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OS X Based iPods at Media Event in September?

knelto said:
It just dawned on me that the iPod could have the virtual click wheel interface AND the iPhone like flick scrolling. You could just pick your preference under Settings or something. Didn't occur to me until just now. That could satisfy both parties and is as easy as a software switch.
Click to expand...

Now that you mentioned it flicking is really a who handed operation since it is done best with an index finger. Scrolling using a circular motion can be done with the thumb from the hand holding the device, and is much more quicker and efficient than flicking too. That is important since iPods have always been designed to be used with hand and controlled using the thumb only.

Damn Apple are geniuses :apple::apple::apple::apple:
 
Chundles said:
Not going to happen. They ditched it for good reasons. One, it made financial sense to cut out components that the vast majority (?) of users wouldn't need. Two, it allowed them to shrink the device substantially(?).
Click to expand...
I think you are really, really, really, really, overstating your case here. :)

FireWire is only useless to people that have PC's that don't support FireWire, whereas all Apple computers have for years and years. FireWire is much faster than USB in practice and a better standard all around. It should be the preferred connection for any device wanting to regularly transfer gigabytes of files, and also would not add much at all to the internal volume of any device if it replaced the similar components already there for USB.

Apple made the decision to drop FireWire from the iPods when USB 2.0 came out and all the other PC manufacturers stupidly failed to even bother supporting FireWire because the reported speed of USB 2.0 was supposed to be the same. While FireWire was much faster in practice, USB 2.0 was cheaper and once all the cheap PC makers jumped on it Apple had switch so as to make the iPod available for Windows users.

That was the main decision, make a better device, or make a slightly crappier slower device that can be used on Windows as well as Mac. FireWire is still faster than USB and the FireWire 800 spec twice as fast as that.
 
Ok, so we'll have an iPod with touch, and a square metallic nano. Are they just gonna let the shuffle stay the same?
 
P.B. said:
Am I the only one who thinks "four new models" is meant as in:
- 2 nanos (8 and 16 gb)
- 2 video (40 and 100 gb)

and not:
- new nanos
- new iPod
- new shuffle
- new iPhone nano (or iPod video nano or whatever)
Click to expand...
I don't think you're the only one, but it sure is a depressing line-up if that's the case.

I would hope it's something like this:

- 2 new iPod "Touch" (two diff. sizes of RAM)
- fatPod/squarePod whatever, (yawn)
- iPhone nano (like a current nano, but with phone function)

In the case of the 2 top models, I think everyone is forgetting the patents they recently filed on WiFi for iPods with sharing. I am expecting that the new "iPhone like" iPods will have social music sharing functions that put Zune to shame, as well as a lot of cool graphic capabilities. I would hope that the reason they are thicker than iPhone is the really decent speakers they have in the back, and a nice little cradle so you can set it up on the table like a TV set.

Mostly I am still hoping against hope for the iPhone nano in the original candybar format. In my vision this would be a cheap-ass, pay as you go phone that could be mass produced and used on any network you like. I mostly hope this as I live in Canada and there is just no way we are getting iPhone up here for years until the evil Rogers Corporation (Canada's version of AT&T), reduces their prices by 200%.
 
Much Ado said:
Why? Multi-touch is only useful when you have a variety of different interfaces.

An iPod needs a click wheel because it basically does one function- and a tactile interface is an important part of that (controlling music in your bag, pocket etc.)
Click to expand...
Have you heard of something called "CoverFlow"?
It's designed for flipping through albums of this stuff called "Music." :rolleyes:

Apple would be crucified in the media if at none of the new iPods have a touch screen like the iPhone. They would lose millions in stock value alone, they simply have to do this, no question.

I'm thinking they will be expensive though and thus the crappy little "fatPod" with the clickwheel, which will hopefully be cheap enough to offset it's intense ugliness.
 
homeboy said:
Now that you mentioned it flicking is really a who handed operation since it is done best with an index finger. Scrolling using a circular motion can be done with the thumb from the hand holding the device, and is much more quicker and efficient than flicking too. That is important since iPods have always been designed to be used with hand and controlled using the thumb only.

Damn Apple are geniuses :apple::apple::apple::apple:
Click to expand...
I think some people are forgetting about this thing:
 

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zedsdead said:
He was also pretty adamant at the iPhone launch at how the Mouse made the computer great, the Click Wheel made the iPod great, and how the Touch Screen will make the iPhone great...many people may be disappointed....
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You could be right, but the great Steve also said something to the effect of "sometimes change is hard but necessary" and went on for quite a bit about "touching your music" while he giggled like a schoolgirl.

