With iCloud you technically have all your music with you now, so there is no need for the Classic anymore. All you need is a Touch with iCloud and you're set.
A) only in the US
only with a clunky interface since you can't stream from the cloud
And would a theoretical 128GB iPod touch spell the end of the classic? On a per gigabyte basis, the classic is by far the least expensive way to store a large amount of music -- $249 for 160GB versus $399 for a possible 128GB touch. Apple could have done a lot with the classic if it really wanted to. Though the Zune was a failure for Microsoft, the device did do some things that I wouldn't mind seeing incorporated in a updated classic, such as a larger screen, FM capability, and wi-fi for buying music or even taking advantage of Air Play.
At that point you're down to a very small market of people who need more than 128GB or can't afford a 128GB Touch. The only reason to stay with 1.8" HDs at that point would be to push the storage even higher - and then you're talking video, so you're talking a bigger/fatter touch. Not that it's impossible but it's too close to the tweener 7" tablets that Steve Jobs has so far mocked.
The only spec I expect to see 100% is an A5 chip. 80% chance that it will get a 3 MP camera (like it was wrongly predicted in 2009 and 2010 it might get), and a 50% chance of 128GB storage. The only things we really need are those features. Other commenters, what else do you think it needs?
I'd be surprised if there was no processor bump to make it a good iOS 5 machine - especially for gaming apps. 128 GB would also allow consolidating the customers for the Classic (except for those who use it as a field hdd, e.g., pro photogs who also enjoy an iPod - if that mode still exists) - unless Apple feels iCloud supercedes the need for large amounts of local storage (and the market I just mentioned is likely quite tiny in terms of the demos and unit volumes Apple now lives on).
Quote:
Originally Posted by GrangerFX
You are reading this information the wrong way. The iPod Touch will begin to be phased out this year. It will likely only ship in a single low cost $200 8GB model (in white perhaps). The high end models starting at $300 will be replaced with a new pay as you go iPhone. The iPhone would be able to do everything an iPod Touch can currently do plus have access to cellular voice and/or data. Apple may even throw in some kind of free data service for app and iTunes downloads like the Kindle does for books. If they make the right deals, it could even come with limited free web browsing and iCloud syncing. Perhaps a low cost subscription to play online games. The possibilities are endless. This new iPhone would be in addition to the premium upgrade to the iPhone 4. It would have a thinner design and look a lot like the existing iPod Touch. Expect its camera to be lower resolution than the iPhone. This information is all speculation but it fits well with Apple's strategy and the other leaks.
Some of what you say makes sense, but I don't see your whole proposed package coming into anything like that form. That would be a phone model, not a Touch.
Quote:
Originally Posted by jakevin.
I think they can afford to drop Shuffles altogether now that the Nano is smaller and more Shuffle-like and while they're at it they should drop the Classics as well by adding a 128GB option to the iPod Touch... With iPods making up less and less of Apple's total sales, I don't see why they shouldn't contract their range to just 2-3 options - makes consumers less confused and everything a lot neater.
Add an iPhone Lite, and iPad Pro and drop the Shuffle/Classic I say. Focus on the money makers!
I agree at least with the last line for sure, and consolidation of the iPod line does seem likely. That's the new Apple to a T.... ...if you add "and the ecosystem extenders and integrators."
Quote:
Originally Posted by matrix07
Could Apple just put a SIM slot, cellular & 3G chip into iPod Touch 4G, up rear camera to 3mp. and be done with it? Sell this at a tad more than current iPT4 and it will be a very good pre-paid iPhone.
A4 or A5, it doesn't matter for a targeting market.
And while we're at it I really love to see a 5.5" iPod Touch with A5. This could be the ultimate mobile game & GPS machine.
Again, I'll buy the last line if not the first parts. I've decided my notion of converging the current touch strengths with a good P&S cam in a phone sized shell is not going to happen, since the phone's own camera's evolving fast enough to eat into the cam market by itself. Even tho' the model I see could use the phone electronics room to jam in a real optical zoom, better sensor and advanced image processing codecs. Giving a cool camera with all those apps, all that media capability, etc. Sigh.
