Filed under: Portable Audio, Portable Video

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

Filed under: Storage

Although Western Digital seems to have the portable hard drive sector all wrapped up, LG’s looking to snag a bit of that market share by introducing a new line of stylish alternatives. Each member of the XD1 family possesses a 2.5-inch HDD with a SATA II interface and a USB 2.0 port, and just in case black isn’t your bag, you can expect a red wine colored version as well. For now, we’ll have to live without a price or release date, but you can look forward to units arriving in 120GB, 160GB, 250GB and 320GB sizes sometime in the future.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

Filed under: Handhelds, Portable Audio, Portable Video

Believe it or not, JATY is far from being the first gadget maker to think of stuffing a breathalyzer into something completely unrelated (like a wristwatch), but this do-it-all navigator really has included everything save for the kitchen sink (and an N64 emulator, but you get the point). Specs wise, you’re looking at a 7-inch touchscreen, 533MHz CPU, WinCE 5.0, 64MB of NAND Flash / SDRAM, an SD expansion slot, built-in GPS / T-DMB receivers, USB connectivity, integrated speakers and support for MP3, WMV, OGG, AC3, MPEG1/2/4, DivX, XviD, AVI and JPG formats (just to name a few). Chances are you’ll never see this on US soil, so you’re looking at a flight to Seoul in addition to ₩296,000 ($294) in order to procure one.

[Via Tech Digest]

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

Filed under: Misc. Gadgets

Bringing an end to the Samsung slush fund probe, a South Korean court has fined Lee Kun-hee, Samsung’s former Chairman and son of the chaebol’s founder, $109 million for tax evasion. A rather favorable decision when you consider that prosecutors sought a seven-year jail sentence and a fine of $347 million. The court said that his crimes did not justify a prison term. Lee, appearing relieved by the decision, apologized again saying, “I’m sorry for causing trouble to the people,” presumably while adjusting his monocle and top-hat from atop his golden chariot.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

Filed under: Displays

Several Japanese tech giants are teaming together today in a quest to make 40-inch and larger OLED panels for televisions. Sony, Toshiba, Panasonic, Sharp and others will participate under a joint development project initiated by the Japanese government. All of this is of course meant to help the Japanese companies compete with South Korea’s chaebols, particularly Samsung and LG, as the industry giants maneuver for an advantage over the next, next-generation flat panel technology to dominate the living room.

[Via OLED-info]

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

Filed under: Transportation

‘Tis a shame we North Americans, Europeans, Australians, et al. won’t be seeing the Elantra LPI Hybrid in 2009, but those in South Korea have a reason to celebrate. Hyundai is gearing up to launch the company’s first LPG-electric hybrid vehicle next July, which also happens to be the planet’s first hybrid vehicle to be “powered by liquid petroleum gas (LPG) and adopt advanced Lithium Polymer (Li-Poly) batteries.” Said automobile will pack a 1.6-liter Liquefied Petroleum Injected (LPI) Gamma engine, a 15kW electric motor and a continuously variable transmission, and while the outfit isn’t releasing hard mileage numbers just yet, the car should prove to be around 50% cheaper to operate than a gas-only Elantra (pictured). C’mon Hyundai, we know you’ve got plans to take this thing worldwide — just let it out of the bag already.

[Via FarEastGizmos, image courtesy of Autoblog]

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

Filed under: Portable Audio

If you found yourself infatuated with Samsung’s YP-U3, you’re sure to love the U4… we think. There’s a complete dearth of information regarding the device itself, but given that it already has a placeholder and image on the outfit’s Korean Yepp site, we’d say there’s a pretty good chance it’ll be getting real soon enough. Hold tight, miniature DAP lovers, Sammy won’t keep you in the dark much longer.

[Via AnythingButiPod]

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

Filed under: Announcements

Remember how when we launched Engadget Poland a couple weeks ago we said that we were just getting started rolling out new international versions of the site? Well, today we’re announcing two exciting new Engadgets we’ve waited for years to get started: Korean and German! They’re both in beta, so to speak, so try not to mind the sawdust as we work out the kinks. Big ups to Brian, Jason, Manfred, and everyone at our international teams that made these new sites possible. Oh, and if you’re waiting for Engadget in your language of choice, don’t worry, Korean and German aren’t the last we’ll be rolling out!

