Media Player News Blog

The Lisse Q10 is a recently announced media player with a 3-inch screen and an interesting 1970s style.

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...

U.S. Pricing and availability information for the Sony Walkman X-series media players first announced at CES in January is now available. The Sony Style site now lists the 32GB NWZ-X1061 model at $399 with availability on or around June 20. The 16GB NWZ-X1051 model is listed at $299 with the same availability as the larger-capacity model.

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.

9 Sept 09 - In an event in San Francisco, Apple CEO steve Jobs announced the next generation of iPods, including a new Shuffle priced at $79 and a new iPod Nano with a camera. He also announced a new version of the iTunes software that connects them to PCs and Macs. The new version of iTunes is available now.

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...

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.

Samsung is the latest company to jump on the touchscreen bandwagon this CES with their new media player. The P3 Widescreen Portable Media Player – "P3" to its friends – will feature a 3-inch touchscreen with haptic feedback. We're guessing "haptic feedback" translates to "the device vibrates when you touch the screen," although we're hoping they mean localized haptic feedback.

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]

The first news out of CES: Memorex will make a handsome media player with a giant touchscreen. The TouchMP is going to have a 2.8-inch display, 8GB with a microSD card slot, an FM radio, and podcast support. The screen seems a bit on the small side – for comparison, the iPod Touch's giant display is 3.5, and most free-with-plan cell phone screens are around 2.1 inches. This being said, the device is set to retail at $99. We'll definitely try to get this on into our testing lab.

If you want to check out a bigger picture, click through.

[Via Engadget]

In a zombie-less adaptation of Stephen King's Cell, 30GB Zunes everywhere have simultaneously malfunctioned for no apparent reason. Users will find their device simply won't boot up, freezing once the gray progress bar reaches its end. As of now there's only speculation as to why the Zunes are committing ritualistic suicide. Is it due to the onset of 2009? Is it Apple-funded terrorism? A PMP EMP? Are Zunes like canaries in a mine, and this mass-freeze is simply a portent of some imminent evil? Time will tell. In the meanwhile, if your Zune is locked up, there is one solution: surgery. We've stolen the following method off onlydarksets:

WARNING: A hard reset will delete everything on your Zune.

1. Press and hold the back button

2. Press and hold up until it reboots

3. Depending on which Zune you have, immediately do one of the following:

   1. If you have a Zune 4 GB, Zune 8BG, or Zune 80GB, immediately press and hold the Back button Back at the same time as you press the right side of the Zune pad and the Play/Pause button. Continue to hold these buttons until the Zune device restarts and you receive the following message: “Clearing contents. Please wait.”
   2. If you have a Zune 30GB, immediately press and hold the Back button Back at the same time that you press the right side of the Zune pad and the center of the Zune pad. Continue to hold these buttons until the Zune device restarts and you receive the following message: “Clearing contents. Please wait.”

[Story via Gizmodo, solution via onlydarksets]

Zune has made some changes to their "all-you-can-eat" music subscription service, as long as you're a Zune Pass subscriber. It's the same deal with the $14.99/month for unlimited streaming and downloads, only now you get to keep 10 songs for forever as MP3s. There are also bringing Universal Music Group into the fold, which will pad out their MP3 library considerably. Also, this Zune Pass deal is not just for Zune users; if you like this plan you can download and manage your music from your PC.

This is actually an intriguing plan. You can try out tons of songs and then choose the ten you like best to keep and cherish for all of time. Songs nowadays are $1, so that means you're paying $5 for the unlimited streaming and temporary downloads. While this sounds like it'll be a great plan for some, we're not sure it'll convince those pirates out there to stop tape recordering their FM radio.

You can read more about this new plan in their press release, here.

The Zune 3.1 software update is apparently out now. We went on Zune.net to check it out, but Zune.net is still hawking the 3.0 update. The main improvements are to the Zune Social feature. We have yet to get a Zune into our office for review, but we picture the Zune Social feature will allow the dozens of Zune users out there to join together in sighing in disgust at the iPod users they see. The Zune Social rehaul will fix the interface to make it more user-friendly. It will also add a new feature that lets you compare your music tastes with others, offically making the Zune a must-buy for hipsters. 

You'll also get a few free games (sudoku, Texas Hold'em, checkers, and a top-scrolling space ship shoot-em-up). 

[Via Engadget and Zune Insider]

Chinese manufacturer Hacha has announced the PF02, which is an audio player that should retail for $14.40 USD (99 yuan). Compare this device to the Shuffle, which offers nowhere near as much control, but has a similar storage capacity. Really, if you want to listen to your MP3s cheaply, we're not sure you can do much better than $14.40. One thing we will point out, however, is that all the buttons are identical, which might make the player a bit hard to operate when it's in your pocket.

Here's some stats we've been able to figure out:

• The device will play MP3, WMA, and OGG files.
• It uses an SRS audio system
• Measures 2.79 x 0.97 x 0.39 inches (70.9 x 24.6 x 9.8mm)
• Weighs 18.5 grams
• Uses a USB 2.0 connection
• Has a lithium-ion battery with a stated time of 14 hours.

PMP Today states there are other models that have up to 8GB of storage, but we can't find out exactly where they're getting that number from. In any case, providing the thing works, $15 for a DAP is not bad.

[Via PMP Today]