Based on multiple pieces of information from Apple's supply channels, we are doing something we cannot recall a rumor/speculation site ever doing before: making a flat, unequivocal prediction of an Apple product release. Let the proverbial chips fall where they may.
On Tuesday, February 25th, 2003, Apple will announce the immediate availability of an updated line of iPods. Features will remain the same as today's 'Pods, with the only changes being hard disk capacity, and that all models will now have a solid state scroll wheel. The new line will include:
10GB iPod @ $299.00
20GB iPod @ $399.00
40GB iPod @ $499.00
Apple's marketing theme for the new line will be based around the simple truth that, suddenly, the same money buys twice the song capacity. <hr></blockquote>
<strong>i think it would be a mistake not to sell the 5GB for 199 or 219 or whatever the lowest can be with a profit.
so many people just dont want to and arent willing to spend 300 dollars on an MP3 player, no matter how great it is.</strong><hr></blockquote>
The problem is that with the 300 dollar iPod Apple might be able to make say 50 dollars profit.
With a 200 dollar iPod they might make 10-20 dollars. So they would have to sell almost five times as many to make the same profit as selling 300 dollar iPods. Plus the 200 dollar iPod would steal sales away from the higher priced one. Considering Apple sold out of the 5 gig ones at 300 dollars, they will easily sell new 10 gig ones for the same price.
Remember Apple has to make a big profit on hardware in order to compensate for all their R&D in software and hardware. If the 10 gig goes down to 300 dollars you will only be paying 15 cents a song.
iPod profits are considerbly more then $50 as indicated by Jante99. Where do you get your costs? I believe that Apple has the iPods made for them at around $75 to $100 per unit. All components in the device are "off the shelf". The manufacturing costs for all units only vary by $10 to $15 depending on the hardrive used.
<strong>Everyone keep suggesting BlueTooth on an iPod. I wonder why. The bandwidth of Bluetooth is something like 1.1Mbps. I don't remember exact numbers, but it is pretty low. Why would you want to transfer mp3s that way? Is it that hard to plug it in?</strong><hr></blockquote>
How about after syncing all your music once just sending the updates over bluetooth so you don't have to deal with a cable. Or bluetoothing to a car stereo or even a home stereo. There are a lot of things that can be done with slower rates...
How about after syncing all your music once just sending the updates over bluetooth so you don't have to deal with a cable. Or bluetoothing to a car stereo or even a home stereo. There are a lot of things that can be done with slower rates...</strong><hr></blockquote>
The problem is that so few Macs have bluetooth very few users would have the capibility to use the extra features. Maybe if the price of the bluetooth adapter went down to around $20, this would be a viable feature addition.
Also no car or home stereo has bluetooth, and very few people would go out and buy a new one simply for use with an iPod.
MacsRGood4U, I just made up the profit of the iPod, but the point is the cheaper the item, the more you have to sell of it to make a large profit. Apple probably found the balance in sales/profit is 300 dollars.
As in a bay in the computer. An iPod sized hole in the case. Which the iPod would slide into.
Barto</strong><hr></blockquote>
I get ya. Eugene by the same reasoning why would people ever need laptop docking stations? I mean isn't it just as easy to plug in the cables? COME ON don't be a jerk about someones idea because the fact is very few people here have any inside information, mainly its just "what do you think the G5 will be?" "when will we get the 970?" there are too many questions and not enough answers a lot of times. An iPod docking feature might be more useful on a portable or in a car radio. I would pay for a car radio I can plug my iPod into and then use a wireless control on the stearing wheel to use.
I get ya. Eugene by the same reasoning why would people ever need laptop docking stations? I mean isn't it just as easy to plug in the cables? COME ON don't be a jerk about someones idea because the fact is very few people here have any inside information, mainly its just "what do you think the G5 will be?" "when will we get the 970?" there are too many questions and not enough answers a lot of times. An iPod docking feature might be more useful on a portable or in a car radio. I would pay for a car radio I can plug my iPod into and then use a wireless control on the stearing wheel to use.
