So it’s not enough that each company feels they have their own vandetta against Apple and the iPod. So it appears as if 2006 is going to be the time where there is a whole army against Apple.
Who can blame the people for being confused when it comes to trying to be unique and getting the most for their money? Enough blabber, more details.
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(information brought to you from mp3newsire.net)

Toshiba Gigabeat S

The Gigabeat S is a Windows Portable Media Center unit that comes with 30GB (model S30) and 60GB (model S60V) capacity. The unit sports a 2.4″ QVGA color screen, an FM tuner, and supports MP3 as well as the latest versions of Microsoft’s DRM-laden audio and video codecs. The Gigabeat S claims a 20 hour battery time for audio and a 5 hour duration for video. The Toshiba can be hooked up to a Tivo or an XBox 360 for those so inclined.

The Toshiba Gigabeat S30 weighs in at 4.4 ounces in a 2.3″ x 3.9″ x 0.5″ case. The Gigabeat S60V is slightly larger holding 5 ounces in a 2.3″ x 3.9″ x 0.6″ body. The Gibabeat S also comes in three colors; white, red and black

Samsung SBH-300 Bluetooth

Rumors that Apple is planning to release a bluetooth iPod sometime in the near future have been flying around for several months now. The problem with Apple rumors is that since there are so many of them it is hard to validate the accurate ones against the myriad that are just acts of wishful thinking by fans. Sometimes, though, you can look to what the competition is producing to get a hint a what technology is viable now and therefore a compelling bet for Apple.

The Samsung SBH-300 is a DAP with Bluetooth for wireless headphone activity. The SBH-300 is a 2GB flash unit that sports a 262k color OLED LCD display, voice recording, FM tuner, and A2DP stereo Bluetooth, which allows the unit to function with Samsung’s Anycall SBH-100 earphones. Samsung also says that the unit can function as a Bluetooth stereo headset for handling calls linked to Bluetooth-enabled mobile phones.

Sony NW-A1200 with 8GB

A few weeks back Sony SVP Takao Yuhura announced an upcoming iPod killer and a new service to replace its fading Connect music download site. Unfortunately, Yuhura gave no details as to how or why this Sony player would be any different? Could this unit be it?

8GB of flash memory would certainly gives this unit a foot up from the iPod nano and would be the key compelling draw for higher end users. Unfortunately, this player turned out to be a hard drive unit, so it is less compelling. The unit is also the first Sony to use the AAC format over Sony’s own ATRAC3 codec. This doesn’t mean the player can handle tracks purchased by iTunes as those files, while AAC, have Apple’s DRM to contend with.

NEC VoTol

The NEC VoTol, short for a moderately pretentious moniker they label Visual On-demand Tool of Life, is modestly notable for the fact that an English to Japanese translator is packaged into the thing.

A PMP unit, the VoTol is capable of handling MPEG 2 and 4 video and DivX. On the audio side, the VoTol adds Ogg Vorbis and ACC (not Apple’s proprietary version, but you probably already knew that) to the commonly used MP3 and WMA formats.

The NEC VoTol holds 30GB in a 1.8″ drive, has an SD port for added memory and transfers, and sports a 2.7-inch 320 x 240 LCD. And that water graphic on the screen shot? It’s a fancy battery level indicator (points for flair). The VoTol shipped last March for $340.

Sandisk Sansa e200 Series

SanDisk has now released its 200 series players. Announced in January, these iPod nano competitors offer up to 6GB of memory, trumping the nano’s 4GB top end. The unit’s 3.5″ x 1.7″ x 0.5″ dimensions compares well with the iPod nano’s 3.5 x 1.6 x 0.27 figure, though the Sansa is twice as thick.

The e200 series offers some compelling features. This includes a removable battery - a must as we found out recently - built in voice recording, an FM tuner and a MicroSD slot to expand the memory further. The unit also has photo and video playback capability, the latter feature being a curious addition for the small 1.8-inch TFT display. The SanDisk e200 line include the 2GB Sansa e250 for $199, the 4GB Sansa e260 at $249 and finally the 6GB Sansa e270 at $299

Samsung YP-U2

As we get closer to summer another Samsung DAP has arrived. Samsung’s persistance clearly sends a message that the iPod may be king now, but we’ll chip away year after year. Of course, the iPod had to go ahead and gain even more market share the last six months, so Sam sung has to reverse that trend first. But hey, it was Samsung who designed and built Creative’s first MP3 player, the original Nomad, in 1999 so these guys know what they are doing.

So let’s get to the details. The Samsung YP-U2X is a 512MB player with a 4-line LCD display, voice recording, FM tuner, and a reported 13 hour bateery life. The unit measures 24.4 x 87.6 x 12.6mm and handles WMA / ASF / WAV audio along with MP3. The unit is already available through Best Buy’s site for a very reasonable $70. The 1GB U2Z version of this portable and the 2GB U2Q are expected to hit US shores before early summer.

Viliv P1

The Viliv P1 PMP is the latest contender coming from Asia. Yes, the Viliv is sold in the US and making its entry last March.

The Viliv P1 offers the widescreen abilities missing on the Apple with a 4″ 480 x 272 pixel color TFT display, and comes with 30GB of storage and a CF slot for file transfers. The Viliv P1 also sports an FM tuner and DivX and Xvid support. The unit’s battery will run 6 hours on video and 11 hours when pushing audio only.

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