflix's Watch Instantly came along, and today, the tables seem to have turned. The aforesaid storage outfit has announced that a gratis firmware update will enable this here player to stream Netflix as well as content from YouTube, vTuner and Mediafly. For those just now willing to give this unit a second look, it also doubles as a UPnP / DLNA streamer to play content stored on networked PCs and drives, and it can procured for right around $100 sans a FreeAgent HDD. So, Roku -- you just going to sit there and take this, or what? %Gallery-91131%
Zune HD 64 goes on sale early
Well, it's not April 12th, but it looks like you can now order a Zune HD 64 nonetheless -- straight from the Zune Originals website, at least. As expected, the device runs $349.99, and the 16GB and 32GB models have now also been knocked down to $200 and $270, respectively -- all of which are naturally available in the usual range of different colors, and with custom designs for an extra $15. You'll also, of course, get the latest v4.5 firmware pre-loaded on the device, which packs new features like SmartDJ that Microsoft was recently kind enough to demonstrate for us. [Thanks, Henry and Jonathan] Update: Turns out the Zune HD 64 won't come pre-loaded with the v4.5 firmware -- you'll be prompted to download it when you connect the device.
Ask Engadget: best rugged PMP out there?
We know you've got questions, and if you're brave enough to ask the world for answers, here's the outlet to do so. This week's Ask Engadget question is coming to us from Caleb, who is asking not what his PMP can do for him, but what he can do for his PMP. If you're looking to send in an inquiry of your own, drop us a line at ask [at] engadget [dawt] com. "My brother is about to leave for the Marines, and I (the geeky brother) want to send something with him to keep him busy. What is a very rugged PMP or similar, with WiFi and a nice UI? A camera is definitely a plus." So, dear readers -- what would fit the bill here? And remember, we're not looking for a PMP with a tough coat of plastic. We're looking for something to last on the battlefield. Oorah! (And Godspeed.)
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]
Coby introduces streamlined, puzzling MP570 MP3 player
Coby may not always produce the sleekest of devices, but the company has certainly come through on that count with its new MP570 MP3 player, which is bound to turn a few heads. Questionably functional design aside, however, this one is about as basic as can be, with it packing just 2GB of flash storage and no memory card slot, support for only MP3 and WMA formats, and a built-in rechargeable battery that promises just five hours of audio playback -- but, hey, it sure is shiny. No word on pricing or availability just yet, nor is there any indication of how you're actually supposed to use it.
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%
Packard Bell Studio ST media playback drive invades Europe
It's not much more than a hard drive with HD media playback abilities, but the Packard Bell Studio ST certainly looks nice, doesn't it? It's Europe-only for now, but we're hoping parent company Acer brings over a US-branded version of this box, which holds up to a 2TB hard drive and can do 1080p out over HDMI with Dolby Digital. Codec support is described as "all main formats," which is a little shady, but we'll be forgiving if it's cheaper than the Western Digital WD TV Live HD. [Thanks, Matt]
Samsung announces US availability, pricing for R1, R0 PMPs
Samsung first announced its R0 PMP way back and July of last year, and we saw its R1 model hit the FCC a month later in August, but the company has just now finally gotten official with US availability for both of them. Set to be available sometime next month, the touchscreen-equipped R1 will come in 8GB and 16GB varieties (in black or silver) for $149.99 and $179.99, while the non-touchscreen, and slightly larger R0 (pictured above), will run just $99 and $129 for the same capacities in your choice of black, silver or pink. Both will also give you Samsung's own Digital Natural Sound Engine 3.0 "sound enhancement" technology and DivX support, along with a microSD card slot on the R0, and Bluetooth support on the R1, among other standard fare.
ASUS introduces O!Play HD2, first networked media player with USB 3.0
Chances are you're not a part of the SuperSpeed revolution yet, and that's okay. It's early days yet, but ASUS is doing its part to make that transition to USB 3.0 a little more appealing with its O!Play HD2. A follow-up to the earlier O!Play models, the HD2 offers what looks to be plenty of connectivity options (we're seeing USB, memory cards, and eSATA) and promises a "wealth of cloud infotainment." ASUS isn't sharing any more details than that right now, but we're going to try to track this guy down on the CeBIT show floor and, when we find, it you can be sure we won't spare the hard questions.
Window G85HD PMP is somewhere between awesome and awkward
You know, the vast majority of Chinese PMPs are underwhelming, and we can't say for sure that the Windows G85HD is any different, but the video walkthrough of the user interface has us interested at the very lease. Reportedly, the all-white, touchscreen-centric device packs a Rockchip RK2806 processor, a 4.3-inch panel (800 x 480), 3.5mm headphone jack, 720p video output, 8GB or 16GB of internal memory, a microSD card slot, FM radio tuner, a Chinese-English dictionary and support for a multitude of file formats. There's nary a word on when and where you'll be able to find this, but if you find yourself situated in Shenzhen, feel free to scope things out at the local market and fill us in. [Thanks, Sere83]
Toshiba aims for living room domination with StorE TV media set-top box
You know who has yet to produce their very own connected set-top box? Believe us, it's hard to formulate a correct answer here. Toshiba has somehow managed to stay far, far away from the STB bandwagon, but all that's fixing to change in the year 2010. Electric Pig was able to toy with a pre-production version of the StorE TV, which is Tosh's next-gen media center / streamer. It'll eventually ship in 1TB, 1.5TB and 2TB flavors, with the whole lot playing back just about any type of local or networked media that you could think of. As predicted, 1080p playback is present, and it'll accept files from UPnP devices on the network, external sources connected to the USB socket and even an SD card. Further details (including a price) are expected later in the year, though we're told that it's on track for a Q3 release over in the UK.
