iRiver's parent company has revealed the portable music player maker's next major release: the 5GB hard drive-based H10.

The H10 will be aimed squarely at Apple's iPod Mini, itself expected to be updated early next year from 4GB to 5GB, the better to compete with new rivals like the H10 and Creative's Zen Micro.

Unveiled this week by ReignCom, iRiver's parent, the H10 will sport a 1.5in colour display, photo viewer, a voice-recording facility, FM radio and a text viewer. The player will boast Microsoft's PlaysForSure branding.

In a move likely to annoy Creative, the H10 uses a vertical touchpad not unlike the one found on the Zen Micro. The touchpad operates as a kind of virtual jog-dial.

The H10's battery provides up to 12 hours' playback on a single charge, ReignCom said.

Measuring 9.6 x 5.5 x 1.5cm, the H10 will come in four colours - red, blue, silver and grey - and, according to a Korea Times report, will ship in South Korea on 22 December for KRW363,000 ($344/£178/€260). ®

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