Shiro AS (1GB)

We have seen our fair share of irregularly shaped MP3 players. From ovals and cubes to the occasional triangle, the Shiro AS may just be the thing to start the ball rolling for a whole new MP3 player design fad.

Upside: Two words, folks: It's cute. Period. And it's not whiny cutesy like some cartoon-themed MP3 player, either. This ash-toned AS looks like an ocular implant for some grey-skinned cyborg and with a diameter of 37.4mm. It's just about perfect to hang off a lanyard without leaving us looking like a dork. We have not played with it yet, but from what we can see, the AS comes with six buttons arranged along its circumference for basic playback and volume control. We like the fact that the buttons are well-spaced-out, though we think it won't be easy to differentiate between them when the AS is riding shotgun in the pocket.

Other than design, the Shiro AS remains a pretty basic MP3 player. There're FM, voice/FM recording, timer/stopwatch functions, and it supports a drag-and-drop interface as well.

Downside: With a claimed 10-hour battery life, we doubt this MP3 player can make it till half-time. We are also doubtful about the build quality of this fellow since its plastic shell looks pretty fragile to us.

Outlook: The AS will make an interesting conversation piece, but other than a bouncingly cool design, we are not sure if its features and performance are enough to get it rock and rolling.

The AS will be available in Singapore in April.