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Embedded iPod Apps and Upcoming Devices?

The video iPod

Here's why the video iPod will happen. Definately. no question.

Videos.

The record companies have mountains of very expensive videos they've never made any money from. With a video iPod they can sell the videos (and other footage) for an additional fee. It's the new revenuw stream the record business is dying for. Now they've realized the power of digital content they'd be insane not to monetize the content that MTV refuses to play. Suddenly every playlist is a TV channel and with a wire (or not) you can stream it all to your TV or stereo.

Screens are now good to go (look at the 2.5 inch job on the Sony T1 digicam) and Apple might even choose what I call 'viewfinder video' to save battery life. It'd be like looking into a camera and you'd have an eyepiece and a tiny high res screen (again see the latest digicams). The iPod as a display device doesn't have to go along with video content.

Personally I think they'll use video as an excuse to go to the cheaper, faster, higher capacity 2.5 inch drives and just hide the size increase with the addition of a screen.

If you don't want video you'll still have your iPod mini. Convergence is so 90's. Everyone I know has an iPod a cell phone and a camera. The interfaces are too dissimilar to make one device the perfect solution for all three. Look at the iPod itself. It only (really) does music but people love it because it does it well. Apple will add functionality but will resist going too far. It's more profitable to sell you another device than one that tries to do everything in a medioccre way. Apple are the interface company after all (if it wasn't for Panther and hardware design I'd be writing this on a cheaper, faster notebook).

I'm not wrong about this. Trust me ;-)
 
Originally posted by crap freakboy
never understood ipod users who'd like to see video on their ipod, screen is too small imho.
Click to expand...

On the other hand, little TV sets with 2.5" displays from the likes of Casio are still quite popular. For comparison, the current iPod has a 2" display.
 
Re: The video iPod

Originally posted by Penman
Videos.
Click to expand...

...and people wanting to bore their their friends the latest cute thing their kids or pets did, or wanting to goof off at work discreetly, or catching last night's very special episode of whatever on the train....
 
Originally posted by displaced
Wow - you're right - Tempest would be fantastic with the scroll wheel!

(I'm one of the 8 or so people who bought an Atari Jaguar. I don't think Tempest 2000 has left the cartridge slot in 7 years or so... fantastic game).

As for video, I agree. Really can't see any point beyond the gee-wizz factor, and that's one of the strengths of the iPod - all its functionality is genuinely useful. I'd hate to see that tarnished.

Of course, if it employed some kind of holographic projection system, or direct retinal interface, that'd be groovy.

(edit: just in case anyone thought I was being serious, here's a 😉 )
Click to expand...
me too imagine 2 people with a atari jaguar on one website amazing it really is asmall world😉
 
with 40gig hard drives and arms running up to 400mhz ithink apple could make the ipod into a fullfledged mac w/ the attachment of a key board and anew screen
 
They could at least make it possible to change text font sizes! Anyone know any hacks or dl's that enable that? I have a lot of notes that I'd like to enlarge to a more readable size.
 
Re: Re: The video iPod

Originally posted by iMeowbot
...and people wanting to bore their their friends the latest cute thing their kids or pets did, or wanting to goof off at work discreetly, or catching last night's very special episode of whatever on the train....
Click to expand...

Exactly - with a camera in every phone and DV quality video possible for under $100 it has to happen. Images always replace audio as the #1 application aside from environments that require the user to look about (e.g. in the car).

This is a little speculative but it seems smart for Apple to enable the iSight2 to be plugged straight into the video iPod to make a super mobil HD camcorder. If they pushed the sensor to 1280x720 (.25 HD) they'd have a huge market of budding videomakers to play with and the iPod would be doing things PC's just can't. All the control could be in software and iSights could be sold ranging from pen-sized basic jobs for $100 through to high-end filmaker specials for $2000.

Damn. I want one.
 
I think there are lots of minor things that can be done first with embeded apps that may not be as exciting as some wish.
The Games thing is obvious - I also think a calculator is a good idea, i am working on an interface design prototype for an ipod calculator...does anyone know of a company who might be interested in developing such a concept?...just a thought.

oh yeah like the sig says bring the Home folder to the ipod!
 
ARM vs PPC

I understand the attraction of ARM, but, IBM recently demoed a PDA platform (linux) using the 440LP PPC. So, I'm asking why we can't have a stripped down OSX on these embedded PPC's and develop apps in AppleScript Studio, Java, Cocoa or whatever.

This, to my thinking, would really be the logical convergence of computer and applicance.
 
Originally posted by doogle
I think there are lots of minor things that can be done first with embeded apps that may not be as exciting as some wish.
The Games thing is obvious - I also think a calculator is a good idea, i am working on an interface design prototype for an ipod calculator...does anyone know of a company who might be interested in developing such a concept?...just a thought.

oh yeah like the sig says bring the Home folder to the ipod!
Click to expand...

i am totally in favor of a calculator on the iPod. besides that, hooking a DV camcorder up to it and using that instead of a tape. like the belkin thing, only for video instead of audio.

other things too like maybe a little more viewing customization for the now playing screen, tetris, and the home folder on the iPod feature.
 
