Apple unveils video iPod

[AppleInsider]

True to previous AppleInsider reports and expectations, Apple today officially introduced a new iPod, featuring a 2.5-inch color screen which can display album artwork and photos, and play video including music videos, video Podcasts, home movies and television shows.

The new iPod holds up to 15,000 songs, 25,000 photos or over 150 hours of video and is available in a 30GB model for $299 and a 60GB model for $399, with both models available in stunning white or black designs.

“The new iPod is the best music player ever—it's 30 percent thinner and has 50 percent more storage than its predecessor—yet it sells for the same price and plays stunning video on its 2.5-inch color screen,” said Steve Jobs, Apple’s CEO. “Because millions of people around the world will buy this new iPod to play music, it will quickly become the most popular portable video player in history.”

The new iPod plays music, audiobooks, audio Podcasts, video Podcasts, home movies, music videos and popular television shows like “Lost” and “Desperate Housewives.”

The combination of iPod and iTunes 6 now provides customers with a seamless experience for buying, managing and playing video as well as audio content, including over 2,000 music videos, six short films from the Academy-Award winning Pixar Animation Studios, and five television shows from ABC and Disney Channel, including the immensely popular “Lost” and “Desperate Housewives.”

The new iPod combines all of the features that have made the iPod one of the best music players in the world with new features such as the ability to view video content on a larger stunning color display.

The new iPod features Apple’s innovative Click Wheel for precise, one-handed navigation and the portable design is ideal for putting music, Podcasts, photos, audiobooks, home movies, music videos and popular television shows in a pocket for on-the-go viewing. iPod users can also watch their video content and slideshows of their photos on a television via optional Apple accessories.

Featuring integration with the iTunes Music Store and the iTunes digital music jukebox, iPod features Apple’s patent pending Auto-Sync technology that automatically downloads digital music, Podcasts, photos, audiobooks, home movies, music videos and popular television shows onto the iPod and keeps them up-to-date whenever the iPod is plugged into a Mac or Windows computer using USB 2.0. The 30GB model features up to 14 hours of battery life for music playback and the 60GB model features up to 20 hours of battery life for music playback.*

Pricing & Availability

The new iPods will begin shipping next week for a suggested retail price of $299 (US) for the 30GB model and $399 (US) for the 60GB model through the Apple Store, Apple’s retail stores and Apple Authorized Resellers. All iPod models include earbud headphones, USB 2.0 cable, case, dock insert and a CD with iTunes for Mac and Windows computers.

Optional accessories designed for the new iPod include: Universal Dock for $39 (US), giving users easy access to a USB port for syncing, IR support to work with the Apple Remote and a variable line out and S-video connections for integration within the living room; Apple Remote for $29 (US), providing wireless integration to the Universal Dock and quick and easy access to controls from across the room; Apple iPod AV cable for $19 (US), enabling television viewing of video content in full-screen; the iPod Camera Connector for $29 (US); and Apple Socks for $29 (US) providing six vibrant color socks to dress up and protect your iPod.

iPod requires a Mac with a USB 2.0 and Mac OS X version 10.3.9 or later and iTunes 6; or a Windows PC with a USB 2.0 port and Windows 2000, XP Home or Professional (SP2) and iTunes 6.

[ View this article at AppleInsider.com ]

[nathan22t]

amazing

[nagromme]

Love the thin shape and bigger screen!

Stepping into video/movies gradually with videos and TV reruns makes sense. Although the most fun for me would be showing your OWN little movies, output to TV.

Too bad about no more booting from iPods. You can't do that without Firewire can you? I guess Firewire would have added cost or size. Not worth it then. A shame--I'm one of the few who actually boots off my iPod But fear not, Apple's not ditching FW. It just didn't make business sense on the iPod anymore. (No, it's not an optional cable--not that I can see.)

