Apple's new iPod touch rumored to have 5MP camera, FaceTime

24

Comments

  • Reply 21 of 76
    banalltvbanalltv Posts: 238member
    No iPod Classic on the presentation slide. Maybe just means no refresh of it.
  • Reply 22 of 76
    minderbinderminderbinder Posts: 1,703member
    As others have said, just give us the iPhone minus the phone. If they really want facetime to take off, this would be a great way to give it a boost.



    And it's only a matter of time before iChat connects to facetime, they just wanted to get it working on the phone first.
  • Reply 23 of 76
    cvaldes1831cvaldes1831 Posts: 1,832member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by iGuessSo View Post


    A built in microphone and Bluetooth handsfree are essential as well - with a good VOIP app (where are you Skype?) could be extremely disruptive to the cell carriers. Let's hope.



    What are you talking about?



    Skype has been on the iPhone/iPod touch for a long, long time. There are other third-party apps that also feature Skype functionality (Nimbuzz, fring).



    There are probably forty or fifty VoIP apps including a bunch of SIP clients which you can use with whatever SIP provider you choose. I use Acrobits Softphone with Gizmo5 SIP on my iPod touch. With Google Voice and push notifications, this has allowed me to make calls back to the United States from abroad.



    Skype/VoIP/SIP functionality has been on iOS devices for ages.



    Wake up and get with the program, please!



  • Reply 24 of 76
    ruel24ruel24 Posts: 432member
    I agree... Make it an iPhone without the phone part. Wouldn't that just be simpler? I know it would make everyone that buys them happy.
  • Reply 25 of 76
    fabsgwufabsgwu Posts: 78member
    It would be awesome to see future MacBooks integrate an A4 processor and iOS side-by-side with OSX. The benefit would be an instant-on browsing/App experience for when full OSX is overkill. This could mean ridiculous battery life and further integration with iPhone/iPod.



    Since the Touch is likely getting Facetime, it's only a matter of time before we see iOS features spread across Apple's products. And contrary to some worries, I think it could actually help strengthen Mac/OSX with greater innovation spreading to that platform from the touch/mobile device space.
  • Reply 26 of 76
    Well it is all by design. Apple wants you to buy all their devices.



    If you have a Mac, get a Mac Book, get an iPad, get an iPhone, get an iPod Touch etc. I have a hard time seeing Apple putting FaceTime on the iPod Touch and see it as an iPhone exclusive for now.



    However in a gaming perspective (which is what the iPod Touch is becoming a mobile gaming device) the Retina display, A4 processor, and Gyro all make sense. The Camera, GPS, and FaceTime do not. Remember Steve wants you to buy Apple products. Why make something very similar to another product and risk cannibalizing that market? Remember the iPad? He made every effort to show that it is an in between device for a desktop and laptop. Why? He still wants you to buy Apple desktops and laptops.



    All Apple products have specific markets. No one device is going to be the same.
  • Reply 27 of 76
    riderrider Posts: 31member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by gqmac View Post


    ... the iphone4 is pretty much an ipod if you hold it correctly!



    thanks for the morning laugh ~!
  • Reply 28 of 76
    jccjcc Posts: 326member
    The problem is with the thickness of iPods vs. iPhones. iPods are significantly thinner. This makes it more difficult to install a nice camera. It also makes it more difficult to install a larger battery to power the new Retina Display.



    So, if they do include all those items in the next revision, I would see the girth increasing. That's something that has never happened to an iDevice. Not that I'm aware of anyway.
  • Reply 29 of 76
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by JCC View Post


    The problem is with the thickness of iPods vs. iPhones. iPods are significantly thinner. This makes it more difficult to install a nice camera. It also makes it more difficult to install a larger battery to power the new Retina Display.



    So, if they do include all those items in the next revision, I would see the girth increasing. That's something that has never happened to an iDevice. Not that I'm aware of anyway.



    I am interested to see if they use the iPad design on the new iPod Touch with the aluminum curved backing and the black buttons. I mean they have to get rid of the chrome now, right?
  • Reply 30 of 76
    anantksundaramanantksundaram Posts: 20,403member
    Hmmm...... I don't see iPod sales and margins decelerating any time soon, if this were to happen. (Ref. the couple of Andy Zaky pieces in AI recently).
  • Reply 31 of 76
    solipsismsolipsism Posts: 25,726member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by walshbj View Post


    It seems weird that the nano has had a camera all this time and the touch still does not.



    I think the Nano only got a camera last year, and it?s not a good camera. It competes with a simple non-HD version of Flip in the most rudimentary way. The real killer for Flip is that it?s likely good enough while also being an iPod, which Flip doesn?t do.



    The Touch not having a camera was a little surprising last year, but it?s not uncommon for a component to have supply issues. Maybe it was an artificial business reason, but we had reports of certain elements for the camera already being in short supply before the Touch was announced so it?s possible it was a supply issue combined with a need to make sure the iPhone had supply first.





    Quote:
    Originally Posted by whoami View Post


    Apple has so many sleeper hits it's crazy... think they'll build FaceTime into iTunes soon?



