08/14/2007, 1:15pm, EDT
Tuesday, August 14thCowon second to reach 16GB ahead of iPod
Cowon today announced that both its D2 (pictured) and iAudio 7 have jumped to 16GB of capacity, doubling the amount of storage compared to earlier models. The storage allows either system to hold as many as 4,000 songs and is a better fit for more or longer video clips in the case of the D2. The iAudio 7 reaches the benchmark with 16GB of memory built-in; reaching the goal for the larger-screened but thinner D2 touchscreen player requires a combo pack that ships a D2 with 8GB of built-in memory plus an 8GB SDHC card, according to Cowon.
Both players are otherwise unchanged and include audio support for FLAG, OGG, MP3, and WMA as well as MPEG-4 and XviD clips at either half the frame rate (for the iAudio 7) or full speed (for the D2). Both work with Macs and Windows PCs, and should be available to order in Cowon's Korean home by August 23rd. The 16GB iAudio will sell for $320 while the D2 will sell at a higher $450 with an integrated DMB digital TV tuner. US versions are expected but have not been announced.
Cowon will become the second major company to introduce 16GB players into the market, quickly following behind Creative's release of a 16GB Zen V Plus in Singapore and the US. Their chief rival Apple has yet to announce a player at a similar capacity and is typically not the first to offer new capacities as soon as they become available, but is reportedly developing a 16GB video iPod for a September launch.
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The D2 has an even larger volumne than the iPod 30gb. Fitting 16gb of storage is a no brainer.
Also, the Zen is twice the physical size of iPod Nano.
These devices, due to their large sizes are NOT in the same class as the iPod Nano. If you must compare, compare to the iPod 30GB and see who comes out on top.
The whole point of Nano is its small size and great usability. The iPod Nano fits in a dress shirt or t-shirt pocket easily. These other knockoffs does not.
If you actually know how the iPod works, you will know how ridiculous your misconception is. iPod, due to the buffer size, access the hard drive for seconds to fill the buffer once every 40-60 minutes. The harddrive is NOT spinning all the time.
In the extremely unlikely circumstances that data is damaged, the original data sits in your iTunes, and that can restored onto the iPod.
Nobody is perfect. People drop all kinds of things including iPod. Heck, I’ve dropped my iPod a few times. And guess what, they still work perfectly. iPod: sold over 100 Million. Complaint about iPod being damaged due to its storage medium hard drive is non-existent except for the people who never owned one.
It's not an issue. Get over it.