We certainly can’t knock the 4GB Atree J100 when it comes to its well stocked arsenal of goodies: it has a three-inch touchscreen, an e-dictionary , DMB digital TV tuner, video playback, and microSD expansion — and it plays music too. Audio formats are also plentiful, with MP3, WMA and OGG for the commoners, and FLAC and APE for the lossless fanatics. Too bad it’s held back by the chunky casing, which looks big enough to have fit a five-inch screen if the designers were so inclined. With slicker-looking competition from the likes of Cowon and Samsung , the otherwise entirely useful J100 might struggle to stand out, but if you’re willing to look beyond its superficial shortcomings, it’s available now for 198,000 KRW ($158). [Via PMP Today ] Filed under: Portable Audio , Portable Video Atree J100 gets lost in the forest of Korean PMPs originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 18 Aug 2009 21:53:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds

M&Soft’s Mappy navigation software seems well established in Korea, and now the company has decided to offer its own hardware for it in the shape of a 7-inch SiRF -based touchscreen device. Of course, it wouldn’t be a South Korean PND if it didn’t include a DMB digital TV tuner, video and audio playback, and a photo / text viewer, but the company’s gone one better by offering the elaborate, gimmicky GUI you see above. Pricing is pretty decent too, set at 349,000 KRW ($283) with a 4GB SDHC card, or 399,000 KRW ($323) for an 8GB unit. The AP in the model name stands for “Absolute Pride” — sure, make your jokes, but maybe it’s that wise-guy sense of humor keeping this sort of tech away from Western shores. [Via Slashgear ] Gallery: M&Soft launches 7-inch Mappy AP1 PND in South Korea Filed under: GPS , Handhelds M&Soft launches 7-inch Mappy AP1 PND in South Korea originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 31 Jul 2009 10:22:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds .

Right around this time last year , we actually had lofty hopes that Motorola would get its handset business in gear and shock us all with an ultra-potent, completely refined smartphone. Here we sit today, still waiting. Still, we can’t pass up an opportunity to throw Moto’s hardware design team a bone, as the ROKR ZN50 is downright sexy from any angle. The music-centric, full touchscreen slider packs a 3.2-inch panel (427 x 240 resolution), automatic screen rotation, shake to switch tracks, a 3.5 millimeter headphone jack, Bluetooth stereo headset support, SRS WOW HD audio tech and a battery good for 30 hours of audio playback. There’s also a T-DMB TV tuner, 4GB of inbuilt memory, a microSDHC card slot, 3.2 megapixel camera, an e-dictionary and support for 7.2Mbps HSDPA.

Time for a break from all the MID, smartbook, and netbook action from the Computex show for a glimpse at the latest from Korea’s iriver. The B30 , like most iriver devices, starts with elegant hardware. iriver then slips in a UI and physical controls that may or may not be new to its user base. While we appreciate iriver’s dedication to innovation, a bit of consistency would be appreciated, especially since none of the UIs have quite reached perfection. So take a look at the B30 after the break — you feeling those white boxy outlines and rotation delays as the display moves between portrait and landscape?

We can’t quite figure it out, but it seems the navigation makers in North America just can’t muster the courage to develop something such as this for our market. We could very well be wrong here, but seriously, is there no pent-up demand for a TV tuning GPS system with a spacious 7-inch display here in the US / Canada / Mexico? Anywho, the South Koreans are scoring once more with the downright beautiful Thinkware iNAVI ES300, which arrives with a sweet side-panel control system, integrated battery, 2GB / 4GB / 8GB of internal storage, 3D maps and a DMB tuner. Oh, and this is considered “low-end” by its standards. Those in the right places can snag one soon for ₩329,000 ($263), ₩379,000 ($303) or ₩429,000 ($343) from least capacious to most

We always figured the digital photo frame market would have to grow up one day, and we’re thrilled to know that day is coming soon. Over in Korea, Human-Rh has apparently showcased a couple of new frames that not only up the ante in terms of panel quality but also toss in a much-needed extra: mobile TV. The 7.6-inch HDPF-760D steals the show with a gorgeous AMOLED display and a built-in DMB tuner; the 8-inch HDPF-800D sticks with the traditional LCD, but it’s available with a variety of tuners (1seg, T-DMB, DVB-T and CMMB) for regions around the globe. Naturally, both frames still do their basic duties of playing back slideshows, but the built-in WiFi also enables them to display information from internet-connected widgets. We’re told that these arrive with 2GB of integrated memory, a multicard slot and a USB port, but mum’s the word on pricing and release. Vid’s after the break.

Check it, North Americans — yet another PMP that’ll never arrive here in this form. The T-DMB-equipped B30 just popped up over on iriver ’s Korean website, complete with an FM tuner, 2.8-inch QVGA display, a microSD expansion slot, 4/8/16GB of inbuilt memory, white / black / silver color options, USB 2.0 connectivity, a user-selectable equalizer and a list of supported file formats too lengthy to cover in this space. Furthermore, we’re told that the battery is good for 40 hours on audio and 5.5 hours with video, and while a ship date has yet to be revealed, we’re expecting ‘em to go for around $155, $183 and TBD from least capacious to most. [Via PMP Today ] Gallery: iriver’s T-DMB-packin’ B30 portable media player emerges Filed under: Portable Audio , Portable Video iriver’s T-DMB-packin’ B30 portable media player emerges originally appeared on Engadget on Sat, 23 May 2009 21:34:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Read

Generally, there’s nothing that makes me laugh harder than an “I didn’t see you there” joke to a guy dressed in camouflage at the mall. But here’s one better. Simply named Invisible , this erased torso pattern is available on a short sleeve or long sleeve tee. But before you get too cocky and attempt an infiltration of the girl’s locker room, remember, females have excellent eyesight and can spot those little grey boxes a mile away.

After a bit of a tease, the folks at reigncom have taken the wraps off their new P35 personal media player . Having mastered good product design long ago, iriver is now intent on bringing its interface and user experience up to snuff. After all, anyone can make a rectangular, touchscreen media box these days. The P35 features the SPINN navigator we’ve seen before, an accelerometer for automatic portrait and landscape orientation, and ships in a 8GB basic model or a 16GB version with options for DMB television (with mini remote control) and/or 802.11b/g WiFi.

With America’s status as a technological superpower comes a tendency to occasionally straight ignore the rest of the world. For better or for worse, here are technologies we’ve all but completely missed out on. Laserdiscs When Laserdisc player production finally spun down a month or so ago, it wasn’t much of an occasion. I mean, aside from inspiring a little grade-school nostalgia and upsetting a hobbyist or three, the event wasn’t materially notable. For us, that is.