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Apple Releases New Touch Screen iPod

Posted by ryuzaki0 on from the apple-loans-to-afford-all-the-new-toys-coming-soon dept.

JSM writes to tell us that Apple released a new version of their popular iPod music player today that boasts, among other things, an iPhone-like touch screen and Wi-Fi capabilities. "The iPod Touch will feature the Safari Internet browser and, like the iPhone, play YouTube videos. Apple also announced a new version of its iTunes music store that will allow users to buy songs wirelessly. iTunes will also sell customizable 99-cent ringtones for the iPhone."

19 of 866 comments (clear)

  1. Re:argh by psychicsword · · Score: 4, Interesting

    I have one thing to say... Gmail

  2. Will it be able to run the same 3rd party apps.... by Joe+The+Dragon · · Score: 5, Interesting

    Will it be able to run the same 3rd party apps as the iphone?

  3. AAPL down 3.5% by roaddemon · · Score: 4, Interesting

    Interesting that Apple shares are down 3.5% with this news. Was there a financial disclosure, or were investors expecting something different?

  4. Not impressed with the new Fat Nano by bogie · · Score: 4, Interesting

    Way to ruin the Nano Apple. It was in no way a good idea to bloat the Nano so we could have video on it. Honestly, most of us simply don't want to watch video on a 2" screen. We wanted a cheaper Nano with more memory.

    Nice job on the other ipods though. Hacked Ipodtouch + Skype = Goodness? Boy would that put a stick in Apple's craw.

    Best comment heard so far regarding the Nano: "Does it do the truffle shuffle?"

    --
    If you wanna get rich, you know that payback is a bitch
  5. Direct competitor to the nokia N800 by dgerman · · Score: 4, Interesting

    Now we have a direct competitor to the N800, and the "Touch" is actually cheaper (at least in Canada) than the N800.

    I am not suggesting a "Touch" will have an open platform, ready for hacking. But for the regular folk, who just
    want Wifi, and an agenda/calendar, the Touch will be enough. Wifi, in my opinion, is the killer app for those who
    don't want a cell phone (yes, we exist) but want an agenda. Others will prefer to continue to use a phone as a phone
    and get an ipod for its wifi. The greymarket of iphones being shipped overseas (even before the hacks) are evidence
    that there is a market for this.

    Also, I own a N800 and an Ipod video, and in my opinion the sound quality of the N800 is lower than the ipod. But that is just my opinion.

    --dmg

  6. Have they started with the subsidizing? by hypermanng · · Score: 4, Interesting

    That truly is a steep drop in price. Have their supply and production costs dropped that much, or are they sacrificing margin in the expectation of recovering it in subscription fees? I tend to suspect the latter, which amounts to subsidized pricing.

    Of course, it's also possible that they inflated the initial sale price a little to allow for the steep drop. This would seem like a good way to make a little extra money and reinforce the exclusivity of iPhone ownership, but dropping the price now has to piss off existing customers, who must feel like they've been had.

    --
    I am the one true god. However, as an atheist, I don't believe in myself. I guess I have a self-esteem problem.
    1. Re:Have they started with the subsidizing? by jcr · · Score: 4, Interesting

      During the earnings call, Peter Oppenheimer said that Apple expected to have lower margins this quarter due to "product transitions". I suppose that's what he was referring to, knowing that Apple was planning to drop the price (and the margin) on the iPhone by a hefty amount.

      -jcr

      --
      The only title of honor that a tyrant can grant is "Enemy of the State."
  7. Skype that! by EccentricAnomaly · · Score: 4, Interesting

    I bet Apple plans on keeping VOIP on the IPodtouch as a threat to keep ATT in line on the iPhone.

    --
    There are 10 types of people in this world, those who can count in binary and those who can't.
  8. I am very happy with my iPhone by dhamsaic · · Score: 3, Interesting

    If you are going to feel sorry for iPhone owners, do it because of the price drop today - Apple's way of saying "fuck you" to early adopters.

    Don't feel sorry for the million of us that have iPhones, though. They have combined a number of features we have been clamoring for and have done a damn good job of it. Honestly, the phone part of the iPhone is its best part. It is still the best phone I have ever used, even without features I used to rely on - such as the excellent voice dialing of the Motorola E815, Bluetooth synchronization, etc. To be quite honest, the iPod part of the iPhone is where it falls down - not able to manually manage music, not able to create new playlists even though there is a software keyboard, etc. SMS and calling features are pretty awesome.

