What's Next for iPod?

[revenuee]

Okay ... so we all love the iPod

it's small, has TONS of space for not only music but but also doubles as file storage making it the best looking hard drive out there

it stores notes and dates and contacts


but what does it need?

1. a way to put it data without a computer
and i think that all that it needs is a software update to add this feature.

I think that a list of letters and a way to select them using the scroll wheel would be great to put in short information like quick notes and names and telephone numbers

2. a way to support a external keypad/keyboard

i think with upgraded software this would be possible as-well ... not to mention that a keyboard would work great if the iPod could be mounted into it like into the Dock - the next accessory perhaps?

3. what about a small video monitor that would mount to the iPod via the dock port ... a small TFT screen on the back that would attach? personal video player. .. particulary with the new 3GGP format from quicktime ... it would be great ...

well ... those are just something i think would be cool that would be add ons to the the iPods rather then total redesigns ...

any body else have an accessories they would like to see for the iPod?

or care to comment on my suggestions?

[plasticparadox]

I own a portable MiniDisc recorder that has a scroll wheel for entering information, and honestly, it takes me about 2 minutes to enter a simple song title.

It's really slow, but it's the only way to enter song info on a non-NetMD MiniDisc walkman.

I'm not sure how that'll work out on an iPod.

[ZildjianKX]

How about MUCH better battery life, and a way to easily replace the battery? Or an LCD remote?

Both of those would make me very happy.

Also some new MP3 players have a built in FM transmitter and microphone (and yes, I do own an iTrip).

[Raiden]

I hope the ipod NEVER becomes some video thing. I dont think I need to explain why as a million people have in other threads already.

It would be nice if it gained AM/FM/XM compatiblity. (yes, that would be difficult, but badass.) What would be even cooler is if you could record the streams of songs you like.

Do the newest ipods have a voice recorder feature yet? I remember a few months back someone hacked the ipod and found that it has the firmware built in or whatever. Anyway, a good voice recording feature would be cool.

Lowered price. With the rumored 2/4 gig mini-ipods at 100 dollars, it would be badass to have a 10 gig at 200, 20 gig at 250, and 40 gig at 300. The current 600 bucks is waaaay too much.

[revenuee]

Originally posted by Raiden
I hope the ipod NEVER becomes some video thing. I dont think I need to explain why as a million people have in other threads already.

It would be nice if it gained AM/FM/XM compatiblity. (yes, that would be difficult, but badass.) What would be even cooler is if you could record the streams of songs you like.

Do the newest ipods have a voice recorder feature yet? I remember a few months back someone hacked the ipod and found that it has the firmware built in or whatever. Anyway, a good voice recording feature would be cool.

Lowered price. With the rumored 2/4 gig mini-ipods at 100 dollars, it would be badass to have a 10 gig at 200, 20 gig at 250, and 40 gig at 300. The current 600 bucks is waaaay too much.

It doesn't need to play videos' on it ... but being able to play video to a TV would be cool

As far as voice recorded, there is an accessory made by belkin that lets you record voice memos


ZildjianKX : yes i think a agree with you about replacing the battery easily ... sometimes you just can't get out an outlet to charge the thing


plasticparadox - then i think a mini keyboard support would be great ...

[zellin]

Raiden: Apple will never let an iPod user record radio. The RIAA would be furious... but then again, what else is new?

[ITR 81]

Originally posted by ZildjianKX
How about MUCH better battery life, and a way to easily replace the battery? Or an LCD remote?

Both of those would make me very happy.

Also some new MP3 players have a built in FM transmitter and microphone (and yes, I do own an iTrip).

I believe better battery life is coming with the new 4gen.

I doubt they will make it easy to replace since that would mean making the iPod thicker to just add a sliding plate.

I could see LCD remote.

Not sure if I want another feature draining the iPod battery. But I think a built in mic would be great and maybe bluetooth.

[Macpoops]

Originally posted by zellin
Raiden: Apple will never let an iPod user record radio. The RIAA would be furious... but then again, what else is new?

Why would they be upset about it? It's already possible to do it with almost any cassette deck and there is computer software out their for it. The iPod would be no different. There is a reason the RIAA gives radio a way for free.

[Sabenth]

a remote maybe??
add blue tooth
add wifi ablity maybe

i dont own an ipod but id like to see one with wirless ablitys

[hui__lim]

Well I can only wish that the next iPod will support bluetooth not for transferring songs to the iPod from your Mac (it will take too darn long) but for use with wireless bluetooth headphones, ones that just pop on your ears without the need of wires. Now that would be neat.

