View Full Version : Cowon D2 3.45 beta, released 25/04/07 (Korea)
hey guys!
D2 new firmware released in Korea!
- Support Notepad -you can write a letter-
- Support the advanced options for EQ setting
- Support the BMP viewer
- Stabilized Music library function
- Improved the character recognition
- Fixed the error of text bookmark
- Fixed the error of dictionary
- Stabilized other functions
http://sos84bk.ihome.cowon.com/usr/26/05/0000000526/13/4_0.jpeg
http://sos84bk.ihome.cowon.com/usr/26/05/0000000526/13/4_1.jpeg
awesome!
and...
Next firmware support the Flash Player!
maxjensen
04-25-2007, 10:49
Ohhh...and if it works too then it will be a sweet update. Please work, please work, please....
Fix ID3 bug, fix ID3 bug, fix.... Ok enough. I like the notepad though. That's quite usefull for me!
notepad feature looks cool think i will wait for a proper release though before i upgrade
Woohoo! what are the D2 specs in terms of RAM / CPU though?
What can we expect from a flash application? :)
this is some what interesting. there is a additional menu named "Utilities", containing the notepad feature on the D2. no doubt there is more space for more features in this utility "folder", otherwise the notepad feature would have been put directly on the menu page on the D2.
how would one define utility, "should" the dictionary feature be placed in this folder? what about picture? text?. would be nice to declutter some features. possibly move the dictionary and text feature access into the utility folder.
Lunar_Lamp
04-25-2007, 13:04
Is there a 2.45 equivalent (i.e. without the dictionary)?
^ ive checked through the cowon korea website, atm they do not seem to have the equivalent fw without dictionary.
fw D2_3.45b (dictionary) http://download.cowon.com/data/C08/D2_3.45b.zip
fw D2_1.45b (dmb) http://download.cowon.com/data/C08/D2_1.45b.zip
thought id post links, at the time of posting this, there are no fw download links in the origional post. :)
ID3 duplication is fixed =D
i can also confirm that tags for flac files work now, for users who couldent get their tags to work.
start up without SD last for about two white blocks in the loading circle.
with SD takes about five while blocks in the loading circle :)
music also stops when you enter into the notepad.
additional to this, there are options in menu>settings>system which let you load default settings and also clear the memory.
Strangely enough, although the id3 tag duplication error seems fixed, and there's no duplicates, I still (if I browse by genre) have a genre called '(17)Rock', that I know is not on any of my tags. I still have 'Rock' as a correct genre, but I've no idea where the above comes from. I guess I'll retag and see if it disappears.
The notepad is a fun feature but quite impossible to be any use without the stylus! Plus it would be so much better to have a virtual keyboard and create an actual typed message. It's impossible to fit anything substantial on using 'MS Paint style' lines.
If they did incorporate a virtual keyboard to input text and save text files, that would be very useful.
scotty6435
04-25-2007, 13:54
Why did I have to forget my mp3 player at work today :(:(:(
Advanced options for EQ setting!!! WOW!!! [thumbsup]
thebigcheese
04-25-2007, 14:22
Strangely enough, although the id3 tag duplication error seems fixed, and there's no duplicates, I still (if I browse by genre) have a genre called '(17)Rock', that I know is not on any of my tags. I still have 'Rock' as a correct genre, but I've no idea where the above comes from. I guess I'll retag and see if it disappears.
The notepad is a fun feature but quite impossible to be any use without the stylus! Plus it would be so much better to have a virtual keyboard and create an actual typed message. It's impossible to fit anything substantial on using 'MS Paint style' lines.
If they did incorporate a virtual keyboard to input text and save text files, that would be very useful.
Funny you should mention this, I get the same thing in my computer's media player (QMP, the development version of QCD, very good BTW). It's not so much a bug, and more of a tagging incompatibility. I had this problem when I used Media Monkey to tag my music and then played it in QMP.
I'm definitely trying this!
Thanks!
damn...
i can't save notepads.
Can you?
Funny you should mention this, I get the same thing in my computer's media player (QMP, the development version of QCD, very good BTW). It's not so much a bug, and more of a tagging incompatibility. I had this problem when I used Media Monkey to tag my music and then played it in QMP.
I managed to fix it by deleting the genre tag in id3v1.1, and retagging all the music I class as 'rock' with 'rock' as genre (even though they were tagged like that before), and somehow it's fixed it! I know have perfect ID3 browsing on my D2, at last! Maybe getting rid of the id31.1 tag helped...
damn...
i can't save notepads.
Can you?
Unless you hit 'delete', you notepad session is automatically saved in PICTURES > NOTEPAD
Great stuff Cowon,
Can the Op post a link to the firmware and they may make this a stickey
MP3 selection from folder browser is still buggy, it frequently selects a file further towards the start of the list than the one I actually wanted. No real pattern to this that I can see. If ID3 browsing works better now I suppose it's not a big deal, but it's still extremely annoying when it happens 3 times in a row.
Edit: Oh and it also does similar things when selecting bookmarked files, which is just inexcusable. But I see Cowon have been spending their time well by doing such essential things as writing a simple paint program. Whoopee, that'll help me listen to music!
etivackers
04-25-2007, 16:35
i test the 1.45b,when the firmware is done and i start my d2 it only shows white screen.can someone help me what i've done wrong.i install 0,1,2 one by one then i install 1,2 together.
by the way,my unit is d2 dmb.thanks in advance
sorry for my english
MP3 selection from folder browser is still buggy, it frequently selects a file further towards the start of the list than the one I actually wanted. No real pattern to this that I can see. If ID3 browsing works better now I suppose it's not a big deal, but it's still extremely annoying when it happens 3 times in a row.
Edit: Oh and it also does similar things when selecting bookmarked files, which is just inexcusable. But I see Cowon have been spending their time well by doing such essential things as writing a simple paint program. Whoopee, that'll help me listen to music!
Folder browsing has never been buggy for me, not even once. I have 8GB of music on an SDHC card...And ID3 is working perfectly now, finally [rolleyes]
I've never grasped the idea of bookmarking, so I never use it....
calcheese
04-25-2007, 17:19
amazing! thanks for this dude, I'm downloading this just now
Meh, who needs a notepad app and Flash support, when there are so many bugs and annoyances that are more important to fix first? That's what Palm PDAs and PocketPCs are for, the D2 should be a bug-free audio/video player, before all these newfangled bells & whistles are added, IMO.
I hope they fixed the bug with disappearing bookmarks for audio, not only for text. That pretty much sucks for my audio book listening habits.
Fix the resume function, which actually doesn't resume, just remembers the position within a file.
Implement a 24 hour clock (what's the idea of having several European languages in the firmware, and only an American 12 hour AM/PM clock?)
Fix the sleep timer (what's the idea of having a 60 minute only sleep timer, while all older players have a 120 minute timer?)
An option of disabling ID3 browsing altogether. Saves the database refresh and a lot of hassle for the people that don't use it.
Ditch the 320x240 video restriction - if it's possible to play insanely high 2000kbps videos, the D2 is probably very well suited for 640x480 playback. But that would probably cut too much into their A2 sales...
Cowon, are you listening?
BTW - a semi-parametric EQ is really nice, that's a very positive point of the new firmware.
calcheese
04-25-2007, 17:40
the new firmware has no option to change from MSC to MTP mode.
james.miller
04-25-2007, 17:51
might be a silly question but can you change to an english language with the firmware?
maxjensen
04-25-2007, 17:56
This is neat! Most is working. Browsing by genre is still buggy. But I can now browse by artist (yeah!). And no problems with reading the SD card either. This is going to be good!
i test the 1.45b,when the firmware is done and i start my d2 it only shows white screen.can someone help me what i've done wrong.i install 0,1,2 one by one then i install 1,2 together.
by the way,my unit is d2 dmb.thanks in advance
sorry for my english
HI, have you taken a look at cowon korea website:
http://board.cowon.com/zeroboard/zboard.php?id=C08&page=1&sn1=&divpage=1&bmenu=iAUDIO&sn=off&ss=on&sc=on&select_arrange=headnum&bmenu=iAUDIO&desc=asc&no=393&bmenu=iAUDIO
it will give you instructions on how to load fw for DMB model.
from what i can see you drag files from folder 1 and 2 into the root of the player at the same time.
the white screen you are having is mostly because the second folder containing : D2_rs.bin and D2_font.bin have not been properly installed. just try dragging these two files into the root of the player agian. (remember back up music and what not). whatever happends the problem can be resolved. hope this helps.
might be a silly question but can you change to an english language with the firmware?
