MILPITAS, Calif., Jan. 7 /PRNewswire/ -- Creative, a worldwide leader in digital entertainment products, today announced two new micro boom boxes to its award-winning MP3 player family: the ZEN Stone(R) and ZEN Stone Plus with Built-in Speaker. The ZEN Stone with Built-in Speaker will be available this month in a 2GB model priced at US$49.99. The ZEN Stone Plus with Built-in Speaker, which adds a vibrant screen, FM radio, voice recording, clock with stopwatch and customizable equalizer settings, will be available this month in a 2GB model for US$59.99. New ZEN(R) MP3 players are on display this week at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas in the Creative exhibit #30642 in the South Hall of the Las Vegas Convention Center.

The 2GB models of the ZEN Stone and ZEN Stone Plus with Built-in Speaker can carry up to 500 MP3 or WMA songs*, and also support Audible(R) files, ideal for listening to audio books in the car or with family. The ZEN Stone Plus with Built-in Speaker also supports AAC files, including unprotected iTunes(R) files. Available in elegant matte metallic black, dark blue, pink or champagne colors, the new ZEN players feature a smooth, contoured design for a natural, comfortable fit in the hand. A translucent silicon skin with a clip is included in the box, and a sporty armband and ultra-portable keychain with a tiny case that carries the player are available separately.

"The ZEN Stone and ZEN Stone Plus with Built-in Speaker free you from having to wear headphones to listen to your portable music. It is a great way to enjoy your music when you're on a walk or in a group and you want to enjoy a conversation or hear what's going on around you," said Sim Wong Hoo, chairman and CEO of Creative. "It's hard to believe that such incredibly small players can have a speaker that sounds so good, enabling you to listen to music together with a friend without headphones."

It is easy to add music to your ZEN Stone or ZEN Stone Plus with Built-in Speaker. Just drag and drop your music files to the player and choose "Play" or "Random" and listen to up to 20 hours** of your favorite songs from a single charge of the built-in battery. There is no driver installation necessary to add music. You can also connect headphones to the players when you want to listen to music privately.

For more information about Creative and its award-winning family of portable media players, visit http://www.creative.com.

*Based on MP3 format encoded at 128kbps; the ZEN Stone Plus can also hold up to 1000 WMA songs encoded at 64kbps.

**Battery life will vary with use.

About Creative

Creative is a worldwide leader in digital entertainment products. Famous for its Sound Blaster(R) sound cards and for launching the multimedia revolution, Creative is now driving digital entertainment on the PC platform with products like its highly acclaimed ZEN MP3 and portable media players. Creative's innovative hardware, proprietary technology, applications and services leverage the Internet, enabling consumers to experience high-quality digital entertainment -- anytime, anywhere.

This announcement relates to products launched in the United States.

Availability is subject to change without notice and may differ elsewhere in

the world according to local factors and requirements. Creative, Sound Blaster and ZEN are trademarks or registered trademarks of Creative Technology

 Ltd. in the United States and/or other countries.  All other trademarks are
                   the property of their respective owners.

Source: Creative Labs, Inc.