Quote:
Originally Posted by brucep
i'ii buy a 5.5 ipod touch !!!
Actually you won't. The development model is optimized for doublings of the original pixel density. 5.5" would be a jaggy version of the current iPhone 4 res or a compressed version of the iPad res.
On the other hand, if Apple's open to new form factors, it would be a way around the notion they'll never announce a smaller iPAD. So a long shot of long shots at best in my book.
However, my impression was that the Touch was competing quite nicely with other portable gaming platforms, so I wasn't expecting a major de-emphasis of that part of the line.
Quote:
Originally Posted by blackbook
The iPod Touch doesn't need an A5. For one it has no competition and secondly it's user base primarily consist of young kids and teenagers that won't care if their iPod has the latest dual core chip and highest specs.
The certainly do care about the speed of their games.....
Many of them use the iPod for gaming which benefits greatly from better CPUs and GPUs.
Quote:
Originally Posted by bigpics
The certainly do care about the speed of their games.....
The Nintendo DS has like a 100MHz processor and the Sony PSP has like 300MHz and I've never heard kids complain about those portable gaming systems being slow. The Touch does NOT need a dual core processor, because currently the A4 beats anything else out there in the non-phone portable media field. The Touch has no competition.
If Apple gave it a decent price drop and added a white model, people would still buy Touches in droves. As I said before teens and their parents aren't gonna care if it has a dual core processor, simply because people in this demographic don't compare spec sheets they compare features and available content which the Touch trounces it's competition there.
From the sounds of this report it looks like the Touch is gonna get what the iPhone got a couple months ago. A new color and no other upgrades, and frankly it doesn't need any other upgrades.
only with a clunky interface since you can't stream from the cloud
iCloud will be making it to other countries soon, and although you can't stream you can upload the songs you want when you want them. All in all a web connected device is more essential than a non-web connected device (ie the Classic).
And in reality how many classics are sold in other countries? I'd suspect that the number is small.
Apple will keep the iPod line as it provides an important entry vector into people's lives. All the models provide service to millions of customers, many of whom go on to buy other Apple products.
Still - the idea of GrangerFX seems quite plausible and makes a lot of sense to me. I am just not sure whether or not Apple can produce a phone at $300 and make enough money on it. The comm chips are expensive, and I believe there may be license fees on top of that.
If the were to happen, they would have to stay with A4 chip and lower res screen (IMHO - but what do I know????)
Not updating the iPod would be stupid, because it is the gateway drug to the iPhone universe. Speaking from personal experience here. I first had an Touch and I got all the apps, functionality down. When I transitioned to an iPhone and iPad there was nothing new to learn and all my apps were right there. The only difference was the phone app (though I was already calling with the touch). If kids get samsung android PMPs this winter, it may mean a loss of customers down the line (ie they will reach for the familiar android device, rather than familiar iOS device).
But then again, maybe iPad is the gateway drug now.
Eh, where to start? Firstly the iPod that brought Apple back from the dead is the iPod classic the direct descendant from the original iPod.
The iPod Touch is really quite a different device and has very little in common with those early media players. The iPod touch is more closely related to the iPhone or even the iPad, and one could say it is the iPhone from a software perspective, but without 3g (yes the bit that really makes it a phone).
The iPod Touch is in a funny place right now, yes the iPod line is in decline, Apple has already reposition the Nano to be just a music player, it has left the iPod classic there untouched for those who want it, and the iPod Shuffle doesn't really have anywhere else to go, I mean how small can it really get.
My point is that the iPod touch isn't really an iPod, it is much more than that. In fact most people don't even call it an iPod, the name iTouch seems to be everywhere. But analyst love the doom an gloom around the falling revenue coming from the iPod line and the iPod Touch suffers because of this.Maybe we need a name change or something?