When you start up the D2 after an update, it asks you what language you want [smile]
naylor83
04-25-2007, 17:59
might be a silly question but can you change to an english language with the firmware?
Yes.
I'll toss in another vote for gapless, and removing the resolution restriction of videos for better tv-out. I guess real resume wouldn't be bad either.
lol repost about D2 language selection too many times. mybad.
the new firmware has no option to change from MSC to MTP mode.
So it's MSC only? Great. :)
james.miller
04-25-2007, 18:01
excellent, thanks for that. ill grab that firmware now. thumbs up to cowon for listening to its userbase
naylor83
04-25-2007, 18:03
excellent, thanks for that. ill grab that firmware now. thumbs up to cowon for listening to its userbase
Don't mean to sound bitter... :) but how did they listen?
They are looking after us constantly by providing regular firmware updates, that's for sure.
True, naylor83... they don't listen a lot to some of the more serious issues.
baradona
04-25-2007, 18:13
does id3 browsing now show up in track order?
james.miller
04-25-2007, 18:14
i supposed it depends on what you want from the player. sorry for getting a little excited, but i only browse my music by folder and disply names by file. i dont care for tags so anything to do with them doesn't really affect me.
having a play around, its a shame you cant adjust the first band to sit below 80hz. and is it me or have they sorted the distortion problems around a volume of 40....it seems to be much improved.
maxjensen
04-25-2007, 18:18
I don't know if it's just me. But I think they've done something with the sound. I somehow find the bass more present. Anyone else? Or is it just getting too late and I should get my bum to bed....
calcheese
04-25-2007, 18:33
its probably because the jet effect settings have returned to default...BBE 2 and Mach something or wotever at 6....
Oh man, i'm seriously loving Cowon right now...notepad sounds great. I can finally doodle a bunch of drawings now in my spare time.
maxjensen
04-25-2007, 18:43
its probably because the jet effect settings have returned to default...BBE 2 and Mach something or wotever at 6....
No...well, it is right after the upgrade...but I disabled it all. I still think there's a difference. Esp. when I plug in my IEM's. Perhaps I am just hearing things like the voices telling me to...well, never mind ;)
naylor83
04-25-2007, 18:52
No...well, it is right after the upgrade...but I disabled it all. I still think there's a difference. Esp. when I plug in my IEM's. Perhaps I am just hearing things like the voices telling me to...well, never mind ;)
:P ...
Dalmane98
04-25-2007, 19:22
Can you create a play list in 2.45 beta that will work?
Since MTP is not available, can you create one that will work using JetAudio or Mp3tag?
AussiePie
04-25-2007, 20:41
Is there a 2.45 equivalent (i.e. without the dictionary)?
From memory with the last FW (3.41-2.41) it was about a week later, before the non dictionary release came out, so it should be out soon [biggrin]
does id3 browsing now show up in track order?
Not on my vorbis tracks, and they should be tagged correctly.... I have some mp3's on another SD card so I'll give those a check now....
EDIT: Just checked a few albums, they seem to work in order in the ID3 database.... I wonder why the vorbis tracks aren't in order?
Anyone got a direct link to the firmware?
Also...this version works on non dmb models, right?
yumms its on the first page :) :
^ ive checked through the cowon korea website, atm they do not seem to have the equivalent fw without dictionary.
fw D2_3.45b (dictionary) http://download.cowon.com/data/C08/D2_3.45b.zip
fw D2_1.45b (dmb) http://download.cowon.com/data/C08/D2_1.45b.zip
thought id post links, at the time of posting this, there are no fw download links in the origional post. :)
Marasmus
04-25-2007, 21:57
Hm, you still can't set the bass eq lower than 80Hz? That's a disappointment :(
I have had quite a few audio sync issues with 2.41, has this been worked out? and just to be clear I've had sync issues with videos converted with both Jetaudio and iriverter. there doesn't really seem to be any patern that i can pinpoint, sometimes it will be in sync, sometimes not. sometimes the "rewind for a few seconds" trick works, sometimes it doesn't. I would love it if it would be consistently good to me
I have had quite a few audio sync issues with 2.41, has this been worked out? and just to be clear I've had sync issues with videos converted with both Jetaudio and iriverter. there doesn't really seem to be any patern that i can pinpoint, sometimes it will be in sync, sometimes not. sometimes the "rewind for a few seconds" trick works, sometimes it doesn't. I would love it if it would be consistently good to me
Same problem, I don't want to update FW if this hasn't been fixed. booo..
I have had quite a few audio sync issues with 2.41, has this been worked out? and just to be clear I've had sync issues with videos converted with both Jetaudio and iriverter. there doesn't really seem to be any patern that i can pinpoint, sometimes it will be in sync, sometimes not. sometimes the "rewind for a few seconds" trick works, sometimes it doesn't. I would love it if it would be consistently good to me
I'll check that out if you want to send me some small out of sync clips.
Unless you hit 'delete', you notepad session is automatically saved in PICTURES > NOTEPAD
Great!!
neoxerxes
04-26-2007, 01:54
Yes.
I'll toss in another vote for gapless, and removing the resolution restriction of videos for better tv-out. I guess real resume wouldn't be bad either.
Regarding the resolution of videos, unless Cowon can significantly decode videos more efficiently in software (which I doubt they will ever do as they screw around with stuff like a Notepad [wink]), then we are never going to see such an update of this nature. The A2 can decode video of more varied resolutions because it simply has more processing power than the D2, unfortunately for us.
Regarding the new Notepad feature, I think a good purpose for it would be (after doodling of course) playing Noughts and Crosses and Hangman! No need for paper when you are out and about!
Marasmus
04-26-2007, 02:14
Or you could just write down a reminder and set it as the background on the player. Still a bit useless, though.
The_Chief
04-26-2007, 02:22
The A2 can decode video of more varied resolutions because it simply has more processing power than the D2, unfortunately for us. Not true. You just don't now what are you talking about. TCC 7801 platform can do much more than implemented by Cowon. MUCH more.
maxjensen
04-26-2007, 02:25
A pencil and paper is your friend!!! No bugs and can even take a spill of coffee (the D2 notepad no longer saves the images for some reason).
Well assuming the Notepad feature can edit bmp's as well, you can play stuff like sudoku. Just go to a website, get a screenshot and save it as a bmp, then load it onto the D2. Next time you go out, you can fill in the squares right on the image :D For anyone who's got the new firmware, would that work?
maxjensen
04-26-2007, 02:46
Or you can use it to mess with a photo of your favourite dictator ;)
baradona
04-26-2007, 03:11
Not on my vorbis tracks, and they should be tagged correctly.... I have some mp3's on another SD card so I'll give those a check now....
EDIT: Just checked a few albums, they seem to work in order in the ID3 database.... I wonder why the vorbis tracks aren't in order?
My WMAs are all in alphabetical order still [sad] [sad]
I've just noticed something whilst browsing the icon set in the new fw...
check this out - are these icons, eg. input, full, clear, etc, actually usable anywhere in the current fw?
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v335/emjayhaych/hmmmm.jpg
I see a keyboard input button! :D So does this mean we'll have that option in the non-beta of the firmware? To enter text via a touchscreen keyboard?
That would be cool :)
This icons are from the Powerdic :)
neoxerxes
04-26-2007, 05:26
Not true. You just don't now what are you talking about. TCC 7801 platform can do much more than implemented by Cowon. MUCH more.
The truth is, we don't know exactly if the D2 is capable as it has to be done first! I guess my comment was based on a logical assumption from what I know about the A2 and the D2. Unless you know of another device with similar specs, with the same chip, that is able to decode similar codecs, at varying resolutions, then this would give many people hope that the D2 could get this support. If not, I believe from a hardware perspective, the chances are bleak. I believe that the Clix2 also uses the same chip and yet just like the D2, videos must be converted no more than 320:240. The A2 and Zen Vision:M both use the same chip, and the codecs they support (such as DivX and XviD), do not need conversion like the D2 does, which makes me think this an issue with the chip.
