It’s taken longer than expected for mintpass to begin their quest of global domination. Back in June, a few mintpads were send out to various locations, but no one took this threat seriously enough. Now, the Korean company has invaded the UK, setting up base camp at AMP3.co.uk. From here, they have the capabilities to launch their Wi-Fi equipped devices across the world.
SPECS
CPU: ARM9 400Mhz
display: 2.9″ TFT LCD @ 262000 colors
memory: 4GB (w/ MicroSD (up to 16GB))
wireless LAN: 802.11b/g
camera: 1.3MP
speaker: mono
size: 78.2 X 63.8 X 15.2mm (90g)
battery life: 30hr music / 5hr video
OS: winCE 5.0 professional
audio: MP3, WMA, OGG, WAV, APE, FLAC
video: MPEG4, WMV7/8/9, MPEG1/2
Mintpass can’t do it without you. If you’d like to enlist, it’ll set you back 139GBP (~230US). An insignificant down payment to a better life, I say! There will no doubt be naysayers who ignore the mintpad due to its small stature, but I, for one, welcome our new DAP overlords.
mintpad at AMP.co.uk
mintpad mini-review
Thanks Barron
Creaitve certainly didn’t do themselves any favors last week when they showed off an earlier build of the ZEN X-Fi2 at IFA 09. The interface was so unresponsive that engadget had to re-shoot their video out of courtesy to Creative. Ouch! In response to this, Creative has released a new video showcasing the player with the final firmware build. As you’ll see, the interface is a lot snappier now.
Creative is supposedly testing the waters with the X-Fi2 to gauge how much interest there is for touchscreen devices. I think there’s a strong possibility we’ll be seeing more advanced models down the road including one powered by Zii.
Pre-order ZEN X-FI2 at Amazon
via epiZENter
I must have been living under a rock because I had no idea Apple was having a major event today. The “Rock and Roll” event marked the return of Steve Jobs, who had been gone for nearly a year now due to health-related issues. Apple keynotes just weren’t the same without him, so I’m glad to see him back. Jobs brought some new iPods with him including a 64GB touch (finally!), an iPod nano with a built-in camera and FM tuner, and new colors for the Shuffle.
iPod touch
I’ve been waiting a long time for companies to start putting out 64GB flash players. The touch looks to be the first major player to do so, and it’ll cost just $399. Of course that means the rest of the lineup gets a drop in price. The 8GB now costs $199, and the 32GB for $299. I guess they’re discontinuing the 16GB?
According to Apple, the touch is currently the fastest growing iPod, with roughly 20 million sold to date. They also discussed gaming as a major component of the touch, announcing games like Assassin’s Creed, Madden 2010, and a Sci-Fi shooter that’s being compared to Halo.
iPod nano (5G)‘
The 5th generation nano doesn’t look too different from the 4th gen, but it does pack in a lot more features. The player now comes with a built-in camera, and an FM tuner that allows you to pause live radio.
- Capacities: 8 and 16GB
- Display: 2.2″ LCD
- Built-in Camera - Records video
- FM Tuner with Live Pause/Voice Recorder
- Battery Life: 24 hours for audio, 5 hours for video
- Price: $149 (8GB), $179 (16GB)
iPod Shuffle
The shuffle also got a little update in the form of a new paint job. It’ll come in the same assortment of colors as older iPods including pink, green, and blue. Apple also revealed a limited edition stainless steel Shuffle that’s exclusive to the Apple store. The 2GB model retails for $59, and the 4GB for $79. The sexy 4GB LE model is priced at $99.
iTunes 9
iTunes also received an update today. Some of the changes include:
- “Home Sharing” which allows you to transfer your content to 5 other computers in your house.
- The ability to manage your Apps
- iTunes LP - Provides more info about the artist and album including photos, liner notes, biographies, etc.. (Microsoft is doing similar things with the Zune HD)
- Redesigned store
- Extras for Movies (similar to DVD extras I assume)
To my surprise, Apple did not discontinue the iPod Classic. It’ll now be a little thinner and come with 160GB (instead of 120GB) for the same $249 price. Long live the HDD! Overall, there really wasn’t anything too surprising about this event. I think most of us were expecting a 64GB touch, and a camera on the nano thanks to the never ending pile of rumors about it for the last year.
More than anything I worried that Microsoft would be outdone by whatever Apple was going to announce. Even with the drop in prices, the Zune HD is still priced better than the touch and its unique offerings remain just that. All Microsoft has to do now is release a 64GB model of their own.
Let us know what you think about these new iPods in our comments section.
