New iPods, iPhone?

[MacRumors]

http://www.macrumors.com/images/macrumorsthreadlogo.gif (http://www.macrumors.com)

More possibilities continue to roll in for today's event.

Several readers have noted the publication of an iPhone photo in a French online newspaper (http://www.igeneration.fr/fr/actu/3575/). This iPhone photo is simply a confirmed mockup design (http://www.happle.org/divers/iphone.php) that had been published months ago.

Meanwhile, one new report indicates that there are 8 new iPod stock numbers and 10 new accessory stock numbers available to resellers. Accessories are broken down into 3 new cases, 4 new armbands, a dock, headphones and a cable/connector piece.

[dhc]

this is getting really interesting now.. Roll on 6pm..

[sam10685]

no body will ever know until 10 AM Pacific time this afternoon.

[Jwalker9]

itunes music store is down....It's Showtime!

[liketom]

4 new armbands, is for the nano and shuffle

edit: music store uk is down

[aswitcher]

Meanwhile, one new report indicates that there are 8 new iPod stock numbers and 10 new accessory stock numbers available to resellers. Accessories are broken down into 3 new cases, 4 new armbands, a dock, headphones and a cable/connector piece.

5-6 nanos, 2 ipods...

nano, small and big ipod cases

armbands - colours

wireless headphones?

[Chundles]

http://www.macrumors.com/images/macrumorsthreadlogo.gif (http://www.macrumors.com)

More possibilities continue to roll in for today's event.

Several readers have noted the publication of an iPhone photo in a French online newspaper (http://www.igeneration.fr/fr/actu/3575/). This iPhone photo is simply a confirmed mockup design (http://www.happle.org/divers/iphone.php) that had been published months ago.

Meanwhile, one new report indicates that there are 8 new iPod stock numbers and 10 new accessory stock numbers available to resellers. Accessories are broken down into 3 new cases, 4 new armbands, a dock, headphones and a cable/connector piece.

Got a link to that report?

[artmonster]

those 8 new serials are probably just different versions or colors of the new nanos.

[dhc]

please don't ditch the shuffle:o

[maddav]

8 New iPod stock numbers eh?

iPod Video 50GB
iPod Video 80GB
iPod Nano 8GB (black)
iPod Nano 8GB (white)
iPod Nano 8GB (colour 3)
iPod Nano 8GB (colour 4)
iPod Nano 8GB (colour 5)
iPod Nano 8GB (colour 6)

*dreams* :p

[m-dogg]

Just release an ipod with a capacity higher than 60GB!

PLEASE!

[calculus]

no body will ever know until 10 AM Pacific time this afternoon.
Lovely mix of US and UK time zones!

[Squire]

5-6 nanos, 2 ipods...

nano, small and big ipod cases

armbands - colours

wireless headphones?

I'm glad someone did the math. :D I wonder what the chances are of there being a "true" video iPod. Actually, I don't care. Movie store? Don't really care, either. I (or rather, my wife) like the option of having subtitles. I doubt that will be available. iPhone? Interesting. I'll be back in the Great White North in '07 and having an Apple phone would be cool only because I think they'd do it right. (Here, "right" means with a user interface that I would enjoy.)

-Squire

<edit> I bet the new iPod ads will be featured as well.

[TheNightPhoenix]

Just release an ipod with a capacity higher than 60GB!

PLEASE!

I Hoping/Dreaming for a 120GB beast! I might then get all my music in my pocket :)

[ijimk]

wonder what new head phones they are coming out with?

[aswitcher]

wonder what new head phones they are coming out with?


BT wireless would rock

[spicyapple]

I read rumours Apple is partnering with RIM to create an iPhone... sounds plausible enough. And since it is like a Blackberry device, it makes sense Apple would purse its partnership.

[Macnoviz]

itunes music store is down....It's Showtime!

they're not being really secretive, are they?

[Chimera]

It's going to be a long wait, roll on 6pm!:)

[ezekielrage_99]

These iPhone rumors are just plain stupid.......

There is no phone.

[Lesser Evets]

I suspect nanos of 8-6-4-2....

Roll on 4:20PM. :eek:

The way things are going with flash memory, next year might be 32 GB nanos. They already have 64gig USB dongles.
The moment they announce and sell upgraded Nanos I am buying. I've been without iPod for 9 months, waiting for something bigger, better and cheaper. And smaller.

