It never bomb . Every time you recollect Apple is going to zig , the company zags instead . On September 7 , everyone in the populace was expecting Apple to announce a cellular phone that worked with iTunes . And that ’s what we got . But we also got something much more momentous — the bluff replacement of the hugely democratic iPod mini with the groundbreaking unexampled iPod nano .
Not standing still
Apple is most in spades not playing defence force . Even though the iPod is by far the most popular digital euphony instrumentalist on the planet , the caller knows that wads of competitors are judge to strike hard it off its stool . If Apple had kept the iPod miniskirt in its product line for this class ’s vacation time of year , would it have sold a zillion of them ? Undoubtedly . But at the same time , its competitors would have crept a little bit closer . Would they have mouse close enough to seriously threaten the iPod miniskirt ’s regulation ? Not in 2005 , certainly . But eventually , yes .
That ’s why Apple has adopted a philosophy of many successful sports team : Better to make a alteration one year too early than one yr too late . So the iPod miniskirt — even though it was still a winner — had to go .
Inventing nanotechnology
For me , the most telling thing about the iPod nano is that it ’s undeniablyan iPod . It has the same design as the full - sizing example , with a Click Wheel , a color screen , and the power to exhibit pic . The biggest differences between the nano and the full - size of it iPods are storage space and size .
The iPod nano is n’t nearly as good a per - gigabyte value as the full - size iPods . But the iPod mini was also present at $ 249 for 4 GB of storage , and that did n’t stop it from becoming a huge hit .
I do n’t think this economic value issue will hurt the nano : Many hoi polloi do n’t need to carry tens of thou of Song dynasty with them — for many possible iPod buyers , the size of it of the iPod is more important than the price . And if Leontyne Price is truly a concern , buyers can opt for the 2 GB model . ( For a helpful guide to picking the iPod that ’s right for you , see our November installment ofPlaylist . )
To me , the most appealing thing about the iPod nano is its size . Even if you ca n’t remember the days when 10 Bachelor of Medicine of hard - drive space was more than many of us think we ’d ever need , you ’ve generate to be amazed to rule several GB of data on a microchip that ’s the size of your thumbnail . It ’s hard to grasp just how small the iPod nano is until you , well , graspone . The nano is very close to being belittled enough to fit it in your wallet .
Like many multitude , I keep my total music library on my iPod , so I wo n’t be trade to a nano as my primary iPod in the foreseeable future . But I ’m excited about the nano ( although I ’m not as thrilled about the airheaded name ) because it ’s a not bad bridge between the iPod shuffle and the full - size iPod . Now people who want a tiny , shock - proof iPod can get one with a screen door . I ca n’t wait to get mine .
The future of the iPod
Meanwhile , with the introduction of Motorola ’s iTunes - equipped Rokr cell speech sound , Apple is poise to become a major player in the prison cell - phone market . While many of us favour to keep our iPods and our phones separate , some people will welcome the luck to deoxidise the issue of digital devices they have to carry around . The Rokr is primitive by iPod criterion , but it ’s just a start . With any luck , Apple is already work on the next generation of iTunes - embedded phones , devices that will smutch the line between iPod and telephone set even more .
With the founding of the iPod nano and the Rokr , the futurity of the iPod product line is becoming clearer . As flash bulb - retention technology improves , large , hard - crusade - driven iPods will lessen by the roadside — at least as far as music is concerned . But I do n’t opine the full - size iPods will wither and perish . Instead , they will move on to the next frontier of portable medium : TV , a format with enceinte data files that will call for a hard drive for a long clip . And there ’s still an chance for full - size iPods to add networking , which could add lots of cool features .
And that , I conceive , is one of my favorite things about Apple ’s recent announcements : Just when we — and Apple ’s rival — thought we knew where the caller was head , Jobs and Company surprised us with the nano . Once again , anything seems possible . Apple - post iPhone ? Video iPod ? delay tuned .
Are you go to buy an iPod nano or a Rokr phone ? Has the iPod revolution leave you behind ? partake your thoughts about this topic or anything else in the Macworld Forums , or e - send me atjason_snell@macworld.com .
