Android is finding its way into all sorts of products and is common in things like MP3 players and more today. The latest Android-powered MP3 player from Cowon has surfaced for pre-order and is called the Cowon D3. The player has some really nice specs and sounds as much like a WiFi MID as a MP3 player.
The D3 has a big 3.7-inch AMOLED screen with a resolution of 800 x 480. The device has integrated WiFi so the user can surf the web. The screen supports 16 million colors and the payer has HDMI output. Other features of the player include Bluetooth, a T-DMB tuner, FM tuner and recorder, and a micro SD card slot.
The player has an integrated speaker and touch feedback. It uses the NTFS file system as well. The headphone port lets you listen privately and the Gsensor changes the screen to match how the user holds the device. Onboard storage is 32GB and the device will ship February 15 for £279.00.
Cowon has finally got official on its long-rumored D3 PMP, and as teased it does indeed run Android. The Cowon D3 Plenue has a 3.7-inch WVGA AMOLED touchscreen display and uses Android 2.1, paired with WiFi b/g, Bluetooth 2.1 and a T-DMB TV tuner.
In fact, there’s a lot of tech you’d usually expected to find in a phone inside the D3, like an accelerometer and vibration feedback. There’s also a microSD card slot – augmenting 8GB, 16GB or 32GB of onboard storage – along with HDMI and USB 2.0 connectivity. It doesn’t look like Android Market access is included, but Cowon does throw in a Twitter and social networking app.
As you’d expect from Cowon, the list of supported file-types and codecs is huge, and includes 1080p Full HD support. No word on pricing at this stage, but audiophiles looking for an iPod touch alternative might find something here worth waiting for.
Cowon knows how to make Personal Media Players. They’ve got a myriad of the devices available now, with more coming down the pipe, and now it looks like one more is set to join the fray just in time to hit Christmas wish-list. Though, their newest effort isn’t just another PMP. This new device, aptly called the Cowon 3D, features glasses-free 3D technology, and still manages to pack in all of the other features people expect in their PMPs.
Of course, the company is saying that the Cowon 3D is the first 3D PMP available on the market. Much like the Nintendo 3DS, Cowon’s PMP is able to display 3D images to the user without the need for glasses. The Cowon 3D will also let you fully enjoy 1080p HD video, as well as through the output so you can enjoy it on your HDTV. You’ll be able to use the Cowon 3D to browse the Internet, look at your photos and videos, as well as listen to music.
The device features a 4.3-inch touchscreen display, with a resolution of 800 x 480, and it will come in sizes of 32GB or 64GB. For the 32GB, you’ll have to pay $430, and $510 for the 64GB version. Both of them are due to hit retail shelves some time in December. The big question, though, is whether or not the device is meant to convert standard 2D images into 3D ones, or if the device’s User Interface and 3D-based movies will be the only thing users experience in 3D.
Cowon has gone official in Korea with its latest PMP that looks more like a smartphone than a traditional PMP I am used to seeing called the X7. The thing has a 4.3-inch screen with no word on what the exact resolution of the thing is. It should make for some nice mobile video playback assuming the screen is decent.
The X7 can be had in 80GB, 102GB, and 160GB flavors with that capacity reached using a spinning HDD, not flash. I would assume these would be more fragile thanks to that point than other PMPs with flash-based storage.
Other features of the X7 include Bluetooth, a radio tuner, video playback with DivX support. The PMP also has TV-out capability and has a web browser. There is no mention of WiFi officially apparently, but a browser without WiFi makes little sense. The X7 will also sport a RSS reader. The X7 standard with 160GB of storage will be 339,000 won with the same PMP packing in seven optional dictionaries is selling for 379,000 won.
Cowon has updated their V5 PMP with a new injection of WiFi, creating the Cowon V5W. Packing a 4.8-inch WVGA touchscreen, up to 64GB of flash storage and an HDMI output, the V5W has WiFi b/g and an S/PDIF output, and runs a custom Cowon UI on top of Windows CE 6.0.
As before there’s a multimedia app, games support and more, but Cowon have preloaded the Opera browser and a YouTube viewer to take advantage of the new wireless connection. There’s also Flash support, an SD card slot and Full HD video playback support (via the HDMI output, not the V5W’s own display of course).
Cowon use their JetEffect 3.0 audio processing system, and with a reputation as one of the better companies in the PMP industry for sound quality we’ve high hopes for the V5W’s multimedia credentials. Battery life is tipped at up to 45hrs of music, 10hrs of video or 300hrs of standby; no word on pricing, but it’ll hit Korea this month.