[amiga]

Thought we'd alreay established that those iPhone designs appeard in Macuser UK as mockups...? I have the issue they were in... in fact I might even have thrown it out by now.

[d_saum]

please let there be an iPhone announcement today!!! Pretty pretty please!!!! My bill is due for my stupid sprint/nextel account and my phone is a total P.O.S.!!!!

I'll swith to it the DAY its available even if I have to pay to get out of my contract!!!!!!!!


Please Mr. Jobs... Hurry!! ;)

[milo]

NO PHONE.

So what's up with the Shuffle? Nobody mentions it in today's rumors, do they think it will just get canned? I doubt they'll keep it at the same price point and size, could a simple size bump be possible today?

[brepublican]

NO PHONE.

So what's up with the Shuffle? Nobody mentions it in today's rumors, do they think it will just get canned? I doubt they'll keep it at the same price point and size, could a simple size bump be possible today?
I think the shuffle is fine as it is. Apple are trying to get proactive with the recent releases from Sandisk so they are prolly focusing on the nano.

[thejadedmonkey]

At first I thought those mock ups were ugly, but the 2nd one isn't that bad looking at all. I would get it.. I'm still not sure I like the first one though.

I think Ive's is losing his touh for me... I haven't wanted, like really wanted anything since the release of the 3rd gen iPods..

[redAPPLE]

we are the only group that goes crazy over armbands :D

[aristobrat]

IMO, it'd be cooler to bump the price of the cheapest nanos down to the price of the shuffles and ditch the shuffles.

[Elrond39]

So, if there is an iPhone, this would sure be an awesome way to introduce it:

-Welcome
-All the movie stuff
-streaming video device?
-Video iPod?

One More Thing....
'Ring-Ring'
Steve: "Don't you hate it when people's phones go off in the movie-theater?"
Phil: "Hi Steve! I'm not interrupting anything, am I?"
....

and the rest, as they say, is comedy :D

[SactoGuy18]

IMO, it'd be cooler to bump the price of the cheapest nanos down to the price of the shuffles and ditch the shuffles.

That probably won't happen because I personally think Apple will dump the iPod Shuffle in favor of a new low-cost model almost the same size as the Shuffle (but in a scratchproof case) that includes a small LCD display to show time elapsed and title information. Expect 1 GB, 2 GB and possibly 4 GB versions (all flash memory).

[justflie]

So, if there is an iPhone, this would sure be an awesome way to introduce it:

-Welcome
-All the movie stuff
-streaming video device?
-Video iPod?

One More Thing....
'Ring-Ring'
Steve: "Don't you hate it when people's phones go off in the movie-theater?"
Phil: "Hi Steve! I'm not interrupting anything, am I?"
....

and the rest, as they say, is comedy :D


Oh Phil, you're always interrupting at just the right time. But yeah, that would be funny, and definitely a plausible way for Steve to do introduce it. well done.

[milo]

I think the shuffle is fine as it is. Apple are trying to get proactive with the recent releases from Sandisk so they are prolly focusing on the nano.

The shuffle's design is fine. But it's WAY overpriced for the capacity, they need to either bump sizes or drop prices, or both.

IMO, it'd be cooler to bump the price of the cheapest nanos down to the price of the shuffles and ditch the shuffles.

It would. But I doubt it's possible to drop a nano from $149 to $69.

[Elrond39]

Oh Phil, you're always interrupting at just the right time. But yeah, that would be funny, and definitely a plausible way for Steve to do introduce it. well done.

I've been stewing on this since the iPhone rumors flared up again, and they announced the "Showtime" event... It would seriously make my day :cool:

[Ensoniq]

The 8 new iPod SKU numbers most likely are this:

iPod Video White (Low Capacity)
iPod Video White (High Capacity)
iPod Video Black (Low Capacity)
iPod Video Black (High Capacity)

Replace the word "Video" with "Nano" for the other 4 SKU numbers.

[matttrick]

they need to stop flooding the market with ipods already. it will be their downfall.

[minimalistic]

Man, Im waiting ansciously for 10am..hope we get some new stuff :D

[lord patton]

they need to stop flooding the market with ipods already. it will be their downfall.

