Toshiba Strengthens Lineup of HDD Audio Players Integrating 1.8-inch
Hard Disc
Offering Users Enhanced User Interface and Selections with Three of
Capacities
Tokyo -- Toshiba Corporation today reinforced its line-up of
gigabeat® personal HDD audio players with the launch of the "gigabeat®
F" series. Designed to deliver enhanced usability, including a
high-resolution color display, and a comprehensive range of storage
capacities, including the world's first 60-gigabyte capacity on a
1.8-inch hard disk drive, the gigabeat® F series takes portable
digital music to a new level of personal listening pleasure.
The attractions of gigabeat® F models begin with a slim
portrait-shaped case that fits comfortably into the hand. Advanced
navigation and control functions are managed by an integrated
plus-sign shaped touch sensor and displayed on a 2.2-inch QVGA color
LCD panel. All three models in the series integrate a 1.8-inch HDD,
with capacities of 10GB, 20GB and 60GB. The gigabeat® F series will be
launched in the Japanese market at the end of November 2004.
Toshiba's gigabeat® HDD audio players are small enough to slip into a
shirt pocket but large enough to carry a library of songs and to
provide music for all moods and occasions. The new 10GB model has the
capacity to store some 2,500 four-minute pieces of music recorded at
128kbps in the WMA or MP3 formats, while the 20GB model and flagship
60GB model have approximate capacities of 5,000 and 15,000 pieces of
music, respectively.
"The Japanese market for HDD audio players is expected to reach
950,000 units in fiscal year 2005," said Takeshi Hagio, Vice President
of Digital Camera & Imaging System Division of Toshiba's Digital Media
Network Company. "With our new gigabeat® players we want to stimulate
further growth and demand by delivering versatile players that offer
excellent functions and features that are intuitive and easy to use.
Our goal is to bring more listening pleasure to people's lives."
The new models in the gigabeat® F series offer advanced management and
navigation through on-screen management software, and "Plus Touch™," a
plus-sign shaped touch sensor that carries out all main operations,
including music searches and playback volume changes, with a slide of
the finger. "Plus Touch™" also supports smooth, high speed scrolling
through music lists. These control function are enhanced by display of
all control actions and selections on 2.2-inch QVGA low-temperature
polysilicon TFT LCD.
The "gigabeat RoomTM" software provided with gigabeat® F series
players takes one-touch downloads from a CD to the music player off
user wish lists and makes it a reality. Simply insert a gigabeat® F
series player into its supplied cradle, hook up the cradle to the USB
port on a PC, insert a CD into the PC's optical drive, and then press
the "RipRec™" button built into the cradle. This launches "gigabeat
RoomTM" on the PC, which automatically transfers the CD content to the
PC and then on to the gigabeat®. Synchronizing specific music folders
in the PC with a gigabeat® is also easily done by specifying the
folders to synchronize in "gigabeat RoomTM" and then pressing the
"Sync" button on the cradle.
"gigabeat RoomTM" is newly developed software proprietary to Toshiba,
expressly designed to create an optimized user environment for music
entertainment. It can playback CD or music files on PC, rip from a CD,
use Gracenote, Inc.'s CDDB® to display information on albums and
music, and transfer music files to and from gigabeat® players.
"gigabeat RoomTM"'s "RipRec®" functions allow people unfamiliar with
PCs to enjoy gigabeat's® wide-ranging functionality to the full.
Transferred music files are automatically stored in a database that
can be searched by artist, album or musical genre, and JPEG images can
be attached to albums, and even to individual songs, providing visual
cues during music searches. Music files that are transferred by
"gigabeat RoomTM" or Windows Media® Player 9 are encrypted as they are
recorded to the gigabeat®.
Alongside the launch of the gigabeat® F series, Toshiba will also
introduce "gigabeat® G10," a slim, light, HDD audio player with a 10GB
capacity. gigabeat® G10 is compatible with "Windows Media® Player 9
Series," which is preinstalled on new Windows PCs, and also bundles
Toshiba's proprietary "TOSHIBA Audio Application Ver. 4.1." Both
applications support transfer of encoded audio data to gigabeat®,
automated creation of music libraries, and full freedom in compiling
and editing playlists. TOSHIBA Audio Application also supports
one-touch downloads of audio data to the "gigabeat® G10" from a
designated folder that synchronizes with gigabeat®. It also exports
and automatically edits tags to carry titles and artist names.
In developing the new gigabeat® models, Toshiba has responded to the
main demands of digital music lovers: stylish looks, excellent
playback, long battery life and fast synchronization.
The gigabeat® F series combines good looks with a superb performance,
including integration of SRS WOW® from SRS Labs, for rich stereo sound
that clearly brings out each instrument. A selection of 28 equalizers
enhances listening pleasure across the spectrum of music, from
classical to jazz and from acoustic to rock and hip-hop, and in the
gigabeat® F series users can preset equalizer preferences each
individual piece of music.
Player performance is rounded out by a built-in lithium-ion battery
that provides up to 11 hours of continuous play.
Music downloads from a PC are fast and simple via a USB 2.0 connection
that delivers a CD's worth of music files in only 30 seconds. And that
is not all. Connection to the USB port can be used to charge
gigabeat®'s battery, and an optional recharging stand (included for
the gigabeat® F60) has a USB port and can function as a host server.
Equipped with an optional Toshiba-approved USB-type wireless or wired
LAN adapter, the stand can connect a gigabeat® player to a network as
a virtual HDD, allowing music and data downloads from multiple PCs.
All the new gigabeat® models are bundled with software for "Windows
Media® DRM," Microsoft's digital rights management system for secure
downloads of content with no breach of copyright protection. This
allows on-line purchases and downloads of music from on-line stores
supporting Windows Media DRM sites.
Options
* USB Cradle (MEGBCS13 for gigabeat® F10 and F20): open price
* Recharge stand (MEGBCS11 for gigabeat®G10): open price
* Wired Remote Controller Set (MEGWRC10): open price
* Neck-Strap-Type Remote Controller (MEGSRC10): open price
* AC Adapter (MEGAC530): open price
*1 Sampling frequency and the bit rate differ with audio format.
*2 PC with USB 2.0 interface is required to operate USB 2.0.
Operates as USB 1.1 when connected to PC with USB 1.1 interface.
*3 USB storage driver for Windows 98 Second Edition is included
in the software CD-ROM
http://www.toshiba.co.jp/about/press/2004_09/pr2701.htm
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-- Boston Red Sox pitcher Curt Schilling