    That doesn?t sound like a bad idea. Not ?into? iTunes, but using your account as your unique ID for the FaceTime gateway server.





    Quote:
    Originally Posted by macadam212 View Post


    iPod shuffle will get a camera, can't see it happening for the iPod Touch.



    FaceTime Shuffle is Apple?s version of Chat Roulette?





    Quote:
    Originally Posted by iGuessSo View Post


    The unsubsidized iPhone is ridiculously overpriced. Yes all those features would raise the price, but to $600? Puhlease.



    It?s really not. If carriers are willing to pay for the privilege to subsidize the iPhone and users are willing to pay for the device and other vendors have to sell a lesser product at the same produce because they can?t compete with Apple?s economy of scale and ecosystem, that?s not Apple?s fault. That?s business; the competition needs to learn to engineer, produce, market and manage themselves better.





    Quote:
    Originally Posted by ruel24 View Post


    I agree... Make it an iPhone without the phone part. Wouldn't that just be simpler? I know it would make everyone that buys them happy.



    That is the iPod Touch. There are no cellular radios. You can use VoIP right now.



    If you mean an iPod Touch that has GSM/UMTS radios for data, then that is the iPhone, except you are required by most carriers (maybe all) to get a voice plan. If AT&T offered it a plan like the Data Connect cards I might go for that, though have been $60/month for 5GB and I pay $69 for Unlimited data, so it might not be in my best interest.





    Quote:
    Originally Posted by fabsgwu View Post


    It would be awesome to see future MacBooks integrate an A4 processor and iOS side-by-side with OSX. The benefit would be an instant-on browsing/App experience for when full OSX is overkill. This could mean ridiculous battery life and further integration with iPhone/iPod.



    Have you seen iPhone/Touch apps running on an iPad? They are awful. I deleted mine off my iPad right away. I would rather use Safari than the app. For a desktop it?s even worse, and don?t even get me started on an iPhone app on the AppleTV.



    Plus, there is already an emulator for testing an app on a Mac before you test it on an iDevice. You wouldn?t need an A4 to make this happen.



    Quote:

    Since the Touch is likely getting Facetime, it's only a matter of time before we see iOS features spread across Apple's products. And contrary to some worries, I think it could actually help strengthen Mac/OSX with greater innovation spreading to that platform from the touch/mobile device space.



    Note that Apple made FaceTime open immediately. I don?t think we?ll see iOS features on Mac OS X since iOS was designed for a smaller output and a completely unique input. We?ll see the efficient code of iOS on Mac OS X, like they did for QuickTime X, but that is all backend stuff, the front end will be dramatically different per my example.



    I can?t wait to see how FaceTime works. I think there has to be a gateway server involved. So far it looks like it requires a single call to register the device in some way, but I can?t see Apple requiring it to be used only via a phone (plus it?s easily subverted) when so many different devices are internet capable. There has to be more to this story. I would expect 10.7 would get FaceTime built into iChat, but apps like Adium can add the protocol, too.
  • Reply 32 of 76
    jccjcc Posts: 326member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by applebjesus View Post


    I am interested to see if they use the iPad design on the new iPod Touch with the aluminum curved backing and the black buttons. I mean they have to get rid of the chrome now, right?



    The irony is that Apple painted themselves into a corner by making the iPod Touch so thin. Now, it's impossible for them to put any significant technologies into it without making it thicker again. Again, that goes against their grain. It's un-Apple like to make bigger or thicker.
  • Reply 33 of 76
    Considering that the only ipod shown in that slide that already has a camera in is the nano, the slide says 'improved 5m pixel camera?'





    All speculation anyway, what does John Lewis know?



    It's obvious that it's a matter of time before the Touch gets the iPhone features anyway.
  • Reply 34 of 76
    wigginwiggin Posts: 2,265member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Povilas View Post


    Same camera found in the iPhone 4 would be nice.



    First take a look at the camera module on the iPhone 4 teardown picts. Will it cause Apple to make the touch thicker? Probably, which would go against Apple's nature. However, if they want to copy the design of the iPhone with the metal band and all, a thicker touch might be inevitable anyway.



    Facetime...whatever, take it or leave it. If it makes the touch more expensive, I say leave it out. But I suspect Apple really wants to push the feature of their devices given they are making whole TV commercials about that one iPhone feature.



    Quote:
    Originally Posted by McDavies View Post


    That's a stretch. I'm hoping for GPS. Just for my running aps if nothing else.



    Agreed. I'd rather have the GPS than the gyroscope any day. But I'm also curious how responsive the GPS would be if it doesn't have the cell network assistance for faster acquisition.



    Apple also needs to up the storage. Not that I need 128 GB, but because I need the 64 GB model to drop to the mid-range to make it affordable.
  • Reply 35 of 76
    sheffsheff Posts: 1,407member
    I call BS.



