iRiver Announces 40G Player & Previews 2004 Line

slavitos writes: "Just as we've finished our discussions of OGG support in iRiver players, the company has announced it will soon release a 40G HD player. According to this source, the new model will differ slightly from the previous 20G one - for example, the 40G player will be 3 mm thicker and 12 grams heavier. The cost of the device has not yet been determined." While we're on the topic of iRiver, thopo notes: "iRiver presented their new products coming spring 2004, here are pictures from the show, including pictures (and specs) of all new models. Especially noteworthy is the IHP-300 which comes with a 2" color TFT LCD and a very classy design. This thing got 'iPod Killer' written all over it." The page is in Korean, but most of the product descriptions in the pictures are in English.

Comments

English description of 40-GB model

[hankwang]

The 40 GB iHP-140 is described in English on their Northern Europe website. You have to click on the English flag in the upper right corner.

Re:If this thing is a portable 40GB...

[grub]

Decoding video requires a lot more horsepower than audio. My Egoman MP3/VCD player will only play VCD when plugged into the wall. RCA jacks take up a lot of room on the board, it's easier to use a minijack -> RCA adapter cable (they're cheap)

Alpine/iPod integration

[burgburgburg]

Alpine has announced that they will demonstrating at CES the first solution that allows users to connect/control their iPod through their in-car system. They'll be able to view playlist, artists, songs, etc. through the Alpine's receiver buttons. And the connector will also charge the iPod. To get more info, write to ipodready@alpine-usa.com.

Image mirror

[markclong]

http://slushdot.org/mirror/iriver/board.php

Minus all the other crap.

nice, but where's the firmware for iHP120?

[PeterChenoweth]

A nice improvement to the existing iHP line, but iRiver should be concentrating on fixing the *numerous* bugs in the current firmware of the iHP-100/120 series. Such as ....

1. Shuffle still isn't random (just all your tracks in a different order - but always the same order)

2. Doesn't support any type of secure files.

3. DB application can't handle OGG or WMA file tags, so you can only search by Artist/Album/Genre if it's an mp3 file.

4. No on-the-fly playlist ability, and very limited playlist ability at all (only when using the Beta firmware that's been out since November).

I just bought one

[VividU]

The 20GB player. Here is super-quick review from a professional audio engineer (me).

Pros:
- The output sound is tight, crisp and full-bodied. The level is clean and hot, just the way I like it.
- Plug-N-Play. No drivers, no nothing. Plug the USB cable and it shows up as a HD. Organize files however you like. By ID or standard directory structure.
- The remote has its own tiny LCD dispay. Very cool.
- USB 2.0 file transfer if very fast. I did 12GB while I ate a bowl of cereal.
- Transfer & store any type of file
- Its supports more codecs than I'll ever use.
- OGG support. No DRM
- Digital In and Out!
- Analog In and Out!
- Records to WAV and MP3
- FM Radio!
- Internal Microphone
- External Mic jack (mic included)
- Firmware upgradable
- Quiet and fast
- Its packaged with a real leather case and all the cables and adapters you'll ever need.

Cons:
- The GUI could use some work
- The Joystick can be a pain
- Navigation can be rough
- Issues with Recording time limitations

Its looks like the software faults can and will be upgraded through the firmware.

Overall a great little package. Its not as slick as the iPod. But for less than the 20GB iPod I get a ton of more features.