Toshiba Sells Its Gigabeat Portable Media Players

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Toshiba America Consumer Products says its new line of gigabeat Portable Media Players is available. Based on Windows Mobile Portable Media Center Version 2.0 software, the two new models available in 30GB and 60GB capacities offer consumers a vast array of content and a very simple device to enjoy it with. By partnering with four of the content industry leaders, gigabeat users are not limited to the entertainment selections from one content provider and are not locked into a single service.

Toshiba has partnered with Starz Entertainment Group LLC (SEG) to offer their new Vongo service. Vongo delivers movies and other video content over the Internet for playback on Windows-based PCs, laptops and select portable media devices as well as on a TV. Vongo subscribers have unlimited access to more than 1.600 movie and video selections as well as a live, streaming Starz TV channel. Additionally, select popular pay-per-view titles are available.

The partnership with Toshiba fulfills Vongo's promise of entertainment on the go by offering premium movie content on the Toshiba gigabeat, the first commercially available, next generation Windows Mobile-based Portable Media Center device. This partnership will enable consumers to simply download movies onto Toshiba's gigabeat and access them whenever and wherever they want.

In addition to movies, TACP is providing consumers with a simple way to obtain their favorite music for their gigabeat. This year, Toshiba will continue their relationship with Napster and is pleased to announce two additional partnerships that offer consumers access to a broad array of musical content. Both eMusic and RealNetworks' Rhapsody service have entered into joint marketing agreements with Toshiba for the gigabeat device.

In addition to the new Napster.com, an interactive music destination where music fans can hear and share over two million major and independent-label tracks for free, Napster also offers two premium music subscription services, Napster and Napster To Go. Napster subscribers pay one low monthly price and enjoy unlimited access to CD-quality music and advanced discovery, community and programming features. Napster To Go subscribers enjoy those same premium benefits plus the power to transfer an unlimited amount of music to compatible MP3 players, like the Toshiba gigabeat, without having to purchase individual tracks and albums a la carte.

eMusic will offer more than 1.2 million tracks from established and emerging artists in every genre from the world's leading independent labels. Unlike other download services, eMusic is the only one to deliver music in the universally compatible MP3 format, which allows consumers to burn CDs, transfer music to MP3 players and make as many copies of songs or albums as they like for personal use.

Rhapsody gives consumers access to over 2 million songs from every major label and thousands of independents, along with thoughtful music recommendations and unique editorial content from some of the most experienced music experts around. With Rhapsody To Go, users can fill and re-fill their gigabeat Portable Media Player with music from this tremendous library using a fast and intuitive interface, creating the perfect solution for enjoying virtually any song on the go.

The gigabeat Portable Media Player also has the ability to download recorded television content from a consumer's Windows Media Edition PC, or from their TiVo Series2 DVR using the TiVoToGo feature. Either method lets consumers take their favorite TV shows with them wherever they go for the ultimate in flexibility.

The gigabeat Portable Media Players are available with 30GB and 60GB of storage capacity, a 2.4" diagonally measured QVGA color screen with 320 x 240 resolution, a new more tactile PlusTouch button and thanks to the Windows Mobile Portable Media Center software, one of the most intuitive interfaces available. An FM Tuner is built in and gigabeat also offers the ability to transfer digital images for viewing directly from most digital cameras. Finally, a TV Audio and Video output lets users connect their gigabeat to a television for the ultimate in convenience.

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