However, if you think about it again, we could be both wrong as to why they haven't implemented it. The D2 is much more limited storage wise than say the A2, which is why Cowon (and maybe iRiver) may have opted to get users to make their videos smaller as in many cases videos are quite large for flash-based devices. That could be another side to it, even if you think the platform is much more than capable than doing videos at 320:240.
__PhaseShiftDown
04-26-2007, 05:48
yay... sounds like an awesome firmware. Can't wait for the official non-beta to be released. [smile]
The D2 certainly should play videos larger than 320x240. I tried 320x240 videos with 2000kbps. They worked, which is totally insane! Usually 1000kbps is enough for 640x480 videos without artefacts. 2000kbps for 320x240 is an absolutely crazy, much too high bitrate. 500kbps is enough for 320x240.
Downscaling a 640x480 video to 320x240 should use less processing power than playing a 2000kbps 320x240 video...
Meh, who needs a notepad app and Flash support, when there are so many bugs and annoyances that are more important to fix first? That's what Palm PDAs and PocketPCs are for, the D2 should be a bug-free audio/video player, before all these newfangled bells & whistles are added, IMO.
I hope they fixed the bug with disappearing bookmarks for audio, not only for text. That pretty much sucks for my audio book listening habits.
Fix the resume function, which actually doesn't resume, just remembers the position within a file.
Implement a 24 hour clock (what's the idea of having several European languages in the firmware, and only an American 12 hour AM/PM clock?)
Fix the sleep timer (what's the idea of having a 60 minute only sleep timer, while all older players have a 120 minute timer?)
An option of disabling ID3 browsing altogether. Saves the database refresh and a lot of hassle for the people that don't use it.
Ditch the 320x240 video restriction - if it's possible to play insanely high 2000kbps videos, the D2 is probably very well suited for 640x480 playback. But that would probably cut too much into their A2 sales...
Cowon, are you listening?
BTW - a semi-parametric EQ is really nice, that's a very positive point of the new firmware.
I support all your ideas, especially the 24H clock and an option to kill ID3 browsing altogether.
vuittion
04-26-2007, 06:43
I thought this beta firmware might sort out the awful sound quality of my D2.
All it has done is make it even more confusing to try and get a balanced sound with the new eq features.
This thing is badly flawed in the SQ department and Cowon know it.
Thank god I kept my fantastic sounding iAUDIO 6
Martin_o5
04-26-2007, 07:10
I have European or American version of D2. Can I upgrade my firmware to this new version? I dont understand which firmwares I can use. There are version three versions:
1.xx
2.xx
3.xx
Which of these version can I use?
sorry of my english...
I have European or American version of D2. Can I upgrade my firmware to this new version? I dont understand which firmwares I can use. There are version three versions:
1.xx
2.xx
3.xx
Which of these version can I use?
sorry of my english...
You can use all FWs with begining with 2 or 3, so also this one(3.45b). Whereas all 3.xx FWs contain a dictionary... FWs, which begins with 1 are only for models with DMB(digital multimedia broadcasting).
Folder browsing has never been buggy for me, not even once. I have 8GB of music on an SDHC card...And ID3 is working perfectly now, finally [rolleyes]
I've never grasped the idea of bookmarking, so I never use it....
I have 4 gigs of MP3s in a single directory in the internal memory, and it obviously has problems with that for some reason, although I can't think why. Do you have your music split into separate directories by artist etc?
Bookmarking is really simple, when you bookmark a track it gets added to the bookmark list, and then you can access the list anytime you want and jump straight to any of the listed tracks. I use it to store some of the tracks I listen to most often, but it simply does not work half the time. Just this morning I was trying to play a particular track and it took 4 attempts before it worked! That's 4 repetitions of tap screen -> Browser -> Bookmark list -> Find track -> Select track, which is incredibly annoying. The first 3 times I tried it I got 3 different random tracks.
just browsing through the tga files i found this image.
looks like a small adobe flash image. nothin special as we already know the next fw will inc flash.
txt reader is a piece of shit. saving bookmarks byhands is enraging me. so this disgusting 5 preinstalled colorschemes - i cannot change colors as i like.
heh, this "innovational" notepad looks enough useless. instead bugfixes we got some trinkets.
Martin_o5
04-26-2007, 08:58
You can use all FWs with begining with 2 or 3, so also this one(3.45b). Whereas all 3.xx FWs contain a dictionary... FWs, which begins with 1 are only for models with DMB(digital multimedia broadcasting).
And is firmware 3.45b standart in English or must I set in Options English?
I thing it will be hard to find this setting in korean language for me[laugh]
Martin_o5 if you read through the post you would have seen this.
When you start up the D2 after an update, it asks you what language you want [smile]
in_flames
04-26-2007, 09:56
Strangely enough, although the id3 tag duplication error seems fixed, and there's no duplicates, I still (if I browse by genre) have a genre called '(17)Rock', that I know is not on any of my tags. I still have 'Rock' as a correct genre, but I've no idea where the above comes from. I guess I'll retag and see if it disappears.
Take a look on every mp3, any has ID3v2 activated.. (when you put some genre in v1, the v2 tag puts (XX)_____ for default)
I think you can use Winamp to search this file, open the library and add a smart view to search the genre "(14)Rock", I think will return you something.
I decided to upgrade to the beta release and it all works fine except that the start up time is dam slow
ImTired723
04-26-2007, 12:06
Is anyone else having problems playing protected wma with this version of the firmware? Mine played using 2.41 but now they just won't play at all.
odd, I installed the new beta on my D2 last night, thats about 18 hours ago now.... anyway just picked it up to find that the nearly completely charged battery was nearly completely empty....whats with that?
The startup time seems to be slow whenever you create a new notepad file, (also whenever you update the player but thats to be expected)
The startup time seems to be slow whenever you create a new notepad file, (also whenever you update the player but thats to be expected)
Tested this and yeah it is only when you make a new notepad file hopefully they will fix this in the final version. Its really annoying the start up circle goes around over 3 times
Anyone else having problem with the virtual scroll thingie? It doesn't work sometimes... worked perfectly well on 2.41/3.41.
Most notably it doesn't work most of the time in the JetEffects menu.
polaczek
04-26-2007, 14:00
hey, can some1 make a fontpatch for this firmware? i would by grateful.
thx :)
Nifty!
Tracking info on my new D2 says it just arrived, so I have to wait for the recieving department to bring it to my building and then I can play around with this. I think I'll give this a shot, since I'm 100% new and wont really notice any differences (ie, I wont miss an old firmware version I never had [wink] ).
I'm trying to read the installation instructions in the link provided, and it just dawned on me...I can't read Korean [laugh] . Are they the same instructions listed on the cowonglobal site, in english, for the 2.41 firmware?
Thanks!
my boot time is various :S
I have 4 gigs of MP3s in a single directory in the internal memory, and it obviously has problems with that for some reason, although I can't think why. Do you have your music split into separate directories by artist etc?
Bookmarking is really simple, when you bookmark a track it gets added to the bookmark list, and then you can access the list anytime you want and jump straight to any of the listed tracks. I use it to store some of the tracks I listen to most often, but it simply does not work half the time. Just this morning I was trying to play a particular track and it took 4 attempts before it worked! That's 4 repetitions of tap screen -> Browser -> Bookmark list -> Find track -> Select track, which is incredibly annoying. The first 3 times I tried it I got 3 different random tracks.
My 8 gigs of music on my sdhc card are organised by genre > artist > album...You have 4 gigs of music in a single directory?! Sounds like what you'd do if you relied on id3 tag browsing, not folder browsing...
And I can't see me ever having reason to use the bookmark feature, lol, sounds almost like a kind of playlist function but....not... :)
hey, can some1 make a fontpatch for this firmware? i would by grateful.
thx :)
fontpatch works OK with this beta firmware![thumbsup]
MossMoses
04-26-2007, 14:58
Does anyone else get this error message when you attempt to use the dictionary with the 3.45b firmware? I can't figure out how to fix it. Thanks in advance for any advice.
You have to additionally install the dictionary files from the website to use it.
My 8 gigs of music on my sdhc card are organised by genre > artist > album...You have 4 gigs of music in a single directory?! Sounds like what you'd do if you relied on id3 tag browsing, not folder browsing...
I like having everything in a single directory, I do the same with my full collection on the PC :) Could never be bothered to organise it into directories, it's all tagged properly and that's enough for me. It's only 700 files on the D2 though, I can't believe their folder browsing code can't handle it.
odd, I installed the new beta on my D2 last night, thats about 18 hours ago now.... anyway just picked it up to find that the nearly completely charged battery was nearly completely empty....whats with that?
Hey Domo, keep us up to date with this, this could turn into tears
Will do, i'm recharging it (should be nearly done, its been charging for like 4 hours off the mains).... lets see what happens over night.
I'm still unable to select files to play in folder view if they range near the end of the alphabet. Instead it plays a song at the beginning.
Using the ID3 navigation is unacceptable, as the only way to get it to play music by all artists while still selecting a track is by viewing all of the tracks, unsorted. That and it doesn't sort vorbis files correctly.
Rather disappointing that such simple things cannot be done correctly.
AussiePie
04-26-2007, 21:12
As good as some of these additions sound i hope the 2.45? comes out without the dictionary and notepad options in it.
Also the MTP/MCS option still operational :)
FYI, I'm playing with it as we speak. Like I said earlier, as this is my first time playing with the D2, I dont really know the difference between this and any of the other versions, but so far I'm liking it. Only complaint I have is there's a bubble in the screen protector that came with it right in the middle, and i can barely use that spot. That doesnt really matter, though, as I have an InvisibleShield I'll put on later tonight. ETA: Haha, nevermind that, bubble fixed.
Oh, and I had the same little bug(?) mentioned in the first page. I had, when browsing the genre section, a folder called Opera and one called (119)Opera. I deleted the ID3 v1 tag for them all and it worked. And I did check all the files that were listed under that folder, they all had the same Genre, no stray (119) or anything. No biggie :)
Gah, I have so much HW to do tonight and I can't stop playing with this! I've been waiting for a good portable video player for many, many years, and so far this is exactly what I've been waiting for! Yay Cowon
I'm so glad the ID3 bugs have been fixed, although it's quite annoying that it seems every time you turn on the D2, and browse to music, if you've been using the id3 browsing option, it always 'starts off' navigating from 'Tracks' and the first track alphabetically, rather than picking up from where you last navigated to?
The_Chief
04-27-2007, 04:15
The truth is, we don't know exactly if the D2 is capable as it has to be done first! Just take a look on TeleChips web-site. There are platform specifications there. With a photo of D2 in white color. ;)
TCC 7801 platform (http://www.telechips.com/product/p_025.htm)
Now you see why I'm saying what I'm saying?..
Just take a look on TeleChips web-site. There are platform specifications there. With a photo of D2 in white color. ;)
TCC 7801 platform (http://www.telechips.com/product/p_025.htm)
Now you see why I'm saying what I'm saying?..
"Support 3D/Java" now this is something I would like to have in my D2! :)
"Support 3D/Java" now this is something I would like to have in my D2! :)
Don't give those Cowon programmers any ideas... [rolleyes]
I'd rather have the basic functions of the D2 working well before they add yet another superfluous crap gizmo.
BTW, it's weird having 5 icons in the upper row of the main screen and 4 in the lower row. They should have moved the dictionary in the utilities submenu, where that drawing app is. But nevermind, 2.45 will most likely be without the dictionary function...
Don't give those Cowon programmers any ideas... [rolleyes]
I'd rather have the basic functions of the D2 working well before they add yet another superfluous crap gizmo.
I want superflous crap. I love having lots of apps, even if they aren`t 100% well executed I end up using them. Really.
Now, seriously, I don`t know why you have such a thing against new features being added. I know, I know, you want bugs sorted out, we all want them, but being a software developer myself, I know fixing bugs is something that takes time, no matter how much effort you put into it.
And, being honest, for one there are no critical bugs on the current D2 firmware release (critical = can`t be used at all).
On the other hand, the new releases ARE fixing bugs, so it`s not like Cowon has all its programmers developing new features, obviously there *is* people dedicated to fixing bugs.
Which leads us to another place. There are tasks that can and tasks that can not be performed concurrently in parallel. It depends on the specific platform and the specific bug (amongst other stuff) but many, many times you just can`t fix every bug at once, you have to sort out some things first, see how it goes, see if there are more code to be worked out or even reengineered, and then, just then move on to hunt the next one.
So, if you have a group of programmers it`s probably useless to assign them all to bug-fixing ("one woman can have a child in 9 months, but 9 women together can`t have a chid in one month").
What would you do in that case, tell the extra programmers... "go home, we`ll call you in 7 months when there are absolutely no more bugs so you can begin developing the new features. You finish them in another 5 months. After that 2 months to hunt bugs. And by one year and a half from now we'll release everything!!" or, "start developing now, and we`ll start releasing beta versions as soon as possible" ?
New features are GOOD, even if you don`t use them (don`t put the "it`ll waste a precious 50KB" excuse) there are lots of people who will, or not, that doesn`t even matter.
We are in an era of convergence, electronical devices and consumer devices particularly are they all starting to be very alike technically. You can`t stand in the "I want my cell phone to make phone calls and nothing more" position anymore because it can do a lot of things more VERY WELL and at the same price. My granma thinks like that.
^ as long as fw 2.45 is still rid of the dictionary and the new notepad feature i will be happy. I think its good that cowon are atully giving us the choice to pick from whether or not we want a feature packed fw or a basic version of the fw.
maybe in the future if there are even more features (somewhat pointless or useful) they may be able to implement fw which allows the installation of individual features e.g. dictionary/notepad. ontop of a fw which is clear of these features, again allowing for individuals to nit pick what they want.
Dalmane98
04-27-2007, 10:51
I want superflous crap. I love having lots of apps, even if they aren`t 100% well executed I end up using them. Really.
Then buy one of these:
http://www.oqo.com/
All I want is a great A/V player and so far the D2 is it.
If I need the other stuff I grab my PDA or my Laptop.
Then buy one of these:
http://www.oqo.com/
If I had the money.... I would! [yes]
but I wouldn`t stop using my D2 for music
All I want is a great A/V player and so far the D2 is it.
Yes it is!!
What I don`t get is why people complain when new features are added if it`s not in detriment of its media playing capacities. [confused]
And I tried to make a point in the fact that Cowon may be, but not necessarily is giving more priority to new features than they are to bug-fixing.
If the hardware can handle it, and Cowon has the will to put time and effort (aka: money) to develop the software, then it`s welcome!
Whether it is useful for each person is a matter of each person. It is choice. And choice is NEVER, EVER a bad thing.
I agree with red5. I would love to see other features like usb host if the d2 can handle it. if you are getting all of these features for a little bit more price than the nano then I applaud the d2 firmware creators. I just don't understand why in any player they lock some functions just so not to restrict the sales of their other players but then again I'm no business man.
Don't forget the D2 is locked on purpose to 320x240 video playback, even if the hardware most definitely could support larger video sizes and downscaling. 320x240 @ 2000kbps, my foot.... and what about the "disappearing" AAC support?
I want superflous crap. I love having lots of apps, even if they aren`t 100% well executed I end up using them. Really. Now, seriously, I don`t know why you have such a thing against new features being added.
Get an OQO (as Dalmane98 said), a Palm PDA, or a PocketPC. I paid Cowon money for the D2 to get a fully functioning, bug-free audio and video player - and not for being "pleasantly surprised" by newly added nonsense in each firmware iteration.
I've been using Palm PDAs since their first model, the Pilot 1000, in 1997. I don't have anything against "features". As long as they're on a device that's made for these features, and that actually work well. Currently I'm using a Clie TH55 and a Palm T|X, they're both packed with features. I expect that from such a device. They have got a great dictionary, decent drawing software, a most excellent eBook reader (iSilo), not to mention email, web browsing, instant messaging, maps, etc.