You're not serious, are you?

[briantology]

please let there be an iPhone announcement today!!! Pretty pretty please!!!! My bill is due for my stupid sprint/nextel account and my phone is a total P.O.S.!!!!

I'll swith to it the DAY its available even if I have to pay to get out of my contract!!!!!!!!


Please Mr. Jobs... Hurry!! ;)

Looks like we are in the same boat :D (except I have Cingular).

[Eduardo1971]

I Hoping/Dreaming for a 120GB beast! I might then get all my music in my pocket :)
'Now thats what I'm 'talkin about!'

An iPod with less than 80 GB is for suckas'.

Ok, ok, just kidding. Seriously though, I've held off on an iPod because I have a huge music collection (over 1,000 CD and 600+ vinyl albums). I have yet to transfer most of my collection into the digital realm and my iTunes library is pushing 50GB already.

I bought a 4GB nano to appease me but it was hell trying to determine what songs to put in as it quickly filled up.:(

[peharri]

Remember the strange comment The Steve(tm) made a few years ago about being proud of the new products Apple has released, and of the products Apple didn't?

I can see everyone in Apple wanting to build an iPhone. I can see them designing it. I can even see Jobs being personally involved in every detail, and coming up with a phone that's seen company wide as absolutely perfect, and complete stunning.

And I can then see Apple looking at reality, sighing, and burying it in the giant warehouse of Apple products that never saw the light of day. There's just no way to sell such a thing, and doing so would undermine Apple's ability to work with other manufacturers to ensure it retains control over the media scene after MP3 players become obsoleted by large capacity MP3-playing cellphones.

There's probably a corner of the warehouse assigned to projects like this. You'll have to crawl through archives of the Copland source code and blueprints for future Apple IIIs to get there. Prototype dual-core G5 iMacs and a Broadway-based microtablet line a small clearing. There, the janitor has built something akin to a shrine, only visible to a favoured few. And yes, one of the slimmest, cleanest, most friendly cellphones is currently sitting there, with pride of place.

[P.B.]

Ok, ok, just kidding. Seriously though, I've held off on an iPod because I have a huge music collection (over 1,000 CD and 600+ vinyl albums). I have yet to transfer most of my collection into the digital realm and my iTunes library is pushing 50GB already.


At what bitrate are you encoding?
I myself have 1300 LPs (that is 17 000 songs) and they "only" take up 60GB (128kb/s)

[hawken1]

ok, I don't care if the phone has got the Apple brand really as long as it has
a built in iTunes store and at least 20 Gb of storage + 3G functionalities and a heavy duty shell so you can talk while it's raining and it won't break if youi drop it...

[MacinDoc]

Remember the strange comment The Steve(tm) made a few years ago about being proud of the new products Apple has released, and of the products Apple didn't?

I can see everyone in Apple wanting to build an iPhone. I can see them designing it. I can even see Jobs being personally involved in every detail, and coming up with a phone that's seen company wide as absolutely perfect, and complete stunning.

And I can then see Apple looking at reality, sighing, and burying it in the giant warehouse of Apple products that never saw the light of day. There's just no way to sell such a thing, and doing so would undermine Apple's ability to work with other manufacturers to ensure it retains control over the media scene after MP3 players become obsoleted by large capacity MP3-playing cellphones.

There's probably a corner of the warehouse assigned to projects like this. You'll have to crawl through archives of the Copland source code and blueprints for future Apple IIIs to get there. Prototype dual-core G5 iMacs and a Broadway-based microtablet line a small clearing. There, the janitor has built something akin to a shrine, only visible to a favoured few. And yes, one of the slimmest, cleanest, most friendly cellphones is currently sitting there, with pride of place.
Yes, I don't think Apple can compete in the cell phone arena.

BTW, there was an Apple III, although Apple may have wished it had kept the thing (it was a huge flop) in the archives rather than releasing it...

