Martin and I have been a bit disappointed with our O2’s (check out his O2 review). We have no complaints about the hardware and the sound quality is top notch as always. Cowon has made some minor fixes and improvements with Codec handling in recent firmware updates, but our major gripe is the UI. Equating it to something out of Windows 3.1, we were a bit puzzled as to why Cowon would take a few steps back when they already have something very successful to build upon- the D2.

Putting the D2 UI on the O2 would be a huge improvement and cure our main gripe. How could you argue with an oversized D2 with HD codec support? I have been trading a few emails with one of the O2 firmware programmers and he seems to think it is a good idea and has passed it on to R&D- so this may indeed become a reality.

In the spirit of product development and improvement, Martin has mocked up what the O2 would look like with the D2 interface after the jump.

Frequency response

After a month of agonizing customs and shipping problems I finally was able to get Martin's S9 over to him. He couldn’t be more pleased sighting the brilliant screen and native video support. With that as our trusted headphone editor he has performed listening and RMAA comparison tests side by side with the Cowon O2 and D2.

While I didn’t buy in the hype of being the best sounding Cowon to date (check out my S9 review), he didn’t either- though stating it is nearly the same as the recent Cowon players. Check out the details and frequency response graphs comparing the S9 to the O2 and D2.

Cowon has always had a strong underground following for its very clean sound and great support for audio codecs. However, this underground support is slipping due to very poorly written firmware. Even in the past being a Cowon user have been bothered by numerous buggy and botched firmwares. I in fact have bricked an i7 as well as U3- bricked to the point of having to be returned to the manufacture to be fixed. Both of these happened while upgrading firmwares.

About a month ago we speculated on whether or not a 16GB Cowon D2 was in the works. The player has now shown up on jetmall.net which is Cowon's official US reseller, so it's safe to say this is for real.

The biggest surprise has to be the price - and by that I don't mean it's high. The 16GB D2 sells for only $240 with free shipping, which isn't the cheapest 16GB option around but also far from the most expensive. Add $70 bucks and you'll get a 16GB SDHC card that will make it a total of 32GB for $310.

To take a quick look at the rest of the 16GB club, the current prices are: Creative Zen 16GB $180 (Amazon), Sansa View 16GB $150 (Amazon), Sony NWZ-A729 16GB $290 (Amazon) and Sony NWZ-A829 16GB $320 (Amazon). The Samsung P2 16GB has just been released in Europe and is expected to arrive in the US soon for about $300.

[Jetmall via GenerationMP3]

The Cowon D2 has been around for over a year now and has perhaps been Cowon's biggest success ever. It has survived in the race for more storage capacity for so long because of the SDHC card slot that allows users to add up to 16GB (32GB soon) on top of the 2, 4 or 8GB of internal memory. Now it seems Cowon has finally taken a step further and is planning on releasing a 16GB D2.

There is no official word yet, but the 16GB version just showed up on a German webshop so it's very likely this isn't just a rumour. The player is so far listed without any release date or price so there is still a chance this is just a glitch. If it turns out to be true that will mean the D2 will have a current max capacity of 32GB with 48GB being possible in the near future.

[MP3-player.de via GenerationMP3]

Both Japan and Korea will receive an additional broadcasting service to one Cowon media player each this month. An alternate version of the iAudio D2 will be offered alongside the standard model in Japan. It will be almost identical to the original D2 and provide all the same features as well as a 1seg TV tuner which streams content with its built-in retractable antenna. Suitably called the D2TV it is in essence Japan’s equivalent to the D2 DMB.

The second player to gain some extra functionality is the iAudio L2. In the form of a firmware upgrade, rather than a hardware adaptation, it will accept TPEG transmissions which contain real-time traffic and weather reports. The service will be broadcasted over DMB and certainly compliment the device’s GPS navigation system.

[Press Release | Press Release via Impress]

It has not taken long for another DAP manufacturer to follow suit after the Creative Zen V Plus received a memory increased to 16GB. The iAudio 7 with a capacity of 16GB has been announced by Cowon.

Alongside the i7, new edition of the D2 (dubbed the D2 DMB) will feature 4GB and 8GB of internal storage, while expansion through SDHC cards can provide a further 8GB. The increase in storage space is not the only addition to the D2; it will also receive the ability to handle DMB content.

Several player and accessory packs are available for the South Korean market, but there is no dates and prices for other regions yet.

[Press Release]

You never can tell with these Cowon rumors and release dates, but the guys over at French MP3 player site GenerationMP3 got word straight from Cowon that the X7 will be announced at this years European electronics show, IFA. Cowon fans are crossing their fingers that this will actually be the first glimse we get of this elusive device. It is also reported that this will indeed be a hard drive based player registering in at 60GB and 80GB capacities.

However, I think that many of us are also crossing our fingers hoping that Cowon does not follow the trendy and less practical touch screen / touch pad rout for the X5 successor. Tactile interfaces for the win! The D2 is an awesome device, but its touch screen interface lends to usability issues in many situations. Speaking of which will get a memory boost to 16GB very soon. More to come on both devices...

Fake X7 photo courtesy of iAudiophile =)

[GenMP3]

The D2 is Cowon's first ultra portable video player and their first foray into the wondrous world of touch screens. Although similar in appearance to the iriver clix, the D2 sports some significant differences under the hood: things usually not found in this class of players like TV output, support for lossless audio codecs, and an SD/SDHC card slot for unlimited expansion.

Let's see if the D2 lives up to the reputation Cowon earned with some of their earlier players...

Please check out the iAudio D2 Forum for discussion and help with the D2.

If last month's disassembly pictorial of the Cowon D2 had you contemplating a trip to Korea, take a moment now to read the fineprint on your e-ticket. We hope the word "refundable" is there somewhere because the PMP has just been added to virtual shelves throughout North America.

Retailers like Amazon, Buy.com, and B&H all have the 2GB and 4GB players (in black and white) in stock or available for preorder for $190 and $220, respectively. We're not overjoyed at the pricing, but it's actually not too bad given the D2's specs and tasty little touchscreen.

[Product Page via Digital Trends]

Cowon’s new portable media player, the D2, is a touch screen flash based player with a really great form factor. Along with Cowon’s usual great sound quality, the D2 sports a very impressive and rarely found feature of a 16.2 million color screen. But this isn’t a review, it is another guild to cracking open your precious gadget.

The disassembly is fairly easy if you are somewhat mechanically inclined. But the guide may not be useful as the battery looks to be custom and not user replaceable even if you can get into the player. Nonetheless, Cowon has pretty good customer service and will repair their devices at a reasonable cost. Really, this guide is just for the pr0n of it… enjoy…

Please be sure to check out the in depth iAudio D2 review for another candid look at this fine player.

South Koreans celebrate Harvest Festival Day a few months before Americans baste turkeys for Thankgiving, the holiday's U.S. equivalent. But that won't stop our Asian friends from giving thanks for Cowon's new D2 portable media player, which is scheduled to be released in Korea in mid-November for an unknown amount of SKW.

The D2 has a 2.5-inch LCD (320 x 240) that shows off 16 million colors when playing back WMV9/MPEG4 movies, MP3/WMA/Ogg/FLAC tracks, and whatever's on the DMB tube. The 2GB PMP also features an SD/MMC expansion card slot, FM radio and recorder, TV-Out, line-in recording, and touchscreen interface.

Cross your fingers for the D2 (sans DMB tuner) to make it to the States in time for Christmas.

[CDPkorea via dapreview]