Cowan Ships iAudio7 Media Player

Cowan has shipped its iAudio 7 portable player, featuring 4 to 8 GB of storage, a 1.3-inch display, and up to 60 hours of music playback time.

South Korea’s Cowan has announced that its iAudio 7 media player is now available in the U.S. through JetMall and other authorized retailers, including Amazon.com Newegg.com, and eBay. Boasting a diminuative black casing with color accents, the iAudio 7 supports most major audio formats and boasts up to 60 hours of uninterrupted music playback on its rechargable lithium-ion battery.

“We are pleased to offer U.S. consumers the much-anticipated iAudio 7—the successor to our popular iAudio 6—designed to provide the best portable MP3 player experience,” said Francis Choi, Cowan America’s senior marketing manager, in a release. “The iAudio 7 starts with the same innovative Swing Touch interface and industry-best digital media format support as the iAudio 6, and adds a new look and functionalities that dramatically enhance sound quality and play content from online music services. Better yet, users can enjoy these advanced features without worrying about battery life.”

The iAudio 7 features a 1.3-inch 160 by 128 LCD display and offers a specially designed EQ filter which enables users to adjust bandwidth and frequency response, including Mach3Bass, BBE, MP Enhance, and 3D Surround technologies. In addition to MP3 audio, the unit supports WMA, WAVE, and lossless Ogg Vorbis and Flac formats with title displays and ID3 tag support; it also handles AVI, MPEG4, and XviD video at 15 fps, but we have to think that 1.3-inch screen will be a less-than-optimal viewing experience for most video content. The unit also features an integrated FM radio, clock and alarm features, and (of course) it’s compatible with services like Rhapsody, Napster, Yahoo Music, and Urge.

The iAudio 7 is available in two configurations—4 GB and 8 GB for suggested prices of $169.99 and $219.99, respectively—although there’s a parenthetical hint on the product’s spec page which implies a 16 GB version might be in the works.