[ruy]

At what bitrate are you encoding?
I myself have 1300 LPs (that is 17 000 songs) and they "only" take up 60GB (128kb/s)

128 cannot satisfy some people need. I know some people convert their CD to 256 or wave files.:eek:

[nplima]

Contrary to people's belief that there will be an update to the iPod Nano, Apple Computer will in fact launch the iPod Mega. The device will have 4 drawers for 3.5" SATA drives and will be carried on the shoulder, like the boomboxes of the 1980s.

the product and price lineup will be as follows:
iPod Mega 4x160GB - US$/£/€699
iPod Mega 4x250GB - US$/£/€899
iPod Mega 4x300GB - US$/£/€999

:p

[sartinsauce]

I can see everyone in Apple wanting to build an iPhone. I can see them designing it. I can even see Jobs being personally involved in every detail, and coming up with a phone that's seen company wide as absolutely perfect, and complete stunning.

And I can then see Apple looking at reality, sighing, and burying it in the giant warehouse of Apple products that never saw the light of day. There's just no way to sell such a thing, and doing so would undermine Apple's ability to work with other manufacturers to ensure it retains control over the media scene after MP3 players become obsoleted by large capacity MP3-playing cellphones.

There's probably a corner of the warehouse assigned to projects like this. You'll have to crawl through archives of the Copland source code and blueprints for future Apple IIIs to get there. Prototype dual-core G5 iMacs and a Broadway-based microtablet line a small clearing. There, the janitor has built something akin to a shrine, only visible to a favoured few. And yes, one of the slimmest, cleanest, most friendly cellphones is currently sitting there, with pride of place.

What a touching and romantic story!

I'm with the folks who say they'll pay out their contract and go with an Apple phone immeadiately. That being said, I don't see it happening soon. Here in the U.S. the FCC has to approve mobile phones for manufacture. The only way to sneak this one in is to have someone else manufacture and apply for FCC approval. That's been done before (M$ is doing that with Zune right now). I saw a phone in the last few weeks that got FCC approval, made by Samsung, that looked similar to all the iPhone mockups. That doesn't mean squat. In fact, if I was in that business, I'd study the mockups people are bouncing around on the web and build a phone based on those.

[hogo]

Yes, I don't think Apple can compete in the cell phone arena.

BTW, there was an Apple III, although Apple may have wished it had kept the thing (it was a huge flop) in the archives rather than releasing it...


I disagree. I think that eventually everyone's mp3 player will be their cell, will be their pda etc. Apple will want to get into it eventually, why not do it as a leader, early in the cell mp3 era rather than later.

[twoodcc]

can't wait to find out what's in store. a little over 2 hours to go.*

hope the iphone is good

[MisterEd]

iPod MEGA?.....


why not just call it 'iPod really really great and fashionable!' :rolleyes:

[hogo]

Anyone see that mockup i phone video on google videos? It's amazing, I think I've watched a dozen times......If you believe, in what you see...

It's called italk

[mdntcallr]

not sure how much i would rely on a "photo" printed by a french newspaper. macbiduelle (sp?) has a poor track record, let alone some newspaper.

pics look neat, but hardly like a smart phone. so... we will see.

maybe apple will release a small phone/flash player. myself, i am hoping for something a bit more powerful like a treo.

[peharri]

I disagree. I think that eventually everyone's mp3 player will be their cell, will be their pda etc. Apple will want to get into it eventually, why not do it as a leader, early in the cell mp3 era rather than later.

Apple can't go in the cellphone market as a leader. That's the problem. They're competing, in a scenario where they try to sell cellphones, with several entrenched players who have several products other than plain "Cellphones with MP3 players" and very loyal customers. Apple would be entering an already developed marketplace where there are several Apples already.

Here's the issue:


Standalone MP3 players are becoming obsolete. The writing's on the wall. Nobody wants to take a cellphone and an MP3 player with them everywhere. The issue until now has been capacity. Flash is dropping in price and increasing in capacity. As cellphones gain capacity, their ability to replace standalone players becomes more and more credible.
Apple currently has a large amount of its business based upon its control over the market. The iTMS would never have got off the ground had they had 3-5% of the market for MP3 players.
Apple cannot produce a phone that would have anything like the share of the MP3-playing mobile phone market as they have of the stand-alone MP3 player market. Sorry. Love the phones, but there are entrenched manufacturers in that market, and the variety of different phones offered by the existing manufacturers is going to be hard to top. See also the next bullet point.
Apple probably wouldn't like the experience of selling phones. You can sell phones as non-commodity products, but only for a limited amount of time. Operators have unprecedented control - they subsidize phones. They'll insist on firmware changes to lock customers into their services. They'll decide which phones they're going to promote and which they're not. Customers will usually go for the free phone, and unless Apple can come up with MP3 playing phones for well under $200, they're unlikely to be offered "free" by any carriers.


