What happened to other "iDevices"?

Posted:
in Future Apple Hardware edited January 2014
Been a long time since the iPod was released now and later today we will likely see a much more matured version of it.



But we have yet to see any sign or evidence of other iDevices other than Jobs' initial statements spoken right after the initial iPod unveiling.





I had always believed that the iDevices would be their new strategy and we would see at least a couple more by now. But it seems as if they have decided to just go head on into music.



But, if they do do something else, perhaps something with video.... considering they have thrown themselves so much into music now is it not out of the question to think that something similar may be done with movies? Will Apple become the first major company to offer full length movie downloads? MPEG 4 maybe? Or will they still focus on the creation end of it?



They haven't even touched the creation end of of music yet despite the purchase of Logic.



I'm confused :-)
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Comments

  • Reply 1 of 35
    rhumgodrhumgod Posts: 1,289member
    Quote:

    Originally posted by applenut

    Been a long time since the iPod was released now and later today we will likely see a much more matured version of it.



    But we have yet to see any sign or evidence of other iDevices other than Jobs' initial statements spoken right after the initial iPod unveiling.





    I had always believed that the iDevices would be their new strategy and we would see at least a couple more by now. But it seems as if they have decided to just go head on into music.



    But, if they do do something else, perhaps something with video.... considering they have thrown themselves so much into music now is it not out of the question to think that something similar may be done with movies? Will Apple become the first major company to offer full length movie downloads? MPEG 4 maybe? Or will they still focus on the creation end of it?



    They haven't even touched the creation end of of music yet despite the purchase of Logic.



    I'm confused :-)




    Given the fact that so many laws regarding "artistic" formats (ie; music, video, etc) I think it is wise for Apple to take it's time in delivering it to the home user. It is a sticky place to put yourself in, but I think with music being at the forefront due to song size vs video size, it is the right time to jump into this arena anyway. Besides, with Broadband use rising so quickly in North America (especially in Canada), people are sharing the files for free right now. I think a justifiable way of getting tunes, the correct tunes of good quality at a fair price, is worth it to lots of people. Especially hard to find or older tunes, that some skippy didn't capture off a turntable with crappy quality. The time is right, ripe and ready for Apple to enter. Video is not quite there yet, but soon. By the 2nd quarter next year, I think we will see some new device from Apple in regards to video. Just a little patience....
  • Reply 2 of 35
    applenutapplenut Posts: 5,768member
    but will that device be something on the creation end or the playback/entertainment end?



    seems apple's music focus is the one non creative area in their strategy while video and photo are creative.



    so does that mean they will release a video camera of some sort? Apple seems ot be favoring services now and add on cost.... a video camera or digital camera would not provide that
  • Reply 3 of 35
    macsrgood4umacsrgood4u Posts: 3,007member
    What "other" iDevices? Apple hasn't announced anything up to now. When they do, then they excist. Until then they're just RUMORS!
  • Reply 4 of 35
    applenutapplenut Posts: 5,768member
    Quote:

    Originally posted by MacsRGood4U

    What "other" iDevices? Apple hasn't announced anything up to now. When they do, then they excist. Until then they're just RUMORS!



    good, you're in a future hardware forum at a place called AppleInsider making a post like the one above.





    someone's confused.
  • Reply 5 of 35
    willoughbywilloughby Posts: 1,457member
    I'll admit I don't know a lot about video so I don't know if this would even be possible....



    But what about a video pod that you could hook up with firewire to download your iMovies, Quicktime movies and other MPEG 4 videos.



    It could be at least 40 gigs which would hold over 2 hours worth of video (umm, right?) and would hook up to your TV. The small LCD screen would be just for a menu to select the video you want to play out on your TV.



    I'd like something like that. Then I wouldn't have to burn DVDs of my home movies. I could just download them to my Video Pod and take them with me to my friends house to play on their TV. \



    Then there's always the video camera idea, with a builtin harddrive instead of a tape.......
  • Reply 6 of 35
    applenutapplenut Posts: 5,768member
    well, the video pod thing could easily be added to the existing iPod. With MPEG 4 that 40GB HD would hold FAR more than 2 hours of video.



    even in MPEG 2 a 40GB HD would hold far more than 2 hours....



    i'm not sure how easy it is to make a firewire -> video adapter though..... and how cheap that would be.



    it is definitely possible and it would be a nice feature. but it just doesnt havent an amazing gee whiz appeal to me for some reason
  • Reply 7 of 35
    davegeedavegee Posts: 2,765member
    Well I was going to post a new topic with this idea but this seems to be a pretty good fit so I'll just post it here...



    Apple has the iPod and nobody can deny that they have made an impact on the 'player market' with it but now many others have or are catching up... Apple is now about to move into a direction that I think we can all agree that most of the other player devices just can't follow... Content delivery. Sure they might be able to partner with one of the other music services but it just can't be done as well as Apple could do.