Read - Engadget Korea
Read - Engadget Germany

Permalink | Email this | Comments

Filed under: Portable Audio, Portable Video

When we asked you to list the things you’d change about Samsung’s YP-P2, a number of you yearned for mobile TV. Granted, you’d have to set up shop in South Korea for your dream to be fully fulfilled, but Samsung’s definitely making it possible. The YP-P2 DMB will arrive packing an obligatory T-DMB mobile TV tuner for youngsters and hipsters alike to find their favorite program when those hundreds of albums grow stale. We’re hearing that the unit will feature a 3-inch touchscreen along with Bluetooth 2.0 and your choice of black or white motifs. Price wise, you’ll be laying down ₩239,000 ($231), ₩309,000 ($299) or ₩389,000 ($377) for the 4GB, 8GB or 16GB version.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

Filed under: GPS

It’s been a hot minute since we’ve seen anything fresh from FineDigital, but the firm has just introduced the slim and seductive FineDrive X700 over in South Korea. Humorously, the company is asserting that this particular unit is the first of its kind to offer voice recognition, but even a light amount of research would help it understand such a statement is far from being true. Nevertheless, the unit does look to offer a spacious screen and a bundled remote, but details beyond that are unfortunately absent.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

Filed under: Handhelds

Regardless of your views on the Everun’s level of attractiveness, holding 32GB of SSD between your palms is enough to make any true nerd break out in a sweat. Raon Digital’s looking to get quite a few of those kind hot and bothered in South Korea with its Everun S32S Dic. The handheld boasts a 568MHz AMD Geode LX900 processor, 512MB of RAM, a 32GB SSD, 4.8-inch 800 x 480 resolution display, 802.11b/g WiFi, Bluetooth 2.0+EDR, USB connectivity and a built-in SayDic electronic dictionary with text-to-speech support. Apparently Raon’s pretty proud of this puppy, as word on the street pegs it at a stiff ₩867,000 ($828).

[Via GizmoScene, thanks KC Kim]

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

Maybe our math is off, but we’re fairly certain 44.7-millimeters equates to around 1.76-inches. Strangely enough, LG is claiming that its Scarlet 42LG61 is actually the world’s thinnest LCD HDTV, and we all know Hitachi’s definitively thinner 1.5-inch family just started shipping to US consumers last week. Of course, maybe it just meant the slimmest it has ever produced, but we digress. The set is apparently loose in South Korea, featuring a 1080p panel, 120Hz technology, a 600,000:1 contrast ratio and four HDMI ports. Granted, the previously veiled set won’t run you cheap, as you’ll walk away ₩2.5 million ($2,427) poorer should you choose to take one home.

[Via AVing]

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

Filed under: GPS, Portable Audio, Portable Video

Better get used to it ’cause wood emblazoned consumer electronics is a trend that’s apparently here to stay. This time, it’s Burl Walnut (not bamboo) on this N3 which Cowon puts up for sale in Korea on April 28th. We’re not sure when deforestation become synonymous with ecological so we’ll assume that Cowon’s going for recyclability here and involved in some form of sustainable forest management program. Surely this isn’t just some marketing ploy. The 2GB DMB with GPS device will cost you ₩419,000 (about $437) — a $20 premium over the standard 2GB N3.

[Via Akihabara News]

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

Filed under: GPS, Portable Audio, Portable Video

Better get used to it ’cause wood emblazoned consumer electronics is a trend that’s apparently here to stay. This time, it’s Burl Walnut (not bamboo) on this N3 which Cowon puts up for sale in Korea on April 28th. We’re not sure when deforestation become synonymous with ecological so we’ll assume that Cowon’s going for recyclability here and involved in some form of sustainable forest management program. Surely this isn’t just some marketing ploy. The 2GB DMB with GPS device will cost you ₩419,000 (about $437) — a $20 premium over the standard 2GB N3.