Re: ARM vs PPC

Originally posted by TMay
I understand the attraction of ARM, but, IBM recently demoed a PDA platform (linux) using the 440LP PPC. So, I'm asking why we can't have a stripped down OSX on these embedded PPC's and develop apps in AppleScript Studio, Java, Cocoa or whatever.
Click to expand...

For the audio iPod, Apple went with ARM because that's the architecture the PortalPlayer chips use. The design and packaging are all Apple, but they deliberately chose to use off-the-shelf components where they could.

Given where Apple have been buying their iPod guts, this page should offer some pretty good hints about what later versions will look like.
 
Originally posted by ImageMaker
Won't work without the color screen. See my second paragraph. The whole idea is to be able to travel without a computer. But it is critical to be able to inspect for dust on your sensor periodically. A spec of dust on your sensor will be on every image thereafter and is a real PITA to Photoshop out of each frame.

Of course, it would work if you are using a low end digicam without interchangeable lenses.
Click to expand...
You're mixing up 2 things here for the photographer - portability versus total information. If one must be away from a computer for a week or two, then why would having to retouch every photo be a problem? Do you even have ONE photo that doesn't need some sort of digital darkroom work? I can't think of one in my 30 years of shooting.

So while a color screen might seem nice, it's small size wold merely be another complaint. Remember, it's a light and portable versus bulky and comprehensive tradeoff. Once you start replicating a laptop, then why not use a laptop?

As a photographer I have an old mind@work unit as part of my kit - a 10GB hard drive set up from 3 years ago that allowed uploading of photos while travelling light. No display at all.

Is it the ideal rig? No.

Do I often take it versus my laptop to save 10 lb. (w/ the laptop gear)? Yes.
 
Originally posted by nagromme
Sony makes LCD glasses that create a virtual big-screen TV several feet in front of you. It can be transparent, or it can block out everything if you wish. They come in TV and VGA-connected versions. (The VGA one can be a computer display--but only 800x600 I think.)

They're expensive and the quality's not great. But they COULD one day make portable video doable with an iPod!

Meanwhile--a Tetris clone, please! Wheel to move left/right, button to rotate. the fast-drop option isn't vital.

And a grayscale visualizer would be fun.

I also think image-viewing would be practical, added to Notes maybe. You could view driving maps saved from Mapquest for instance, or show photos to someone in grasycale. Video doesn't seem as useful.
Click to expand...

yeah, i had a pair of those for a while. its called Glasstron, and it sucks horribly. you cant see through the display no matter what any advertisements say. and the lcd screens are so small, and magnified so huge in the glasses, the pixels look like the size of my head. basically a low resolution color Virtual Boy (if you remember what that was)
 
Originally posted by bennetsaysargh
i am totally in favor of a calculator on the iPod. besides that, hooking a DV camcorder up to it and using that instead of a tape. like the belkin thing, only for video instead of audio.

other things too like maybe a little more viewing customization for the now playing screen, tetris, and the home folder on the iPod feature.
Click to expand...

i was talking with somebody else about this earlier. you cant capture straight onto an ipod from a camera unless you've got a 7200rpm drive in that 'pod. full raw dv is bigger than you may realize.
 
Re: The video iPod

Originally posted by Penman
Here's why the video iPod will happen. Definately. no question.

Videos.

The record companies have mountains of very expensive videos they've never made any money from. With a video iPod they can sell the videos (and other footage) for an additional fee. It's the new revenuw stream the record business is dying for. Now they've realized the power of digital content they'd be insane not to monetize the content that MTV refuses to play. Suddenly every playlist is a TV channel and with a wire (or not) you can stream it all to your TV or stereo.

Screens are now good to go (look at the 2.5 inch job on the Sony T1 digicam) and Apple might even choose what I call 'viewfinder video' to save battery life. It'd be like looking into a camera and you'd have an eyepiece and a tiny high res screen (again see the latest digicams). The iPod as a display device doesn't have to go along with video content.

Personally I think they'll use video as an excuse to go to the cheaper, faster, higher capacity 2.5 inch drives and just hide the size increase with the addition of a screen.

If you don't want video you'll still have your iPod mini. Convergence is so 90's. Everyone I know has an iPod a cell phone and a camera. The interfaces are too dissimilar to make one device the perfect solution for all three. Look at the iPod itself. It only (really) does music but people love it because it does it well. Apple will add functionality but will resist going too far. It's more profitable to sell you another device than one that tries to do everything in a medioccre way. Apple are the interface company after all (if it wasn't for Panther and hardware design I'd be writing this on a cheaper, faster notebook).