A@ron</strong><hr></blockquote>
um...laptop docking station...multiple cables.....iPod...ONE SINGLE CABLE
um...laptop docking station...multiple cables.....iPod...ONE SINGLE CABLE
my god...some people are dense</strong><hr></blockquote>
it was a over simplification sheesh... I understand the point to laptop docking stations. However I still like my car radio idea. Oh and applenut I am not dense thank you very much
IMHO, the best upgrade to the iPod, other than increased capacity and lower prices, would be to incorporate two functions available on other devices:
Quickstream DV from MCE - write DV files directly from a camcorder to disc.
Mindstor from Minds@Work - off-load images from digital camers, reducing the need for multiple, expensive, memory cards.
The first only requires Firewire and an application. The second would require the addition of a USB interface, since most digital cameras only have USB. Not a great cost and increase functionality on the Windows side of the market.
Apple could go one-up on both these other items by adding the ability to view images on a new color LCD, although this could be a later upgrade.
Maybe, perhaps, one of these years it will sink in that the hardest thing to pin down is a release date. Release dates are completely arbitrary. They can get pushed back because channel inventory didn't empty as fast as someone liked, because of a last-minute glitch in software or hardware or manufacturing, or in the supply chain, or because Word was like beep beep beep beep beep and it devoured the press release.
Unfortunately, it's what people seem to clamor for the most, so people who really should know better start pulling dumb stunts like MacWhispers just did. The bottom line is that nobody, and I mean nobody, knows when Apple will release something until either Steve walks on stage or Nathalie Welch fires a press release over the wires. Yes, it sucks. Get used to it, and you'll lose a lot less hair following rumors.
Comments
[quote]February 21, 2003
Apple To Release New iPods Tuesday
Based on multiple pieces of information from Apple's supply channels, we are doing something we cannot recall a rumor/speculation site ever doing before: making a flat, unequivocal prediction of an Apple product release. Let the proverbial chips fall where they may.
On Tuesday, February 25th, 2003, Apple will announce the immediate availability of an updated line of iPods. Features will remain the same as today's 'Pods, with the only changes being hard disk capacity, and that all models will now have a solid state scroll wheel. The new line will include:
10GB iPod @ $299.00
20GB iPod @ $399.00
40GB iPod @ $499.00
Apple's marketing theme for the new line will be based around the simple truth that, suddenly, the same money buys twice the song capacity. <hr></blockquote>
so many people just dont want to and arent willing to spend 300 dollars on an MP3 player, no matter how great it is.
<strong>i think it would be a mistake not to sell the 5GB for 199 or 219 or whatever the lowest can be with a profit.
so many people just dont want to and arent willing to spend 300 dollars on an MP3 player, no matter how great it is.</strong><hr></blockquote>
The problem is that with the 300 dollar iPod Apple might be able to make say 50 dollars profit.
With a 200 dollar iPod they might make 10-20 dollars. So they would have to sell almost five times as many to make the same profit as selling 300 dollar iPods. Plus the 200 dollar iPod would steal sales away from the higher priced one. Considering Apple sold out of the 5 gig ones at 300 dollars, they will easily sell new 10 gig ones for the same price.
Remember Apple has to make a big profit on hardware in order to compensate for all their R&D in software and hardware. If the 10 gig goes down to 300 dollars you will only be paying 15 cents a song.
[ 02-22-2003: Message edited by: MacsRGood4U ]</p>
<strong>i think it would be a mistake not to sell the 5GB for 199 or 219 or whatever the lowest can be with a profit.</strong><hr></blockquote>
I think somebody mentioned the 5 GB embedded drive was EOL'd by Toshiba. That would explain the lack of availability of the 5 GB iPod right now.