[Via Akihabara News]

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

Filed under: Gaming

Aside from planning to axe 400 jobs as part of Sega Sammy’s most recent “turnaround efforts,” the outfit will also be closing the doors to its Korean subsidiary. Currently, Sega Korea is “handling the domestic distribution and sales of video game software, as well as the operation / sales of amusement facilities and machines,” and reportedly, the closure will be executed in the name of “global business optimization.” As it stands, there’s no set date for the branch’s dissolution, but just in case your smile wasn’t turned upside-down already, the company also stated that it would discontinue the development of a ginormous $330m arcade complex slated for construction in Yokohama, Japan — if you couldn’t guess, that one’s being shuttered so the firm can “focus its efforts on its core business to improve its performance” in short order. Seriously though, what the hell kind of company would spend $330m on arcade, anyway?

[Via Joystiq, image courtesy of USMC]

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

Filed under: Gaming

Aside from planning to axe 400 jobs as part of Sega Sammy’s most recent “turnaround efforts,” the outfit will also be closing the doors to its Korean subsidiary. Currently, Sega Korea is “handling the domestic distribution and sales of video game software, as well as the operation / sales of amusement facilities and machines,” and reportedly, the closure will be executed in the name of “global business optimization.” As it stands, there’s no set date for the branch’s dissolution, but just in case your smile wasn’t turned upside-down already, the company also stated that it would discontinue the development of a ginormous $330m arcade complex slated for construction in Yokohama, Japan — if you couldn’t guess, that one’s being shuttered so the firm can “focus its efforts on its core business to improve its performance” in short order. Seriously though, what the hell kind of company would spend $330m on arcade, anyway?

[Via Joystiq, image courtesy of USMC]

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

Filed under: Misc. Gadgets

We’ll be honest — there are quite a few things about the Cyber MC brainwave management solution that remain unclear to us, but it’s probably for the best. Korean startup Orange Dreams has apparently concocted some sort of eyewear / software combo that can control your brainwaves and calm your nerves, convince you that you really aren’t craving nicotine or make you believe that fruits and vegetables really are more delicious than a Cadbury Cream Egg. We’re not about to delve into how this thing actually intends to work, but those unafraid can give it a go next month.

[Via Hallyu Tech]

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

Filed under: Cellphones, GPS

Taking a note from Japan, it’s being reported that South Korean police are backing a highly controversial plan that would equip each new mobile sold in the nation with a GPS chip. Reportedly, Song Kang-ho, chief of the investigation bureau of the National Police Agency, has stated that the government has “already submitted a related bill to the National Assembly,” and the general idea here is to crack down on the rise of kidnapping and various other crimes against children and women. Granted, there’s not a lot of supporting evidence that this is actually set to go down, so until we see it inked in stone, our skeptic hats are remaining in place.

[Via textually, image courtesy of The New York Times]

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

Filed under: Gaming, GPS, Handhelds

It’s huge, no doubt. But MIU’s HDPC must be to pack such a broad list of specifications. First spotted as a prototype back in 2006, the 163 x 67 x 24.5-mm / 387-gram brick is now expected to go retail in July for up to ₩500,000 or a US-equivalent pricing of just $500. That’s dirt cheap for what they seem to promise:

• 4-inch, 800 x 480 pixel touchscreen display which slides out and rotates to begin the cellphone interface
• Up to a 1GHz VIA C7M ULV processor and 4GB of DDR2 memory
• Dual, Windows XP / Linux Qplus embedded OS
• Unspecified cellphone radio
• Maximum 1.3-inch 60GB hard disk (or 4GB SSD) and miniSD/microSD expansion
• 7-hour battery (or 90-hours at low power)
• 802.11b/g WiFi, Blueooth 2.0
• 2x USB, docking port, stereo speakers, QWERTY thumbpad and mouse
• What looks like a 5 megapixel camera
• DMB mobile television and external GPS add-on

All that tech allows the HDPC to function as a portable SatNav device, handheld gaming rig, cellphone, UMPC, PMP, eBook reader, digital camera, etc. Did we already tell you that it will cost less than $500? Oh right. See the unit in-hand after the break.

Continue reading MIU’s $500 HDPC takes All-in-One seriously

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

Filed under: Misc. Gadgets

Oh great Korean gods of peculiar gadgetry what have you done? That’s the Cellink T/M from Human C&C. The device functions as a mass storage device or microSD card reader when standing in a straight-up, USB stick mode. Give it a flip, swing and slide and you’ve got a USB charging solution for mobile devices while simultaneously blocking all the ports on your laptop. Mechanical art or overly engineered crap? Really, without any detail we can’t decide.

[Via AVING]

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments