iPod-alike we like

LOOKING FOR AN industrial design firm that blows Apple into the weeds, making them look old, clunky and antique?

Then check out BRIANic. No, scratch that. The web site is horrible, and the parent company's site is no better, it does not seem to have the products I saw listed.

So, what do they make? Mostly MP3 players and portable media players, small, sleek and anti-Apple in about every way. The one that made my jaw drop was the Morphe D5, a small portable movie player. It has a 2.5 inch screen, comes in 1-4GB capacities, and plays all the usual formats.

It also looks beautiful, my awful photography skills do not do it justice. I had to lighten up the pic a bit, in reality it is a bit darker black than it looks here, and the orange is less washed out.

They also had an MP3 player called the Diana DB-300. The specs are nothing special, but again, the design is so nice it is hard to show in pics. It does MP3s, FM, voice recording, and all the usual bells and whistles, and comes has a handy neck strap. It looks good enough to wear out.

If you are like me, and sick of the high holy cult of iPod and want to carve your own furrow, check out BRAINic. I have no idea if they are for sale, or how to get them, but if I were buying a media player, this would be my short list. µ