LG & Volkswagen take on the iPod

LG's New MP3 Player Based on VW Beetle

LG Electronics Inc. is teaming up with car-maker Volkswagen AG on a digital media player styled along the lines of the New Beetle car.

The player sports an aluminum body and will be available in three of the same colors as the car: Salsa Red, Shadow Blue and Sunflower Yellow, said Judy Pae, a spokeswoman for LG in South Korea.

The design of the player's user interface was inspired by the car, and the device also has a small VW badge on the front panel and a New Beetle logo on it's rear. However the inspiration doesn't extend to the shape of the player, which looks like other MP3 players on the market.

The specifications are fairly standard for a media player of its class. It has a 2.4-inch color LCD (liquid crystal display) screen and can play MPEG-4, Windows Media Video 9, MP3, Windows Media Audio and Ogg-format files.

There are two embedded flash games and it will be available in 2G-byte and 4G-byte versions. LG says the battery will provide about 20 hours of music playback and enough time to watch around three hours of video.

While the player got its unveiling at this week's Seoul Motor Show plans for its commercial launch have yet to be decided, said Pae.

Source: [url=http://www.pcadvisor.co.uk/news/index.cfm?newsid=8943]PC Advisor[/url]