The iRiver H10 5GB Applie iPod mini challenger is generating quite some interest on the net since it appeared last week. Now iRiver Japan has updated their web site with specifications and more photos of the new iRiver MP3 Player.

The H10 measures 95.5 x 54.6 x 15mm and weighs 96.2g. Compared to that the iPod mini measures 91.4 x 50.8 x 12.7 mm and weighs 102g. The iRiver H10 is also slightly bigger but a bit lighter and is featuring a color screen.

But who knows what Apple will announce at the Macworld on January 10th in San Francisco. Apple has even sued unnamed whistleblowers last week, so maybe something big is coming from MacWorld. Back to the iRiver H10. It features MP3 and WMA playback, FM Tuner, USB 2.0, MP3 encoding and of course the 1.5 inch color screen. The H10 comes in four colors.

The price in Japan of about $300 is hopefully not the price iRiver tries to get in the US or Europe for it. The color screen is nice, but again to beat Apple's dramatic market lead, competing MP3 Player manufacturers need to be cheaper and offer more. Same price does not help and to be more expensive than the already expensive iPod mini is ludicrous.
More details in iRiver H10 press-release (Japanese), iRiver H10 product page (Japanese). First seen on DaPreview.

The new iRiver H10 sells for $279.88 at JandR and comes in 4 colors:
IRIVER H10 5GB Digital Audio Player - Trance Red
IRIVER H10 5GB Digital Audio Player - Lounge Gray
IRIVER H10 5GB Digital Audio Player - Triple Platinum
IRIVER H10 5GB Digital Audio Player - Remix Blue

Visit our MP3 Player Shopping Guide.