Personally i think the iPod Touch will get updated internally - it needs to keep up with the other iOS devices especially it's older sibling the iPhone which both share much of the same software. I think 3g makes sense, this would position the device closer to the iPad (kind of like an iPad Nano) giving the device greater flexibility. As for a white version - that seem to be a no-brainer.
You are so right! As far as i am concerned the ipod touch is not really an ipod it is much more (its almost like calling the iPad an ipod Pad), as u correctly implied it is more like a tablet. it would be supremely stupid to discontinue its production for a cheaper iphone it makes more sense to add 3G and GPS and if possible rebrand it by calling it an ipad nano or whatever(with over the air updates 3G should also be a no-brainer). it should be Apple's pride when it comes to mobile gaming.
I really wanted Apple to revamp the touch. More sotorage space, A5 processor, better camera, better battery and a 5" or 7" display. Something to rival the smaller tablets out there. Their appears to be a nitch for that...
And you'll do WHAT with it? You'll take it where? You'll PUT it where? Ghetto pants do not tablet pockets make.*
Quote:
Something to rival the smaller tablets out there. Their appears to be a nitch for that...
All the other tablet manufacturers have the "completely sucks and has no purpose whatsoever" niche filled already, I think.
*Note: I know nothing about ghetto pants other than they're bought to fall down off of people's waists, so I figure from what I've seen that they'd have larger than normal pockets. Excuse the reference if I'm wrong. I'm about as "white" as humanly possible.
The Nintendo DS has like a 100MHz processor and the Sony PSP has like 300MHz and I've never heard kids complain about those portable gaming systems being slow.
Look at the upcoming NGP though, quad core A9's and quad SGX graphics, so double in each spec in the iPad. Its not so much about speed as graphical fidelity now. If it wants to compete with the NGP (well, after that comes out) and the 3DS, it should have the A5. 'Dem kids might not care about the silicon, but they will about graphics, and the A5 is much ahead of the A4.
i hope they don't kill the ipod as i doubt i will ever get an iphone unless they offer free gps. i've never bought an ipod but would like one now.i want the touch but it doesn't have enough space.white would be nice
...i doubt i will ever get an iphone unless they offer free gps.
To be clear, you mean free GPS, voice-enabled, turn-by-turn directions, right?
Because it's 100% free to use the iPhone's GPS in the Maps application to not only get your location but to get directions based on said location. And has always been this way.
Comments
With iCloud you technically have all your music with you now, so there is no need for the Classic anymore. All you need is a Touch with iCloud and you're set.
A) only in the US
And would a theoretical 128GB iPod touch spell the end of the classic? On a per gigabyte basis, the classic is by far the least expensive way to store a large amount of music -- $249 for 160GB versus $399 for a possible 128GB touch. Apple could have done a lot with the classic if it really wanted to. Though the Zune was a failure for Microsoft, the device did do some things that I wouldn't mind seeing incorporated in a updated classic, such as a larger screen, FM capability, and wi-fi for buying music or even taking advantage of Air Play.
At that point you're down to a very small market of people who need more than 128GB or can't afford a 128GB Touch. The only reason to stay with 1.8" HDs at that point would be to push the storage even higher - and then you're talking video, so you're talking a bigger/fatter touch. Not that it's impossible but it's too close to the tweener 7" tablets that Steve Jobs has so far mocked.
The only spec I expect to see 100% is an A5 chip. 80% chance that it will get a 3 MP camera (like it was wrongly predicted in 2009 and 2010 it might get), and a 50% chance of 128GB storage. The only things we really need are those features. Other commenters, what else do you think it needs?
I'd be surprised if there was no processor bump to make it a good iOS 5 machine - especially for gaming apps. 128 GB would also allow consolidating the customers for the Classic (except for those who use it as a field hdd, e.g., pro photogs who also enjoy an iPod - if that mode still exists) - unless Apple feels iCloud supercedes the need for large amounts of local storage (and the market I just mentioned is likely quite tiny in terms of the demos and unit volumes Apple now lives on).