What are the consequences of Apple giving up its dominance? Answer: it loses the entire thing. If Apple doesn't have control over the vast majority of MP3 players, the iTMS loses its relevence as a music store. The amount of music available will drop. Apple can reform it, give up Fairplay in favour of Windows Media for example, but that only undermines its position further.

The only option available to Apple if it wants to remain relevent is to license Fairplay, probably through an Apple-controlled iTunes for Mobiles, to other mobile phone manufacturers. It is highly unlikely they'll succeed if they're competing with the other manufacturers.

That's the problem. That's why I'd put the chances of Apple releasing a mobile phone as close to non-existant.

I do see them forming alliances with existing manufacturers, and over time I suspect you'll see iTunes for phones moving away from the crippled version they supplied to Motorola to becoming a major system, licensed by the majority of cellphone makers. Apple will move from making hardware in this area to building and controlling the platform.

[mdntcallr]

Apple can't go in the cellphone market as a leader...

you are so wrong. apple has sold huge volumes of players. the market is about to shift to being able to do video's and games and more on the new devices. so... stop being a naysayer and see whats up.

[~Shard~]

New iPods would definitely make sense, due to the impending Movie Store and all, but an iPhone would be icing on the cake! The Movie Store and a new iPod seems like enough news for one announcement though, so I somewhat doubt we'd see an iPhone as well. To me, an iPhone warrants its own event, since it would be a brand new product for Apple and would obviously have ties into some of the large providers, etc.

Oh well, guess we'll see today what Apple has up its sleeve! :cool:

[matttrick]

You're not serious, are you?

absolutely.

http://www.macbytes.com/link.php?sid=20060911112232

[matttrick]

you are so wrong. apple has sold huge volumes of players. the market is about to shift to being able to do video's and games and more on the new devices. so... stop being a naysayer and see whats up.

actually he is absolutely correct. they have sold huge volumes of players because the technology was not up to par for an all in one cell phone. that time is nearly up. and he gave all of the reasons why in his argument. apple has virtually no control in that market.

[aafuss1]

iPod tubes for 5/6th gen like the nano ones

[yg17]

If Apple wants the iPhone to be out in time for the holiday shopping season, which is a damn good idea, do they have any other choice but to release it today? An iPhone isn't something you just release without a big event. I don't see Apple having another event in a few weeks just for a phone and no other products. I think that if the iPhone even exists, and is going to be out this year, Apple may not have any other option but to release it today.

[zerger]

I love these media events. It's like Christmas three or four times a year! :D

I would like to add my drool to the drool of the masses at the potential of this iPhone. If done right it could cause a veritable landfill of obsolete cell phones.

[vendettabass]

iPhone in October I reckon!

[podfuture]

the new nano will take on some of the nice features of the original mini... there will be a complete metal jacket, but more the form factor and corner radius like the nano. A bit longer than the nano, though.

don't have to wait too much longer, do we.

[sartinsauce]

iPhone in October I reckon!

IF it exists, and IF it's going to come out before the Holidays, you're right.

Those are big ifs, but there is that Appleinsider article suggesting that there are several Apple Events coming down the pipe. We had three last fall, didn't we?

[1984]

The 8 new iPod SKU numbers most likely are this:

iPod Video White (Low Capacity)
iPod Video White (High Capacity)
iPod Video Black (Low Capacity)
iPod Video Black (High Capacity)

Replace the word "Video" with "Nano" for the other 4 SKU numbers.

Now that's just plain lazy. :p

[SactoGuy18]

you are so wrong. apple has sold huge volumes of players. the market is about to shift to being able to do video's and games and more on the new devices. so... stop being a naysayer and see whats up.

Have you ever heard the phrase keep it simple, stupid? Apple will likely continue to emphasize the standard iPod, mostly because the fully video-capable iPod will be a pretty expensive and niche item.

