Amazon MP3 has finally started going international with the MP3 store coming to Amazon UK. The record companies continue whining about illegal music downloads but considering the (lack of) speed that MP3 stores are brought out (because of licensing and such) we'll prob have audio files implanted directly into our brain and have the site renamed Anything But iBrain by the time the entire world has access to MP3 stores.

After two years of disappointing customers every couple of months with no new info, Meizu is finally releasing it's M8 iPhone copy. This was announced as a competitor to the iPhone two years ago while the first gen iPhone was still hot and new. Personally I couldn't care less about this thing, but maybe there are still people out there who remember the fuzz surrounding the announcement of this thing back in 1863(ish).

The Archos 5 got a firmware update this week adding some features, bringing others out of beta and fixing some bugs.

The popular TV show "The Simpsons" had an episode last Sunday where a certain company got a bashing. Check it out if you want to know the real story behind Steve Mobs, Mapple and the Mypod.

Haier released a new version of the Rhapsody player, called the iBiza Sport. Flash memory, Wifi and Rhapsody support. The first player they released never was much of a success and I doubt this will be any different.

Many of us are tired of getting fleeced by eBay fees and ridiculous policies, so we have added an MP3 player classified section to the forums. Check it out, sell your used gear or find some great deals from others.

Engadget is reporting that German authorities have shut down the Meizu booth at CeBIT on concerns of piracy. These concerns stemmed from the Meizu M8, which is undoubtedly an iPhone rip off- from the form factor down to the little nuances of the touch interface.

Update: Readers are pointing out that the reason for the shut down is because of MP3 codec licensing issues. The same thing SanDisk had a problem with last year. My apologies for miss reporting this. However, I still stand my my strong words of Meizu being a thief of intellectual property.

As you know, I am by no means a fan of the iPhone, but I really have no tolerance for this kind of obvious piracy. It saddens me that companies like Meizu try to steal and profit from other peoples hard work, ideas, and innovation. It is blatant theft and dishonestly. Shame on you Meizu.

In support of intellectual property rights and creativity, I would much rather see someone buy an iPhone than a Meizu M8.

The Meizu M8 Mini One is as close to iPhone you can get from a decent company without actually buying the real thing. The M8 wasn't represented at CES, so hopes were high for CeBIT which is going on as we speak.

The "prototype" (if you can call it that) that the people at Engadget got to play with was rather disappointing, since it was only a screen showing 3 different pics nothing more. Meizu claims the hardware is complete, and that what remains is the software part. Icons and UI are more or less final and will most likely be what the phone will launch with in China in August. Spec sheet after the jump.

[ Engadget ]

The latest designs from Meizu illustrate their intention to create a touch-screen media player, the miniPlayer M7, to directly contend with the likes of the iPod Touch and Samsung's P2. The specs at present consist of 3.5 x 1.9 x 0.3-inch dimensions, a 2.8-inch 16 million color LCD with a 15:9 aspect ratio (480 x 288 pixel resolution), playback of H.264 at 720 x 480 pixels and 30fps as well as DivX, Xvid, and TV out.

The maximum capacity is 8GB, but expected prices do look appealing: 2GB for $90, 4GB for $110, and 8GB for $150. Keeping in mind that Meizu's predicted release dates are usually a touch optimistic, the M7 should turn up around March of next year, subsequent to the M8 miniOne.

[Meizu via Meizu Me]

After months of anticipating the release of an updated miniPlayer, Meizu’s official announcement of the M6 SL has finally arrived. The first and most readily noticeable transformation from the original M6 is the 7.3mm thickness, partly as a result of a smaller battery yielding 26 hours of audio and 4.5 hours of video.

An improved viewing angle is offered by the SL (previously rumoured to be 80° from all directions), but Meizu has considered more than just the eyes for the miniPlayer M6’s reformation as a new audio chip will be used and APE joins the list of supported audio codecs.

China will be receiving the new model before the end of the month in 2GB of memory for an equivalent of $90, 4GB for $110, and 8GB for $150.

Rarely does anyone get too excited over stick-on decals, but I found this one to be especially interesting and flawlessly executed. Almoxil, one of our forum members, took customizing his Meizu miniPlayer M6 to another level. The M6 is wrapped in a custom vinyl skin that is blended beautifully with a custom background. The vinyl skin has a removable adhesive and a special “rapid air” feature that lends itself to bubble-free installation.

Almoxil claims that the printing is top notch and creates no problems with the M6’s touch interface. He is planning on making another custom skin for his Meizu M3 and will post the pics soon. Stop in the forum for more pics and details on how you can get your own for around $12.

[Custom Skin]

The M6 won’t be the only current model from Meizu to receive a makeover. An improved M3 Music Card appears to be on the way as well. There is no news yet of the features that the M3se will provide, or any alterations in price that may occur, although both are already appealing.

The slim digital audio player won’t be receiving the same diet as the M6 either, but a change you may not have expected is losing the choice between black and white housings. The new edition will cast off its old plastic casing and replace it with a shell made entirely of metal.