Cowon’s niche has generally been PMPs that offer significantly higher audio quality than rivals, but according to the latest rumors they could be throwing in some fashionable Android action with their next model. Journal Du Geek reckons that the Cowon D3 – the replacement to the venerable D2 – will eschew the company’s proprietary OS and replace it with Google’s open-source Android platform.
Now, beyond that there’s no more information, but we’re assuming that – like Archos have done with their Internet Tablets – Cowon will be reskinning Android in some way to better suit a PMP. The D2 has a mere 2.5-inch resistive touchscreen, so if Cowon are planning to use the same sort of form-factor they’ll need to do some work making Android finger-friendly for an interface that size.
Still, if they can get that right and the audio quality to the same standard as previous Cowon PMPs, there’s no reason the D3 shouldn’t be a success. We’re hoping it looks a little more like the luscious AMOLED-screen J3, frankly, which gives the iPod touch a run for its aesthetic money.
Cowon’s reputation for strong audio performance and well-constructed PMPs has left us eagerly anticipating the company’s new J3 mediaplayer, and while we’ve still to listen to the end result, from a style point of view the J3 certainly packs a punch. Fresh to Cowon’s site, the J3 has a 3.3-inch 16m color AMOLED touchscreen, Bluetooth 2.0 (with A2DP support), T-DMB and a TV-out connection, together with a microSD card slot and their own JetEffect 3.0 and BBE+ DSP.
While control is predominantly via the touchscreen, Cowon have also added a few useful hardware buttons for some frequently-accessed features. Fast forward/rewind and volume all get physical controls, but Cowon’s GUI also looks pretty darn neat (if a little bit like an amalgam of LG’s S-Class UI, the iPod touch and Windows Phone 7).
Other specs include an accelerometer, FM radio, voice recorder and Flash player, together with a dictionary and a battery good for up to 64hrs of audio playback or 11hrs of video. The whole thing measures a waifish 106.5 x 56 x 9.9 mm and tips the scales at 76g; it’ll be available in both black and white. No word on when we can expect it in the US or Europe following the South Korean launch at the end of this month.
Having been spotted in little more than sketch form back in January, we now have some firmer information on Cowon’s upcoming J3 media player. Set to launch this month, apparently, the Cowon J3 has a 3.3-inch AMOLED touchscreen running at 480 x 272, complete with up to 16GB of storage and Bluetooth connectivity.
Three versions of the J3 will be available initially, with the PMP coming in 4GB, 8GB and 16GB SKUs. All will have an accelerometer for automatic screen-orientation flips, a TV output for displaying content on a bigger screen, and Cowon’s own JetEffects effects 3.0 technology for improving audio performance.
Previous rumors suggested that the J3 would also get integrated WiFi, though there’s no mention of that which we can find. However, given the company’s well-respected audio quality, this could be a popular PMP among audiophiles assuming Cowon price it reasonably.
[via OLED-Info and via PlayerBites; image via MovePlayer]
Cowon’s W2 Windows 7 MID has finally been spotted in the wild, cavorting with a reasonably surprised looking model while in Korea. Having been specified – and priced – earlier this month, AVING caught up with the 4.8-inch touchscreen tablet and grabbed some hands-on shots.
Unfortunately they’ve singularly failed to deliver any feedback about how the W2 actually performs, so we’re still left wondering about whether the Atom 1.33GHz machine is reasonably functional or otherwise. What we do get is a shot with it being used with a compact USB keyboard; it’s unclear whether that’s an unofficial accessory.
Still no word on whether Cowon will be bringing the W2 over to the US or Europe, or indeed whether their roughly $534 to $659 pricing would hold in the process. The W2 has WiFi b/g, VGA output, two USB 2.0 ports and Bluetooth 2.0+EDR.
More details on Cowon’s W2 MID have emerged, complete with a release date for Korea. As of January 25th, buyers there will be able to pick up the W2 in one of four different versions; each has a 4.8-inch 1024 x 600 LCD touchscreen and Intel Atom 1.33GHz processor. Contrary to our initial expectations, however, Cowon have gone with traditional hard-drives rather than SSD storage.
The four models of W2 on sale will start from the W2 60GB, progressing through the W2 90GB and the W2 60GB Premium to the W2 80GB Premium. It’s not entirely clear what differentiates between the standard and premium versions at this point; all apparently have WiFi b/g, Bluetooth 2.0+EDR and 1GB of RAM.
There’s also a TV output and Windows 7 OS, and the whole thing measures 143.6 x 88.1 x 27.5 mm together with tipping the scales at 450g. Pricing will begin at 599,000 Korean Won ($534) and rise to 739,000 Korean Won ($659).
Having been spotted in little more than sketch form 