Of course these PDAs also play music and videos. But they don't do that very well. And that's where the D2 comes in. Music and videos is the purpose of the D2 - it's got much better sound quality, a 24 bit screen and an amazing battery life. This is what I paid Cowon for. Text, graphics, connectivity, is for the other devices that can handle it better.
I could use a Palm or PocketPC for audio and video, but it's not the same quality as on the D2. I like quality over quantity. These are my preferences - your mileage may vary.
I can understand people that can't afford a Palm, or that don't want to carry several devices around with them. But then at least design all that useless crap in the firmware as plugins, so not everyone needs to bother with it. This way it is (at least psychologically) not a part of the firmware, and people like me wouldn't be grumpy about it.
I know, I know, you want bugs sorted out, we all want them, but being a software developer myself, I know fixing bugs is something that takes time, no matter how much effort you put into it
[...]
or, "start developing now, and we`ll start releasing beta versions as soon as possible" ?
Thanks for the info, this seems insightful in the process of developing/troubleshooting an application. But it still doesn't help much, it leaves a shallow taste behind. Noone pays this much money for a device and thinks of the poor, overworked programmers. There should be certain priorities. The job needs to be done. Cowon is neither a charity, nor a free open source project. They're a legit company that makes money from their hardware/software.
New features are GOOD, even if you don`t use them (don`t put the "it`ll waste a precious 50KB" excuse) there are lots of people who will, or not, that doesn`t even matter.
We are in an era of convergence, electronical devices and consumer devices particularly are they all starting to be very alike technically. You can`t stand in the "I want my cell phone to make phone calls and nothing more" position anymore because it can do a lot of things more VERY WELL and at the same price. My granma thinks like that.
You can certainly do a lot of stuff on convergence devices, but you absolutely can't do them "VERY WELL", as you put it. Sure you can browse the web on your cell phone, or you can play games, or take pictures - but the experience is mediocre at best, certainly not even close to "very well".
If I want to doodle some drawings on the go, I'll do it on my Palm PDA, not on my MP3 player. If I want to take pictures, I do it with my camera, not with my cell phone. If I want to play games, I do it on my Nintendo DS.
I know, I know... the old "lugging all that stuff around is bad when you can have it all-in-one". But what's the use of grainy blurred cellphone pics - you wanna keep them to show them to your great-grandchildren? What's the use of a Java web browser on a cellphone? To strain your eyes and/or patience? What's the use of a notepad on the D2? I'm faster with a piece of paper and a pen.
I don't want my toaster to have a TV built in, and I don't want my toothbrush to be a walkie-talkie.
Read my D2 review (link is in my sig) - I don't hate the D2 at all, I just hate it when Cowon loses focus on the main subject and delivers shoddy software that is no match to their - usually - top-notch hardware.
scotty6435
04-27-2007, 13:39
Yes there are some bugs in the firmware but these things can take a long time to correct if they're deep in the code or require large-scale reconstruction. I'm very happy with my player but if they can fix the shuffle function and improve boot time then I will be more than happy.
I love that I can make quick notes on the move now as I don't carry around a PDA, laptop and games console with me as you seem to. 'crappy features' attract new customers and if the D2 is more of a success then there will be more investment in the software!
You can't call the notepad function crummy by any stretch of the imagination. It's a great little tool that is useful and can provide some fun!
Face facts - you are NOT going to get 640x480 video on the D2. It will kill the A2 sales because that is a major feature.
Disabling ID3 databasing would probably require more coding time than implementing all of the small changes you listed in your post.
I like the resume function. When I turn on my player I don't necessarily want it to start playing my max volume death metal/porn when I've just attached speakers.....
There will be a lot of useful stuff added with the next non-beta firmware just like last time. This is a little player with some bugs which seem to annoy the f**k out of you however you'll find many more people willing to, y'know, put up with it until it can be fixed.
vvv Definate thumbs up, it solves some bugs (id3 duplication for one) and adds functions. Can't really go wrong with that!
music065
04-27-2007, 13:43
Whats the bottom line from you have upgraded? Thumbs up or thumbs down?
I see there's a lot of pros and some cons to the upgrade at this point. Some great stuff, but some bugs.
Should we upgrade now, or wait til a more stable version comes out?
thanks
Hehe peace out guys!
Wait and see and enjoy a bit ... it's a great device suffering from a lot of nitpicking... ;-)
Lapis Molari
04-27-2007, 14:22
Of course it's debatable whether Cowon is doing their most to satisfy specific wishes of individual customers. And since none of us know what they are working on behind closed doors, such a debate could never be resolved [no].
Yes, the D2's fw still lacks certain fixes & basic additions. And fw3.45 doesn't address them all. But the fact that Cowon has released new fw almost every month is amazing in my experience. I give them the benefit of the doubt that they are addressing our issues and will solve them in future fw releases [yes].
One way to reduce the guess work (and anticipation) of us, D2 customers, would be for a Cowon rep to occasionally join this forum and answer some of the concerns and questions [cool].
I know that costs time (and thus money), but happier customers make better advertising. In that light, having one rep contribute to the forum is salary well spent [biggrin].
Dalmane98
04-27-2007, 15:00
One way to reduce the guess work (and anticipation) of us, D2 customers, would be for a Cowon rep to occasionally join this forum and answer some of the concerns and questions [cool].
I know that costs time (and thus money), but happier customers make better advertising. In that light, having one rep contribute to the forum is salary well spent [biggrin].
They have a rep named iAudio Bunny (IMHO) who lurks around here once in a while. Though they have not posted anything in a while.
calcheese
04-27-2007, 15:29
You guys need to chill a bit! There are small issues with the player but they will soon get sorted. I'm sure most of the cowon employees that deal with the firmware stuff are based in Korea and the beta firmwares are for Korean customers...which suggests that if you really want your voice heard, learn some Korean and post your problems in the Korean Cowon forums. Personally I like the notepad..been messing around with it on the train with randoms (great conversation starter!) but it's a shame you can';t listen to music while using the notepad. I agree with the person above who said that new features will bring more customers. The D2 is less of a DAP and more of a gadget now...but once they have all the little bugs ironed out, it will be untouchable.
The little bugs don't really prevent you from using the D2 so lets be patient and wait.
stereophile
04-27-2007, 15:57
My 2 cents:
I have the D2 - and I love it. I like the SQ, and I am THRILLED THEY ADDED THE EQ IMPROVEMENTS.
Cowon, I don't care about watching Video, etc on D2. I want to have the very best FLASH BASED AUDIO PLAYER ON THE MARKET - I just love my music on a DAP -- and I hope you continue to improve the D2's SQ.
Or even come out with a "better" flash-based player that focues on kicking ass SQ.
Right now, the main competitor is some of the new stuff iRiver is coming out with...
Please keep focusing on Sound enhancements for D2.
Some of us don't need all the note-making, videos, etc. SQ!
Ok... we are getting off topic.
Just a couple of lines and I won`t go on with this anymore. Sorry.
This way it is (at least psychologically) not a part of the firmware, and people like me wouldn't be grumpy about it.
So you are saying that *just knowing* that there is a single feature in your device that is not perfectly implemented bothers you so much, even if you don`t ever use that feature?
Man you are a perfectionist!
There should be certain priorities. The job needs to be done. Cowon is neither a charity, nor a free open source project. They're a legit company that makes money from their hardware/software.
You so missunderstood me. Working the bugs out IS the first priority in my opinion too, I just said that more than one thing can be done at the time.
And I wasn`t talking at all about poor programmers overwork or "charity", all the contrary, I was saying that if they have more programmers that those that can be used for fixing bugs it`s good that they make `em develop new apps meanwhile.
You can certainly do a lot of stuff on convergence devices, but you absolutely can't do them "VERY WELL"
Simple java games on my cell phone have me very well entertained many times while going to work, its calender and task organizer fills my needs enough and my prev-gen stick-style-brandless 128MB mp3 player did for an incredibly useful Digital Voice Recorder.
Now, if you need a Wii connected to 42" plasma to have some fun and a THX enabled cinema to watch "Flubber" on a friday night, well... that`s you...
