EchoStar, the company behind the DISH Network satellite TV service, has launched the PocketDISH line of portable media "companions" that it first announced at the Consumer Electronics Show in January (see [itvt] Issue 6.06 Part 2). The line includes three models--a portable media player and two portable media recorders--all of which are capable of downloading and playing MP3's and storing and displaying photos, as well as playing back TV programming.
The two portable media recorders sport 7-inch and 4-inch LCD screens and are priced at $599 and $499 respectively; while the portable media player offers a 2.2-inch LCD screen and is priced at $329. According to EchoStar, the 7-inch model features a 40GB hard drive, capable of storing up to 40 hours of programming, up to 30,000 music files and up to 400,000 photos; the 4-inch model features a 30GB drive capable of storing up to 30 hours of programming, up to 20,000 music files and up to 300,000 photos; and the 2.2-inch model features a 20GB drive, capable of storing up to 20 hours of programming, up to 10,000 music files and up to 200,000 photos. The devices, which EchoStar claims are compatible with most television sets and consumer electronics devices on the market today, can download or record content from DVR's, PC's or Mac's, digital cameras, and mass storage devices, as well as from other video or audio sources, such as DVD players, camcorders and VCR's. They can be attached to certain DISH Network DVR's via a USB 2.0 connection, in order to enable fast video-transfer speeds: according to EchoStar, an hour of programming could be transferred in about five minutes. They are powered by a rechargeable lithium-ion battery, which, EchoStar says, allows up to four hours of video playback and up to 12 hours of music playback. Other standard features include stereo headphones, USB cables, an adapter cable, A/V cables, an AC/DC adapter, and a carrying case. The new devices are built for EchoStar by a company called Archos, in which the satellite TV provider made a $9 million investment earlier this year (see [itvt] Issue 6.09 Part 1).
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