Also, Apple is putting CoverFlow at the centre of everything, including the entire OS in Leopard. The only "real" implementation of it, (or arguably the best implementation of it), is on the iPhone with the touchscreen. This was referred to time and time again as "The best iPod we have ever made."

I don't think it's even thinkable that they would make the new iPods "The second best iPods ever made."
 
who wants to guess the event will be September 18th? Current buy a mac get an ipod deal ends sunday the 16th
 
Multimedia said:
I'll be buying two of the top of the line Video iPod the day it ships - one for me and one for my son.
Click to expand...

Amen.

I'll be buying whatever their most expensive model is, the day it comes out, simply because i've been waiting for over a year to get a video iPod with a screen larger than 2.5".
 
Wayfarer said:
Cool, I forgot the current iPod shuffle had a previous incarnation. Ahh... how I love that little iPod remote. :cool:
Click to expand...

I actually do use that thing to listen to the radio. I hope they finally get around to letting us tune in without having to buy an accessory.
 
Wow. Tool cool. I don't care if they have 160 GB hard drives. If Apple make it - I will buy it!

Too cool.
 
I think Apple is gonna blow us away with these iPods.

The iPhone is a phone, and anything else that it does is a bonus on top of the connectivity features.

The iPod has always been Apple's main focus in the portable media player market, and if including Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, Safari, and a 1.3 Megapixel camera in their next iPod will increase sales by alot, then they will do it.

The only thing the iPod will never do, is come with a phone plan. It won't get online via AT&T or any other mobile carrier, because it isn't a phone. But they'll do everything else they possibly can with it. The more the better.
 
Don Bagles said:
The iPod has always been Apple's main focus in the portable media player market, and if including Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, Safari, and a 1.3 Megapixel camera in their next iPod will increase sales by alot, then they will do it.
Click to expand...

I can say that you can forget about Safari in the iPod any time the coming 18 months. Apple always takes one thing at the time and do it correct. The iPod is now in the process of becoming a "perfect" media device.

When that is done and mastered it be turned into a communication device. Forget about a camera too since it doesn't add anything to the music/video experience.

WiFi is highly unlikely this year but very much not out of the question since Apple might want to turn it into a Frontrow/iTune remote control.
 
how would having an osx based ipod take away from iphone sales? if anything, it should help iphone sales in the long run.

some kid gets sick of having his Razr AND his OSXipod in his pocket and decides to sell both and get an iphone LATER at the end of his Verizon contract.

in the end, i think an osx ipod could promote the iphone's convergence of technologies.
 
1dterbeest said:
how would having an osx based ipod take away from iphone sales?
Click to expand...


I think people are in general over excited about OS X iPod. Just because it will it doesn't mean that you'll be able to install firefox on Photoshop on the iPod. OS X or not it will be a media player and not a handheld iMac.
 
1dterbeest said:
how would having an osx based ipod take away from iphone sales?
Click to expand...

I'd like to throw my 2 cents worth in here. I think I'm an example of how an iPod Touch could take away sales from the iPhone. Right now I have a 5.5G iPod and my phone is a Moto Q with Sprint. I would love to have an iPhone but have another year and a half left on my Sprint contract (I have four lines). I plan on getting an iPhone probably around the end of the year and have two contracts for a year (I can actually drop one of my lines next February) UNLESS Apple were to introduce a device that had all or most of the capabilities of the iPhone but not with the phone part of it. In that case, I'd just stay with Sprint and my Moto Q and get the new iPod Touch (if that is what it is called). On the other hand, unless there is a significant improvement in the iPod itself (and just a larger video screen and album flow won't do it), I'll probably skip upgrading my iPod and just wait and get the iPhone towards the end of the year. Either way Apple is going to get either an iPhone sell out of me or an iPod Touch sell (but not both).
 
@WolfPackFan

I agree with your sentiments, as I am in a similar situation, but I think your reasoning is exactly why they WILL release an iPod with WiFi Safari and Mail. If your reasoning is correct, that they wont release a phone-less-iPhone-like-iPod, because they fear cannibalizing iPhone sales, they are leaving out a huge section of the market, like you and I, who want the touchscreen internet surfing glory of the iPhone, but either can't or simply dont want to leave our current cell phone providers. While I think Apple does want to take over the cellphone market, at the same time, I think its ridiculous to assume that Apple intends the world to switch over to AT&T. And currently Apple is in a fairly lengthy exclusive contract with AT&T, severely limiting their potential buyer's market.

If I were Apple, on Sept 5th, I would blow the world away by releasing the iPhone technology to everyone who can't/won't switch providers. "Keep your cell phone service, but don't miss out on the touch revolution. Experience your music, movies, pictures, and internet with your fingertips with Apple's very own Mac Os X and Safari."