    Apple has also done something pretty amazing... The "business side" of music wasn't exactly pleased with Apple since they moved into the music player space. A few those companies even made their feelings pretty well known...



    So what happened? I dunno, but Apple must have SOME SYSTEM in place to cause the top 5 catalog owners to pull a 180 and not just 'not hate Apple anymore' but actually put their company assets on the line as well.



    Could Apple really have come up with 'the perfect DRM solution?' well okay, more perfect than any DRM solution to date? I dunno, but, if they have Apple isn't (and shouldn't) stop with just music. If the DRM is really and truly blessed by the industry as well as the users (well the users that spend money anyway) then Apple can open the doors to a whole lot of other industries.



    - Music / Audio

    - Movies / Video

    - Books / Publications



    How about some not so DRM associated areas?



    - Fonts

    - Software



    DRM is a sticky issue... Unlike some, I can see the need but at the same time if it is too restrictive then users loose out too. A perfect balance is something of a holy grail but who knows maybe Apple has found it and if they have then LOOK OUT, Apple could someday rule the world with it.



    ..edit..



    Ooops forgot to tie this in with the topic...



    Music



    The iPod and it's form factor has music covered in spades - the only thing I still want to see is a GOOD device that allows me to control my music anywhere in the house - it could be wired but I'd rather see wireless. Will Apple make the device (I don't think so) but rather let folks like TIVO and or Philips do it instead. I'm FINE with that so long as they support Apple/Rendezvous.



    Movies/Video, Books/Publications and Photos



    A new device in the iPod family would need to be quite a bit bigger (and color). The same form factor that would be good for Video/Movies would also be good for Photos as well as Book/Publications. I really hope we see this as the next device but if we do I still think it might be a bit further into the future...



    Dave
  • Reply 8 of 35
    jabbajabba Posts: 82member
    Sorry MacsRGood4U, but Applenut is right.



    Go to News.com, search the Video archive (for original iPod announcement) and you will hear both Jobs and PSchiller say in the News.com interview the iPod will the first in a *family* of new non-computer devices.



    There was talk on Macrumors.com (usually very accurate) that a new 'communication' device will be announced very soon, if not today then in May. This could very well be the iDevice2.
  • Reply 9 of 35
    jabbajabba Posts: 82member
    Which reminds me on the RendezVous announcements with Philips back at AppleExpo Europe 2002 and the recent adoption of RendezVous features with TiVo Series2.



    Desktop iDevice:

    New iDevice has something to do with RendezVous and large CE companies, maybe a gateway/bridge to your hi-fi stereo or TV and your Mac as many suggested with TiVo2-like features.



    Mobile iDevice (add-on to iPod):

    FirewireCam attachable to your iPod (see the Dock connector of the new iPod at the bottom), lets you take pictures and download them to your iPod, doubles as webcam at home together with iChat2.0.

    Think of an iPod3 w color screen to preview these pictures and TV/VGA out connector (will also work great for Keynote presentations ..
  • Reply 10 of 35
    jabbajabba Posts: 82member
    BTW, new fortune article is now up. While focussing on music this can also get some hints regarding future iDevices - straight from SJ himself:



    http://www.fortune.com/fortune/





    PS: Did you see the *black* iPod picture on Fortune.com? Intended or mistake ????



    ?



    Confused
  • Reply 11 of 35
    willoughbywilloughby Posts: 1,457member
    What the hell......if the image were inverted, wouldn't the screen be different too? This is strange.
  • Reply 12 of 35
    willoughbywilloughby Posts: 1,457member
    Nevermind....looking at the real iPod pic, its definitely been inverted. Guess the Fortune.com graphics peopel F'd up...heh
  • Reply 13 of 35
    netromacnetromac Posts: 863member
    Quote:

    Originally posted by jabba

    BTW, new fortune article is now up. While focussing on music this can also get some hints regarding future iDevices - straight from SJ himself:



    http://www.fortune.com/fortune/





    PS: Did you see the *black* iPod picture on Fortune.com? Intended or mistake ????



    ?



    Confused




    It's only black to show the backlighting.
  • Reply 14 of 35
    curiousuburbcuriousuburb Posts: 3,325member
    it's a NeXTPod!
  • Reply 15 of 35
    so what should the new iDevice be then? Digital camera, mini tablet, pda/phone (very unlikely, IMO)? I'm hoping for an iCam. I'd even settle for an iPod add on that turns it into a camera, but a digicam "done right" sounds great to me.
  • Reply 16 of 35
    frawgzfrawgz Posts: 547member
    Quote:

    Originally posted by jabba

    PS: Did you see the *black* iPod picture on Fortune.com? Intended or mistake ????



    Apple's own site has this "black" iPod pic in one of its pictures. If you click one of the regular shots, it will animate into this black shot here. It's a demonstration of the red backlit buttons.
  • Reply 17 of 35
    midwintermidwinter Posts: 10,060member
    Quote:

    Originally posted by monkeyastronaut

    so what should the new iDevice be then? Digital camera, mini tablet, pda/phone (very unlikely, IMO)? I'm hoping for an iCam. I'd even settle for an iPod add on that turns it into a camera, but a digicam "done right" sounds great to me.