[Zhongguancun Online]

Another company has announced they will be releasing a slimmer edition of one of their DAPs. We thought the Meizu M6 miniPlayer was already thin, but it’s due to shed a third of its body by August, giving it the same 0.7mm thickness as the Music Card, only 0.5mm more than the iPod nano.

The consequence of the downsize is that the 700mA battery will be replaced by a 500mA battery, which will no doubt hinder the fine video playback time. However, the M6se will retain the set of features of the current M6 in addition to receiving a boost to 8GB in the flash memory department. If this isn’t sounding good enough yet, given that the cost remains relative to the Asian market, the price tag will be around $130.

[Meizu Me via Engadget]

Meizu's upcoming miniOne/M8 may bear an uncanny resemblance to the iPhone, but its feature set just got a lot less phone-y. Turns out that when the device hits North America and Europe (after the "end of 2007" China release, of course), it will have shed all of its phone capabilities.

That's right. What we're looking at, then, is really just a pair of 4GB and 8GB PMPs that will play 30fps videos that fill up the entire 720 x 480 screen and have a 2-megapixel camera option (previous reports pegged the digicam at 3 megapixels). Since earlier reported prices haven't changed, we're guessing that the Meizu miniOne sans phone has yet to be priced.

[Engadget]

You probably know by now that last year's competition to design the next Meizu player ended rather uneventfully in January with the Music Card.

Information was a bit scarce (and boring) back then, but the familiar-looking flash DAP is looking a bit better now that we know more about it. The 1.5-inch display (176 x 132) and FM radio won't stop traffic, but those interchangeable faceplates (kind of like the Mofi plates for the M6 but better) and the 20-hour battery life might cause at least a momentary jam. And there'll be a lot of rubbernecking if those prices are real: 2GB for $65, 4GB for $80, and 8GB for $100. Wow!

[Meizu via Engadget]

We're not sure when a CEO heading to a forum to make an official announcement became standard practice, but apparently Meizu CEO J. Wong does it all the time. On what was presumably his most recent visit, Mr. Wong posted pricing information on the suprisingly very real and upcoming M8 (also known as the miniOne).

The 4GB and 8GB iPhone-looking players/phones will be available with and without the 3-megapixel camera for the following prices: $195 (4GB without camera), $310 (4GB with camera), $285 (8GB without camera), and $400 (8GB with camera). We're still a bit hesitant to completely get rid of the "rumor" label this thing has been wearing since the summer, but the info is coming from the CEO. And we hobnob with B. Gates and S. Jobs in forums often enough to be able to spot the unequivocal truth when we see it.

[MeizuMe via CrunchGear]

As early as this Thursday, March 1st, the Meizu M6 miniPlayer could be available with twice as much as its current 4GB max of internal flash memory. Just about every major flash-DAP manufacturer is already offering 8GB versions of their players, so it's about time for Meizu to step it up.

According to Chinese website zol.com.cn, pricing could be as low as $140. We've also heard figures as high as $200, though, so we'll just have to wait and see.

[MeizuMe via dapreview]

Way back in August, there was some speculation about a new Meizu player dubbed the M8 that supposedly ran a version of the Windows CE operating system on a 533MHz ARM11 processor. But when the rumor didn't pick up any speed after that, we shelved it.

But now, five months later, guess who's back. This time sporting a no-way-is-that-real iPhone look, the M8 is equipped with a 3.3-inch VGA display (720 x 480), 3-megapixel digital camera, A/V outputs, and a dock connector. Oh, and did we mention that it's now a GSM and 3G cell phone? Riiiight.

The one bit that's stuck, though, is the ARM11 processor and WinCE (identified as version 6.0). So even though we're still filing this under "rumor" for the time being, we do believe that something unlike Meizu's other players is afoot.

[Meizu forum (Chinese) via dapreview]

Forget user generated website content; Meizu is tapping in to the collective conscious of the interwebs for their next MP3 player. The guys who brought us the M6 miniplayer are holding a contest to design an MP3 player and there are prizes involved. While it would be nice to snag some royalties off of each next gen Meizu player you designed, you will have to settle for one of three M6 miniplayers.

It is nice to see a company reach out to the online community for some ideas. Cheap R&D and some PR to boot, how can you loose? Other companies may want to follow suit.

[Meizu - thanks Jack4L]

If a "Made for Meizu" line were ever in the works, Chinese company Mofi would probably be first to sign up. In fact, it's already ahead of the game with its CP-12 faceplate and touchpad covering options designed for the M6 miniPlayer. From what we can decipher from Google's translation, the multi-layered faceplates are made of durable, scratch-resistant, glossy resin and have been designed to add little to no extra bulk to the player. They're available in black, white, and blue and can be mixed and matched with interchangeable touchpad shields that come in red, blue, green, and white with various accents.

Mofi's "official" website (www.mofi.cn) automatically redirects to the iMP3.net forums, which makes purchasing the faceplates from the company a bit confusing. But don't fret. Taobao, China-based eBay EachNet's biggest competitor, usually has the CP-12 accessories up for sale.

[Zol]