It has been almost two years since Dell’s last shot at the portable audio player market and it didn’t go well to say the least. In a nutshell, one little word with four little letters basically spoiled its plans. Here we are two years later and it looks like Dell is going to be taking another crack at the market that wasn’t at all eager to embrace it in the past. According to the Wall Street Journal however, there may be a bit of a twist this time. First of all DRM is no longer a barrier. As we know, DRM has pretty much been ditched in an effort to loosen the iTunes stranglehold on the digital download domain. Secondly, we have a reported price point in the sub-$100 range. While there is currently no word on how many sizes / models Dell is currently working on, there will be a model available for less than $100; an attractive price point indeed. Then we have the nature of the player itself. Apparently it will be aimed at Dell’s own subscription service as opposed to user libraries. Comes With Music competitor? With all that said, apparently Dell is shooting for a September release which might not work out so well for them (again) if the iPod Touch rumor turns out to be true.

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Are you one of the 78 people out there that actually bought a Sony Mylo 2? Today is your (moderately) lucky day. Sony has just released a minor update to its diminutive little messenging/PMP/gaming gadget. The new firmware version brings video recording to the Mylo 2 by way of its rear-facing camera, which should allow you to share as many embarrassing moments with the outside world as you’d like, provided you’re in range of a Wi-Fi connection. Other enhancements include support for 16 GB Memory Sticks, as well as a variety of UI enhancements. 

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Nicholas Woodhams, also known as the iPod Mechanic, is in a world of hurt. The Michigan man has made it his business to repair Apple iPods and other Apple products; not a bad idea since they do tend to break quite often. From what we understand Woodhams has done quite well for himself picking up the pieces with regards to iPod users’ woes. Apparently a bit too well, as he popped up on Apple’s radar several years ago and it was none too happy that the iPod name was being used in vain. Apple and Woodhams butted heads in 2006 and struck a deal whereby Woodhams would phase out the “iPod Mechanic” name by January 2007. Here we are a year and a half later and he has done no such thing. In fact, he even pokes some fun at Apple on his site with an “iPod Deathclock” where visitors can input their iPod serial numbers and usage habits to learn the approximate death date of their iPod. Clearly Woodhams was asleep when God handed down the eleventh commandment: Thou shalt not mess with Apple. The iPod moniker may be the least of Woodhams’ worries however, as Apple’s suit also alleges that he committed fraud in a number of ways. One such accusation, that Woodhams switched the back covers on out-of-warranty iPods in order to have Apple repair them under warranty. Hey, it was fun while it lasted…

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Not quite the formative years, but what better time to get people hooked on Apple products than while they’re in college? Besides, you need something to do while you’re sitting through those two-hour lectures right? Apple is currently running a slightly-early back to school promo for college kids looking to get their Mac on and truth be told, it’s a pretty good deal. Nuts and bolts: Buy a Mac, get a free iPod. The deal isn’t just for students either. Any student, faculty or staff member can purchase a qualifying Mac computer and get an 8 GB iPod Touch or 8 GB iPod Nano for free after a $299 rebate. Considering the MacBook starts at $1,000 now, and that’s before any student discount, this deal really is pretty solid. Don’t worry though, you have plenty of time to think about it as the offer is good from now through September 15th. Qualifying Macs include any MacBook, MacBook Air, MacBook Pro or iMac model.

[Via gadget lab]

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It might not be the prettiest portable media player on the market, but at the very least the Eco Media Player is a conversation starter. What kind of conversations will it start? Well, that remains to be seen. This unique PMP designed by British inventor Trevor Baylis might be a little bulky around the waste, but it has all of the basic functionality that we’ve grown to expect and a couple of extras. What’s more, it uses 100% human kinetic energy for power. Using a crank that folds out from the rear of the device, users wind it up to create the energy that powers the device. One minute of cranking will generate enough energy to run the player for approximately 40 minutes! Sure, you might catch a couple of stares while sitting on the bus winding up your PMP, but you can sleep easy knowing that you’re doing it for the environment. In terms of functionality the Eco Media Player lets you play music and videos, view photos, record voice memos, tune in to FM radio and it even sports an LED torch. Available now with 2 GB of storage, the Eco Media Player will run you about $300 give or take.