    --
    Every once in a while I like to masturbate a new word into my vocabulary, even if I don't know what it means.
  9. This is exactly what I've been waiting for. by jbarr · · Score: 5, Interesting

    Having been a VERY long-time PalmOS PDA user (since the USR Pilot 1000), the prospect of a decent Apple PDA-like device very much anticipated. Palm PDA's were revolutionary, but their technological drive forward has long been stalled. This "phoneless iPhone" could prove to be a HUGE seller. My main desire for this type of device is simply because it is NOT a phone. Historically, my company has provided a phone to their specifications, and I never had a choice in the matter, so I've had to take a pass on all of the latest and greatest "convergence" devices because of the integrated phones. Now that the phone has been removed, this looks like an EXCELLENT opportunity for a new, more modern replacement to my old PalmOS PDA's. My only question is will there be third-party apps to enhance it?

    --
    My mom always said, "Jim, you're 1 in a million." Given the current population, there are 7000 of me. God help us all!
    1. Re:This is exactly what I've been waiting for. by gyepi · · Score: 3, Interesting

      You mentioned text editing, quick question: can you also use the iPhone together with a bluetooth keyboard, say with a Stowaway Bluetooth Keyboard? Thanks!

      --
      Attitudes make the difference between Space and Time: we want to MAX our temporal, and MIN our spatial extension.
  10. Re:Boned and cool by Fahrvergnuugen · · Score: 3, Interesting

    If my math is right, the new nano is just 2% bigger than the previous nano, yet has a 25% bigger screen.

    --
    Kiteboarding Gear Mention slashdot and get 10% off!
  11. What about the OS requirements? by cellocgw · · Score: 4, Interesting

    Apple's web page says 10.4.8 for the iPodClassic and 10.4.10 for the iPodTouch. I'm still very happy w/ 10.3.9 on my old iMac G4 at home, and would rather not have to shell out $$ for 10.4.x .
    Can anyone point me to some info as to what functionality I'll lose if I don't upgrade my OS (not to mention upgrading iTunes itself)?
    Funny how WindowsXP+SP2 is sufficient for all the new iPods but on Apple's own OS I would have to buy an upgrade. Grrrr....

    --
    https://app.box.com/WitthoftResume Code: https://github.com/cellocgw
  12. Streaming to Airport Express? by klez23 · · Score: 3, Interesting

    With WiFi, I naturally assumed that it would stream to an Airport Express. But I haven't found anything about that on Apple's site, or anywhere else. Anyone?

    I don't need another web browser or built-in itunes, but streaming would be real nice.

    p

  13. Re:I'm disappointed... by Mia'cova · · Score: 3, Interesting

    I think the big reason is they don't want the ipod to eat into iphone sales. An iphone with a hard drive would be too big. No one wants that fat of a phone. But if you had to pick between a phone of your choice + 160 gb ipod touch or just an 8gb iphone, a lot of people would probably skip the iphone. Right now, the iphone actually gives you functionality you can't get anywhere else (though some would argue this all day long..). After all, Apple makes a good bit of change off the contracts. I think it was what? $8 / month comes back to them from contracts. So if they put something out that will steal iphone subscribers, it had damn well better make up that $192 in another way. So in short, a classic HD based ipod with the touch interface doesn't make business sense right now.

  14. Re:iTouch = loss of functionality? by w3woody · · Score: 3, Interesting

    My bet: Apple will release an API which allows third-party development for the iPod Touch and the iPhone, sometime in the next six months.

  15. iPod Classic + Leopard -- Time Machine?? by bionicpill · · Score: 3, Interesting

    With an iPod that has more HD space than my MacBook is apple going to make it possible for you to use the iPod as your backup device for the new Time Machine Feature in Leopard?

  16. Re:No, they are selling at max willingness to pay by Shuh · · Score: 3, Interesting

    Of course, it would seem to me that they're making a mistake. High margins in most companies implies a very efficient operation relative to competitors because most firms don't have much price control. Apple's cachet, however, allows them considerable price control, and cachet is a fairly ephemeral asset, no matter how effective Apple has been in recent years in building it.
    Apple has always had this cachet. They have always been effective at staying out of the commodity side of a market primarily due to their vision and ability to innovate (two more examples of "fairly ephemeral assets"). In the computer market, these skills have kept Apple alive and kicking for over 30 years. OS2, Commodore, DR-DOS, and a variety of used-to-be-very-big-name PC & software makers have come and gone since then. And Apple did this largely by going against the "conventional wisdom" spouted by almost every P.C. tech pundit whose job depended on Microsoft/Intel/AMD advertising dollars (i.e. most of them). In the wider non-PC markets, these skills will allow Apple to innovate and thrive and to ultimately become the conventional wisdom of those markets.
  17. Re:I'm disappointed... by FuturePastNow · · Score: 3, Interesting

    I imagine that the hard drive is the single biggest point of failure on "classic" iPods. The player gets bounced around, the drive packs it in, and if it's a warranty repair that's Apple's money down the drain.

    Eliminate the hard drive, and that leaves the battery and the screen as the only failure-prone components.

    --
    Give a man fire, and you warm him for the night. Set a man on fire, and you warm him for the rest of his life.