Now, instead of competing in the very small market of people looking for a new phone and willing to switch providers and pay for a 2 year contract, they are competing in a much larger market of people with/without phones, of kids, teenagers, businessmen, grandparents, all over the world (not just the US) without being tethered and limited by phone use.

And for those who say the new iPod wont have internet because the iPod is a media device, not a communications device... The internet is vastly becoming the premier way to absorb media! YouTube, streaming shows by network television, Flickr, iTunes, internet radio, CNN, ESPN, Fox News... I can go on and on.

Furthermore, I think everyone will agree when I say that the iPhone was designed as a convergence device. They bundled three things into one, so you dont have to carry around three different devices. Now why is everyone expecting Apple to limit their potential sales to a huge market in order to still convince a very small section of the market to buy three different devices? That just doesn't make much sense to me.

While of course all of this is pure speculation, and I may end up eating my words, I truly think the iPhone was a testing ground to see how the world would respond to the amazing technology. Of course Apple knew they were selling to a limited market and what better way to test the waters to see the demand of the entire technological world? Now is the time for Apple to truly reinvent the iPod, the device that saved the company, and the device that continues to provide lasting positive effects as well as a substantial portion of their total revenue. Already the iPod was noted to create a halo effect
of switchers to the Mac platform. Now they can not only sell their simplicity and design, they can also give the world a taste of Mac Os X and Safari!
 
TaKashMoney said:
@WolfPackFan

I agree with your sentiments, as I am in a similar situation, but I think your reasoning is exactly why they WILL release an iPod with WiFi Safari and Mail. If your reasoning is correct, that they wont release a phone-less-iPhone-like-iPod, because they fear cannibalizing iPhone sales, they are leaving out a huge section of the market, like you and I, who want the touchscreen internet surfing glory of the iPhone, but either can't or simply dont want to leave our current cell phone providers. While I think Apple does want to take over the cellphone market, at the same time, I think its ridiculous to assume that Apple intends the world to switch over to AT&T. And currently Apple is in a fairly lengthy exclusive contract with AT&T, severely limiting their potential buyer's market.

If I were Apple, on Sept 5th, I would blow the world away by releasing the iPhone technology to everyone who can't/won't switch providers. "Keep your cell phone service, but don't miss out on the touch revolution. Experience your music, movies, pictures, and internet with your fingertips with Apple's very own Mac Os X and Safari."

Now, instead of competing in the very small market of people looking for a new phone and willing to switch providers and pay for a 2 year contract, they are competing in a much larger market of people with/without phones, of kids, teenagers, businessmen, grandparents, all over the world (not just the US) without being tethered and limited by phone use.

And for those who say the new iPod wont have internet because the iPod is a media device, not a communications device... The internet is vastly becoming the premier way to absorb media! YouTube, streaming shows by network television, Flickr, iTunes, internet radio, CNN, ESPN, Fox News... I can go on and on.

Furthermore, I think everyone will agree when I say that the iPhone was designed as a convergence device. They bundled three things into one, so you dont have to carry around three different devices. Now why is everyone expecting Apple to limit their potential sales to a huge market in order to still convince a very small section of the market to buy three different devices? That just doesn't make much sense to me.

While of course all of this is pure speculation, and I may end up eating my words, I truly think the iPhone was a testing ground to see how the world would respond to the amazing technology. Of course Apple knew they were selling to a limited market and what better way to test the waters to see the demand of the entire technological world? Now is the time for Apple to truly reinvent the iPod, the device that saved the company, and the device that continues to provide lasting positive effects as well as a substantial portion of their total revenue. Already the iPod was noted to create a halo effect
of switchers to the Mac platform. Now they can not only sell their simplicity and design, they can also give the world a taste of Mac Os X and Safari!
Click to expand...

Excellent write up and you bring up some very interesting aspects of todays internet/music experience. Being able to stream or save youtube movies on an iPod WiFi is really the future. That will really attract the masses to the big iPod.

Downloading RSS feeds and then reading them on the bus is also a dream which isn't distant.

Not to mention a remote Wifi connect with an iPod and iTunes which would allow users wirelessly sync with their computer or use the iPod as a wireless remote to control iTunes or Front Row. Heck I would even image streaming videos and music from a computer to iPod which sitting in an A/V dock connected to a TV-set.

WiFi opens up a world of possibilities for the iPod and I guess that we'll see it within a year. iPhone cannibalisation? Very likely but don't forget that iPods are sold world wide which the iPhone isn't.

One difference though is that iPod internet communication will probably only be one way and mostly related to music and video. While the iPhone allow you to communicate.
 
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