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They don’t call it "the best radio on radio" for nothing. In an age where terrestrial radio is far and away at its worst in decades, alternative options continue to gain ground. If you do manage to find actual music or talk radio between all of the commercials on regular radio, it’s a safe bet that it will hardly be entertaining thanks to a remarkable lack of talent and an ever-restrictive FCC stronghold. But with technology comes options. Internet radio, custom streaming solutions like Last.fm and Pandora, podcasts and satellite radio give us unrestricted choices that have managed to bring entertainment back to broadcast audio. If for one reason or another you haven’t yet sampled satellite radio, you’re really running out of excuses. Beyond a wide range of content that is free from the FCC’s tyrannical reign you’ll find amazing talent, any sporting even you want and a huge amount of 100% commercial-free music. In lieu of the fact that the merger is still being stifled, the only real question becomes "Sirius or XM"? Sirius is doing its part to make the decision as easy as possible for you with a $100 discount on the sleek portable Stiletto 100 receiver. For one week only, you can snag the 2 GB model of Sirius’ flagship radio for a cool $150 with the purchase at least 3 months of service ($38.85 for new accounts, $20.97 for current subscribers). Some key features of the Stiletto include the ability to record up to 100 hours of radio, pause and rewind live radio, stream at home via WiFi and store / playback MP3s from your personal collection. You’ve got until Monday to take advantage of the discount and we really can’t urge you enough to check it out. After all, an aging Howard Stern is still a hundred times more entertaining than anything on FCC-stunted terrestrial radio.

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We damn near fell out of our seats when we learned that NASA didn’t burn billions of tax dollars developing space-grade portable media players. In fact, it looks like Nasa’s multi-billion dollar budget doesn’t even cover latest-generation iPods! The image above was pulled from a high res of the Space Shuttle Endeavor found on NASA’s site. It’s from a set taken by shuttle crewmembers during an active mission and posted to the site last week. This actually isn’t the first time we’ve all seen images of extraterrestrial iPods but Jobs must be happy that his player is still the tune box of choice for skyward missions. Towards the top of the full pic on the read link below, you can also see a pair of sunglasses hanging near a window at the top of the crew cabin. They don’t quite look like Moss Lipows but we’re sure anyone would look cool sporting them in space. So astronauts apparently enjoy looking suave while they float around up there, but what to you think they like to rock out to?

[Via Engadget]

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Hating on Monster seems to be the latest craze but if you’re a music lover and a tech lover, then there’s no denying that the iSoniCast is a cool piece of gear. Monster’s latest gadget is sleek and well-designed, convenient and surprisingly cheap as well. iSoniCast is a wireless audio bridge that allows you to wirelessly stream tunes from your iPod to your home audio system. Making use of the 2.4 GHz spectrum, it touts 4 Mbps (no, not 4 Gbps as one of the bullets on the product page states) of throughput to facilitate clear and uninterrupted playback with minimal interference. In fact, the unit makes use of intelligent frequency hoping to ensure that frequency crossing is kept at a bear minimum. iSoniCast easily hooks up to any home audio system using RCA connectors and the look should go nicely with your existing gear. Perhaps the best part about Monster’s design is that it uses the iPod itself to control playback. No need to worry about adding yet another remote to your junk drawer and no need to head over to your system in order to select a new track or playlist. Even if you pass on Monster’s overpriced cables, at $100 the iSoniCast is definitely worth a look.

[Via Monster PR]

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It came and went almost as fast as K-Fed’s time in the limelight, but apparently it up for was just long enough to be leaked across the net. An amazon.com snafu this past Sunday has leaked pics and some new info on the Sansa Fuze, a tiny portable Digital Audio / Video Player that has some nice potential. Not all of the specs were posted on the site but there was enough to intrigue:

• 1.9" color screen
• microSDHC support
• MP3, WMA, and MPEG-4 support
• FM tuner
• Voice recorder
• Red, Black and Pink color options went up on Amazon, more expected

The site also reported battery life of 24 hours for audio playback and 5 hours for video; identical to the battery specs on the iPod nano. What’s more, the Fuze was listed at $99 for the 4 GB! Yes that’s $99 for 4 GB and microSDHC support as opposed to $150 for a 4 GB iPod nano. In other words, for less than the price of a 4 GB nano you could snag a Sansa Fuze and an 8 GB microSD card from eBay. Of course you might not be allowed to hang out with the cool kids, but you’ll be out rocking 12 GB of music and videos while they’re at home deciding which songs to bounce to make room for the movie they just rented for $3.

