Apple has announced a complete refresh of their iPod music player range, from the $49 iPod Shuffle to the $229 iPod Touch.

Creative Labs has just announced an update to their Zen X-Fi player. The new X-Fi2 uses a 3-inch touch screen and is agressively priced at $130 for an 8GB model.

Apple continues to decrease the size of its media players, as clearly evidenced by the latest iPod Shuffle. Storage space is the exception to this downsizing rule, however, since it packs in 4GB of memory in an even smaller package. Its more compact size leaves no room for music playback controls on the player itself and they've been relocated to a remote control unit on the included headphones. Never fear, though - you can hear song and playlist information through a computerized voice with the new VoiceOver technology that's now incorporated. How will this new Shuffle fare in our tests where previous iPods have ruled the roost with their excellent results? Read on to find out...

The iRiver E100 is an entry-level media player that looks a bit like a slider-style cell phone. The E100 doesn't have many frills and it does have quite a few issues. The software looks downright dated, especially for a device sharing its market with iPods. The d-pad on the front is also very frustratingly unresponsive: the buttons' click doesn't correspond with the buttons actually registering a press.

We've got our hands on the latest iPod Shuffle that Apple announced last week and are getting ready to put it through its paces for a thorough review. We can report so far that it is indeed as tiny as you think and is noticeably longer and thinner than the previous-generation Shuffle. The consensus in the office is that it will be far too easy to lose given its Lilliputian dimensions. It comes in 2 colors, silver or black, and we selected the black one for our review unit. Its surface is matte anodized aluminum with no features to mar its sleek facade aside from the shiny clip on the back with the Apple logo front and center. Hit the break for some more photos and comparison shots with the previous-generation Shuffle...

Apple announced a new Shuffle model this morning, featuring 4GB of memory. At about half the size of the previous model, the new Shuffle has only an on/off/shuffle switch on the top with all other controls on a remote on the included headphones. Its 4GB of memory can hold up to 1,000 songs and it is offered in 2 colors - silver or black. Like the older Shuffle model, it has a built-in clip on the back, though it's in polished stainless steel here instead of aluminum. Lacking a display, the new Shuffle uses some interesting technology to let you know what you're listening to - hit the break for the details...

Sony is going to unveil a new media player at CES. At first glance it looks to be a new OLED touchscreen with a good-sized screen (3-inches), wifi, 16GB and 32GB sizes -- nothing fancy, but a nice device nonetheless.

The more interesting feature is its headphone-independent noise cancellation. We're guessing the device has a microphone and it listens to surrounding noise, then pipes back inverse sound waves to cancel out any ambience. This is definitely an interesting new technology that we look forward to testing. Actie noise cancellation typically focuses on low-frequency noise, which will be the same in your pocket as it would be at your ear. 

Look for more news on this piece later on, since Sony's press release isn't until later on tonight. 

[Via ZDnet.com]

At Sony's press event last night we got to spend some quality time with their new X Series and W Series Walkman media players. The W-series looks a lot like in-ear headphones connected to an around-the-back-of-your-head band.