You are reading this information the wrong way. The iPod Touch will begin to be phased out this year. It will likely only ship in a single low cost $200 8GB model (in white perhaps). The high end models starting at $300 will be replaced with a new pay as you go iPhone. The iPhone would be able to do everything an iPod Touch can currently do plus have access to cellular voice and/or data. Apple may even throw in some kind of free data service for app and iTunes downloads like the Kindle does for books. If they make the right deals, it could even come with limited free web browsing and iCloud syncing. Perhaps a low cost subscription to play online games. The possibilities are endless. This new iPhone would be in addition to the premium upgrade to the iPhone 4. It would have a thinner design and look a lot like the existing iPod Touch. Expect its camera to be lower resolution than the iPhone. This information is all speculation but it fits well with Apple's strategy and the other leaks.
Some of what you say makes sense, but I don't see your whole proposed package coming into anything like that form. That would be a phone model, not a Touch.
I think they can afford to drop Shuffles altogether now that the Nano is smaller and more Shuffle-like and while they're at it they should drop the Classics as well by adding a 128GB option to the iPod Touch... With iPods making up less and less of Apple's total sales, I don't see why they shouldn't contract their range to just 2-3 options - makes consumers less confused and everything a lot neater.
Add an iPhone Lite, and iPad Pro and drop the Shuffle/Classic I say. Focus on the money makers!
I agree at least with the last line for sure, and consolidation of the iPod line does seem likely. That's the new Apple to a T.... ...if you add "and the ecosystem extenders and integrators."
Could Apple just put a SIM slot, cellular & 3G chip into iPod Touch 4G, up rear camera to 3mp. and be done with it? Sell this at a tad more than current iPT4 and it will be a very good pre-paid iPhone.
A4 or A5, it doesn't matter for a targeting market.
And while we're at it I really love to see a 5.5" iPod Touch with A5. This could be the ultimate mobile game & GPS machine.
Again, I'll buy the last line if not the first parts. I've decided my notion of converging the current touch strengths with a good P&S cam in a phone sized shell is not going to happen, since the phone's own camera's evolving fast enough to eat into the cam market by itself. Even tho' the model I see could use the phone electronics room to jam in a real optical zoom, better sensor and advanced image processing codecs. Giving a cool camera with all those apps, all that media capability, etc. Sigh.
i'ii buy a 5.5 ipod touch !!!
Actually you won't. The development model is optimized for doublings of the original pixel density. 5.5" would be a jaggy version of the current iPhone 4 res or a compressed version of the iPad res.
On the other hand, if Apple's open to new form factors, it would be a way around the notion they'll never announce a smaller iPAD. So a long shot of long shots at best in my book.
However, my impression was that the Touch was competing quite nicely with other portable gaming platforms, so I wasn't expecting a major de-emphasis of that part of the line.
The iPod Touch doesn't need an A5. For one it has no competition and secondly it's user base primarily consist of young kids and teenagers that won't care if their iPod has the latest dual core chip and highest specs.
The certainly do care about the speed of their games.....
Have you ever met a teenager?
Many of them use the iPod for gaming which benefits greatly from better CPUs and GPUs.
The certainly do care about the speed of their games.....
The Nintendo DS has like a 100MHz processor and the Sony PSP has like 300MHz and I've never heard kids complain about those portable gaming systems being slow. The Touch does NOT need a dual core processor, because currently the A4 beats anything else out there in the non-phone portable media field. The Touch has no competition.
If Apple gave it a decent price drop and added a white model, people would still buy Touches in droves. As I said before teens and their parents aren't gonna care if it has a dual core processor, simply because people in this demographic don't compare spec sheets they compare features and available content which the Touch trounces it's competition there.