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Sometimes audiophiles have a difficult and important choice to make: Is it better to look good, or to sound good? Sony’s PFR-V1 headphones do their best to make this choice more difficult than ever before. The unique design of these ultra high-end Sony phones is about as close as you can get to mobilizing the full-size speaker listening experience without strapping a pair of Von Schweikerts to your head. The problem? Rock them in public and you’ll probably look just about as ridiculous as you would if you strapped a pair of Von Schweikerts to your head. The PFR-V1’s position a pair of high quality 1-inch, die-cast aluminum speakers about a half-inch outside of your ears beneath the temples. The design allows mid and high frequencies to be projected directly into the outer ear at the proper angle. In addition, "extended bass reflex tubes" are positioned just inside the ear canal to drive low frequencies directly to the ear drum. Sounds pretty intense, no? The Sony PFR-V1 headphones are due to hit US shores in April and will run you about $500.

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Every time the Apple Store goes down, an angel gets its wings. Ok, maybe that’s not entirely true, but if it was true there would be a whole lot of newly-winged angels these days. The Apple Store seems to drop offline every Tuesday lately and once it comes back up, we have something new to talk about. This week, it’s a $30 price slash on the iPod Shuffle. The current model of the Shuffle holds 1 GB of music and is now available for a pretty reasonable $49. Later this month, Apple will also be releasing a 2 GB version that will be available for $69; $10 less than the old 1 GB price point. The iPod Shuffle is hardly an audiophile’s dream, but it makes a great little gift for that person you just don’t really care about. You know, the annoying friend that you have to buy a decent gift for because your girlfriend will never hear the end of it if you don’t? Plus it’s nice and tiny so when he or she loses it, your girlfriend can give them plenty of grief about it and you get a brief but enjoyable moment of devious satisfaction.

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It looks like Microsoft is having a bit of trouble fulfilling all of the orders placed for their special limited-edition Valentines Day Zune 80. Zune Originals, the customization firm in charge of the special paint jobs, sent out a email yesterday to a number of customers, explaining that "due to some issues in the fulfillment center" they wont be able to get the players out and shipped before the 14th. What could have been a potentially crushing blow to the unlucky few who were banking on the perfect gift for their sweethearts, however, has turned into a blessing. Microsoft is refunding 100% of the purchase price, but will still ship the players out once they’re ready. Free Zunes, bitches! While we’re sure there are number of disappointed customers out there, we think that Microsoft really did the right thing here, and should be congratulated for it. There. We said it.

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Earlier this year, Last.fm and Logitech announced a partnership at CES that would enable users of certain Logitech internet radio receivers to scrobble tracks as they stream. In Logitech, Last.fm has found its first official hardware partner and seems to finally be making a concerted effort to free itself from the confines of the PC. For the time being however, users of the Squeezebox and Transporter internet radio players have the ability to scrobble, but the fun ends there. Personalized radio streaming, which is certainly Last.fm’s most attractive feature, was not covered in the announcement. Further development was obviously a safe bet, and now reports are coming in that simple software updates due out later this year will add Last.fm streaming to existing boxes. This of course won’t be the first method to break Last.fm free of the PC’s shackles; several third-party solutions exist for a variety of devices such as the Nokia N800 / N810 (Vagalume), iPhone / iPod Touch (MobileScrobbler) and devices running Windows Mobile 5 or later (Last.fm Mobile). This will be the first home-grown effort, though, and more importantly, it is an indication that Last.fm understands the need to go wireless. Giving users as many untethered options as possible to enjoy personalized radio is clearly in Last.fm’s best interest and most importantly, it’s in the best interest of Last.fm users. Satellite radio and internet radio are great but when it comes to music, there’s nothing quite like Last.fm’s personalization.