That's why I see the following iPod models coming out:

iPod Shuffle replacement:

1) About the same size as current Shuffle.
2) Will switch to a scratchproof case design.
3) Will include a small LCD display to show song titles and elapsed time primarily, along with menus to configure player.
4) Will be available in 1 GB, 2 GB and possibly 4 GB flash memory storage capacities.

iPod Nano replacement:

1) Slightly larger than current Nano.
2) Will use metallic scratchproof case design and larger scratchproof display; it will look like a reduced-size iPod Mini.
3) Will be available in 8 GB, 6 GB and possibly 4 GB flash memory storage capacities initially, with a 12 GB model coming out early in 2007.

hard disk iPod replacement

1) Will be about the same size as current HD-based iPods.
2) Will switch to metallic scratchproof case design.
3) Will offer increased storage capacity in using 80 GB and 40 GB hard drives.

new "video" iPod

1) Will be almost the size of the Microsoft portable PC based on the Origami specifications in order to accommodate large display necesary to see videos clearly.
2) Will use scratchproof case and scratchproof display.
3) The display itself sports full touch-screen functionality.
4) Will have storage capacities on hard disk of 80 GB and 120 GB.

The new "video" iPod may not be available initially, but maybe 30-90 days from today's announcement.

[Mitch1984]

Some people believe that the Handset market is saturated and that apple won't do well.
I partially agree but also think that apple stands a good chance if they can get round the operators greedy roadblocks.

It will encourage all the handset manufacturers to step their game in in the market.

[way2l84sanity]

And I can then see Apple looking at reality, sighing, and burying it in the giant warehouse of Apple products that never saw the light of day. There's just no way to sell such a thing, and doing so would undermine Apple's ability to work with other manufacturers to ensure it retains control over the media scene after MP3 players become obsoleted by large capacity MP3-playing cellphones.

There's probably a corner of the warehouse assigned to projects like this. You'll have to crawl through archives of the Copland source code and blueprints for future Apple IIIs to get there. Prototype dual-core G5 iMacs and a Broadway-based microtablet line a small clearing. There, the janitor has built something akin to a shrine, only visible to a favoured few. And yes, one of the slimmest, cleanest, most friendly cellphones is currently sitting there, with pride of place.

About a week and a half ago my wife was running software updates on her ibook and i saw an itunes update /itunes phone driver. I didn't see it on the imac G5 or on our Power Mac and I couldn't get a screen shot before the updates were finished. Why a phone driver in itunes?? (gets down on knees and begs for phone):D

[Dr.Gargoyle]

Feeding frenzy at MR.:D

[Bibulous]

I hope they keep the old style ipod case and not switch them all to the metallic case. I like'em shinny, scratches and all.

[hdsalinas]

Why a phone driver in itunes??

Motorola has the SLVR with itunes. Sorry to burst your bubble.

[SactoGuy18]

I hope they keep the old style ipod case and not switch them all to the metallic case. I like'em shinny, scratches and all.

I don't think so, because Apple got burned by the fact the iPod Nano was so easily scratched (small wonder why Fry's Electronics always included a case with every iPod Nano sale). Apple will go to a scratchproof case and display.

[peharri]

About a week and a half ago my wife was running software updates on her ibook and i saw an itunes update /itunes phone driver. I didn't see it on the imac G5 or on our Power Mac and I couldn't get a screen shot before the updates were finished. Why a phone driver in itunes?? (gets down on knees and begs for phone):D

Apple iTunes for mobile phones already exists, most (in)famously in the original Motorola ROKR. As I understand it, just as you maintain your iPod playlists with iTunes, you maintain your iTunes for mobile phones playlists with iTunes too. I would be very surprised, especially given Apple's secrecy, if the update you saw was to do with anything other than that.

[Lesser Evets]

If NANOs go well upwrd in storage I bet they will have video capability, despite the tiny screens. Afterall, wouldn't Apple want everyone buying their movies, and not just the upper level iPod owners?

[slabbius]

USA Apple store is down and "updating"

[vendettabass]

weird.. just saw an advert for the Nano on E4 (UK).. no change to design!