[plasticparadox]

Originally posted by hui__lim
Well I can only wish that the next iPod will support bluetooth not for transferring songs to the iPod from your Mac (it will take too darn long) but for use with wireless bluetooth headphones, ones that just pop on your ears without the need of wires. Now that would be neat.

And watch the iPod's battery capacity drop from 8 hours to 4?

[revenuee]

Originally posted by plasticparadox
And watch the iPod's battery capacity drop from 8 hours to 4?

so true ...

it would be good if Apple did do something about the battery power for the next generation of iPods, i don't know what, short of making the battery bigger ...

i guess the solution is the battery back ... but it's bulky, and pricey

It would be nice that if they do come up with a better battery one can be mounted into the older iPods ... i'll mail away to get it done and pay a few for better battery life

[ZildjianKX]

Originally posted by revenuee
so true ...

it would be good if Apple did do something about the battery power for the next generation of iPods, i don't know what, short of making the battery bigger ...

i guess the solution is the battery back ... but it's bulky, and pricey

It would be nice that if they do come up with a better battery one can be mounted into the older iPods ... i'll mail away to get it done and pay a few for better battery life

Then again, powerbooks and ibooks don't have that great of battery lifes either... that's definately something that Apple needs to improve on across all their portables.

[revenuee]

Originally posted by ZildjianKX
Then again, powerbooks and ibooks don't have that great of battery lifes either... that's definately something that Apple needs to improve on across all their portables.

This is true ... the thing is ... you can buy a second battery and easily pop it in should you need it ... with the iPods solid design your stuck if you can get to an outlet or if you have the Cigarette charger a car :)

oh well ... we'll see

[Awimoway]

It definitely won't be video. That would be a separate product, and I don't think it's one Apple wants to sell.

I think changes will continue to be evolutionary, not revolutionary. For Apple, it's all about simplicity and not bogging it down with unnecessary features.

That being said, "Home on iPod" would be really nice. I know I have enough free space on my iPod to support that.

Better battery life is a must.

The coolest addition that would actually stay in line with Apple's emphasis on simplicity would be some means of transmitting music wirelessly, like maybe using 802.11b, since bluetooth is out of the question. I don't think it would be useful for headphones, but it would be for Rendezvous access to home and car stereos.

In my opinion, the most important missing feature is a way to easily and elegantly bridge the iPod with a car stereo. Wireless could do that. So could a docking stereo. If they don't go for wireless, which would probably be a big battery drain, a docking car stereo would be manufactured by someone else. I just hope Apple is partnering with someone to make that happen.

[dongmin]

Originally posted by Awimoway
That being said, "Home on iPod" would be really nice. I know I have enough free space on my iPod to support that.

Better battery life is a must.

The coolest addition that would actually stay in line with Apple's emphasis on simplicity would be some means of transmitting music wirelessly, like maybe using 802.11b, since bluetooth is out of the question. I don't think it would be useful for headphones, but it would be for Rendezvous access to home and car stereos.

In my opinion, the most important missing feature is a way to easily and elegantly bridge the iPod with a car stereo. Wireless could do that. So could a docking stereo. If they don't go for wireless, which would probably be a big battery drain, a docking car stereo would be manufactured by someone else. I just hope Apple is partnering with someone to make that happen. The Home on iPod feature would be nice, but it'd require me to get the 40gb iPod. Ouch.

I'm not so sure about the wireless thing. Wouldn't any kind of wireless be a drain on the battery? I think a lot of what people are asking in terms of connectivity with your car and home audio are being taken care by 3rd party vendors.

I'd like to see some 'pro' features on the higher-end models, like a line-in. People always talk about MD players being indispensable for their recording capabilities. Why not with the iPod? Also, I'd like the ability to control the pitch using the scroll wheel. I know my DJ friends would be all over that.

[Awimoway]

Originally posted by dongmin
I think a lot of what people are asking in terms of connectivity with your car and home audio are being taken care by 3rd party vendors.


Yeah, but not in ways that are simple or elegant, which is Apple's hallmark. Wires wires everywhere. Or expensive installation procedures. Or crappy FM transmitters. Nothing elegant about any of those options.

[plasticparadox]

That's true. 3rd-party products have most of the bases covered already.

It's difficult for Apple to innovate without stepping all over a 3rd-party company's market share.

I would hope that this isn't a barrier for Apple to build iTrip functionality (FM transmitting) into the iPod.

But... I can't in all honesty see Apple building Belkin functionality into the iPod, as it appears Belkin and Apple have some sort of a concrete agreement in place.

Fact is, in order for iPod to convincingly win over players such as Dell's DJ and the Napster Player, iPod needs to have the extras included. Nobody wants to lug around little accessories.