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AT&T’s LG Shine isn’t the only thing going red for Valentine’s Day this year. Microsoft’s recent Apple rip-off TV commercials seemed to be a bit of a Band-Aid approach to marketing its Zune PMP. Pehaps this is part of the Washington wonder’s game plan however, as they announced earlier this week that the 80GB Zune would be available in a lovely shade of red for Valentine’s Day. Available for a limited time through Microsoft’s Zune Originals website, the red Zune’s price tag remains unaffected at $250. Zune Originals also allows buyers to choose from 20 new VDay-related designs that can be laser-etched onto the back of the player. Customers can even download a variety of lovey-dovey tracks that can be shared Zune to Zune or via the Zune SoNet. Microsoft has put a lot of effort into their Valentine’s Day offering this year and hopefully by taking advantage of it, you’ll be one step closer to getting exactly what you want for Vday.

[Via Newlaunches]

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In what can hardly be called a customer-friendly move, Apple has decided to charge current iPod Touch owners for the latest firmware upgrade to version 1.1.3. Truth be told, this was probably the only completely unexpected announcement in the whole of Jobs’ keynote. Version 1.1.3 adds five apps from the iPhone catalog; Mail, Maps, Stocks, Weather and Notes. It also adds some of the new functionality covered in the million iPhone write-ups you’ve already read. The most important note in a business sense, however, is that the update enables the iPod Touch to view iTunes rentals on the device. In other words, Apple is charging their customers $20 for the ability to go and spend more money to watch iTunes rentals on the Touch. This is very peculiar indeed. New iPod Touch units shipped with 1.1.3 won’t be $20 more expensive; only existing users are penalized. We would think that Apple would do everything in its power to make the upgrade as accessible as possible to encourage iTunes movie rental experimentation, but apparently not. At any rate, if you’re too lazy to jailbreak your Touch or too excited to pass on viewing iTunes rentals on your 3.5" display, the 1.1.3 firmware is now available for purchase in iTunes.

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The digital audio player market is….crowded, but what’s one more feature rich entry? Samsung has packed the YP-P2 with just about every feature imaginable. The biggest draw on this device is its creative implementation of Bluetooth. Using the player’s on board radio, users are able to interact with Bluetooth headsets, speakers, computers, and cell phones. If your phone has the correct Bluetooth profile you can even dial out and use the YP-P2 as a glorified address book and caller ID screen. Nice! Touch screen response is quick, and the video is nice, if a bit limited by the small 3" screen. It supports a wide variety of audio and video codecs, and with 35 hours of audio playback you should be set for quite some time. It feels good in-hand, and is slim enough to slip into any pocket you can find. It’s available now in 4 and 8 GB versions, with a 16 GB version coming soon.

Click on over to our Samsung YP-P2 gallery!

It’s CES madness over here in Las Vegas. Despite the circus that accompanies the year’s largest tech convention, we’re doing our best to bring you some of the show’s hottest products. First up is the new iRiver SPINN Personal Media Player. We’re not usually too excited about iRiver’s media players, but this one looks to be quite the player. The SPINN is a sleek new device that combines an analog and digital controller layout to provide some leve of tactile feedback while retaining an easily navigable digital menu system. It has a 3.2" WQVGA screen, and supports a wide variety of audio and video codecs. It also sports Bluetooth 2.0 and a built-in mic for voice note recording. It will be available some time this year and come in 4, 8, and 16 GB versions. All the good shots are in the gallery!

Click on over to our CES: iRiver SPINN gallery!

To be filed under "WTF were they thinking!?", Floral Mobile either didn’t bother to do any investigation before coming up with a moniker for their latest portable audio player, or they just don’t care about international colloquialisms. Either way, this had to be done. *Ahem*… Floral Mobile recently launched the Titi in the Korean market. Perfect for teenagers and even young adults, the Titi is a compact portable audio player similar in design to the iPod Shuffle. It can be clipped comfortably to just about any article of clothing so that it is always accessible and ready for use. The Titi is great for just about any leisure situation and it’s perfect for working out as well. Extremely compact and feather-light at only 10g, Titis will hardly get in the way during a jog or light weight training. Titis also come in a variety of colors to suit any taste. The best thing about a Titi? It’s cheap! The 1GB model is available for approximately US$41 which is just over half the cost of a 1GB Shuffle. It is unclear whether or not Floral Mobile has bigger Titis available but 1GB of storage should do the trick for light casual use. We can only hope that Floral Mobile decides to grace other markets with its Titis because we’re certain they would be a hit in the US.