One cool thing: the new iPod dock has a receiver for the new Apple Remote! (Which does mean the remote is IR I fear, not BT. Too bad--I don't like line-of-sight.)

[capiendo]

i checked out the specs and there's no firewire support! THERE'S NO FIREWIRE! AHHHH!!!

[murk]

Is Firewire completely unsupported now?

[nagromme]

Firewire seems to be completely unsupported (except maybe for charging) now on all iPods.

Too bad--but it's a business decision. Demand for it--for iPods--was very low (but vocal ) and it would have cost something. (And might be one more thing to try to fit into the thin body, too.)

BUT Firewire is here to stay on Macs, camcorders, iSight... and yes, even (some) PCs

It IS faster than USB 2 for long transfers. But most iPod syncs are short transfers, so I can see why demand was low.

[mrmister]

With FireWire gone, you can't boot up from an iPod as an external drive, which was supported on the iPod since it was introduced. I do that to repair other folks computers, so that's a big checkmark against it.

With the changes in the headphone port, the iTrip and iTalk I own won't work either.

For me, that's a lot of functionallity lost for videos. I'll be sitting this one out.

[Emin]

Another disappointment. I'm positively sick of iPods by now. I want new PowerBooks, not another set of consumer electronics devices I don't care about. I'm really, really disappointed. It's good I wasn't in the audience – I would have screamed at SJ "oh, not that crap again" on top of my lungs!

[Slackula]

The only iPod I have ever had was a shuffle model.

I was really looking forward to a video iPod as I do a lot of video work on my flat-panel iMac 2 which has firewire but no USB 2.0. I was looking forward to putting home videos, etc. on an iPod video.

From what I'm reading, I am basically SOL unless I get a new Mac with USB 2.0?

[iShawn]

I was leaniant on the idea of a video iPod. I saw the mockups and I liked the wide-screened ones, but the wider is still really cool. With Apple being predominantly Widescreen now, I figured that's what they would have done - created a widescreen iPod for all the TV episodes and Music Videos... but oh well. However, I could be wrong, it just looks like a standard TV screen.

Ever since getting my Powerbook, I watch more movies on it than I do my own TV. LCD Widescreen TV beats my 2-year-old flatscreen. When I get a Powermac a few years from now I'll be hooking it up to my stereo for the ultimate experience.

[pmjoe]

Sorry Apple, but I'm waiting for the iPad or iTablet (bigger screen, PDA replacement) for my mobile video experience. Please.

[F1Turbo]

I think I'll pass for now. I would've ordered it today if it had an 80 GB drive. I also have a problem with the digital connector on top going away--can no longer use wired remote, Logitech bluetooth headphones and many other accessories.

[Aquatic]

Yeah the no firewire business is fucked up.

Video...pff.

CAN IT RECORD!!!!!!!!!!??????????????????


OH. MY. GOD.

I probably won't see an iPod that can record audio until I'm out of law school. I was hoping I would be able to record lectures at URI. That didn't happen. I guess I won't be able to do that for law school either. Seriously... this is the biggest no-duh on the iPod I can think of.

[rayapple]

So...... my nightmare has come true. Just purchased a 20GB photo iPod 3.5 weeks ago. I want the new video iPod What are my options?

Anybody want to buy a 20gb Photo for $200 with case?

[ipodandimac]

Originally posted by Aquatic
Yeah the no firewire business is fucked up.

Video...pff.

CAN IT RECORD!!!!!!!!!!??????????????????


OH. MY. GOD.

I probably won't see an iPod that can record audio until I'm out of law school. I was hoping I would be able to record lectures at URI. That didn't happen. I guess I won't be able to do that for law school either. Seriously... this is the biggest no-duh on the iPod I can think of.

there are lots of really easy ways to record lectures. you can't blame apple for not figuring them out.

[Kolchak]

2,000 music videos? A drop in the bucket, only 1/1000th of the 2 million songs on ITMS. There are a lot of videos from waaaay back in the '80s (yeah, prehistoric) that I'd be willing to buy.