From the sounds of this report it looks like the Touch is gonna get what the iPhone got a couple months ago. A new color and no other upgrades, and frankly it doesn't need any other upgrades.
A) only in the US
iCloud will be making it to other countries soon, and although you can't stream you can upload the songs you want when you want them. All in all a web connected device is more essential than a non-web connected device (ie the Classic).
And in reality how many classics are sold in other countries? I'd suspect that the number is small.
The A5 is dual core and probably worth waiting for at this point.
Thank you. Looks like I'll put it on the calendar .. 2-3 months from now make my purchase.
Still - the idea of GrangerFX seems quite plausible and makes a lot of sense to me. I am just not sure whether or not Apple can produce a phone at $300 and make enough money on it. The comm chips are expensive, and I believe there may be license fees on top of that.
If the were to happen, they would have to stay with A4 chip and lower res screen (IMHO - but what do I know????)
But then again, maybe iPad is the gateway drug now.
Eh, where to start? Firstly the iPod that brought Apple back from the dead is the iPod classic the direct descendant from the original iPod.
The iPod Touch is really quite a different device and has very little in common with those early media players. The iPod touch is more closely related to the iPhone or even the iPad, and one could say it is the iPhone from a software perspective, but without 3g (yes the bit that really makes it a phone).
The iPod Touch is in a funny place right now, yes the iPod line is in decline, Apple has already reposition the Nano to be just a music player, it has left the iPod classic there untouched for those who want it, and the iPod Shuffle doesn't really have anywhere else to go, I mean how small can it really get.
My point is that the iPod touch isn't really an iPod, it is much more than that. In fact most people don't even call it an iPod, the name iTouch seems to be everywhere. But analyst love the doom an gloom around the falling revenue coming from the iPod line and the iPod Touch suffers because of this.Maybe we need a name change or something?
Personally i think the iPod Touch will get updated internally - it needs to keep up with the other iOS devices especially it's older sibling the iPhone which both share much of the same software. I think 3g makes sense, this would position the device closer to the iPad (kind of like an iPad Nano) giving the device greater flexibility. As for a white version - that seem to be a no-brainer.
You are so right! As far as i am concerned the ipod touch is not really an ipod it is much more (its almost like calling the iPad an ipod Pad), as u correctly implied it is more like a tablet. it would be supremely stupid to discontinue its production for a cheaper iphone it makes more sense to add 3G and GPS and if possible rebrand it by calling it an ipad nano or whatever(with over the air updates 3G should also be a no-brainer). it should be Apple's pride when it comes to mobile gaming.
A) only in the US
1) iCloud is not USA only
2) You can *currently* stream from the cloud, but when iCloud comes, then not.
5" or 7" display.
And you'll do WHAT with it? You'll take it where? You'll PUT it where? Ghetto pants do not tablet pockets make.*
Something to rival the smaller tablets out there. Their appears to be a nitch for that...
All the other tablet manufacturers have the "completely sucks and has no purpose whatsoever" niche filled already, I think.
*Note: I know nothing about ghetto pants other than they're bought to fall down off of people's waists, so I figure from what I've seen that they'd have larger than normal pockets. Excuse the reference if I'm wrong. I'm about as "white" as humanly possible.
The Nintendo DS has like a 100MHz processor and the Sony PSP has like 300MHz and I've never heard kids complain about those portable gaming systems being slow.
Look at the upcoming NGP though, quad core A9's and quad SGX graphics, so double in each spec in the iPad. Its not so much about speed as graphical fidelity now. If it wants to compete with the NGP (well, after that comes out) and the 3DS, it should have the A5. 'Dem kids might not care about the silicon, but they will about graphics, and the A5 is much ahead of the A4.
...i doubt i will ever get an iphone unless they offer free gps.
To be clear, you mean free GPS, voice-enabled, turn-by-turn directions, right?
Because it's 100% free to use the iPhone's GPS in the Maps application to not only get your location but to get directions based on said location. And has always been this way.