Apple
Sources:
Engadget
Gizmodo
I’m sure many of you are saving up your pennies to buy the upcoming Zune HD, but deals like this are hard to pass up. Newegg is selling the iriver P7 (16GB) for just $121 Shipped. That’s a pretty great price for a touchscreen PMP with great audio format support, and a fresh looking interface.
Reviews showed the player to be good, but not great. Cnet gave it 3 stars out of 5, citing its great design, but also commenting on the somewhat sluggish interface, and poor software that was included. For $120 I’m willing to deal with those faults.
SPECS:
Capacity: 8/16GB w/ microSD/SDHC
Size: 128.3 x 79.7 x 17.8mm @220g
Battery Life: 35hr audio / 7hr video
Display: 4.3″ WQVGA @ 16M colors
Audio: MP3 / WMA / WAV / OGG / APE / FLAC
Video: MPEG4 / Xvid / WMV7/8 / WMV9 @ 720 x 480
Extras: FM Tuner/Recorder/Voice/Text
LINK
A few months ago I wrote an article detailing Creative’s “first” touchscreen player. That turned out to be the Zii EGG, which technically is developer’s model made by Zii Labs. The first touchscreen device to have a Creative brand is the ZEN X-Fi2. No it doesn’t appear to be a consumer version of the EGG, but it still looks pretty nice nonetheless. The player will also have FLAC support, another first for Creative. The design is similar to the original ZEN X-Fi, just a bit larger due to the 3.0″ display.
Features
- 8,16, and 32GB plus microSD slot
- Display: 3.0″ Touchscreen
- Audio: MP3, WMA, AAC, FLAC, and Audible
- X-Fi sound technology
- Video: formats not listed (will update) AV Out
- FM Tuner, Voice recorder, and Built-in Speaker
- RSS Feed support
- Battery Life: 25 hours for Audio, 5 hours for Video
- Pricing: $129 (8GB), $179 (16GB) and $229 (32GB)
The ZEN X-Fi 2 doesn’t have WiFi, but oddly enough has support for RSS feeds that have to be synced directly with your computer. The player isn’t really groundbreaking, but it’s definitely a good sign to see Creative embracing FLAC. The player will debut at IFA 2009 in Berlin in a few days, and will start shipping later this month.
LINK
via epiZENter
Continue Reading to see a few hands-on/Unboxing videos provided by Creative
In not so shocking news today it seems that all Zune models bar the yet to be released Zune HD are set to get the axe, at least this is what Paul Thurrott says on his supersite blog
I met with the Zune folks today and one bit of information than I can discuss immediately is that the Zune HD will be the only device type going forward: The current Zune models, the Zune 8, 16 80, and 120, have all been discontinued.
With this news it would appear that Apple will be the only company supplying classic Harddrive based DAP’s, this is a shame, but an all too logical move on Microsoft’s part. I would have thought that if Apple had been considering dropping their harddrive based “ipod classic” at the upcoming “Rock & Roll” themed Apple event (on sept 9th) they may now be backtracking, there’s still an awfully large market for high capacity DAP’s there to exploit and with no one else competing I guess there’s only one DAP you can buy.
Via Gizmodo, via Paul Thurrott’s supersite blog
Thanks zip22
Sandisk has been lying dormant for some time as others have been jumping on the touchscreen bandwagon. Rather than release a new high-end player, they went the opposite route and revamped the Sansa Clip. I consider the Clip to be one of the best players ever released so I was a bit concerned when I heard they were playing around with the formula. Thankfully not much has changed with the Sansa Clip+.
The Clip+ looks to be the same size as the original Clip but comes in a few new color arrangements. It also abandons the rounded d-pad, for a square one. Most notable is the addition of a microSD slot, which Sandisk hopes will be used for their SlotMusic, and SlotRadio cards. Finally, the clip itself is no longer removable. My clip falls off too easily so I don’t mind their decision to have it built-in.
Features:
- Capacity: 2, 4, and 8GB
- Display: 4-Line OLED screen
- Audio: MP3, WMA, Ogg, FLAC, WAV, and Audible
- FM Tuner and Voice recorder
- microSD slot
- Built-in Clip
- Battery Life: 15 hours
Retail prices are lower than the original clip, but are on par with what it’s going for on Amazon currently. The 2GB will sell for $39.99, the 4GB for $49.99, and the 8GB for $69.99. It’s currently available to purchase at Best Buy, and at Sandisk’s Online store. It’ll be available everywhere else on September 13th. Sandisk is essentially pulling a Creative with this Plus model, but I’m hoping they still have something that’s actually “new” in the works. Let us know what you think about the Clip+ in our comments section.
LINK
A few sites already have a review of the player. Check them out below:
Cnet (8.3/10, Editors’ Choice for August)
ABi
Computer Shopper (8.2/10, Editors’ Choice)
(via Engadget)