[Chupa Chupa]

8 New iPod stock numbers eh?

iPod Video 50GB
iPod Video 80GB
iPod Nano 8GB (black)
iPod Nano 8GB (white)
iPod Nano 8GB (colour 3)
iPod Nano 8GB (colour 4)
iPod Nano 8GB (colour 5)
iPod Nano 8GB (colour 6)

*dreams* :p

Probably more like

iPod Nano 4GB, 6GB, and 8GB, in either metallic black or white. I'm not buying the colors thing. Too much trouble from a manufacturing perspective to manage. Apple wants to get these out into the wild, not read about shortages of this color, or surplus of another.

[Chupa Chupa]

If NANOs go well upwrd in storage I bet they will have video capability, despite the tiny screens. Afterall, wouldn't Apple want everyone buying their movies, and not just the upper level iPod owners?


Yup. I suspect the nano will become the new "music"/"sports" iPod and the full size iPod the new "multimedia" iPod. Apple will market them completely different. Shuffle stays around in the 512MB format as the "entry level" iPod.

[spicyapple]

The Beatles will be added to the iTMS and a Beatles-inspired iPod will be announced. :) It will be in yellow, with Beatles signatures engraved on the back.

[SactoGuy18]

Speaking of which, there's an Apple Store at Arden Fair Mall a few miles from where I live. Can I go see those new iPods at that store by 1200 hours PDT today? :confused:

[Play Ultimate]

Apple is in a bind regarding the ipod/cell phone business. The cell phone will soon engulf the MP3 player and PDA markets so that everyone will have just one device to carry around.
Apple must have seen the writing on the wall for quite awhile that this scenario would play out, which is why they got involved with Motorola in the first place. The question must be asked how Apple will stay relevant in the MP3 market is it becomes a part a cell phone. They only way is for Apple to release a cell phone themselves or partner themselves with cell phone manufacturers. Apple may have done this already with a new Motorola phone. If Apple removed some of the limitations that existed on the ROKR, it would be much more competitive in the market. It wouldn't take much to make that phone, or the RAZR more attractive as an MP3 player. And if all of the new iPods had sufficient capacity and screen space to double as a video player, the phones would not be in such direct competition to the iPod.
Whatever the solution, Apple needs to have the iPod attached to a phone or it will soon no longer exist.

[Chupa Chupa]

Speaking of which, there's an Apple Store at Arden Fair Mall a few miles from where I live. Can I go see those new iPods at that store by 1200 hours PDT today? :confused:


Seriously doubt they'll be at any store today except for maybe at the SF and NYC flagship stores. Check back on Thurs-Fri.

[Chupa Chupa]

Apple is in a bind regarding the ipod/cell phone business. The cell phone will soon engulf the MP3 player and PDA markets so that everyone will have just one device to carry around.


I disagree. I have a Treo 700p. Love it. Great phone, great palm, nice web browser in a pinch. But I'd never listen to music on it. 1) sound isn't that great. 2) it would eat my batteries like a goat on a Scottish golf course. The extras on my Treo are great, but my phone is my phone, and I can't afford to drain the batteries on mp3s. I will always want just a stand-alone music player. Whether it continues to be the iPod is up to Apple.

[SactoGuy18]

Does anyone remember that cellphone sold to Cingular customers that included access to the iTunes music store? I think the so-called iPhone is something similar but this time the cellphone sports full iPod functionality, including (probably) 4 GB of flash memory storage for music and the ability to download music from your computer using iTunes 7.0 software. :)

[Dr.Gargoyle]

Hmmm, I have an ominous feeling that this autumn can be murderous to my creditcard.

[aristobrat]

actually he is absolutely correct. they have sold huge volumes of players because the technology was not up to par for an all in one cell phone.
Hmmm, an interesting point.

Wonder if that was an incentive for Apple to push the iPod into newer markets like video and the Nike+ .. both areas where (paraphrasing you) cell phone technology is again nowhere near up to par.

[mi5moav]

under installation itunes now has iphone support, has this always been there?

[sdchargerrt]

under installation itunes now has iphone support, has this always been there?


Where is that listed?

[sdchargerrt]

I was ready to ditch Sprint today and sign up my wife an I for an ipod-phone. I have a bulky phone and an ipod video, between those, an occassional pack of smokes, my keys and wallet, I'm almost ready for a "European Carry All"

I hear the arguement about wasting batteries on mp3s but I can charge the ipod in my car, on my work computer, in my house, they even sell cheesy solar chargers, I'm not worried about batteries I'm worried about pocket space.

