If this thing ever hits the nearest Best Buy, Steve Jobs and the people at Apple just might have their work cut out for them. The 1GB TPod Neo is an obvious rip-off to the iPod Nano, both in name and design, but it’s got a couple of big advantages over its shiny white contemporary.

For one thing, the TPod will play a wide variety of video formats, including MTV/AMX, AVI, MPEG, and WMV. I wouldn’t want to watch anything to detailed or subtitled though, given that the screen is a mere 1.5-inch LCD display. Full music functionality is also here with full support for MP3 (8-320 kbps) and WMA (5-384 kbps) formats. You can even view the family photos (JPEG).

With a USB 2.0 connection, voice recorder, and an incredible price point of $144, Thanko Japan just might have a winner with the TPod Neo, if it ever surfaces.