MP3 Headlines & News for January 22, 2010

And the eReader party keeps getting bigger.

The Interweb was aflutter today after word broke out about computer maker Asus' new eBook reader, the DR-950. Given the plethora of eReaders unveiled at the Consumer Electronics Show this year, you basically have what amounts to a feeding frenzy for the sector.

According to Web site Electricpig, Asus' DR-950 sports a 9-inch touchscreen with a 1024x760 resolution display. It's also only 9 millimeters thin and will weigh less than the juggernaut in its sights — Amazon's Kindle DX.

Other features include either 2GB or 4GB of internal memory, SD slot, Wi-Fi, USB port, an audio port, RSS feed software and text-to-speech. (The juvenile in me now can't wait to test the text-to-speech function by typing "To get passed around like a bad cold, please press one. To get stuck in an endless loop of pressing buttons, please press two. If you think Jason Hidalgo is da bomb, press three...")

With the latest addition to the eReader fray, I can't help but wonder if the market is truly getting oversaturated. Seriously, at this point I wouldn't be surprised if McDonald's released its own eReader, the eMc-Squared (Get it? eMC squared as in — um, just forget it). Yeah, laugh all you want now but I'm telling ya...

Photo © Asus

Asus Joins Fray with DR-950 eReader originally appeared on About.com Portable Entertainment on Tuesday, January 19th, 2010 at 00:01:18.

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When you've made a name for yourself making iPhone knockoffs, it only stands to reason that you'd also want to make a knockoff of Apple's "alleged" tablet — or at least a representation of what you might think it will look like.

On that note, the folks at PMP Today spied this listing for DigitalRise's X9 multi-touch tablet at Chinagrabber.com. There's just something about an Apple-ish knockoff appearing at a site that sounds like a knockoff of Pricegrabber that makes my easily amused self giggle. But I digress.

A look at the X9 will likely make some people think, "Hey, it kinda' looks like an iPhone." Now check out the price of this baby: $999.99. (Though the site currently has it on sale for $779.99.)

My keen powers of observation also tell me the X9 comes with Windows 7, 3G and GPS. I don't know why but I just know...

Other specs not discernible from the above photo include a 10.2-inch 1024x600 TFT screen, Atom N270 1.6G processor, 2GB DDR2 memory, 160G SATA2.5 hard disk drive, and Intel 950 Integration video card.

Speaking of the real Apple tablet/iSlate/whatever-it-is, I couldn't help but chuckle at Valleywag for giving first prize for its Apple Tablet Scavenger Hunt to an Apple lawyer warning them about said contest. Apparently, the site considers the legalese-filled letter as the best proof it's gotten so far that the mysterious Apple tablet actually exists. So much for my chance at winning $100,000.

Photo from Chinagrabber

The Apple-like DigitalRise X9 Tablet originally appeared on About.com Portable Entertainment on Friday, January 15th, 2010 at 01:04:10.

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Now what is this we have here, hmm?

Aeronautics and weapons firm Lockheed Martin took off the stealthy shroud from its latest project and it's ... a USB drive?

To quote one lady I saw at Pizzeria Bianco after being told the wait was three hours: "Huh?"

Now, try as hard as I can, I can't seem to see a hidden missile bay or laser in this thing. Which can only mean that this thing truly is a USB drive.

More specifically, it's called the "IronClad," which is exactly the opposite of the excuse one of my buddies had after his girlfriend caught him staring at another woman. ("Um, I was thinking about you the whole time?")

Anywho, the IronClad USB is a joint venture between Lockheed Martin and IronKey and is supposed to shrink "a laptop's hard drive - including the entire operating system, software applications, and files - onto a secure flash drive." Now that sounds a bit more Lockheed Martin-ish.

Of course, given the company's haughty claims about the security of its new "PC on a stick," they're pretty much inviting every enterprising hacker to create a bug that could infect the darn thing. It's like walking around with a huge bullseye at a darts tournament.

Then again, Lockheed Martin wouldn't be Lockheed Martin without the bravado.

Photo © Lockheed Martin

Lockheed Martin Locks, Loads and Fires New USB Drive originally appeared on About.com Portable Entertainment on Wednesday, January 20th, 2010 at 00:01:18.

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So as I gassed up my Ferrari (yeah, right, Jason) and said goodbye to the Consumer Electronics Show, I couldn't help but look back at all the neat stuff I saw during my brief sojourn to Las Vegas.

Like all the nice men doling out, um, "recession cards," which they clapped together as they handed them out to ecstatic convention-goers who took them with gratitude and stared lovingly at the images printed on them (uh, I don't think so, Jason). As someone who's visited Vegas quite a few times, let me just say that they used to hand out much bigger brochures in the past. (Not sure when they switched to cards but we all know how important portability is.)

Then there were all the neat electronic devices at CES. Certainly, I saw some pretty cool things. But the last image on my mind is of this one neat USB driver I got, probably because it's literally the last thing I got as I hurried off to catch my ride to the airport. It's called the Doggy Driver (seriously) and it has got to be the coolest press kit I got from the whole show.

Well, cutest would actually be a better word but either way, I just can't help but like the darned thing. 'Cause as folks who read my blog know, I just have a soft spot for cute little things.

Anywho, I compiled a bunch of info on all sorts of portables at CES, which I'll be writing about in the coming days. In the meantime, I guess I need to come up with an offering to appease my ancestors who undoubtedly consider me and my gushing over the Doggy Driver as a disgrace to all Hidalgo males.

Photos by Jason Hidalgo

Arrivederci CES, Plus the Show's Coolest Press Kit originally appeared on About.com Portable Entertainment on Monday, January 11th, 2010 at 00:01:37.

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If there were two things that slapped you in the face when you walked through the Central Hall of the Consumer Electronics Show, it would be 3DTV and eBook readers. Talk about sheer, unrelenting volume.

Now since this is a portable electronics site, we'll obviously be touching on the latter. There certainly was no shortage of eReaders at CES, ranging from sleek, high-priced offerings to more affordable devices for value-minded consumers.

For those interested in a sneak peek at some of the new eBook readers featured at CES, I've put together a CES 2010 eReader roundup. Happy eReading.

Photo © enTourage

New eBook Readers From CES 2010 originally appeared on About.com Portable Entertainment on Sunday, January 10th, 2010 at 04:49:07.

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