[dirk gently]

did anyone catch the specs on the video supported?

H.264 video: up to 768 Kbps, 320 x 240, 30 frames per sec., Baseline Profile up to Level 1.3 with AAC-LC up to 160 Kbps, 48 Khz, stereo audio in .m4v, .mp4 and .mov file formats

MPEG-4 video: up to 2.5 mbps, 480 x 480, 30 frames per sec., Simple Profile with AAC-LC up to 160 Kbps, 48 Khz, stereo audio in .m4v, .mp4 and .mov file formats

768kb for h.264 vs 2.5mb mpeg4 (at a higer res... 480x480??) the cpu must crap out with h.264 decoding.

I don't know why apple didn't go all out and make something that would compete with the PSP. Is this aimed at the same people who want to watch low-res/small screen content on their cell phones? Music videos?...whats the point?

[EmAn]

I really like these new iPods a lot. If I didn't just get a Nano yesterday, I would've definitely ordered one of these.

[macserverX]

As far as FireWire booting, the Transition Kits have been reported to boot only from USB. I'd imagine Apple would eventually get FireWire on there before release of product.

And to all you people who are disappointed with the specs, remember the original. If you think this sucks, think about the 1G iPod. Some people have no foresight at all. Apple didn't sell nearly 7 million iPods it's first quarter. This is Christmas, they have the hardware available capable of decoding h.264 on an iPod now. Half the battle is won. And QuickTime Pro (7.0.3) can produce QuickTime files capable of being played on the video iPod.

No microphone is a business no-brainer. It costs x dollars to add said feature, adds to size, changes look, with only a marginal number actively pursuing said feature. Now here's where you argue about photos and videos. But wait, Apple sells videos, and if you can show videos you might as well let people look at pictures that they got off their Mac. Collect a few royalties on every microphone sold after market, and on development kits.

No foresight people. That's what's wrong with Microsoft, they don't build the future, they re-invent it. Apple has had PPC/x86 Mac OS X with Quartz since the beginning. I mention Quartz because this has now moved almost entirely to the GPU. CoreImage, CoreVideo, h.264, Dashboard, WebKit, CoreAudio, QuickTime 7. It took them 4 years to build CoreVideo, but it started as the QuartzCompositor (sort of).

[End of rant]

[CosmoNut]

Charging money for Quicktime "Pro" is bullsh*t.

[vinney57]

Originally posted by CosmoNut
Charging money for Quicktime "Pro" is bullsh*t.

Don't buy it then.

[iPoster]

Video on a 2.5 inch screen?

I don't get how that is a big deal.

And it's useless with my 2 year old iMac G4! (no FireWire, iMac dosen't have USB 2.0)

[Kendoka]

Nice iPod.
As for playing/watching videos on a small screen, why not buy the AV Cable and use a TV?
"Plays video or photo slideshows on TV via the optional Dock"
"Use the iPod AV Cable to connect your iPod to a television — either directly or via the Universal Dock."

[Mr. H]

Originally posted by dirk gently
did anyone catch the specs on the video supported?

768kb for h.264 vs 2.5mb mpeg4 (at a higer res... 480x480??) the cpu must crap out with h.264 decoding.

That is interesting. Surely, despite how good H.264 is, 2.5 Mbit MPEG4 is going to look better than 768 kbit H.264?

Originally posted by dirk gently
I don't know why apple didn't go all out and make something that would compete with the PSP. Is this aimed at the same people who want to watch low-res/small screen content on their cell phones? Music videos?...whats the point?

Originally posted by iPoster
Video on a 2.5 inch screen?

I don't get how that is a big deal.

You guys have got the wrong idea. This is a music device that happens to play videos too. With the iPod, Music playing is the primary feature, playing videos secondary. With the PSP, motion video is the primary function, but it happens to play music too. Maybe in the future we'll see an iPod whose primary function is video.

