Secret 4G iPod Features?

[mark_sloan]

No Wi-Fi, new type of dock maybe

There is nothing that I would think would be cooler than adding wi-fi and bluetooth to an iPod. But it isn't going to happen. With the new chip inside there could be the ability to record 48khz audio, but really I think the surprises will be with synching and a new dock.

A new dock could have an IR port for a remote and connect to Airport Express via 100 Base T and viola... you are now able to use the dock to navigate any iTunes on your network AND your iPod is now shared. They could do more with a special dock and do video or something, but I doubt it. What would be nice is if they did have video out and used the new dock to hook up to your TV and give you access to music, movies and photos from your network through the Air Express...

 

[Warbrain]

seriously, check the diagnostic menu on the 4G iPod. it might be there. i didn't read that anybody had yet, so let's get cracking on it and see what's there!

 

[The Cheat]

I remember hearing the same thing when i got my 1st gen and my 3rd gen..that some people's screens in fact did look slightly blue. I think it depends on the type of lighting around the pod. Both my backlights are white as ice. A slight tint of blue would be cool, but oh well.

Actually, I have a 3G iPod and its screen is as blue as, um, the sky? I'm not 100% sure butI think I remember hearing that some had white backlights and some had blue backlights because they had two sources for the screens, and depending on which was used in your ipod, it was either white or blue.

What I am sure about, though, is that blue screen iPods, as well as the people who own them, are much, much cooler.

 

[SiliconAddict]

I'm still holding fast to the notion that the reason we haven't seen or had an announcement of a 60Gb iPod is because this high end iPod is going to be diff then the rest just as the iPod Mini is different from the reg iPod. A diff iPod might require a diff firmware which Apple might standardize across the board.
At least I hope that's the reason. Other then the Jobs grudge thing.

 

[mvc]

We are stunned that mvc has adopted the tactics and ethics of a hacker to break into the One And Only Real True iPhone(R)

Ahhah thats laugh, can't read every thread I guess, but now I've seen it I think yours looks like an older generation dial, so maybe mine IS the update!

 

[zim]

I think that the key to the comment is this, "...its really compelling applications — the ones that very well might get the goat of anyone unable or unwilling to upgrade — are still secret."

Could be home on the iPod, could be a calculator... but I think it has to do with application development.

 

[Porchland]

OK, I'll fess up.

I think that the key to the comment is this, "...its really compelling applications — the ones that very well might get the goat of anyone unable or unwilling to upgrade — are still secret."

Could be home on the iPod, could be a calculator... but I think it has to do with application development.

It's actually GOAT porn. That's the new killer app.

 

[tex210]

the ipod is growing up!

I thought about it from the viewpoint of simplicity. The buttons are gone. the surface is clean. Everyone wants home in/on the iPod.... sounds better than users.. work?...you just take it with you. Drop your 4g iPod into your new G5 iMac that has a kind of dock built in (Perhaps the dock isn't even built in but remains seperate?). Your iPod is the hard drive. Now a heat issue has been removed entirely from the enclosure of a consumer/ education/ buisiness terminal. Every incoming freshman gets an iPod. plug it into a laptop., Home. the cost difference for all those people who have already purchased the iPod ....no need for another hard drive. Bring the cost down for those people and you are free to redesign the iMac. A pc with a removable "core". It leads into an investment in a machine that is their next logical purchase to extend their iPod life. Video at home, or in the car for the kids... in the backseat please. Seriously guys... don't drive watching video! As bad as dwi. It's deadly.
The iMac is going to become even more consumer friendly!


not that anyone will read this post apparently...

 

[SiliconAddict]

I think that the key to the comment is this, "...its really compelling applications — the ones that very well might get the goat of anyone unable or unwilling to upgrade — are still secret."

Could be home on the iPod, could be a calculator... but I think it has to do with application development.

The problem with that idea is that the scroll wheel is hardly a decent means to control an application other then well scrolling. I mean for contacts, music, maybe internet anything that does lists its good otherwise eh...not so much.
I don't think this is app development. They said applications which would suggest something built in. Any reverse engineers in the crowd? someone needs to do a ROM dump and see what's up. Whatever it is it’s a good bet its not going to be Mac specific. The iPod has been moving away from having any one feature tied to a platform so whatever it is probably will work on Windows and Mac.
I’m going to dig up my other idea that I had a while ago. On the go iTunes purchases through WIFI.
Lets say you are sitting at the airport and are sitting in the bar. On the boob tube a song comes on that you like. You whip out your 60GB iPod and log into the local WIFI network. Or you whip out the WIFI attachment that plugs into the bottom of your iPod. The plugin has a small ROM that stores your various WIFI settings. Since you’ve been in that airport before it just picks it up. The iPod recognizes the WIFI attachment and enables this “hidden” feature. iTunes Music Store to Go. It downloads the list of artists on iTunes and caches it on your iPod (Less times it has to access the net the better batt life.) You can browse iTMS like you browse your local list. You can browse, preview, and purchase. When you purchase, either an album or a track it downloads it to the local disk and simply uploads it to your computer next time you sync.

