The Voiis Mini pocket messenger phone is a Bluetooth device that is capable of playing your entire music collection within 100 meters of a computer. The handset can correspond with a number of media management software and wirelessly receive streaming music from a base station, then a standard set of headphones are used to listen to the music.

Voice calls are possible with the built-in microphone, and a 1.2-inch LCD supporting 65,000 colors can be used for instant messaging via Skype, MSN Messenger, and AOL. The portable device charges through a USB connection and has a battery life of 6 hours when in use and 72 hours in standby. The Voiis Mini is already available in Japan for 15,800 yen ($130).

[Product page via Impress]

The most descriptive word we can use to describe the Cowon Q5 portable media player is "wow." Just plain wow.

Immediate stand-out features of the 5.5" x 3.5" x 0.8" device are the 5" touchscreen (800 x 480), Windows CE 5.0 Pro operating system, DVR capabilities, and Bluetooth, WiFi, and HSDPA connectivity. By comparison, the 40GB/60GB storage capacity, optional GPS, integrated speakers, FM radio, line-in recording, and extensive codec support (including Ogg Vorbis, FLAC, DivX, and XviD) almost seem rather boring. Almost.

Slated for U.S. availability by June 2007, the Cowon Q5 is priced at $500 and $550 for the 40GB and 60GB models, respectively. Archos who?

[LAPTOP via Engadget]

When the Bluetooth-enabled PMP branded by Insignia, Best Buy's in-house brand, was first spotted in late January, availability was listed as "coming soon."

At some point between then and now (we couldn't say exactly when for sure), the 4GB NS-DVB4G has been given a "usually leaves our warehouse in 1 business day" designation and been priced at a pretty reasonable $160. The 2.4-ounce player has a 2.2-inch display (262K colors), microSD slot, and FM tuner with 20 presets; supports an impressive array of audio files (Ogg Vorbis included); and can play MPEG4 and WMV videos at up to 30 frames per second.

[Product Page via CrunchGear]

Three former executives from Rio, iRiver, and MusicMatch are teaming up on a brand new digital audio player. Even though we know very little about this player, with a Rio and iRiver bloodline, it is definitely something to keep an eye on. The upcoming device will take full advantage of the wireless feature bringing up direct downloads, internet radio, a social network, and device-to-device sharing. The company is in stealth mode at the moment but will appear again in a few months to show us some goods.

Here are some specs deduced from job postings on Broadband Instruments' website. The player will run embedded linux or Windows CE. It will support MP3, AAC, H.264, MPEG 2, and MPEG4. It will also feature USB-OTG and Bluetooth. Sounds good. We’ll keep you posted.

[Wired via Engadget]

This is definitely my favorite player at CES this year. The design is super sexy and the GUI is smooth and lag free. Jenn reported on this earlier, but here's a quick recap of its major features: WiFi, Bluetooth, 30GB, direct internet downloads, and support for MP3, WMA, MPEG, and WMV.

The player is still far from final and won’t be released until sometime in Q2 2007. They have yet to choose a name and even brand for the product. It could be AOL, it could be Haier, but I think it would be best to create a new brand. AOL still carries a stigma and Haier is not known in the US.

Read on for my initial impressions, more photos, and a video demo of the GUI.

We were reporting a while back about the T9 Bluetooth player, but when it hit the shores of the US, Samsung had stripped the Bluetooth. Now the Bluetooth T9, appropriately dubbed T9B, will indeed be hitting the US come March and will retail for $159 for the 2GB and $209 for the 4GB. Both are about a $30 premium over the Bluetoothless T9s.

The T9B has more functionality than simply sending audio to Bluetooth headphones and speakers. The player will tie into any Bluetooth mobile phone. It works like this. Your phone is in your pocket and it rings. You look at your T9B to see who is calling. Pressing a button on the T9B picks up the call and pauses your tunes. With your phone still in your pocket, you speak to the T9B and hear out of the headphones, Bluetooth or otherwise. The microphone is sensitive enough to sit on the table so you don’t have to hold it up to your mouth and look like a fool talking to an MP3 player.

This is a surprise. At CES today, AOL and China-based manufacturer Haier rolled out their upcoming 30GB Smartscreens Media Device, a portable media player equipped with a laptop-esque touch pad, Bluetooth, and Wi-Fi.

The all-metal PMP is "about the size of an iPod" and supports MPEG-4 and WMV videos and likely the typical set of audio formats (MP3, WMA, WMA-DRM), including those purchased and downloaded directly onto the device from the likes of Rhapsody, Napster, and Yahoo! over a wireless 802.11g connection.

An unnamed Internet-based service obviously (though unofficially) provided by AOL will somehow offer music suggestions while users of the device are listening to their tunes. How this will work is unclear, though we hope the option to be notified of song titles, albums, and other artists the system thinks we'd be interested in can be turned off. The device will also support free streaming Internet radio stations, which we assume will be exempt from all the suggestion-receiving fun.

Under the hood of the Smartscreens Media Device is an open-source application framework, codenamed SmartScreens, created by Tegic Communications (an AOL company) that runs on top of the unit's operating system. If you can't wait until the device is released later this year (second or third quarter), hop on over to SmartScreens Mobile to check out a video of the player in action.

[via PC Magazine]

What digital audio player these days isn't available in an 8GB model?

If you asked us yesterday, we would've said that Samsung's YP-T9 and T9B are one of the only major hitters not playing in the big boys' park with the Creative Zen V Plus, Apple iPod Nano, and SanDisk Sansa e280. Ask us the same question today, however, and we'd say that the park is about to get a bit more crowded.

Unfortunately, it seems that only the Bluetooth-toting T9B will get to play. Information is a bit sketchy, but it looks like the Bluetooth-less T9 (the one available in the U.S.) may be keeping the benches warm with all the other devices that max out at 4GB.

[AVING USA]

We've seen a speaker dock built for a Samsung DAP before, but this is the first time iLuv (commonly known for its love of iPods) has been behind it. And according to the company's CEO, it won't be the last.

The iLuv iss277 is an alarm clock speaker system designed specifically for use with the YP-T9 and T9B flash players unveiled a few months ago. The system comes with a Bluetooth dongle so that the Bluetooth-enabled T9B can wirelessly stream its melodic contents from across the room. Both players can also be docked for charging and full integration with standard alarm clock functions.

Available in early February, the iss277 can become a South Korean bedside fixture for about $204.

[AVING]

The last time we talked about the Samsung YP-T9 was when it made its debut on the FCC filings website. Fast forward a few months and the T9 and its Bluetooth-enabled T9B brother, in all their phone-looking glory, have officially been released in China.

Since the FCC is such a spoiler site, there aren't any real suprises in the specs department. The 4GB players feature a 1.8-inch display, support MP3/WMA/OGG audio and MPEG-4/WMV/AVI/ASF video files, and include a handful of preinstalled, unnamed flash games. Samsung is sticking to its FCC claim that the nonremovable li-ion packs enough juice for 30 hours of music playback and has modified its video playback time to 6 hours. Impressive indeed.

Even though our Chinese pals already have their hands on the YP-T9(B), we still can't find any info on pricing or whether/when we'll see the players in the U.S.

[CNET Asia via Engadget]