Toshiba intros 20GB digital music player
TOKYO, Aug. 26 (UPI) -- Toshiba has introduced in Japan a 20GB hard drive-based digital music player that's smaller and lighter than the competing IPod player from Apple Computer.
The Gigabeat MEG200J hard drive is four times the capacity of that in Toshiba's previous mode, the MEG50JS.
Toshiba says the drive has enough space to store up to 332 hours of music, encoded at 128 kbps -- about 5,000 songs. The device supports Windows Media Audio, MP3, or WAV formats.
The IDG News Service said in addition to its smaller size, the player is also lighter. The G20 weighs 4.9 ounces, compared with 8.3 ounces for the previous model and 5.9 ounces and 6.2 ounces for Apple's two players.
Battery life is estimated at around 11 hours on a full charge, and the player connects to a PC through a USB 2.0 interface.
Toshiba said it plans to put the G20 on sale in early October for about $424. The company said it will consider international sales should the device sell well in Japan.