 

[zim]

I thought about it from the viewpoint of simplicity. The buttons are gone. the surface is clean. Everyone wants home in/on the iPod.... sounds better than users.. work?...you just take it with you. Drop your 4g iPod into your new G5 iMac that has a kind of dock built in (Perhaps the dock isn't even built in but remains seperate?). Your iPod is the hard drive. Now a heat issue has been removed entirely from the enclosure of a consumer/ education/ buisiness terminal. Every incoming freshman gets an iPod. plug it into a laptop., Home. the cost difference for all those people who have already purchased the iPod ....no need for another hard drive. Bring the cost down for those people and you are free to redesign the iMac. A pc with a removable "core". It leads into an investment in a machine that is their next logical purchase to extend their iPod life. Video at home, or in the car for the kids... in the backseat please. Seriously guys... don't drive watching video! As bad as dwi. It's deadly.
The iMac is going to become even more consumer friendly!


not that anyone will read this post apparently...

I like this idea but, wouldn't it limit the special usage to iMac owners, which would be great for me

 

[reorx]

Well, I thought the original poster's complaint was exactly this issue; that is, the battery is always draining no matter what you do. He wanted to be able to turn it off completly so it won't drain power, which you can not do right now.

Because its standby allows the iPod to respond to user input nearly immediately, just like a PowerBook. This is a good thing, because a cold boot on an iPod and PowerBook (and any other computer which accesses a disk on boot) uses tons of power, and takes a bit of time... How would you like to wait for your iPod to boot every time you wanted to listen to music? Not me...

Edit: Dangit, I need to read all the posts before repeating a repetitive, redundant reply...

 

[dontmatter]

People are too stuck on the whole Bluetooth/WiFi iPod concept. The Hidden Features are going to tap into the newly approved Wireless Firewire Standards.

Remember that Steve Jobs hinted that Apple was already working on the whole "remote control thing" for the Airport Extreme? Well the 4G iPod and the Airport Extreme are a package but work differently than some expect. The 4G iPod, when connected to iTunes on a Mac or PC with a Wireless Firewire adapter, turns into a Wireless Remote that can control the iTunes library residing on the Mac/PC and stream music out over AirTunes. The music is streamed from the computer and not the iPod. The iPod is simply a user interface to control the entire system.

The iPod is an extension of the Digital Hub and not the central unit...

Much better would be if it could broadcast or just control the computer. If the computer is out of range of the stereo, or you're using this outside of your own house or some other place where the computer you synch your ipod to isn't there, is off, or doesn't have wireless, it would be able to broadcast on it's own. On the other hand, it would have major advantages by working in remote mode for battery power, using the computer as a wi-fi bridge to extend the range, and best of all, if it could use rendevous to browse and play shared music. Then, it could also be a bridge from computer to stereo. But shared music, broadcast wirelessly and controlled by your ipod-remote would be AWESOME. Then, in the next version, they could throw in itms browsability, so you could go, oooh, I want that song! and get it from your ipod. And, this would be as a remote, so you're computer does it, and you don't have to expose your credit card info to the airwaves.

And then an FM radio built in, too!!! Please already!!! (I realize most radio is horrendous, but not home here in seattle) (of course, internet radio, browsable by the ipod, and played from your computer through your stereo, wouldn't be a bad alternative.)

 

[brn2prgrm]

seriously, check the diagnostic menu on the 4G iPod. it might be there. i didn't read that anybody had yet, so let's get cracking on it and see what's there!

I've played with the debug menu and there isn't much in there. The only new things are mainly battery info, and a debug thing that detects when your headphones are plugged in, and whether the hold switch is on/off, there's also a button test option and a ram test option. If you wanna try it yourself, reset your ipod (hold menu+select), release when it goes blank, and then startup in debug mode (hold previous+select.)

 

[dontmatter]

I'm too lazy to refind the guy (or girl) to quote, but here's the question- yeah, wheel sucks for anything but lists.... but, the ipod still has five buttons, and two more effectively with the wheel (scroll up and down... obviously there are as many buttons with a list as the list is long, but that takes precision, and the idea here is button... so up and down). Using these, apple could probably design some interface that wouldn't be quite as nice as having a full keyboard and number pad, but if really well designed.... could allow a few more options than a simple lists compounded on lists would. Then again, now I realize I shouldn't have said any of this, b/c if you created some area of the ipod based on using all the buttons and stuff, you'd also have an area where hitting skip, or play/pause, wouldn't do anything that makes any sense. Which would be sad.

