Microsoft to announce video ipod-like device at CES?

[slydecix]

About 20 min ago, I was watching CNBC and they said that Bill Gates will likely introduce a portable audio/video hard drive based device during his keynote tonight at CES. The analyst said that it would be some "portable media center," which leads me to believe that it's the "media node" part of the 3 new MCE components mentioned in this Neowin article. CNBC also mentioned that it would likely NOT let you bypass DVD copy protection, unlike the new Archos device, and that MS has made some kind of copyright deal with at least one major motion picture studio.

That's all I could remember/dig up on this... has anyone else heard anything about it?

 

[slydecix]

bump

 

[Schadenfroh]

if they price it at 100 bux, they will own all

 

[IcemanJer]

as far as I'm concerned, the only thing holding iPod sales back is the outrageous price.

 

[akodi]

its sad how everyone is trying to catch up to the ipod.

 

[slydecix]

Actually, I think that MS realizes that trying to compete with the iPod is pointless and is trying to jump one step ahead, before Apple comes out with a video version of the iPod

 

[UNCjigga]

Bah, just saw this at the Windows Mobile site today...they're called "Portable Media Centers". Basically its a PocketPC with a bigger screen and built-in harddrive, running a custom Windows Mobile OS with some elements of XP Media Center '04 tossed in. Hardly earth-shattering, but if enough manufacturers build for the platform it might just be price competitive. I guess it integrates well with a Media Center PC (you can record TV programs in the MS proprietary format, and when it transfers to the mobile device it auto-compresses from MS ripped-off MPEG2 to MS ripped-off MPEG4 and plays without needing any codecs.) It will probably be a pain to work with divx, xvid etc. (at least initially.)

 

[NeoV]

I believe they are working with Creative Labs on this..the next "nomad" device....not bad...check out nomadness.net, they have a pic of the unit there..