    I still want the only thing I've ever wanted: an iPod for video. At best, I want a portable Quicktime player with a 4x6 or 5x7 color screen, something like a 40 gig hard drive and at least a 5-10 hour battery life. iSync could sync up your movie folder with it.



    At the very least, I want an iPod with a video out like the iBook has. No need to have playback on the unit. Just plug it into a television, select your video file and press play.



    Either of these options is directly in line with the trajectory Apple seems to have in mind: a) the mac is the hub for all the content, and b) the peripherals offer a way of moving content around without having to use some kind of media (CD, DVD, VCD, floppy, zip, etc).



    Cheers

    Scott
  • Reply 18 of 35
    tulkastulkas Posts: 3,757member
    Didn't the rumor about the new plastics being produced having a space for a 8" or 9" LCD? If so, this would totally make a protable video pod a possibility. Portable DVD players have what, a 7" screen? So a bigger screen, much light and smaller formfactor because of no DVD mechanisms and a 30 or 40 gig toshiba drive. Some people I discussed this with a fe months ago thought that a limitation to the iPod and a possible VideoPod was integrating it into a home entertainment setup. Well, the iPod's new dock allows for easy connection to a stereo system, maybe a VideoPod would provide a similar docking setup for hooking into a home theater via RCA or SVideo. Or maybe it would just have an -Video jack on the device itself.



    I can very much see Apple releasing a VideoPod, in partnership with some major movie houses for content. Use mpeg 4 or Quicktime for compression and content control and have similar delivery and usage limitations that the iPod/iTunes music service uses. Grab a movie for $9.99. Watch it on 3 Macs or as many VideoPods as you wish. Use iDVD to burn it to DVD for console playback, with a reasonable limit to the number of times you can write it to DVD. Share and stream it via rendezvous.



    A major obsticle to Apple releasing a video pod would be content delivery. Without a movie industry sanctioned delivery method, how would Apple promote the video pod? They would have to provide some mechanism for getting DVD movies onto the pod. They provided MP3 ripping for music, but would the movie industry be happy with similar software provided by Apple for DVD's? Get in bed with the movie companies and provide payed for, protected content for use on the video pod and some 'backing up' ability and the gets around the piracy issues, just as the music service gets around the music piracy issues.



    In fact, the new service, iTunes, Quicktime and iPod/dock, along with the new plastics rumours, make me think we can expect a videopod and movie service very, very soon.
  • Reply 19 of 35
    midwintermidwinter Posts: 10,060member
    while I'd like to see this (obviously, since you're agreeing with me ), I don't think it will happen in quite this way. The bandwidth would just be ENORMOUS. I mean, mpeg4 scales pretty well to full screen at resolutions of 320x240 (or 320x260), but you're still looking at a 400 meg file for a relatively short movie.



    What's more do-able, I think, is for apple to integrate some kind of Eye TV gadget into the consumer Macs, allow iMovie for editing out commercials, and toss the resulting content on the "viPod." I can't help but imagine that the video industry would LOVE something like this. Go to blockbuster, plug in the pod, and grab whatever movies you want. No need to return, since they'll time out after x number of days. No muss, no fuss. No stolen tapes. No worrying about bad media. No DVDs. No VHS. The pod becomes the means of getting content from one place to the next--just like the iPod/iTunes is.



    And I can't help but think that this is also part of the move for Airport Extreme. You can't stream mpeg4 video on 802.11b. But 802.11g....that's another story. Suddenly, the mac is your stereo, your music store, your video watching apparatus, and your television, all rolled into one. And with the ability to watch the video on any computer in the house. We are all running web servers, now. Hell, why not just bundle QTSS in there and have it controllable with a simple preference pane?



    At any rate, since the iPod came out I've been saying that this is all about to get really interesting. All of the pieces are in place now for some really cool things in terms of moving away from delivering content on some kind of media and instead simply carrying it around on the portable hard drives Apple's so brilliantly convinced us to carry around.



    Cheers

    Scott
  • Reply 20 of 35
    tulkastulkas Posts: 3,757member
    Midwinter, you are right about the delivery of the content being difficult. The size of the video files would be enormous and take forever to grab. Your idea of using Blockbuster is a pretty good one. Apple could sign up Blockbuster, Apple resellers and their own Apple stores as content delivery sites. Walk in a buy a movie by plugging it into an xServe setup on site. Retailers get a piece of the action of each purchase, but perhaps have to buy their own xServe setup at a reduced price. Gets Apple's name major public, daily exposure.



    But, I can't help but think, other than Apple's moves into their own retail stores, they have been trying to move away from brick and mortar sales. Internet sales and delivery are their focus right now.
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