Originally posted by iShawn
I saw the mockups and I liked the wide-screened ones

I liked them too, but one problem is that you have to use them in the horizontal orientation, with the click wheel to the side of the screen. This makes it harder to use with one hand.

What would be cool is if such an iPod had a built-in orientation detector, and rotated the image on the display according to whether you were holding the iPod horizontal or vertical. The symbols (Play/Pause, Skip, etc.) for the buttons on the click wheel could be generated by L.E.D.s so that their positions could also be changed.

Originally posted by iPoster
And it's useless with my 2 year old iMac G4! (no FireWire, iMac dosen't have USB 2.0)

Yes, the loss of FireWire is extremely annoying and disappointing. I could almost understand when they stopped supplying the FireWire cable as standard, but removing support for FireWire (which Apple developed) altogether is a great shame.

[Flounder]

Seriously, what is people's problem?

It looks like a fine upgrade to me.

[mrmister]

Charging for QuickTime Pro is absolutely ridiculous...and losing FW connectivity is now up on that list of things they've done that are crappy.

[MacCrazy]

This iPod looks really wide, no FireWire support is a bad thing and also old accessories wont work because of the remote but that's good for accessory companies!

[aidanp]

Originally posted by AppleInsider
True to previous AppleInsider reports and expectations, Apple today officially introduced a new iPod, featuring a 2.5-inch color screen which can display album artwork and photos, and play video including music videos, video Podcasts, home movies and television shows.

The new iPod holds up to 15,000 songs, 25,000 photos or over 150 hours of video and is available in a 30GB model for $299 and a 60GB model for $399, with both models available in stunning white or black designs.

“The new iPod is the best music player ever—it's 30 percent thinner and has 50 percent more storage than its predecessor—yet it sells for the same price and plays stunning video on its 2.5-inch color screen,” said Steve Jobs, Apple’s CEO. “Because millions of people around the world will buy this new iPod to play music, it will quickly become the most popular portable video player in history.”

The new iPod plays music, audiobooks, audio Podcasts, video Podcasts, home movies, music videos and popular television shows like “Lost” and “Desperate Housewives.”

The combination of iPod and iTunes 6 now provides customers with a seamless experience for buying, managing and playing video as well as audio content, including over 2,000 music videos, six short films from the Academy-Award winning Pixar Animation Studios, and five television shows from ABC and Disney Channel, including the immensely popular “Lost” and “Desperate Housewives.”

The new iPod combines all of the features that have made the iPod one of the best music players in the world with new features such as the ability to view video content on a larger stunning color display.

The new iPod features Apple’s innovative Click Wheel for precise, one-handed navigation and the portable design is ideal for putting music, Podcasts, photos, audiobooks, home movies, music videos and popular television shows in a pocket for on-the-go viewing. iPod users can also watch their video content and slideshows of their photos on a television via optional Apple accessories.

Featuring integration with the iTunes Music Store and the iTunes digital music jukebox, iPod features Apple’s patent pending Auto-Sync technology that automatically downloads digital music, Podcasts, photos, audiobooks, home movies, music videos and popular television shows onto the iPod and keeps them up-to-date whenever the iPod is plugged into a Mac or Windows computer using USB 2.0. The 30GB model features up to 14 hours of battery life for music playback and the 60GB model features up to 20 hours of battery life for music playback.*

Pricing & Availability

The new iPods will begin shipping next week for a suggested retail price of $299 (US) for the 30GB model and $399 (US) for the 60GB model through the Apple Store, Apple’s retail stores and Apple Authorized Resellers. All iPod models include earbud headphones, USB 2.0 cable, case, dock insert and a CD with iTunes for Mac and Windows computers.