But what's the use of grainy blurred cellphone pics - you wanna keep them to show them to your great-grandchildren?
By the time I have great-grandchildren it`s pretty unlikely CDs, DVDs, SD cards will still work, or that you can even find any device that could display a .JPG
What's the use of a Java web browser on a cellphone? To strain your eyes and/or patience?
.. and yet you like video on the D2...
That`s all!
sorry people for getting so off the topic. [blush]
PS: Funny (at best) how you use "a legit company" as opposed to a charity or open source organization... makes one think....
Yes there are some bugs in the firmware but these things can take a long time to correct if they're deep in the code or require large-scale reconstruction. I'm very happy with my player but if they can fix the shuffle function and improve boot time then I will be more than happy.
To be honest, if their programmers can't fix these incredibly obvious and annoying bugs with track selection from the bookmarks list or folder view in less than 1 hour, they should be fired. These are _NOT_ difficult problems to fix, and the fact that they haven't done anything about them yet implies they think that the notepad etc are more important, and I don't agree with that. If they would just fix these silly bugs, then I wouldn't care what they do after that. They could go and devote months to adding whatever other "cool" stuff they want, but they should get the core functionality fixed first!
Disabling ID3 databasing would probably require more coding time than implementing all of the small changes you listed in your post.
Actually, it'd probably just come down to an:
if id3_database_enabled:
read_id3_database()somewhere in the startup code and an extra option in the settings menu to enable/disable it, plus some minor changes elsewhere under the "Browser" menu. Changing the option might require a reboot for it to take effect, but unless their code is pretty dodgy I don't see any reason why it'd need a massive amount of work.
I like the resume function. When I turn on my player I don't necessarily want it to start playing my max volume death metal/porn when I've just attached speakers.....
That's why it should be an optional thing controlled through the settings menu. 99% of the time, I'd quite like it to start back up into music mode, and resume playing the track I was listening to before.
So you are saying that *just knowing* that there is a single feature in your device that is not perfectly implemented bothers you so much, even if you don`t ever use that feature?
Man you are a perfectionist!
I only said make it optional, plug-in style, not mandatory. The dictionary files are already optional, why not design the rest of the pseudo-PDA stuff the same way?
Simple java games on my cell phone have me very well entertained many times while going to work, its calender and task organizer fills my needs enough and my prev-gen stick-style-brandless 128MB mp3 player did for an incredibly useful Digital Voice Recorder.
Now, if you need a Wii connected to 42" plasma to have some fun and a THX enabled cinema to watch "Flubber" on a friday night, well... that`s you...
I'm quite happy with my Commodore 64. ;) Simple games on a cellphone might be one of the best things to use it for (besides phone calls), contrary to more serious applications, like a web browser or a digital camera.
.. and yet you like video on the D2...
Because I don't have to read tiny text, just look at moving pictures... and there's no loading time, like waiting for pages on a Java browser via a puny processor in the back, over a GPRS/UMTS connection. That's what my analogy was about.
PS: Funny (at best) how you use "a legit company" as opposed to a charity or open source organization... makes one think....
"Legit" wasn't the best word to choose. I meant that I certainly wouldn't be pissed about the efforts of dedicated people coding apps in their spare time and giving them away under the GNU license, or similar. I would think twice to criticize their efforts. - Not quite the same as when I pay more than $200 for a device that's touted as an audio/video player, but develops into a semi-funny PDA wannabe before some of the main issues are ironed out.
Okay folks, either keep future posts on-topic or start a new thread...this is _way_ off...
Thanks.
wow this is fucking bad ass! i'm going to use this feature as a calender / to do list.
next addition, camera and video recorder :p
Mmm, this new firmware is awesome! I notice the notepad is all by itself in the 'utilities' section and there's a lot of room for more goodies [biggrin]
Also liking the fast startup times even with an SD card and new files added. Very cool!
I was already happy with the EQ, I have no idea what to do with all these new EQ options... nice to have, though!
The_Chief
04-28-2007, 02:35
BTW, it's weird having 5 icons in the upper row of the main screen and 4 in the lower row. They should have moved the dictionary in the utilities submenu, where that drawing app is. Not really bad. More impotant for me - russian main menu (lang->russian) is broken, some garbage on screen & misplaced menu text. Hope it will be fixed in future firmware versions...
The_Chief
04-28-2007, 02:52
I was already happy with the EQ, I have no idea what to do with all these new EQ options... nice to have, though! These new EQ options are Wolfson's DAC (http://www.wolfsonmicro.com/products/WM8985) feature - variable cut-off/centre frequencies of it's 5-band EQ. Not too hard to program - a simple menu, then rather simple DAC programmin' via control interface.
Not really bad. More impotant for me - russian main menu (lang->russian) is broken, some garbage on screen & misplaced menu text. Hope it will be fixed in future firmware versions...
Yes, "weird" wasn't the best word for the five icons in the upper row. I'm using the D2 solely with my fat, stubby fingers, not with the stylus, so it's getting kinda cramped on the screen. :)
And it would be really good if the center frequency of the lowest band could be set to a lower value than 80Hz, and also had a rudimentary Q factor to tinker with, like the three middle bands (although I don't hear much difference in using the "wide" or "narrow" Q settings).
The_Chief
04-28-2007, 06:08
Yes, "weird" wasn't the best word for the five icons in the upper row. I'm using the D2 solely with my fat, stubby fingers, not with the stylus, so it's getting kinda cramped on the screen. :) /me using D2 the same way you do with no trouble. Applied display protective shield ('Rovermate' brand, Chinese product for russian market, very similar to BRANDO shields) shortly after buyin' this D2-baby. ;) Got no problem navigatin' without a stilus, even with big finger on same palm holdin' D2. Huh, /me personally love the idea of click(select)/doubleclick(execute) inplemented by Cowon. Adapted to use this in a few minutes.
And it would be really good if the center frequency of the lowest band could be set to a lower value than 80Hz, and also had a rudimentary Q factor to tinker with, like the three middle bands (although I don't hear much difference in using the "wide" or "narrow" Q settings). Can't be done, unluckily. :( Read WM8985 Datasheet (http://www.wolfsonmicro.com/uploads/documents/en/WM8985_Rev3.5.pdf), '5-band equalizer' section - band 1 & 5 are not real 'bands', but 'shelves'. Lowest cut-off freq for Band1 is 80Hz (R18 register) and Q-factor can't be adjusted.
Anybody else having this problem? the Dictionary doesn't start.... (Font Error) "Access to font failed"
Can't be done, unluckily. :( Read WM8985 Datasheet (http://www.wolfsonmicro.com/uploads/documents/en/WM8985_Rev3.5.pdf), '5-band equalizer' section - band 1 & 5 are not real 'bands', but 'shelves'. Lowest cut-off freq for Band1 is 80Hz (R18 register) and Q-factor can't be adjusted.
Ah, that's excellent - so it's even more like a real parametric EQ. Upper and lower shelves are quite a bit more useful than bands on the extremes of the frequency scale, IMO. I didn't notice the shelfing character, since I only tinkered with the bands in the +/- 2dB range as of yet... ;)
Thanks for the link to the Wolfson specs, Chief.
Anybody else having this problem? the Dictionary doesn't start.... (Font Error) "Access to font failed"
You need to install the additional dictionary files from Cowon's website.
So anyone tried putting flash utils in their folders and see if they pop up? :)
music065
04-28-2007, 12:07
If you upgrade the firmware, does it still wipe your D2 clean so you have to re-copy all music, wallpaper, user prefs?
Yeah I know, answer is probably yes. I don't wanna spend an hour or 2 doin this... but with all the raves I guess I should... :)
polaczek
04-28-2007, 12:39
If you upgrade the firmware, does it still wipe your D2 clean so you have to re-copy all music, wallpaper, user prefs?
yep, you know the answer ;)
just to update re: my battery incident.
It must have been a one off bug, error, fluke, as the D2 has operated fine uptil now, although earlier today I reverted back to 2.41 because my start up times with my 8gb SDHC Adata class 2 were quite slow and often the d2 would not resume from where I had left off after turning off/on the D2, not to mention the fact that it rebuilt the library on no less than four occasions for absolutely no reason, as such i'm done with the beta and will anxiously await the official release.
music065
04-28-2007, 14:27
just to update re: my battery incident.