    Apple will never allow "an iPhone without the phone" touch. Touch is much more reasonably priced, considering its an unlocked iPhone. iPod is $199 unlocked iPhone 699. Hard to justify when the only difference is a gsm antenna (that only works if you hold it right.)
  • Reply 36 of 76
    ruel24ruel24 Posts: 432member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by solipsism View Post


    Quote:

    I agree... Make it an iPhone without the phone part. Wouldn't that just be simpler? I know it would make everyone that buys them happy.



    That is the iPod Touch. There are no cellular radios. You can use VoIP right now.



    If you mean an iPod Touch that has GSM/UMTS radios for data, then that is the iPhone, except you are required by most carriers (maybe all) to get a voice plan. If AT&T offered it a plan like the Data Connect cards I might go for that, though have been $60/month for 5GB and I pay $69 for Unlimited data, so it might not be in my best interest.



    Wrong... No GPS, no Gyroscope, no camera... It's NOT the iPhone minus the phone. Take out all the features that make the iPhone an actual phone and its 3G network chips, and call it an iPod Touch. Same apps work in either. Right now, some apps work in iPhone but not iPod Touch because they are not the same.
  • Reply 37 of 76
    wuchmeewuchmee Posts: 41member
    Let's see. . . .the touch is still a member of the iPod family, right? Well, Apple, how about finally addressing music playback sound quality? Radical, huh?



    Offer better mid-range and bass, and a user-adjustable equalizer. Not exactly exotic stuff by 2010.



    Whoever Apple uses to engineer and QA iPod sound quality is clearly not even remotely an audiophile-in-training. Cupertino's been too stubborn about this for too long.
  • Reply 38 of 76
    solipsismsolipsism Posts: 25,726member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Wiggin View Post


    First take a look at the camera module on the iPhone 4 teardown picts. Will it cause Apple to make the touch thicker? Probably, which would go against Apple's nature. However, if they want to copy the design of the iPhone with the metal band and all, a thicker touch might be inevitable anyway.



    Interesting. Does it behoove Apple to follow that same design. I'm not sure it could be mug thinner using that stacked silicon design. And perhaps the cost of the milling process and glass makes it prohibitively expensive at this point.



    Quote:

    Agreed. I'd rather have the GPS than the gyroscope any day. But I'm also curious how responsive the GPS would be if it doesn't have the cell network assistance for faster acquisition.



    How much is the GPS chip as quoted by iSuppli. I seem to recall it being about $12. If so, that seems prohibitively expensive for a $199 device.



    Additionally, won't people complain about the speed of the satellite-only positioning and lack of use without buying expensive mapping software from the App Store.



    Quote:

    Apple also needs to up the storage. Not that I need 128 GB, but because I need the 64 GB model to drop to the mid-range to make it affordable.



    Unfortunatley doubling capacity every year or every two years isn't possible. I think we still have a NAND crunch since Apple and others are still growing too fast.



    I wonder if an intermediate solutions, like using 64GB+32GB chips for a total of 96GB are viable and pragmatic.
  • Reply 39 of 76
    guinnessguinness Posts: 473member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by sheff View Post


    I call BS.



    Apple will never allow "an iPhone without the phone" touch. Touch is much more reasonably priced, considering its an unlocked iPhone. iPod is $199 unlocked iPhone 699. Hard to justify when the only difference is a gsm antenna (that only works if you hold it right.)



    Why? They do it now, sans camera and GSM/GPS radios.



    And considering Facetime only works (currently) over Wifi, it should be a no brainer to add it to a new Touch, as long as it adds all the other features of the iPhone 4 (minus the GSM radio, and possibly GPS).



    I have zero interest in an iPhone, but might upgrade to a new Touch, if it's the iPhone 4, without the phone part.
  • Reply 40 of 76
    solipsismsolipsism Posts: 25,726member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by ruel24 View Post


    Wrong... No GPS, no Gyroscope, no camera... It's NOT the iPhone minus the phone. Take out all the features that make the iPhone an actual phone and its 3G network chips, and call it an iPod Touch. Same apps work in either. Right now, some apps work in iPhone but not iPod Touch because they are not the same.



    It’s not the iPhone minus the phone unless it has EVERYTHING EXACTLY like the iPhone 4 has, minus the phone? Is there an app for splitting hairs?



    Let’s look at what you’re arguing. You’re saying the iPod Touch isn’t pretty much an iPhone because it doesn’t have a gyroscope. Note that they gyroscope only came out with the iPhone 4 and the iPods haven’t been refreshed yet. When you consider the primary use for the gyroscope it seems very likely that the next Touch will have it.



    Then there is the GPS. Do you know how pointless GPS is without local maps Do you know how slow GPS is with assistance? I’d like to see this added, too, but Apple doesn’t usually add features that can’t be used out of the box.



    Phones ≠ cameras, but it seems very likely, just like the gyroscope that it’s coming to the Touch. Not only because of the space found last time but because Apple is pushing FaceTime and the Touch is a way to do that.



    So it looks like the only thing you’re complaining about is GPS, which still makes little sense as it would require a $50 TomTom or some other App Store purchase just to use it.



    Think about it: Who else comes close to offers a smartphone and PMP that are so close together, can use almost all the same apps, can be transitioned between users without them skipping a beat?
Sign In or Register to comment.