Sirius handheld plays stored broadcasts

• A designer at Ziba, the Portland (Ore.) firm whose clients range from 3M (MMM) to Whirlpool (WHR), McCallion led the team behind Sirius Radio's first handheld, rechargeable unit -- the S50, which debuts in late October.
• But if the device is successful, it will be more than "the iPod" of its industry, it will be an iPod competitor.
• Yes, you might laugh now: Unlike MP3 players, today's handheld satellite radio market is stuck deep in the geekosphere, out of range of mainstream success.
• Sirius-competitor XM debuted the world's first such device, Delphi MyFi XM2go, last year.
• Although only a few hundred thousand MyFi units have been sold so far, the portable satellite player market is expected to grow to 10 million units by decade's end, according to Dan Benjamin, an analyst with tech consultancy ABI Research in New York.
• Sirius is betting that the S50, which will list for $359.99, will be instrumental in expanding the market.
• It could also emerge as Sirius' main sales engine within a year, says Tuna Amobi, an analyst with rating service Standard & Poor's.
• With a popular portable, Sirius could potentially reach more consumers directly through retail stores and vastly expand its customer base.
• The designers asked the subjects about their daily routines and took note of their cars and homes, in an effort to better understand how people use different types of entertainment.
• As these podcasts get better, they could mount a challenge to satellite radio, says Roger Kay, president of tech consultancy Endpoint Technologies Associates.
• Some analysts also question whether Sirius, which already has $654 million in long-term debt and is losing money, has the cash to build its own consumer-electronics brand.