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Beatsmiths and wanna-be rockstars were surely in the back of designer Prashant Chandra’s mind when he drew up his latest concept. pcRocks stuffs a powerful computer and a high-definition mic with integrated pop filter into a compact portable case. Perfect for recording on the go in any surroundings, this compact unit could be an ideal solution for musicians and producers on a budget. Even small private recording studios can cost a small fortune once you factor in the hourly rates, engineers, rehashing and everything else that goes into recording a track. A solution like this could be a perfect alternative for aspiring musicians of all kinds. pcRocks owners from around the world will also be able to network with each other while working on a project and record in real-time, eliminating travel costs entirely. This concept has some lofty aspirations and we’re curious to see how exactly Chandra plans to combat surrounding noise, vibrations and other audio disruptions that soundproofing techniques such as floating and acoustical paneling eliminate in a professional studio. Even still, the portability and versatility of a product like pcRocks has some real potential to make professional-quality recordings much more accessible.

[Via Yanko Design]

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Designers Per Arlander, Madlene Linstrom and Ozgur Tasar have teamed up to create what might just be the first small step of a revolution in stoner relaxation gadgetry. The MPillow combines sound, light and…well, a pillow to lull you to sleep. The concept is actually quite cool; it connects via your Wi-Fi network to stream Grateful Dead MP3s from your computer or even selections from a catalog of soundscapes housed on the MPillow servers. A unique design situates the speaker at the narrowest point of a tear drop-like shape. As such, no real threat is posed to your hearing while the subtle vibrations that accompany sound waves compound your experience. What’s more, integrated lighting that runs around the edge of the pillow automatically changes its color and intensity to coincide with your music. The lighting effects will either create the perfect ambiance as you doze, or just give you some pretty trippy interesting dreams. In either case, this new Nordic creation might be just what you need to cure that insomnia and drift off to a peaceful sleep. That or a Temperpedic bed.

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With a formal announcement coming at CES 2008 in January, the upcoming Mustek PF-i700 combines a stylish digital photo frame with a full-function iPod multimedia dock. Mustek’s new 7" TFT digital frame will feature an integrated iPod dock, stereo speakers and 480 x 234 resolution with a 16:9 widescreen aspect ratio. Users will be able to enjoy digital images or videos on the sleek modern frame while music from their iPods sets the mood. Nice, right? Beyond iPod support, the PF-i700 will support SD, xD, MMC, MemoryStick and MemoryStick Pro cards, and even packs a USB 2.0 port that will accept and display content from flash drives. With a feature-set this inclusive, one would expect a hefty price tag to go along with it. An MSRP of $129.99 however, will make this all-in-one multimedia display very accessible once released in March 2008. Any takers?

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The current trend in headphones is noise-cancelling / noise-isolating but Korean company En-Tech is taking a different approach with their latest audio delivery offering. In fact, the En-Tech Vibe NVE-100 ear-phones are essentially the polar opposite of noise cancelling. By design, the NVE-100s allow sounds to be heard so that the wearer is not disconnected from his or her surroundings. Despite the fact that they’re not the best looking ear-phones on the market, the NVE-100s are certainly the safest option for commuters. In addition, sound is delivered directly to the tympanic membrane through vibrations so these ear-phones are safe for the ear drums as well. These are active ear-phones so they do require a charge. About 30 minutes of juice from a USB port will keep them going for about six hours so the inconvenience is minimal. En-Tech’s Vibe NVE-100 ear-phones will retail for $105 once released in the Korean market. Those of us outside of Korea will have to keep an eye on eBay to grab a pair.

