PMP Today

LAS VEGAS — Sanyo expanded its selection of portable navigation devices (PNDs) with two models, one of which is the company’s first with real-time traffic-data reception and ability to double as an A/V portable media player (PMP).

The NVM-4070, due in April at a suggested $599, features a 4-inch widescreen touch screen, 2GB embedded flash memory, an SD card slot for storing media, and playback of the following media formats: MPEG-4 and DiVX video, MP3 and WMA audio and JPEG photos. Although it features a built-in traffic receiver and supplied traffic antenna, Sanyo declined to announce which traffic service it will offer or the monthly service fee.

Other features include a built-in FM transmitter to wirelessly play music through the car’s sound system, embedded maps of the United States, Canada and Puerto Rico, and 1.7 million points of interest (POI). Bluetooth enables hands-free use of a Bluetooth-equipped cellphone.

Also new is the NVM-4050, a $499-suggested model also due in April with 4-inch screen, MP3 player, 2GB embedded memory, maps of the United States and Canada and 1.7 million POI.

Blu:Sens is unveiling an MP3 player called the G14 which has some significant features that should bring it a little attention in the PMP world. What makes this player extra special is that the attention is not due to them copying someone else’s design. It is unveiling an MP3 player called the which has some significant features that should bring it a little attention in the PMP world. What makes this player extra special is that the attention is not due to them copying someone else’s design.The Blue:Sens G14 supports and has no . Individually these two items have their own significance, but combined they equate to wireless sharing of MP3 files between players without restrictions. This will no doubt catch the eye of the team, where the Zune only allows the sharing of approved record labels.The overall look and additional features of the G14 aren’t too shabby either, as it supports Bluetooth along with the WiFi, as well as DivX, MP3, WMA and OGG and it sports a 2 inch 256K color display. The player comes in capacities of 1GB and 2GB with pricing at around $130 and $260 USD, respectively.

While they’ve never been sleekly designed on the outside, Archos’ media players are always jam-packed with succulent fillings, and the AV500 is no different.

It features a beautiful four inch 480 x 272 16:9 screen that’s on a par with the great LCD display of a Sony PSP, a healthy-sized 30GB hard drive (a 100GB version is also available) and a user-interface that’s blindingly simple to navigate through.

Even more impressive is the player’s dual functionality as a PVR. Using the AV connections – Scart or composite video in and outputs, plus analogue stereo audio – you can hook it up to a TV or set-top-box and record directly to the hard drive in MPEG4 form (MP3 for audio). There’s even a remote control port to hook it up directly to the video source, so you can control channel switching from the unit. You can then play the footage back on your television (at a maximum resolution of 640 x 480) or just watch it on the fly. And this is only one of a myriad of functions for the AV500.Existing content can be transferred to the player through a USB 2.0 connection, and the machine recognises a number of different formats, including most types of MPEG4 fi les (although DivX 3.11 or 6.0 are not supported), JPEGs and BMP picture fi les, and MP3, WMA and WAV audio files.

Unfortunately, on the down side, the player only has a mono loudspeaker, so you’ll need to use the included stereo headphones if you want anything more than a tinny drawl, but at least the sound-scape created is comparable to a decent MP3 player. Battery life is decent too, with four-and-a-half hours of playback time for video (15hrs for audio), which should be more than enough for most journeys.

It may just be a brushed metal slap with little going for it in the looks department, but Archos’ AV500 is a wonderful performer.

This 2GB shapely little nugget swathed in a curvature black or white casing with an 1.8-inch OLED, a scroll wheel, and has the familiar white ear buds.  It plays MP3, MP4, WMA, WMV, ASF, and WAV  just fine and features a built-in FM tuner and voice recorder, seven preset equalizer modes, USB 2.0 connectivity, rechargeable Li-ion battery, and can support a superfluity of languages.

Here’s one to watch out for.  Dell might be pulling out from under its sleeve a SlideShow-enabled MP3 player with features that boasts what others player lack.

What will make this device different from all the rest? Based on Cnet’s Jasmine France, rumor has it that Microsoft headquarters is focused on a developing a device that features sports media and wireless connectivity capabilities, features that are not in popular player models like the iPods, Zunes and Sansas.

COWON steps up its A3 with the COWON Q5.  What does the PMP have to offer?  Well, let’s see.  This 5-inch LCD device supports Navigation, DMB, and an external HSDPA module.

This device accompanies WinCe 5.0-based and a touch panel is also installed, along with high-performance chip set called “Davinci”, fashioned by T1 to improve on the “movie playback”.