[dongmin]

Originally posted by plasticparadox
Fact is, in order for iPod to convincingly win over players such as Dell's DJ and the Napster Player, iPod needs to have the extras included. Nobody wants to lug around little accessories. Well Apple is convincingly winning over players such as Dell's DJ precisely through it's lack of features, or to put it in another way, simplicity.

BUT for all those people who're into the swiss army knife approach, maybe Apple could design a more modular system of extending the iPod's functionality. The firewire dock connector was a start. But for sure, Apple could do more.

[plasticparadox]

Originally posted by dongmin
Well Apple is convincingly winning over players such as Dell's DJ precisely through it's lack of features, or to put it in another way, simplicity.

BUT for all those people who're into the swiss army knife approach, maybe Apple could design a more modular system of extending the iPod's functionality. The firewire dock connector was a start. But for sure, Apple could do more.

Personally speaking, I would love to see a built-in FM transmitter. I'm now in the market for an digital audio player, and although of course I'll go with the iPod (being that I'm a Mac owner), I can't help but notice the competition's feature set.

I hear what you're saying about the dock connector/expandability, but I don't want to have to bring FM transmitters or voice recorders with me when I go to work. If it's built into the iPod unit, it makes a world of difference.

Ideally, I would love to see the option for BTO (build to order) iPods from the Apple Store. I don't know how possible that is, though.

[Bobak]

there is only one extra feature that the ipod needs as all of you know it is the battery. apple should not touch video players or any wi fi tech. honestly you would not use it. they should put in build in fm radio because i dont listen to it (nothing but crap on it) and it goes aginst it being a personal product and the sale slogan "10000 songs in you pocket"

and if you going ot talk about other players with extra features that cost less, belive me there is a reason why the ipod cost more it has the best music playing feauters. i have used the other competition like the iriver it has excelent battery life but everthing else sucks and a lcd remote has to be made smaller

i bought my slef a archos jukebox a while ago over the ipod because i saw that it had video features and it has a camera. after buying it i found that that is bad music feauters and a bad camera and i other than the first few day of having it i hardly watch videos on it accept on tv out making the video feauter a home feautre not portable and apple make laptops for that(the ibooks av out feature and the powerbooks svideo, if your tv supoports it)

next from apple we are most likely to see a ipod with a better batter something more coustimsable becausae all ipod look the same accpet the ipod mini (frankly 4 gbs aint enouhgt for me), possiably picking buttons colours or backlight colour on top of name engraving.
i have to go now i'll finish this later

[abhishekit]

They should just put the 802.11g in the iPod. That would be really cool, and it would integrate Airport Express more too.

cheers

[robbieduncan]

Personally speaking, I would love to see a built-in FM transmitter. I'm now in the market for an digital audio player, and although of course I'll go with the iPod (being that I'm a Mac owner), I can't help but notice the competition's feature set.

This would make iPods illegal in the UK. It is already illegal to use (although not to own) an iTrip here.

[sonofslim]

This would make iPods illegal in the UK. It is already illegal to use (although not to own) an iTrip here.

what's the reasoning there?

[robbieduncan]

what's the reasoning there?

It's an FM transmitter. Unlike some other places in Europe and the rest of the world where you it's OK to have FM transmitters for personal use up to a certain power limit you are not allowed to use any FM transmitter at all without a broadcasting license in the UK.

One of many links about this (http://www.macminute.com/2003/07/31/itrip)

[SiliconAddict]

plasticparadox - then i think a mini keyboard support would be great ...


Idea. BlueTooth the iPod and create a profile that is compatable with PDA BlueTooth keyboards.

[SiliconAddict]

and a way to easily replace the battery?


Amen. This IMHO is a major thing. I'm going backpacking this summer (Hopefully post G4 iPod release.) and there is no way an iPod is going to last 4 days out in the "bush" I would kill to have an iPod where I could slap another battery on the iPod after the first one dies and it makes dead iPod batts a moot point. Apple should seriously consider this.

Second in my wish list is a color OLED display to display coverart.

Finally the idea of an LCD remote is pretty dang appealing.

PS- I'm away of the "pack" to extend the life of the iPod. Too blocky.

[jknight8907]

Why would they be upset about it? It's already possible to do it with almost any cassette deck and there is computer software out their for it. The iPod would be no different. There is a reason the RIAA gives radio a way for free.

The reason RIAA hasn't gone after radio recorders is the relatively low quality of the recordings, and the fact that there is no real way to inforce such a law. With the iPod it would be enforceable, because they could stop Apple from producing it.

^^IMHO