MP3 player
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Meizu's iPod-ish Mini Player shows Apple a thing or two
Normally we would frown on another cheap iPod rip-off from China, but in the case of Meizu's Mini Player, it looks like they've actually managed to make an improvement on the oft-copied design. Sure, that control scheme might not have any scroll action in it, but it does make room for 2.4-inches of QVGA screen in a form factor smaller than a 5G iPod. We can't complain about the price either, with versions ranging from a $87 512MB unit, all the way to a $200 4GB model. The unit supposedly supports video and playback, though we're not sure of the extent of codec support. We do know that the Mini Player has 20 hours of claimed battery life for music playback, which doesn't sound bad at all for the tiny 0.4-inch thick device. We don't really expect to see it in the States any time soon, but this is one iPod look-alike we actually wouldn't mind spending a bit of time with.[Via Engadget Chinese]
Teclast's other "dual core" DAP, the T19
We see a lot of digital audio players pass through here, but Teclast is one of the first manufacturers we've seen to incorporate a separate processor for audio decoding. Just weeks after we spotted their first so-called "dual core" DAP, the C150, comes another PDA-esque model called the T19, which has the same dedicated Wolfson WM8750 decoding chip as the "C" but adds a 1GB option into the mix. Besides MP3 playback, the "T" features MPEG-1 video support, and sports extras such as an FM tuner, line-in recording and voice recording, along with an eBook reader, dictionary, and calendar. Probably only available in China for the time being, the T19 costs 77 or 90 dollars worth of yuan for the 512MB and 1GB versions, respectively.[Thanks, lionc]
iRiver Japan announces 2GB T10
iRiver Japan is Reigncom's only region we've seen make the announcement today, but they've got a 2GB version of their lime green T10 due out there for ¥19,980 (about $170 US). Doesn't look too different than the MP3, WMA, OGG, ASF playing, FM tuning, voice recording device we're well used to otherwise, and it's still got that same damned single-cell AAA battery, making it one of the more capacious players to take said cells. Expect these to go on sale the 26th of this month over yonder in the land of the rising sun -- who knows (if and) when, elsewhere.
Toshiba's Dynabook whale DAP
We know oddly shaped DAPs are hard to come by, so we thought we'd run this whale seal-influenced unit by you, just in case you've been scouring the market for a marine mammal that can pump the tunes. The Toshiba Dynabook IPCZ100A sports 512MB of storage, stores a USB 2.0 connection in its tail, and has a small LCD display in its belly. There's no WMA DRM support or really much of anything, but, well, it's a seal, so let's cut it some slack.
Sony's new E-series flash Walkmans get real
Not that we really had any doubt at this point, but those new Sony E-series flash players from last week? Yeah, they're real. No new info on Sony's official site though, not so far as we can tell: same 512MB / 1 / 2GB capacities as before with optional FM tuner, MP3 and WMA playback, and a 28 hour battery (using ATRAC, of course) with a 3 minute quick charge for 3 hours playback (again, probably using ATRAC), and black, violet, pink, blue, silver, and the "very exclusive lime green." Yeah, whatever. So where are our CE-Ps, Sony?[Thanks, Colin]
M-Bird's XZ-22 flash media player
It's been a while since we last heard from M-Bird, but it looks like maybe, just maybe, they've shed their egregiously awful stylings for a milder, more Cingular 8125-ish looking enclosure. Their XZ-22 media player features 2.2-inch 260k color display, USB On-The-Go, and 512MB / 1 / 2GB capacities in 1.9 x 3.5 x 0.6-inch body. Nothing mind blowing, but it's an aesthetic step forward for one of the worst habitual offenders of taste in the audio player world, that's for sure.
