If the PDA is dying, what fate awaits the iPod?
Many, including Jobs himself, I believe, have predicted the coming death of the PDA as smartphones become the standard.
With phones doing PDA, GPS, Vid and Still camera, music, voice recording, bluetooth, squirrel snare, and...oh yeah.... telephony, what is left to distinguish the iPod other than it's capaciousness?
Clearly, the iPod must evolve. But in what direction?
My guess, the pocket server, but I honestly don't know what the best formulation would be. I think bluetooth is a must, so you can drop it in your pocket and let your phone access it for archive and playback. 802.1g might be nice so you can login using a copy of your home directory while still working at reasonable speeds.
Then there's the possibility that Apple could redesign the iPod or it's computers to fit in iPod slots or simply make the charging stands ubiquitous.
So much potential!
With phones doing PDA, GPS, Vid and Still camera, music, voice recording, bluetooth, squirrel snare, and...oh yeah.... telephony, what is left to distinguish the iPod other than it's capaciousness?
Clearly, the iPod must evolve. But in what direction?
My guess, the pocket server, but I honestly don't know what the best formulation would be. I think bluetooth is a must, so you can drop it in your pocket and let your phone access it for archive and playback. 802.1g might be nice so you can login using a copy of your home directory while still working at reasonable speeds.
Then there's the possibility that Apple could redesign the iPod or it's computers to fit in iPod slots or simply make the charging stands ubiquitous.
So much potential!
Comments
Originally posted by Nordstrodamus
Many, including Jobs himself, I believe, have predicted the coming death of the PDA as smartphones become the standard.
With phones doing PDA, GPS, Vid and Still camera, music, voice recording, bluetooth, squirrel snare, and...oh yeah.... telephony, what is left to distinguish the iPod other than it's capaciousness?
Clearly, the iPod must evolve. But in what direction?
My guess, the pocket server, but I honestly don't know what the best formulation would be. I think bluetooth is a must, so you can drop it in your pocket and let your phone access it for archive and playback. 802.1g might be nice so you can login using a copy of your home directory while still working at reasonable speeds.
Then there's the possibility that Apple could redesign the iPod or it's computers to fit in iPod slots or simply make the charging stands ubiquitous.
So much potential!
People that say the PDA is dying are short-sighted. (sorry Steve, if you said it)... There are lots of great new products that will turn the PDA into a bonafide work platform. For example; keyboards that are created via a laser-light generated projection on whatever work surface is available, wireless networking, flexible and/or cheaper LCDs. So does the phone absorb the PDA, or does the PDA absorb the phone?
On a similar note, yes, the ipod is going away. But its several years off. By that time Apple will have a very acceptable replacement that blurs the distinction between a phone, a PDA, and an MP3 player.
Originally posted by Jukebox Hero
By that time Apple will have a very acceptable replacement that blurs the distinction between a phone, a PDA, and an MP3 player.
If only. 8) But I fear other words from the great one suggest this will not come to pass. Doesn't he use old newtons for doorstops?
I really hope that Apple doesn't go too far down the all-in-one device path. The problem is that PDAs, cameras, music players, multimedia devices, and phones (not sure about squirrel snares) are technologies that mature at different speeds. You end up with a compromise device with a few good features and a bunch of lame ones as one or more of the features goes out of date rapidly.
Clock radios have been successful because clocks and radios are both very mature technologies. On the other hand, that LG refrigerator with the 15 inch LCD display on the door for "family memos" and grocery lists....
Originally posted by Nordstrodamus
With phones doing PDA, GPS, Vid and Still camera, music, voice recording, bluetooth, squirrel snare, and...oh yeah.... telephony, what is left to distinguish the iPod other than it's capaciousness?
How about the dead-simple, hand-sized interface provided by the fact that it doesn't try to do everything the marketing department could think of?
I'd hazard a guess that the iPod is more capable of evolving than most of these everything-phones are, anyway, because so much of what it does is described in firmware, and is thus upgradable.
And on that note, off to Digital Hub we go...
But concerning the iPod, I dont think it will die. Its a music player and that has always been around since the tape! (Almost)
If the iPod evolved into a home-folder-on-the-go (As some rumors has suggested, and was even featured on .mac) and does it the real way, THEN it has big potential!
Imagine if you plug you iPod into your mac, and then it gives you access to a Documents Folder, Movie Folder etc. etc. as in your homefolder. Every file thats already on the iPod appears as if it was stored on your local harddrive! But if you want to copy files to the iPod, you must go to /Desktop/iPod/YourUserName/Documents(OrWhatEver)/
That would be pretty smart if you ask me...
Otherwise, in 10 years the iPod is out, and cell-phones looking like PDA's has big enough harddrive to maintain lots of mp3's!
Originally posted by Jukebox Hero
People that say the PDA is dying are short-sighted. (sorry Steve, if you said it)... There are lots of great new products that will turn the PDA into a bonafide work platform. For example; keyboards that are created via a laser-light generated projection on whatever work surface is available, wireless networking, flexible and/or cheaper LCDs.
Perhaps it's just me but I see nothing there that will make the PDA a compelling platform. The simple fact is that the market is currently shrinking and for most people that own PDA's they use it for little more than a personal organiser, which increasingly is becoming the domain of the phone.
Originally posted by gustiferjones
I think that all the iPod needs is a cell phone attacment - like the new Belkin audio attachment - to connect. From there you should be able to scroll through your contacts, and hit enter and it will dial. The end. You need to have people in your contacts, no need for numbers etc, just strait calling...
I'd buy that.
A phone/Camera/PDA will do all the communications stuff. Let's keep the iPod in the hands of the consumer and let people be entertained. I have a PDA and I don't use it. I should, yes, but my batteries keep dying and I can't sync it without purchases a new USB cradle. Screw it. I bought a little $.59 notebook instead. But I can't watch movies or listen to music on my notebook.
so what really does a PDA do. keep schedule and phone numbers, play solitare. the iPod already does this. take notes? well, how about voice notes? this the iPod does now. So who wants to scribble notes, that the system can't read anyway? I have a PDA phone for that if I want that anyway.
The iPod should stay entertainment focused.
iTunes Movie Store should sell Mpeg2 files that work with iDVD for burning for home viewing, or for a quick conversion to Mpeg 4 (down to 1 gig at most for a movie) for viewing on you new color iPod. by that time a 60gig, and 80 gig model will be out and all will be cool.
I also don't think PDAs are dying. Our company uses more then 300 various ones, mostly Blackberrys and a few palms.
Gimmie a G3 Newton. Now.