 

[chewbaccapits]

I lived in Sweden in third grade ('91) and went to MalmaSkolan in Uppsala.

Anyhow for the juicy info, my friend from Woodside, California just e-mailed me a leak of an Apple press release (it is apparently a memo from Steve Jobs to someone named Bob):

CUPERTINO, California—August 5, 2004—On July 19, Apple® introduced the new iPod®, the fourth generation of the world’s number one portable digital music player, featuring Apple’s patent pending Click Wheel, which combines the smooth and continuous scrolling of a touch-sensitive wheel with five push buttons for superior one handed navigation. The new iPod also features up to 12 hours battery life and Shuffle Songs, a new command in the main menu which gives users instant access to one of the most exciting new ways to listen to their music library.

Today Apple is proud to announce that there is more than music inside the new generation of iPods. Today Apple announces the "Yes! I've Got a Golden Ticket!" promotion to coincide with Tim Burton's 2005 release of Charlie and the Chocolate factory. Five iPods will be produced that contain golden tickets inside. One has already been sold, and the other four will be released randomly as the release of Charlie and the Chocolate factory nears.

Although there is actually a gold leaf ticket inside five iPods, it is possible to determine if your iPod is a winner via a key combination which will show an icon of a golden ticket if you are a winner. Any user with a golden ticket who has physically opened the iPod will be disqualified. Instructions on a key combination to determine if you are a winner will be given out at an undisclosed time, and at undisclosed event. The golden leaf ticket, with a very unique design, will be used as proof of ownership.

The five lucky winners face a fate perhaps more magical than Charlie's; they will tour the Apple Campus with Steve Jobs himself and learn about all the new technologies Apple is hard at work creating.

---Ok Bob, that's the "vision thing" idea; make it happen! I had some ideas for some of our world famous slogans:

THE MINIMIZE BUTTON TASTES LIKE A MINIMIZE BUTTON
BUT I WANT MY FOURTH GENERATION IPOD NOW, DADDY
...ahh just get chiat on it, thx....

Apple ignited the personal computer revolution in the 1970s with the Apple II and reinvented the personal computer in the 1980s with the Macintosh. Today, Apple continues to lead the industry in innovation with its award-winning desktop and notebook computers, OS X operating system, and iLife and professional applications. Apple is also spearheading the digital music revolution with its iPod portable music players and iTunes online music store.

What a great post....Glad you didn't post retarted jokes like, "the new feature is a stun gun or satellite tracker"....There has been about a handful of sorry attempts for the same joke but for some reason it has yet to capture the LOL monster....Beside that, people are focusing way too much on this on/off switch; Stop posting about it all ready...Anyway, swinger, this post was very funny but man, that would be hella cool..."I got a golden ticket!!"....classic.

 

[Warbrain]

I've played with the debug menu and there isn't much in there. The only new things are mainly battery info, and a debug thing that detects when your headphones are plugged in, and whether the hold switch is on/off, there's also a button test option and a ram test option. If you wanna try it yourself, reset your ipod (hold menu+select), release when it goes blank, and then startup in debug mode (hold previous+select.)

can't. i'm at a 3Gen. iPod. 10 GB. plus, i already know how to do that, and i have already gone through one iPod because of the diagnostic menu.

 

[appleface]

it sounds like apple has kept it secret again. the best insight i've seen is that the pod pauses when the headphones are unplugged.

 

[jacobj]

This is the one thing that annoys the heck out of me ever since the first iPod. That the thing doesn't have an ON/OFF switch. Drains the batteries needlessly (because it takes a while before it goes into standby) and also screws you over big time if your iPod crashes on the road with no Mac/PC nearby to reset it. Never heard of iPod crashing, yes it does that every once in a while, at least for me when it has problems reading a track. Locks up and doesn't react to any input from the buttons anymore, and no ON/OFF switch to reset it!
C'mon Apple, its just a simple button/switch!
Regards,

Ahmed (owner of a 1st Gen iPod)

Please tell me that you know to hold down the menu and play buttons simultaneously to reset to iPod? It's like a restart on a mac or PC.

 

[zpapasmurf]

What if they offered a wifi addon that had its own slot for say, an AA, or AAA battery to power itself?

