Touched up: Korean innovator iriver is firing off both barrels with its latest personal media player, the P20, a model it hopes will take some market share away from Apple's iPod touch. The P20 is a chunky device with impressive hardware credentials. Released in Japan as an 80-gigabyte model, the PMP has already turned heads overseas with its 4.1-inch, 480×272 resolution organic-LED display with touch-screen ability. The P20 backs up the imposing screen and spacious storage capacity with its ability to handle a variety of audio and video formats, including MPEG-1/2/4, Xvid, WMV, MP3, OGG, WMA and FLAC. Moreover, it can view Microsoft Office (but only up to Office 2003), PDF and plain-text documents. Photographers will be pleased with the P20's ability to view RAW files and the fact that it can read directly from memory cards, with a snap-on attachment. Rounding out the features are an FM radio tuner, voice recorder and games. It can also record from other media, such as a TV. The device can operate for up to nine hours while playing videos, or for 12 hours of audio playback. The P20 weighs about 300 grams and measures 80×130×20.5 mm.

The P20 is no iPod touch assassin and shouldn't be viewed as such. While the touch is marketed as the complete on-the-go device for music/video playing, the P20 does not connect to the Internet at all. However, it has a much larger storage capacity than the touch (which tops out at 32 gigabytes), making it better suited for storing video. Apple's iPod range only plays a limited number of file formats, but the P20 offers a much wider selection. Also, its larger screen is better for watching video on than the touch. The P20 is a portable entertainment device that you load up before you go out leaving the Internet behind.

Yet while the touch is famous for its ease of use, iriver seems to have gone a bit odd with the P20 user interface. Selecting the P20's various functions involves using two different scroll wheels and thumbing a button, which makes its operation far less fluid than the touch's. At least the P20 won't strain the budget, with a recommended price of ¥39,800 when it hits the shelves Feb. 27. www.iriver.co.jp