<strong>Everyone keep suggesting BlueTooth on an iPod. I wonder why. The bandwidth of Bluetooth is something like 1.1Mbps. I don't remember exact numbers, but it is pretty low. Why would you want to transfer mp3s that way? Is it that hard to plug it in?</strong><hr></blockquote>
How about after syncing all your music once just sending the updates over bluetooth so you don't have to deal with a cable. Or bluetoothing to a car stereo or even a home stereo. There are a lot of things that can be done with slower rates...
<strong>
How about after syncing all your music once just sending the updates over bluetooth so you don't have to deal with a cable. Or bluetoothing to a car stereo or even a home stereo. There are a lot of things that can be done with slower rates...</strong><hr></blockquote>
The problem is that so few Macs have bluetooth very few users would have the capibility to use the extra features. Maybe if the price of the bluetooth adapter went down to around $20, this would be a viable feature addition.
Also no car or home stereo has bluetooth, and very few people would go out and buy a new one simply for use with an iPod.
MacsRGood4U, I just made up the profit of the iPod, but the point is the cheaper the item, the more you have to sell of it to make a large profit. Apple probably found the balance in sales/profit is 300 dollars.
<strong>Hardy har har.
As in a bay in the computer. An iPod sized hole in the case. Which the iPod would slide into.
Barto</strong><hr></blockquote>
I get ya. Eugene by the same reasoning why would people ever need laptop docking stations? I mean isn't it just as easy to plug in the cables? COME ON don't be a jerk about someones idea because the fact is very few people here have any inside information, mainly its just "what do you think the G5 will be?" "when will we get the 970?" there are too many questions and not enough answers a lot of times. An iPod docking feature might be more useful on a portable or in a car radio. I would pay for a car radio I can plug my iPod into and then use a wireless control on the stearing wheel to use.
A@ron
<strong>
I get ya. Eugene by the same reasoning why would people ever need laptop docking stations? I mean isn't it just as easy to plug in the cables? COME ON don't be a jerk about someones idea because the fact is very few people here have any inside information, mainly its just "what do you think the G5 will be?" "when will we get the 970?" there are too many questions and not enough answers a lot of times. An iPod docking feature might be more useful on a portable or in a car radio. I would pay for a car radio I can plug my iPod into and then use a wireless control on the stearing wheel to use.
A@ron</strong><hr></blockquote>
um...laptop docking station...multiple cables.....iPod...ONE SINGLE CABLE
my god...some people are dense
<strong>
um...laptop docking station...multiple cables.....iPod...ONE SINGLE CABLE
my god...some people are dense</strong><hr></blockquote>
it was a over simplification sheesh... I understand the point to laptop docking stations. However I still like my car radio idea. Oh and applenut I am not dense thank you very much
A@ron
ugh!
<strong>
ugh!</strong><hr></blockquote>
Holes are glorious!
UGH UGGGHH!
[ 02-25-2003: Message edited by: MacsRGood4U ]</p>
Quickstream DV from MCE - write DV files directly from a camcorder to disc.
Mindstor from Minds@Work - off-load images from digital camers, reducing the need for multiple, expensive, memory cards.
The first only requires Firewire and an application. The second would require the addition of a USB interface, since most digital cameras only have USB. Not a great cost and increase functionality on the Windows side of the market.
Apple could go one-up on both these other items by adding the ability to view images on a new color LCD, although this could be a later upgrade.
Simple, no?
[ 02-25-2003: Message edited by: Ponton ]</p>
<strong>8 minutes until 9 AM West Coast and no new iPods on the Apple site. They're playing with us.</strong><hr></blockquote>
Or Toshiba hasn't actually started supplying the HDDs yet?
Unfortunately, it's what people seem to clamor for the most, so people who really should know better start pulling dumb stunts like MacWhispers just did. The bottom line is that nobody, and I mean nobody, knows when Apple will release something until either Steve walks on stage or Nathalie Welch fires a press release over the wires. Yes, it sucks. Get used to it, and you'll lose a lot less hair following rumors.