 

[appleface]

NEW IDEA

a new feature of the 4G is that you can slow or speed audio books without changing the pitch. maybe you can apply this technology to songs. i'm not a DJ, but wouldn't that would make DJing with an ipod easier?

this would also incorporate other posters' ideas about the 60gb ipod carrying "pro" features. i know everyone rants about needing a 150 gb ipod for the music that they claim to listen to every week, but i can see that a DJ might actually "need" 60 gb of space. i don't know that everyone would use this ap, so maybe this is a bad idea, but i thought of it, so i posted it (run-on sentence? yes).

the propods could even have an inner and an outer scroll wheel for controlling two songs at once. okay, i'm going a little crazy with this idea.

 

[kwikdeth]

DV bridge?

How about this? Does anyone see a connection between the new feature in iTunes for watching movie trailers to the "hidden features"?, perhaps tie into a more highly featured dock? Hear me out on this...Ive read a few places how the new chipset in the 4G iPod can handle video. I assume this would mean output, but would it be possible for you to import video as well? Products like EyeTV have been gaining popularity for a while now, enough that people are starting to take notice. I'm sure Steve has TIVO and probably loves it...The way TIVO has exploded... that's a really hot ticket and given Steve's whole vision for the "digital hub"....
So what if the new features are actually a TIVO-like ability, when paired with a new A/V dock, to record your favorite TV programs directly into the iPod... then, take the iPod over to your mac, and edit your stuff together in iMovie and iDVD. Then, hook it back up to your TV to watch your edited project or record it onto videotape (for the old-skoolers Or that also the new A/V dock comes with a remote, so you can use the TIVO features on iPod in real-time, just like TIVO (after all, that's half the point)

so perhaps in a month or two, we'll get our 60gb iPods, along with the new A/V dock, turning every 4G iPod into a TIVO as well. (and you know that if Apple is doing this, they are going to do it in suc.... ****, it just hit me.... iTV!

60GB iPods and the new iTV. Turn your 4G iPod into a home digital video recorder and a whole lot more.

(im really going to go whole-hog on this)
iPod AV dock

full complement of composite and s-video input/output. Component video output. Line-Level RCA audio input and output. Digital audio input and output. Connect the iPod AV Dock to your firewire and DVD-equipped Macintosh, and watch DVDs on your home theater system in full DTS and Dolby Digital surround-sound. Schedule your favorite TV programs to record with Apple's new iTV software. Control the real-time AV features of iPod and iTV with the new Apple Bluetooth Remote. With the AV Dock's bluetooth and wi-fi capabilities, you can stream songs to or from the AV dock or iPod, so your computer doesn't even have to be in the same room to schedule your programs or transfer video to/from iPod AV Dock.



(things i think help back this all up:
-someone mentioned 4G iPod showed "do not disconnect" when plugged into Airport Express's USB port.
-rumors around time of 3G introduction of a "Pro Dock" for what was said then to be DJ/musican-related purposes
-Airport express. duh!
-trailers in iTunes.


so call me crazy. but i think this theory holds a fair amount of water.

 

[Counterfit]

I would assume that the remote from the 3G works just fine on the 4G. But, what if there's a new remote coming out, with a small LCD display? That's something I've been wanting for a while now...

 

[krohde]

Two questions:

Because of the click wheel can you still reset the iPod by holding down play and menu? i thought the wheel only allowed one of the four to be depressed at a time.

Second, has anybody started making new cases for the 4th gens yet? I had an iSkin and loved it, but they haven't got a 4th gen yet that I've seen...

To reset the new 4G ipod you need to hold the menu button down + the middle button.

And with regards to the difference in screen color, here's the deal: Blue screens are on iPods produced in China and white backlight is Taiwanese production. Don't ask me why they are different colors, thats also a mystery to me too, but the country of production determines your background light color.

The ONE thing i am still waiting for is a remote and headphones with shorter cords. Just do it like Sony - have good length on the remote control but keep the damn headphone cord short - just enough to go from the middle of your body and around the neck one the right earbud. You look like the cable guy when you have all those cords hanging and dangling from your body. If and when this comes out I will actually use the remote. Until then I discretely hide the headphone cord under my shirt and leave the remote at home. Come on Apple, think logical!

 

[comictimes]

As long as we're talking about completely unrealistic possibilities, I'll say that there should be simple 3d downloadable games which could be played with a small keypad (sold seperately for a mere $15!) wouldn't that be interesting...

 

[ArticulatedArm]

The equivalent of Isight for the Ipod, "Ihear"?

Walkie Talkie function?

Would also allow audio in.

It would be awsome if anywhere you go your Ipod could pickup all the other Ipods with walkie talkie function and you could select which one you wanted to talk to using the scroll wheel.

Would be great for social situations -- clubs/Bars/parties.

It also seems a very "mac-ish" idea.