Almost two years ago there were rumors circulating that the next iPod on the horizon might add satellite radio capabilities on-the-go. The rumors, and god knows there are many of them, were sparked by meetings between Sirius CEO Mel Karmazin and Steve Jobs. Apple passed on a iPod Satellite – a device that would have required Sirius to first develop a new chipset much smaller and lighter than what they had existing – but left the door open for later talks.
Eventually, both Sirius and XM produced portable players like the S50 and the Inno, but none of them could capture satellite reception directly. They all had to use a dock to download programming from a stationary receiver and thus were limited only to the channels recorded.
Now it looks like Sirius is the first to shrink their satellite radio chipset, making it possible to bring its content to DAPs and mobile phones. At the Convergence 2.0 conference held this week at the Museum of Television & Radio in New York, Karmazin flashed what he teasingly described as the first digital audio player with a built-in satellite receiver. Karmazin didn’t offer any details on the player, not even a name. All he offered on the device was that it should be available by the end of summer, then tossed it back in his pocket.
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