It must have been a one off bug, error, fluke, as the D2 has operated fine uptil now, although earlier today I reverted back to 2.41 because my start up times with my 8gb SDHC Adata class 2 were quite slow and often the d2 would not resume from where I had left off after turning off/on the D2, not to mention the fact that it rebuilt the library on no less than four occasions for absolutely no reason, as such i'm done with the beta and will anxiously await the official release.
Wow, thanks for reporting the bugs. Is anyone else having issues like this?
I was just about to pull the trigger and ugrade, now I don't know.
I REALLY HOPE COWON IS READING THIS THREAD. This Forum is a great test-ground for their betas -- I bet some folks here have found bugs thru our hours & hours of use that Cowon hasn't found on their own.
So I hope they are monitoring this thread...or perhaps someone can email their R&D dept this thread...heh...there's a chance they'd listen. I think?
I've been using this firmware release since I saw that a new beta had been released, and I've yet to encounter any problems...
The only thing that I've noticed since the last firmware version I used, is that when I turn on the player, it's always my first song that is selected. It's not the last one played. It's not really a big deal, but still, I'd like to just pick up where I left and continue.
Other than that, thumbs up!
No battery issues for me.
And my issues with the virtual scroll thingie also disappeared magically... 3.45b behaves the same as 3.41/2.41 for me.
does installing the latest firmware help to install the previous ones also?
I just received my Cowon D2 yesterday. It came V2.20 firmware installed and video played fine. Since updating to v3.45(beta), video/audio is out of synch. Does this happen to anyone else?? Am I missing a setting or something?
Chester Copperpot
04-29-2007, 00:46
Did they happen to fix the display of text yet? It's kind of ridiculous some of the features they are adding when in the text viewer words still break in mid stream at the end of a line.
Text still cuts off in the middle of words, so no improvement there [no]
I currently have no issues with this beta firmware, rather I can only comment on the improvements:
- absolutely no video/audio synch issues. I occasionally had music videos in the 2.41/3.41 firmwares that had audio lags, but they're all gone under 3.45b.
- startup times are much improved, I'd say this is as good as it gets [yes]
- When I startup the D2, it's always on the last file I viewed/heard. So I'm not experiencing any issue with that, though others have.
- I have an old 1gb SD card in the slot at all times, just for kicks. I have some videos and software on it, and I have no problems with the card, and I transfer stuff to and from it occasionally.
For the record, I don't deal with bookmarks, ID3 tags or playlists. So for those of you who use your D2 in a similar fashion, I'd give 3.45b a big thumbs up. Of course I don't have an SDHC card, so I can't say if it'll behave differently from a smaller capacity SD card like what I'm currently using.
Lapis Molari
04-29-2007, 15:46
Having played around with 3.45b, here are my experiences:
Start-up time is fast [thumbsup]. This is fast enough for me (4gb SD card, nearly full memory with 1100 mp3 files, a few pictures and videos, not using notepad).
Songs play to the end! No more cut-off [excited] [excited]. Will someone please test this too and corroborate?
Customizable freq. on the EQ is very useful![biggrin]
Notepad feature has great potential [cool]. Include the dictionary's keyboard functionality and I'll actually use it.
Double-listing is much improved but still present [unsure]. My double ID3 listings are now limited to 4 items in 'albums'. I've checked the tags: the ID3 v2 tags are identical, there are no v1 tags. The albums in question show up 2,2,3 and 4(!) times respectively. After deleting the albums and re-copying them onto the D2, one of them was corrected. So now there are 3 errors left.
Track order does not recognize ID3 track numbers.
The Random function has not yet improved (it still select too many songs from just 2 or 3 albums). [no]
For those customizing the TGA files: remember that the Utilities icon has been added. All tga files after that have moved up 1 number from fw3.41.
Why no more MTP? No more playlists, not even roundabout somewhat inconvenient ones [sad]. Enable proper playlist support, then I have no need for MTP.
I invite Cowon's reps to (re-)read my fw-wishlist: http://iaudiophile.net/forums/showpost.php?p=122469&postcount=176
On the whole: compliments to the Cowon team for serious improvements and fun new stuff [thumbsup]. I look forward to the next fw and further (necessary [blush]) improvements.
I have no problems with ID3 track order... and no duplication problems in all my 8GB of music, so I'm happy :) And I've decided I can do without playlists, because 8GB of music really isn't worth making playlists of....I'll demand playlists when I have an 80GB DAP to hold my entire collection :)
I had track order issues (as in they wouldn't sort by track first), but that was with my vorbis files, The beta seems to work fine with mp3.
Chester Copperpot
04-29-2007, 20:09
Text still cuts off in the middle of words, so no
...
- absolutely no video/audio synch issues. I occasionally had music videos in the 2.41/3.41 firmwares that had audio lags, but they're all gone under 3.45b.
...
Now this I have to try! http://iaudiophile.net/forums/images/icons/1thumbup.gif With 2.41, if I encode with anything but the basic version of the Jet Audio Video Converter I always get audio/video sync issues after pausing or skipping around.
One thing that I find slightly annoying, even though in the grand scheme of things it's not important - if I'm listening music and on the Music WPS, and then navigate to browse my photos whilst listening the music - if I then go back to the Music WPS, my album art has disappeared. Weird.
One thing that I find slightly annoying, even though in the grand scheme of things it's not important - if I'm listening music and on the Music WPS, and then navigate to browse my photos whilst listening the music - if I then go back to the Music WPS, my album art has disappeared. Weird.
This problem is at FW 2.41 too... It happen always when begins a new song during browsing of pictures...
residentour
04-30-2007, 10:01
"Songs play to the end! No more cut-off"
What is this ? I am waiting my D2 to come and saw tihs message and really gfet disappointed. Is there really a serios problem with song playing of D2 ?
DayWalker
04-30-2007, 11:15
Can anyone confirm the improvement in the sound
with the advanced eq setting enabled ?
No one seems to have mention this yet.
naylor83
04-30-2007, 11:34
Is there really a serios problem with song playing of D2 ?
No.
sdofij owiej foij ef <- extra characters to satisfy this forums stupid minimum character requirements.
"Songs play to the end! No more cut-off"
What is this ? I am waiting my D2 to come and saw tihs message and really gfet disappointed. Is there really a serios problem with song playing of D2 ?
I have never had a song get cut off... I don't think it's a common problem so no worries there [smile]
Can anyone confirm the improvement in the sound
with the advanced eq setting enabled ?
No one seems to have mention this yet.
You can specify what frequencies you want on each EQ band, and on 2 of the bands (the 2nd and the 4th) there's an option to widen the spectrum. I'm sure it's all awesome... once I figure out how to use it. I don't know how to play with the advanced EQ settings, so I cannot say how it affects the sound quality. But there's a lot of settings to play with! [smile]
I love the notepad though it seems to slow down the start up [ building the library? even though it's one image...or even if you use notepad at all and don't save anything ] well by like 1-5 seconds or so, which is still annoying to me. Notepad is still inferior to mspaint [ undo, proper eraser, lack of colors, ] They definitely need to hide the delete button somewhere, easy to accidentally press it. It's quite useful for talking to people or expressing yourself. You can also play tic tac toe easily! YAY. Yea it's not like the D2 was meant for drawing but hey those little basic features/fixes would be nice.
I also have the problem where it seems to sometimes start at the last folder.
But it usually starts at the same folder over and over again, ignoring my last played song. So it keeps going back to my Tommy Heavenly6 folder over and over even if I played a different artist last.
The advance EQ is pretty neat. Can tweak the sound to your liking even more. Though I still prefer the X5's sound [ barely required any tweaking ].