[Via Ubergizmo]

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If you’re tired of those analog radio waves buzzing about in your kitchen, living room, or study, MusicPal might be looking pretty nice. This portable wireless Internet radio allows you to listen to one of 5,000 radio stations in the device’s memory. It also allows users to to stream MP3s from their home network. The key feature here, however, is the device’s size. It’s almost deserving of the "handheld" label, giving you the freedom to carry it just about anywhere your Wi-Fi network can reach. It also displays single line RSS feeds, serving as a backup feed reader should you desire to use it as such. $150 direct from Freecom.

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Sure, you could head down to your local Wal-Mart, Target, Costco, or Apple Store and grab an iPod of any shape or size, but where’s the spirit of fun and originality in that. Anyone looking for something a bit off the beaten path might want to take a look at this new Samsung digital audio machine. The VP-T10 features support for a wide range of codecs and file types, including MP3s, WMAs, OGGs, and WMVs. The player comes in both 2 and 4 GB flavors, and has a 2 inch screen, FM tunes, voice recorder, and much more. Colors? Black, red, green, or white. How’s that for choice, eh? Expect these to be available shortly in Korea, with a worldwide release to follow soon after.

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Here’s an interesting move: Microsoft, just days after the release of their brand new lineup of Zune personal media players, has announced that they will be replacing the head of their Zune division. The company has appointed Rick Thompson as the corporate VP in charge of Zune business operations. Thompson will report directly to J. Allard, the "mastermind" behind the entire Zune department. The move comes on the heels of the company’s new Zune launch, leading us to question whether they are happy with the direction that the new generation of Zunes are headed. Allard will still have final say over general Zune operations, but new blood is never a bad thing, right?

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Rumors are building in support of an upcoming announcement from Microsoft regarding a Zune update. All signs point to the company holding a last minute event sometime tomorrow to herald in the next generation of the their portable media player. The Zune 2 has apparently been in the works for a while, and there’s a good chance that the company will drop a flash-based "Zune Mini" to compete with many of the smaller devices on the market, including Apple’s iPod Nano. Microsoft will also refresh the regular Zune, though it’s not clear just what updates / changes are to be expected. Will the new devices be enough to court prospective customers away from Apple’s recently refreshed iPod line? Judging from the history of the original Zune, we’d guess not, but we’ve been surprised before.

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Polk Audio, long known for their superior home entertainment system components and speaker systems, appears to be making an aggressive move into the iPod accessory market. The Polk I-Sonic iPod dock is one of the slickest iPod docks we’ve seen to date. The I-Sonic sports full video out capabilities, allowing you to stream movies and TV shows from your iPod directly to an external screen. The demonstration model was attached to a small screen which was producing incredibly high quality video from the docked iPod Nano. The dock also features an innovative radio capture and tagging system. So, let’s say you have an iPod docked to the I-Sonic, but are listening to the dock’s on board HD radio. You hear a song you like, hit the tag button, and the track is immediately copied to a new playlist on your iPod, ID3 tag and all. Pretty slick, right? The built-in speakers reproduce audio with Polk’s trademark clarity and precision. The only drawback? The price. At $599, you might want to think twice about dropping that much dough on an iPod dock, but if you have the money to spend, we don’t think you can find a better option. Hit the jump for more pics!

It’s no secret that we’re fans of Bang & Olufsens’ design aesthetic, and we totally get appreciating music in its clearest and purist form, but $800 for a pretty standard-featured MP3 player might be a little steep for some people. Then again, B&O ain’t for everyone. On the specs side, the Beosound 6 is a little underpowered with what looks like a touch-pad for controls, a color screen, and 4GB of internal memory. A pair of A8 earphones also adjoins the Beosound 6, as does a leather carrying case / holster. The only question we have; doesn’t this look like a re-branded Samsung MP3 player?

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If you’ve ever wanted to be overlord of all the geeks at your local D&D club, this thing will sure give you a fighting chance. IMOBILE has packed a 3G-capable GSM phone, audio / video player, Bluetooth capability, and a touchscreen into a wristwatch. That’s right, the little things most people use to tell time can now be used to make calls and make your neighbors snicker behind your back. No word on availability (I know you’re disappointed), but do click on to see all the photos from PhoneDaily’s report. Unless, like most people nowadays, you use your cell phone as a watch. Then, well, you won’t really have a need for this…

[via AkihabaraNews]

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