Ask Engadget: Best NAS / media streamer combo device?
We know you've got questions, and if you're brave enough to ask the world for answers, here's the outlet to do so. This week's Ask Engadget question is coming to us from Felix, who would feel a lot better about his situation in life if he had one certain gadget that could do two certain things. If you're looking to send in an inquiry of your own, drop us a line at ask [at] engadget [dawt] com. I am looking for a NAS -- 1TB would be good -- preferably with WLAN built in, and multi-download BitTorrent capabilities are a must. I'd like a unit that doubles as a media streamer (music and videos), and while I'd prefer to stream over WiFi, I definitely need an HDMI port. If there's an option with a display on the unit itself, I would love to know about it. Thanks for any input! We know these multifaceted devices exist, but we also know they aren't exactly everywhere. For those who've bought in, we'd love to hear about your experiences. Do you prefer yours? Are you disappointed with its performance? Don't lead our man astray, okay?
Google devs reveal Chrome OS will have media player
If you thought Chrome OS was all about the Chrome, here are some words of reassurance from Google's Matthew Papakipos, engineering director for the project. In a marathon interview with Ars Technica, he notes that Chrome OS will have its own integrated media player, and although the focus remains on being "lean and mean," it'll not neglect basic system functionality. Current thinking is to keep JPEG and other media file handlers within the tab structure, with native and web apps being melded seamlessly into the browser experience. That may all still change, of course, since development is also noted to be a good year away from a consumer release. Hit up the read link for more, much more, on the past and future of Google's featherweight OS.
Archos 5 gets Android 1.6 update, for real this time
Archos disappointed quite a few users last month by pushing out an Android 1.6 (a.k.a. "Donut") update for its Archos 5 internet tablet only to yank it shortly thereafter due to a "last-minute major issue," but it now looks like it's finally set things right -- the update is once again available for download, and it apparently works just fine this time. Among other things, the update optimizes applications for the Archos 5's high resolution screen, and adds features like Quick Search to help you find music, contacts and other information more easily. Hit up the link below for all the necessary upgrade details. [Thanks to everyone who sent this in]
LG's XF2 media player does 1080p with subtitles, blows budgets, ships next month
When it comes to storage-based media players that you connect to your TV, it all boils down to performance, compatibility, and capacity. LG's XF2 player ships in April and, with its 1080p video and 5.1 audio output over HDMI, has the performance side covered. In terms of compatibility it hits all its marks (MPEG 1/2/4, h.264, Xvid, DivX, FLAC, WMA, AC3, etc. etc.), also supporting subtitles and captions in a number of formats. Capacity, well, 500GB is good, but more would have been better, especially given the lack of a network interface -- and the price. This one will retail for 270,000 won, or about $240. Yeah, ouch.
Aluratek tempts with 8.9-inch 720p Cinepal PMP
Aluratek hasn't been one to really rival the mainstays in the digiframe and e-reader markets, but the outfit's latest portable media player looks atypically slick. Boasting an expansive 8.9-inch display and an almost slate-like look, the Cinepal arrives with 4GB of inbuilt memory, an SD / SDHC expansion slot, 720p display and a built-in Li-ion good for up to six hours of continuous use. Aside from playing back WMA and MP3 jams, it'll also handle DRM-laced DivX files along with the usual assortment: AVI, VOB, DAT, MPEG, H.264, MKV, JPEG, etc. Best of all, the player is priced at just $179, and it'll be available next month for the Yanks who care.
Sony NW-A845 Walkman slips into European hands, too thin to be noticed
There's an old saying that the Japanese keep the best to themselves, but not this time. Sony's finally man enough to let go of their "slimmest ever Walkman," the NW-A845, to our European cousins. Apart from the obvious (and ever-so-useful) fresh injection of Latin-based languages, we're not seeing much difference with the almighty Japanese version (NW-A840) from September: 7.2mm thin, 2.8-inch of OLED goodness, 29 hours of marathon listening and premium EX earphones. Unlike the buffet in Japan though, there'll only be one "Falcon Black" 16GB model of unknown price for Europe, available for grabs in February.
Cydle P29A spices up mundane spec sheet with Mobile TV capabilities
Well, it seems like South Korean companies aren't fooling around when it comes to getting us riding that newly minted Mobile TV bandwagon. In the wake of LG announcing its first Mobile DTV devices this morning comes Cydle with the P29A PMP. It sports a 2.9-inch touchscreen (see what they did there?), an accelerometer for automatic reorientation, a world clock, and voice recording via a built-in mic. That's a somewhat disappointing goodie list, considering the currently available HD radio-playing P29H (pictured for illustration purposes) also has GPS onboard. Still, you can snap up the A model in Q2 2010 for $199, which seems like a keen price when compared to the $499 Mobile DTV car tuner we've seen before.