Flagship models like the clix 2 and W10 might’ve stolen all of this little guy’s spotlight at CES this year, but iriver’s X20 — which goes in for a more standard control scheme and traditional stylings — isn’t a mere poser. The glossy front isn’t a total fingerprint magnet, according to CNET, and the 2.2-inch screen and microSD slots are welcome inclusions on a mini DAP like this. There’s also a removable battery for making it through those longer trips, with MPEG-4 and WMV support for video playback, along with JPEG and the usual audio suspects. CNET was also impressed by the FM reception and sharp video playback, but didn’t really dig the “too-tiny” mechanical scroll ring. The player includes 4GB of flash memory, and at 0.65-inches thick isn’t the slimmest in its class, but it should do just fine. No word on price or availability, and from the looks of things, there might not be any US launch plans just yet.

You know, Casio ain’t the only game in town when it comes to these e-dictionary units that seem to be so popular in Asia. The folks at Digital Cube might not be willing to do something so silly as attach a keyboard to one of their PMPs, but they’ve apparently done just about everything else to prep this i-Station T43DIC for the exciting life of an electronic dictionary. Of course, those 30GB and 40GB capacities are probably meant for storing a bit more than mere words, but i-Station puts a nice little educational spin on the usual mindless video fare: subtitles are linked to the dictionary, so you can translate the complicated “I’ll shoot you in the face” and “you complete me” type of phraseology that those Hollywood intellectuals are always trying to throw around. Prices are set at 398,000 won ($425 US) for the 30 gigger and 448,000 won ($479 US) for the 40 gigger, but that’s about all we know about this device, other than a few screenshots that show this pen-based device to have quite the full-fleshed, shiny OS. Though the similarities in looks to Digital Cube’s BMP-1430 probably mean the two PMPs share more than a few specs under the hood.

Although South Korea is home to more than a few oddities, the oddly-named Tomato is looking to ship its latest portable media player, the U20, to Seoul and the surrounding areas. Housed in a brushed aluminum / chrome enclosure, this simple looking device boasts a two-inch LCD screen, 15 hours of battery life, USB 2.0 connectivity, and comes in at 2.99- x 1.89- x 0.47-inches in size. Additionally, you’ll find a built-in microphone, a miniSD slot for extra media storage, and an ability to play nice with AVI, MP4, WMV, ASF, and MP3 files. Tomato apparently feels that these guys are ready for pickin’, as you can snag the 2GB version for 89,900KRW ($96) next week, while the 1GB / 4GB variety will be landing shortly thereafter.

Portable Media Centers put all of your favorite video, music, and pictures at your fingertips wherever you are. Take digital entertainment from your PC with you on the go, including recorded TV shows, downloaded videos, home movies, music, and photos. With Windows Mobile™ software featuring an easy-to-use, familiar Windows® Media Center Edition interface, Portable Media Centers let you enjoy immediate access to all of your favorite entertainment — anytime, anywhere.

Portable Media Centers let you take all your entertainment with you on the go — music from your computer plus media information such as album art, content ratings, and playlists as well as digital video and pictures.
File Type Support

These devices will let you play video, music and pictures that are transferred from your computer, including Windows Media Video, Windows Media Audio, Windows Media Image, MP3, JPEG and TIFF files.
OS Support
Portable Media Centers will work with any version of Windows XP, including Windows XP Home Edition, Windows XP Professional Edition and Windows XP Tablet PC Edition. Portable Media Centers will also work with Windows XP Media Center Edition, allowing you to take all of the recorded television shows recorded on your Media Center PC with you to enjoy anywhere.
Hardware
Creative’s Portable Media Center has a storage capacity of 20GB or higher. With a 20GB hard drive you can hold up to 87 hours of video, over 300 hours of music or 50,000 pictures with all disk drive space dedicated to either video, audio, or pictures.

Data Transfer
Your entertainment will be easily and automatically transferred to your Portable Media Center using smart sync technology delivered in a future release of Windows Media Player. Smart sync technology will enable automatic, intelligent synchronization of music with next generation portable music players as well as synchronization of music, photo, TV content, and movies with Portable Media Centers.
With smart sync technology that will be available in Windows Media Player, you will be able to transfer the content of your Windows Media Player media library to the device. This includes music copied from a CD, pictures from a digital camera, home movies from a digital video camera, TV shows recorded using a Media Center PC or other personal video recorder applications and videos downloaded from the Internet. In addition, Portable Media Centers will play premium downloaded digital music and video, including over 500,000 WMA tracks from leading music services including Napster, Best Buy, Buy Music, Music Now and many more, and movies from content providers such as CinemaNow.
Specifications

• 3.8” TFT Color LCD
• 20 GB or higher HDD
• Rechargeable battery (Li-Ion)
• Microsoft Portable Media Center Platform
• Digital Multimedia Player - (Plays Windows Media Video 7, 8 and 9, Windows Media Audio 8, Windows Media Image, MP3, JPEG and TIFF files)