Micro$haft is already working to release a phone/mp3/video player.. is Apple ready to watch their market share go down the toilet... I was very dissappointed by the lack of innovation I saw today. They rolled out new Nano's and a New Shuffle, along with Movies available on Itunes, near as I can tell, all of the new ipods today, can't even play movies, they actually announced two products that aren't compatible with each other in the same press circus, I mean press conference.

I'm a huge Apple fan, I'm an owner of Apple stock, but I was disappointed today.

[aristobrat]

Micro$haft is already working to release a phone/mp3/video player.. is Apple ready to watch their market share go down the toilet...
Are you talking about the Microsoft Zune thing? It doesn't have any phone features.

And when it comes to phones, the Windows Mobile 5 stuff that they last released is a huge bit better than before, but it's still very weak when it comes to multimedia. I don't know of anyone with an iPod that would put up with how you have to monkey around with Windows Media Player on those things...

I wasn't all that impressed with the iPods today (although the price drops on the bigger ones was something I bet Samsung and Creative didn't want to see), but IMO Apple did a great job of getting iTunes out before the new Windows Media Player in Vista starts to get all of the press. The iTV thing is going to get a lot of media attention, as will the movies.

If I had Apple stock, I wouldn't worry.

[Groovey]

Yes, it probably would've been too sweet to have the iPhone... Gotta keep on waiting.

[sdchargerrt]

I have a phone with Winblows Mobile 5.0 and it gets me a real internet browser, I also downloaded the firefox mobile version Minmo which works nicely, I have 1gb mini SD card and music quality is pretty lame, but the phone is a tank.

When I got the phone I did a lot of reading about the mobile 5.0 and Micro$ucks stated goal (on their mobile 5.0 website) is to provide a single handheld device, phone, pmp, pda, etc. I haven't heard that goal from apple, but I would like to see it because I think Apple is clearly in a position to dominate that market. Having an Iphone is also a great way to undercut Verizon and Sprint's online music stores as well because Apple has the best content available.

Sometimes things move to slowly for me :)

[appleman64]

For the regular iPod this was the least significant change it has ever seen. You can't tell me for the last 12months iPod engineers found out how to 1) make the screen brighter 2) increase battery life 3) add two new search features. WOOPIE!

Which this leads me to believe is that there is still..."one more thing" I see how the price drop has gone to $249 and $349 as well for an MP3 music player. Could there be prices back to the normal $299 and $399 for an MP4 video player? Have the basic iPod drop in price and target those who want the best in an mp3/semi-video player and produce the ultimate MP4 video player for those who want more video than audio.

Supposing the Zune will be out before the holiday season. Once they set a release date, couldn't you see Apple, within the next week holding an event reading "Oh, did we forget something" and just killing the Zune's thunder with the next gen of iPods?

I don't know what to expect, this stuff is total random, but if you piece it together I don't think Apple is done releasing products for the holiday season.

[Rantipole]

Supposing the Zune will be out before the holiday season. Once they set a release date, couldn't you see Apple, within the next week holding an event reading "Oh, did we forget something" and just killing the Zune's thunder with the next gen of iPods?
You mean, like two months from now? That seems highly unlikely.

Back to the iPhone (sort of): well, the iTunes RAZR has FINALLY been introduced in the US. Current prices at Cingular (assuming rebates, etc.): regular RAZR, $99. iTunes RAZR, $249. So, they're charging $150 for iTunes software. Yeah, right. :rolleyes:

[Mitch1984]

I don't think so, because Apple got burned by the fact the iPod Nano was so easily scratched (small wonder why Fry's Electronics always included a case with every iPod Nano sale). Apple will go to a scratchproof case and display.

Anyone know why the iPod Nano scratched more than the normal big iPod.
Or was is just that the Nano sold more so was up for more bad press?

Or was it just the screen that scratched. I had one and it was fine.

[peharri]

For the regular iPod this was the least significant change it has ever seen. You can't tell me for the last 12months iPod engineers found out how to 1) make the screen brighter 2) increase battery life 3) add two new search features. WOOPIE!


They also added a gaming platform FWIW. You can buy games from the iTS and load them into the iPod, as I understand it.

I think it's good they're not being over radical in what they do with the iPod. It's a good platform. Let it stay that way.