Optional accessories designed for the new iPod include: Universal Dock for $39 (US), giving users easy access to a USB port for syncing, IR support to work with the Apple Remote and a variable line out and S-video connections for integration within the living room; Apple Remote for $29 (US), providing wireless integration to the Universal Dock and quick and easy access to controls from across the room; Apple iPod AV cable for $19 (US), enabling television viewing of video content in full-screen; the iPod Camera Connector for $29 (US); and Apple Socks for $29 (US) providing six vibrant color socks to dress up and protect your iPod.

iPod requires a Mac with a USB 2.0 and Mac OS X version 10.3.9 or later and iTunes 6; or a Windows PC with a USB 2.0 port and Windows 2000, XP Home or Professional (SP2) and iTunes 6.

[ View this article at AppleInsider.com ]

nice...

[aidanp]

Originally posted by capiendo
i checked out the specs and there's no firewire support! THERE'S NO FIREWIRE! AHHHH!!!

the reason... firewire cost apple soooo much more money than USB, and it seemed i guess that the deamnd for firewire was low... im fine with it.

[Mr. H]

Originally posted by MacCrazy
This iPod looks really wide

Overall, I like this new iPod (I'd buy the 60 gig if I didn't already have a 4th gen 40 gig), but yes I do think it looks too wide and therefore rather odd. It is, in fact, the same width as the outgoing models.

[ericdano]

Originally posted by Aquatic
Yeah the no firewire business is fucked up.

Video...pff.

CAN IT RECORD!!!!!!!!!!??????????????????


OH. MY. GOD.

I probably won't see an iPod that can record audio until I'm out of law school. I was hoping I would be able to record lectures at URI. That didn't happen. I guess I won't be able to do that for law school either. Seriously... this is the biggest no-duh on the iPod I can think of.

WTF are you talking about. Griffin makes a iTalk thing that plugs into an iPod and allows you to record. It's not stereo, but it is good enough for lectures.

[bizdizzle]

I saw on the tech specs page that it can record stereo 44.1 KHz and mono 22.05 KHz. Does this mean that it can record audio?

[Telomar]

Originally posted by bizdizzle
I saw on the tech specs page that it can record stereo 44.1 KHz and mono 22.05 KHz. Does this mean that it can record audio?

Before the iPods were locked in firmware to quite a low quality recording, it looks like Apple may have changed this is all. It will still require the appropriate attachment.

[jouster]

Originally posted by iPoster
Video on a 2.5 inch screen?
I don't get how that is a big deal.

The agreement with the content providers is the big deal.

And it's useless with my 2 year old iMac G4! (no FireWire, iMac dosen't have USB 2.0)

That is certainly inconvenient. But 'useless' seems a little strong. It will certainly work with your iMac, albeit not as quickly as you'd like.

Edit: formatting

[MacCrazy]

The lack of FireWire means the feature Home-On-iPod looks unlikely to surface.

[CosmoNut]

Originally posted by iPoster
And it's useless with my 2 year old iMac G4! (no FireWire, iMac dosen't have USB 2.0)

I'd suggest your first sync to it be an overnight job. By the time you wake up it'll certainly be done. Any subsequent syncs won't take as long assuming you don't transfer your entire library or a lot of songs/videos each time.

[aidanp]

Is it true that the new iPod is not compatible iwth iTrip?... also will we be expecting any new iPods in the next year or so... i want to know if this one is worth buying.

[CosmoNut]

Anything that uses the 3G & 4G iPod's remote connector will not work with these iPods, including iTrip. Apple alienated a hell of a lot of accessories with this revision.

[MTsoul]

How does stereo recording work? It's not like playing stereo sounds where you have two speakers. Wouldn't you need two mics at different places to record stereo (and have a stereo effect rather than a duplicate of mono for both channels)?

[bizdizzle]

How does stereo recording work? It's not like playing stereo sounds where you have two speakers. Wouldn't you need two mics at different places to record stereo (and have a stereo effect rather than a duplicate of mono for both channels)?

I have a Sony mic that outputs stereo.