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Original poster
Apr 12, 2001
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According to Wedbush Morgan Securities analyst Craig Berger (reported by EE Times), Apple's next-generation iPod Shuffle will use a SigmaTel media processor chip rather than the previously rumored (also by EE Times) Samsung-Apple "PortalPlayer-killer" chip.

Samsung and PortalPlayer were among other competitors for the contract, and according to the analyst, Samsung may have originally won the contract. However, when Samsung announced last month that it had secured contracts with Apple for future flash iPods, Berger believes Apple may have had a change of heart.

“It is not surprising that Apple would 'punish’ Samsung for commenting publicly about its position within the iPod Nano follow-on, and we believe that SigmaTel is likely to be the resulting beneficiary of the Samsung executive’s gaffe,” [Berger] added.

Currently, the 5G and iPod Nano use PortalPlayer chips and the Shuffle uses SigmaTel chips. As rumor stands currently, next-gen Shuffles will use SigmaTel chips, Nanos will use Samsung chips. Currently, the 6G iPod contract is unknown, and "true" video iPod contract is rumored to be still up in the air. Of note, a recent uncorroborated page 2 rumor indicated that the Shuffle was in line to be discontinued.
 

Superdrive

macrumors 6502a
Oct 21, 2003
772
56
Dallas, Tx
Come on, is it really that big of a deal? If Samsung has a better chip, we should be using them. Hopefully this isn't just a punishment...
 

rockthecasbah

macrumors 68020
Apr 12, 2005
2,395
2
Moorestown, NJ
I was under the impression that the Shuffle was being discontinued... I'll be interested if this next gen Shuffle has amazing battery life... if not i could care less.

Anyone know how the Signa-Tel chips are on battery life in comparison to other player's chips, etc?
 

longofest

Editor emeritus
Jul 10, 2003
2,924
1,682
Falls Church, VA
celebrian23 said:
I don't understand the importance of this at all :confused:

It's important to those who have stock in any of the companies involved (i.e. Apple, Samsung, PortalPlayer, SigmaTel). For consumers, it doesn't matter too much. It does, however, indicate even more that that page2 rumor was bogus (and thus was placed well on page 2).
 

Doctor Q

Administrator
Staff member
Sep 19, 2002
39,775
7,497
Los Angeles
Punishing Samsung by canceling a contract that was awarded to them based on their being the best choice for reasons of quality, price, production capacity, or other important factors?

I hope not.
 

longofest

Editor emeritus
Jul 10, 2003
2,924
1,682
Falls Church, VA
Doctor Q said:
Punishing Samsung by canceling a contract that was awarded to them based on their being the best choice for reasons of quality, price, production capacity, or other important factors?

I hope not.

Hey... it's the analyst's reasoning not mine :rolleyes:

It very well may turn out that the whole Samsung-Apple chip was only destined for the nano, and ever was intentioned for the Shuffle, and thus SigmaTel never even lost the Shuffle line in the first place (and therefore, Samsung never won it over).
 

Stridder44

macrumors 68040
Mar 24, 2003
3,973
198
California
Doctor Q said:
Punishing Samsung by canceling a contract that was awarded to them based on their being the best choice for reasons of quality, price, production capacity, or other important factors?

I hope not.


Yeah no kidding. That would put Apple's attitude on par with a 5 year old throwing a fit.
 

longofest

Editor emeritus
Jul 10, 2003
2,924
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Falls Church, VA
swingerofbirch said:
I opine that if the Shuffle gains capacity it should gain a screen. Just something simple with artist and track name, even in the casing itself that glows through..forget what that is called

Think you're looking for OLED (organic light emitting diode)...

I'm taking a wait-and-see approach on the shuffle screen. If anything, I think they will want to miniaturize it a bit, which would put a screen out of its reach. I would buy one if it got smaller and reduced by $10. A 1 gig shuffle for $89 that can both play songs and no longer any bigger than a normal memory thumb-drive? Sold.
 

X5-452

macrumors 6502
Feb 16, 2006
483
48
Calgary, Canada
If they update the shuffle, how would they improve on a nearly flawless design? Battery life alone doesn't warrent an entire upgrade. In terms of low-end, screen-less flash players, the shuffle has it going on. It can't get a screen because it would cannibalize 1GB nano sales. Personally, I think they should drop the 1GB nano and have 2, 4 and either 6 or 8 GB models at the same price points.

In any case, I hope that Apple is still using Samsung, because if the analyst's reasoning is correct, then Apple is being absolutely childish.
 

lord patton

macrumors 65816
Jun 6, 2005
1,052
12
Chicago
X5-452 said:
If they update the shuffle, how would they improve on a nearly flawless design?

It could be smaller. Some have said it gets in the way of adjacent usb ports. Plus, I think having a rainbow of color options would be cool.
 

sushi

Moderator emeritus
Jul 19, 2002
15,639
3
キャンプスワ&#
lord patton said:
It could be smaller. Some have said it gets in the way of adjacent usb ports. Plus, I think having a rainbow of color options would be cool.
Smaller would be good. It does get in the way of other USB devices/slots depending on the computer.

Colors. Hmmm... Maybe they will make the whole line up Black and White.

Then again, a rainbow of colors for the Shuffle would be kind of cool.

What I really wish, is some ability to select among multiple playlists.
 

ColdFlame87

macrumors regular
Jul 23, 2004
175
0
Woodland Hills, CA
sushi said:
Smaller would be good. It does get in the way of other USB devices/slots depending on the computer.

Colors. Hmmm... Maybe they will make the whole line up Black and White.

Then again, a rainbow of colors for the Shuffle would be kind of cool.

What I really wish, is some ability to select among multiple playlists.

Muiltiple playlist would be nice, I mean I love the shuffle feature of the shuffle but sometimes i want to listen to a certain song and having to click through hundreds of a songs to get to one can get pretty annoying.
 

mozmac

macrumors 6502
Apr 28, 2005
332
15
Austin, TX
Yes, I wish they would just hurry up already with multiple iPod releases. I've been holding out forever! I don't know if I want to get a shuffle or a Nano. I need a jump drive, but if the Nano is only a little more, it might be worth it. Anyone have ideas of when an announcement could be made?
 

LostPacket

macrumors member
Jun 26, 2003
56
0
Canada, eh
I doubt this rumor is correct. Why would Apple punish itself by going to a lesser supplier when they can just add a non-disclosure clause to the contract? If they blab, they pay.
 

Play Ultimate

macrumors 6502
Oct 13, 2005
269
0
mozmac said:
Anyone have ideas of when an announcement could be made?

New iPods next Tuesday?? :rolleyes:


Probably not until October after the Back to College "Buy a Mac, Get an iPod" promotion. And plenty of time for Christmas.
 

DrEasy

macrumors member
Jan 12, 2004
99
0
What I really wish, is some ability to select among multiple playlists.
Yes yes yes! But no screen please, provide a button or mode or triple-click scheme for this!

(I really hope someone at Apple reads these forums: I've been begging for this feature in every thread about the Shuffle :D )
 
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