I'm not wrong about this. Trust me ;-)
Click to expand...

i disagree. as much as i'm a fan of iTMS, the rest of the world isnt quite up to speed. selling videos online just wouldnt work right now. and only the super-techie nerds like ourselves would even give a rip about watching music videos on a 2 inch screen with earbuds. the small amount of people who would even care dont offset the huge costs in launching such a system.

the ipod plays music, and it plays music extremely well. the ipod will have graphic EQs, internal FM transmitters, and maybe even XM radio recievers before it'll have video capability with an online video-iTMS.
 
Re: Re: The video iPod

Originally posted by Engagebot
i disagree. as much as i'm a fan of iTMS, the rest of the world isnt quite up to speed.
Click to expand...

I've got to disagree. I've been personally involved in coming up with some of the most successful online sales models and you're not seeing the market because it doesn't exist.

It's the argument against NetFlix (and I was in some of those conversations) "No one will wait 3 days for a movie when there's a blockbuster on every corner."

They do. Lots of them. Video's are there now, kids love TV. The display on an iPod can be trivial. With wireless connectivity and better display devices (like TV's) people will buy - in the same way they buy DVD's but most people can only watch them in one location. While your on the move your video files will be treated like audio by most people, most of the time (the display won't even be on unless you want it). When you do - or have a bigger screen to plug into, bingo.

Think protable TIVO (and with enough capacity there's no reason the ViPod couldn't share some of that capability too).

Though I'm a nerd (ish) I don't use iTMS because the file quality isn't worth my money over a CD I can buy for almost the same price. When we can go lossless into devices these compressed files will be seen for what they are by people into quality.
 
Originally posted by Engagebot
i was talking with somebody else about this earlier. you cant capture straight onto an ipod from a camera unless you've got a 7200rpm drive in that 'pod. full raw dv is bigger than you may realize.
Click to expand...

well, i can dream, can't i?
😉

now that i think about it, it would also be pretty inconvenient unless the camera was made by a company and they had it running attached like an iTrip to the iPod. maybe they couold work on some way, and you can hook an iSight up to it for budding film makers, hook it up to your mac, load iMovie, and edit. not exactly the best quality, but still.
 
Re: Re: Re: The video iPod

Originally posted by Penman
I've got to disagree. I've been personally involved in coming up with some of the most successful online sales models and you're not seeing the market because it doesn't exist.
Click to expand...

so what exactly are you responsible for creating?

there's no way they're going to put up a video type iTMS. if this caught on in any kind of big way that would even warrant this whole system being devleoped, we dont have the bandwidth capability for consumers to be downloading 30MB files in the quantity it would take to keep this system afloat.

unlimited real video rentals online from netflix is one thing. people buy and actually use DVDs. but purchasing download music videos for your 2" ipod screen is not going to work. at least not for a few years.

and another thing. you'll never have a super-small compressed lossless file format for super-complex analog signals. thats a contradiction in terms. yes they're getting good and small, but you'll never have tiny and lossless. you cant create data from nowhere.
 
Tiny and lossless?

True - tiny and lossless is impossible. I can't tell you who I am or too much detail because I don't want to get into any trouble. Let it be said that I have a degree in Physics and understand compression to a reasonable technical level.

Small and lossless is fine (look at Zip utilities for the state of the art) and storage is getting cheaper.

As for the iTMS - it can add video or not. Someone will. You'll be able to buy music only or music and video.

I'm surprized you find this hard to believe. It's easy to do and inevitable. People buy the weirdest things. Remember before DVD - who thought there was a market for movie making extras (for sale!) People pay $35 dollars to watch hours of film-making minutae that used to be only fit for the cheapest TV programming.

There's nothing technical or philisophical in the way of this. The devices already exist from other supplieres and the music industry's on the ropes. DVD will go HD and SD content will go downloadable. You'll have No Doubt and Sienfeld with you wherever you go.
 

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In the early/mid 90's there wasn't the bandwidth to move music digitally, consumer desktops could store about an hour or so of it and even the best laptops would struggle and only music nuts had 10,000 songs.
So I can only get 10 'good' quality movies on my top of the line powerbook now, like I could take a few tape/cd's on holiday before the iPod and even over reasonable broadband it takes a few hours to download one (no legal sites to do this - iTunesMovieStore?) but in 6-12 months this will look downright silly.

So ViPod =100 gig iPod is a dozen DVD quality movies, a screen of about the quality of a Palm T3 so I could watch it in the back of a car/bus/train/plane/waiting room/holiday resort/etc and a socket to put it on some mass display system and Apple have my £500. In less than a couple of years I'll be able to fold the screen and wear it as a watch...and it will hold move movies than I now own, I'll be able to watch whatever I fancy at the time not just what I thought I'd want to watch 2 weeks previously and I could download new ones with a single click.

This can only be the first stage but then so was the original iPod.
 
No Video Yes Pictures

I think they need add this type of functionallity to the iPod. Take it with you, plug it into your neighbors TV for a quick slide show. Use it to store your entire vacation instead of having piles of flash cards, make it fully compatable with iPhoto with USB2 and Firewire so you can plug your camera directly into it to download images and you'll be good to go

http://www2.dpreview.com/news/0401/04012802nikoncoolwalker.asp
 
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