Start-up company I2Go.com has given a new twist to Internet audio players with eGo, a portable digital audio device that is intended to give commuters and mobile workers a way to conduct business from their cars.

The audio-oriented eGo will play MP3 files and includes a browser plus software to enable the scheduling of unattended downloads of MP3 files from the Web.

The Audio PDA will also include a text-to-speech engine that lets text messages, such as e-mail, be converted into synthesised speech that can be played by the unit. Audio responses to e-mail can also be recorded as MP3 files, which can later be sent as e-mail attachments when eGo is attached to a computer.

Users will be able to use speech prompts to navigate through their folders on the device, which can be plugged into a car's cigarette lighter, into an AC adapter equipped with two AA batteries for portable use or hard-wired to a car stereo.

The eGo is built around a 25MHz x186 processor from AMD, and includes the RTXC realtime operating system from EmPower, a USB port, and a slot for expandable flash memory that can accommodate two CompactFlash II cards, for a total of 320Mbyte of storage, or a 3/4in IBM microdrive.

The player also features an LCD and a built-in speaker and microphone.

It may be upgraded to support other content formats, codecs and standards, says the company.

The eGo will be made in South Korea by a contract manufacturer. It will be sold in stores, through the company's Web site and via on-line retailers. It will ship in the second week of November, starting at $269.

A version with a 64Mbyte CompactFlash II card will retail for $299 and a version with a 96Mbyte CompactFlash card will retail for $349.

COPYRIGHT 1999 Miller Freeman UK Ltd
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