Other than that I don't have much to say since I don't use bookmarks or Id3 etc. I'm quite interested in the final and when the support for flash comes out. I hope it's not flv, flash videos, and supports swf. That would definitely be awesome and would open up to more interesting features like games and programs.
man.dovvn
05-01-2007, 02:53
More advanced notepad functions would be piss easy to code, straight line tool and undo I could write in my sleep. I'm interested b/c the've made a utilities menu on the main screen, indicating more to come. I'm waiting on PA software, at least a calendar/to do list. But since my upgrade to 3.45b from 3.41b now when I plug my player into a pc the SDHC card doesn't show up as another drive. I think i found it in admin. tools, but it only shows up as unallocated space in the disk defragmenter option, not under drive managment. I am also getting frustrated with the lack of resume function. It seems to forget what folder i was at if i switch the player on and go into a function other than music.
Lapis Molari
05-01-2007, 06:32
The resume function works the same in 3.45b as in 3.41 (set under Settings, General). It's not perfected yet (still no auto-play resume), but it works.
wildwing94
05-01-2007, 12:35
Same problem, I don't want to update FW if this hasn't been fixed. booo..
I upgraded yesterday after reading someone's comments that the sync problem has been fixed and for me it hasn't. First video on the new FW and it is still slightly out of sync, though less than before. Next one I hope.
Update: Watching my second movie right now and the audio is spot-on.
wildwing94
05-01-2007, 12:45
I've been using this firmware release since I saw that a new beta had been released, and I've yet to encounter any problems...
The only thing that I've noticed since the last firmware version I used, is that when I turn on the player, it's always my first song that is selected. It's not the last one played. It's not really a big deal, but still, I'd like to just pick up where I left and continue.
Other than that, thumbs up!
Hi Boumer, not sure if anyone has responded to you yet, but I had to reset all my settings again so make sure you check the box to resume under general settings.
neoxerxes
05-02-2007, 06:57
Update: Watching my second movie right now and the audio is spot-on.
I think I'm finding now that many clips I have, have just been poorly encoded initially (i.e. before I have encoded them for the D2) and so there have been some videos that have horrible sync problems whereas others are just fine. I was thinking it was a problem with the D2/firmware, so it's all good!
Did they happen to fix the display of text yet? It's kind of ridiculous some of the features they are adding when in the text viewer words still break in mid stream at the end of a line.
Heh, I've always thought that was an inherent problem with the text formatter I was using - I didn't bother checking! I'm sure in time it'll be ironed out.
Mmm, this new firmware is awesome! I notice the notepad is all by itself in the 'utilities' section and there's a lot of room for more goodies [biggrin]
Cowon has to give us something to keep us guessing! [toungue]
Face facts - you are NOT going to get 640x480 video on the D2. It will kill the A2 sales because that is a major feature.
I'm assuming you are referring to the A3 now as I don't think the A2 is in production any more (although that doesn't stop them making firmware!). That's good point actually, however, IMO I do think that it has/will have enough features to distinguish it from the D2. Anyway, it's all speculation which makes for good discussion...
Just take a look on TeleChips web-site. There are platform specifications there. With a photo of D2 in white color. ;)
TCC 7801 platform (http://www.telechips.com/product/p_025.htm)
Now you see why I'm saying what I'm saying?..
Yup, gotcha. Technical (read: marketing) pages like that are sometimes hardly informative if you want something meaningful in terms of real performance, where figures displayed can at best be arbitrary. Although, from that page, we can see that it does in fact have support for other codecs and things like Flash, as we have seen in the Clix2. I would also imagine that other components such as RAM would also contribute to the performance of the device.
I would love nothing more than to dump some videos on my D2 without having to convert them (well, most anyway). I think this would pretty much solve many sync problems people are having with converted videos.
denisavu
05-02-2007, 09:58
I cannot seem to upgrade to the latest firmware. Copied all files as instructed to the root directory - somehow the D2 does not recognize the new firmware. Was able to flash up to 2.41b. Please help.
denisavu
05-02-2007, 10:19
OK, I was able to flash it to 3.45b. However the dictionary function results in a "Access to font" error.
residentour
05-02-2007, 10:21
Do u have a DMB version? You need to use 1.45beta if you have DMB.
calcheese
05-02-2007, 10:49
OK, I was able to flash it to 3.45b. However the dictionary function results in a "Access to font" error.
you need to download the dictionary and load it into your D2. You have two options for the dictionar.. you can download the full version with pronunciation for English words (only available in Kor-Eng dictionary) which is 400mb or download the lite version without pronunciation which is only 40mb. Have a look in the forums and you'll see a thread about it (In the D2 Info & Tips thread)
Methinks we should have a huge flashing sticky telling everyone they have to install the dictionary separately, It would help rather than posting it twice a day.
calcheese
05-02-2007, 17:49
you know, i;m just trying to write a FAQ kinda thing at the moment. A lot of it's covered in the D2 Info & Tips thread but maybe it will be more useful to new owners to have it in Q&A style perhaps?
neoxerxes
05-02-2007, 19:41
OK, I was able to flash it to 3.45b. However the dictionary function results in a "Access to font" error.
It's as simple as dragging and dropping the zipped files into the POWERDIC folder once you have downloaded your choice of dictionary (as calcheese said, that is either lite or full). Try it again as I'm sure it'll work for you.
you know, i;m just trying to write a FAQ kinda thing at the moment. A lot of it's covered in the D2 Info & Tips thread but maybe it will be more useful to new owners to have it in Q&A style perhaps?
that`d be cool! [smile]
Is it me or does 3.45b not allow you to delete videos or music whilst using the d2? I'm sure I could do it before but it's not allowing me now...
Is it me or does 3.45b not allow you to delete videos or music whilst using the d2? I'm sure I could do it before but it's not allowing me now...
to erase music, while the song is playing click browser, music list, settings, delete. it's similar for videos.
I had problems with erasing .avi's through windows, said permission error, here is a link that solved this.
http://iaudiophile.net/forums/showthread.php?t=14540
The_Chief
05-04-2007, 05:02
I would love nothing more than to dump some videos on my D2 without having to convert them (well, most anyway). I think this would pretty much solve many sync problems people are having with converted videos. Well, let's cross our fingers & hope for better. ;)
PS: I'd like to see 48kHz FLAC support in future f/w versions.
neoxerxes
05-05-2007, 00:06
next up: calendar? plz!
I wouldn't be surprised if they did put it in and maybe along with a calculator.
ManchesterBaby
05-06-2007, 11:58
Does anyone else have randomly disappearing music? I can't see music in some of the folders on my D2 - These seem to be either ones towards the end of the alphabet or ones i have loaded on recently. Deleting a folder with 'visible' tracks sometimes seems to fix it but if i load any new folders on i can't see the tracks in them and doing this sometimes makes tracks in other folders invisible too. I can see the folders in folder view but they are empty; the tracks in the folders do not show up at all in any of the id3 modes.
Haven't determined whether this happens on just the internal memory or the SD card too. Most of my music is in ogg format, if that makes any difference.
Anyone else having a similar problem? I only noticed it after i copied a couple of new folders of music on...
looks like the tagged browsing is getting a lot closer, only my ogg files are not respecting track order now. mp3 files are fine, the only way to hear music in album order for me is to listen in folder browsing mode which respects filename order.
man.dovvn
05-08-2007, 01:52
yea, how come they haven't got it displaying track numbers on the music screen?
games? lol. it has a 400mhz processor...dun waste it.
ManchesterBaby
05-08-2007, 17:58
Well i deleted my photos folder (which had about 1300 photos in) and my disappearing music problem seems to have disappeared! I can only guess it's related to the number of files on the device. Ah well, most things are working properly now apart from ogg track order in id3 mode and shuffle all, which is still crap.
baradona
05-09-2007, 14:09
I emailed Cowon about WMAs still appearing in alphabetical order. They replied promptly and rather confusingly:
Dear Mr.[my name, backwards],
Thank you for using COWON D2.
Please try to edit the ID3tag of your file by selecting [Edit Tag] from the JetAudio option. Your message has been reported to our research team, and they will check out the problem that you mentioned. And please tell us if all wma files have a problem. We do apologize for any inconvenience this situation may have caused you. This is used for BUSINESS proposals only. Please visit Q&A board on our website [SUPPORT - Q&A ]. Then, we will answer your questions and help you as much as possible.
This is a post-only mailing. Thank you for your cooperation.
Regards,
COWON
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