iRiver’s touchscreen cellphone – which the company coyly described as a “proof of concept” when first showing it back at CES 2008 in January – is in fact set for release on Korean network KT come March 9th 2009. The handset – called ‘wave’ – is based around a 3-inch, 480 x 272 touchscreen and has the usual mixture of high-speed cellular internet access and WiFi, together with PMP, FM radio and e-dictionary functionality.
It might look like a basic PMP, but actually this is something far cooler: the Mintpass mintpad MP100 is a 3.2oz, palm-sized web tablet, with a 2.86-inch QVGA touchscreen, WiFi b/g, integrated 1.3-megapixel webcam and 4GB of internal storage. All that in something measuring 3.08 x 2.51 x 0.60 inches. Best of all, this is no crazy prototype: it’s actually available in Korea.
iRiver have announced the US launch of their distinctive SPINN PMP, the 4GB and 8GB versions of which go on sale today. Based around the dual input methods of a 3.3-inch AMOLED touchscreen and a large “spindle” scroll-wheel, the SPINN includes video, music, FM radio and picture viewer functionality, together with voice recording and integrated Bluetooth 2.0 for wireless headsets.
iRiver’s distinctive SPINN media player, which we came away from our hands-on at IFA 2008 distinctly impressed, looks to begin shipping in the US on October 3rd. The company’s online store has begun taking preorders for the 4GB and 8GB versions of the PMP, priced at $249.99 and $289.99 respectively.
If iRiver nailed the interface of the SPINN, they seem to have come undone with that of the P20. The hard-drive based player is big, blunt-edged and the controls manage to make it look rather like an analog FM radio. Dual scroll-wheels – one horizontal, one vertical – coupled with a separate ‘OK’ button and a touchscreen that’s inset slightly too far for comfort make it a tricky PMP to navigate.
iRiver’s SPINN PMP keeps pulling in the kudos, and our hands-on at IFA 2008 didn’t do anything to make us doubt it. Even a strange leather flip-case that looked like it was held on with medical tape couldn’t disguise a casing that, arguably, is more attractive than that of the iPod touch. It’s the interface, though, which makes the SPINN such a joy, and a lot of that is down to the incredibly tactile scroll wheel.
While those of us not in the UK or Korea look on enviously, Crave UK have been busy playing with iRiver’s SPINN PMP. Though it’s merely a preliminary hands-on, for the moment it sounds like everything we thought about the SPINN is true: the AMOLED display really is that crisp, colorful and lovely; the wheel controller is a good addition to the touchscreen; and yes, not having expandable memory (beyond the max 16GB installed) is frustrating.
iRiver’s SPINN PMP was first spotted back in January, but only now has been tipped for release by the company. Available in Korea now, with a UK launch in August, the flash-based media player features a 3.3-inch AMOLED touchscreen, DMB mobile TV and, of course, the analogue control wheel that gives the SPINN its name.
iRiver is no stranger to sleek designed portable media player, and today iRiver unveiled yet another small and sleek player, the Lplayer Multifunctional MP4 Player. The player features iRiver’s unique D-Click control, 2.0-inch TFT Wide LCD screen, and FM tuner.
SlashGear JP
