The biggest mistake Apple would make with Flash-based iPod would be a to have a built-in memory card without option to upgrade. I hope Apple will not make this mistake. I will buy flash-based iPod if it has the ability to exchange memory cards, pretty much like all digital cameras nowadays (standard chips of course) This way I would be able to buy 2 or more flash chips with 1GB or 2GB of memory and carry them with iPod.
J-23
Let's say you get 2 2GB CF cards to use with this new iPod. Let's say you're able to purchase them for a fairly cheap price of $150 each. That's $300. Doesn't seem very cost effective to me. You've already spent over $50 more than the iPod mini and all you have is storage and the same price as a 20GB iPod that has 5 times more storage (and comes with the rest of the iPod)
There already is such a "dongle". It's made by Belkin and is called the Media Reader for iPod.
Seems to me a number of people want a direct camera link (i.e. without a middle device) and a number of people want some sort of card slot in the iPod. And unless Apple provides both, on all models of the iPod, someone is going to be disappointed.
I would love to have a camera link, I'm just not convinced it's feasible.
The Belkin Dongle does not insert pictures into the iPod photo library, is extremely slow, and I don't think it reads CF.
I would love to have a camera link, I'm just not convinced it's feasible.
The Belkin Dongle does not insert pictures into the iPod photo library, is extremely slow, and I don't think it reads CF.
I believe a lot of this photo functionality is not easily feasible. Otherwise, Apple would have done it.
True the Belkin Media Reader does not insert pictures in the iPod photo library (probably due to lack of processing power on the iPod), is slow (according to most reviews; the Belkin Digital Camera Link is faster in this regard in exchange for camera battery life) but does read CF (Type 1 and 2) as noted on the info page for this device from Belkin.
Well...so...okay...this doesn't appear to be true. Sorry.
Ok, your right, they can sell it: but is pretty much a niche market. With no way of directly transfering photos from camera out of the box, 'cept for using third party addons which draw a lot of battery life, and frankly look kinda ugly.(i.e SD card reader Compactflash Reader), it's all kinda pointless. Niche market = bad idea.
Basically it is ONLY a photo carrying device (think smaller iPod photo - music). Sells for $99. Similar features to iPod photo though.
For a digital picture display I found this:
Details can be found here . If only it weren't $300 though. It would be perfect on my desk at work.
Of course the included software only does Windows, which is a strike against it, but it will work just by plugging in memory cards with .jpg/.avi files on it.
Details can be found here . If only it weren't $300 though. It would be perfect on my desk at work.
Of course the included software only does Windows, which is a strike against it, but it will work just by plugging in memory cards with .jpg/.avi files on it.
I think this kind of product will be the wave of the future. The main obstacle is (of course) cost. I want to have a dozen or so throughout the house...and...I don't want to update them with a CF memory card. I want it wirelessly fed to the frames.
A dream? Perhaps. It will require some new low-cost, low-power color flat display technology...and low-cost, low-power WIFI chips too.
I think this kind of product will be the wave of the future. The main obstacle is (of course) cost. I want to have a dozen or so throughout the house...and...I don't want to update them with a CF memory card. I want it wirelessly fed to the frames.
A dream? Perhaps. It will require some new low-cost, low-power color flat display technology...and low-cost, low-power WIFI chips too.
Not quite. Macs apeal to a wide variety of people from students to businessman to games and graphics designers.
iPhoto does not appeal a wide variety of people (if any). I cannot think of a market that would appreciate the iPhoto to the extent of actually buying it. Hence, it is a niche market. Hence, Macs are not.
I've became interested in photography in '99 with the purchase of my first digital camera. I've had one (and more) ever since.
I got my iPod Photo earlier this week. I've spent the better part of the week organizing my photos and uploading them to my iPod.
Over the past three evenings I've used the iPod Photo on all three, away from home, in front of the televisions of friends and family, entertaining the lot with on-the-go playlists and slideshows of trips we've taken, family picnics and significant events. It's been a hit. The pictures bring the emotion and the memories, the music brings the fun.
Niche market? Perhaps. It fits my needs like a glove mind you.
As much as the idea for the iPod becoming a docking station for digital cameras makes sense, I wonder if this feature would really have that much demand.
The digital wallet market is probably contracting because it is a less needed tool as flash memory prices have fallen faster than bigger megapixal cameras have increased storage demand.
(FWIW, I've seen a battery powered device that takes a flash card and burns its contents directly onto a CD-R).
Quote:
I have a 5 megepixel camera, quite typical for consumers I believe. I bought a highspeed 1GB CF card for about $70. That card holds enough pictures for most short duration trips.
Sure. But when that isn't adequate, we have to look at what our alternatives are, and their respective trade-offs.
Quote:
If I'm out longer (e.g. a multiweek vacation), I bring my powerbook...
That's one solution. The trade-off is its cost and weight.
FWIW, I generally do the same thing if I'm travelling on business (in part because I have to be carrying my laptop anyway), but for vacation, I generally don't do this for a variety of reasons, including baggage weight restrictions (carry-on as well as total baggage) and even the lack of electrical power to recharge in "off the beaten path" destinations.
Everything has its pro's and con's. Afterall, if compact size wasn't a feature, wouldn't we all still all be carrying $25 Sony Walkman CD players instead of $250 iPod's?
Everything has its pro's and con's. Afterall, if compact size wasn't a feature, wouldn't we all still all be carrying $25 Sony Walkman CD players instead of $250 iPod's?
-hh
The size of the CD player isn't the problem, lugging around 10 days of music on CDs would be though. I love my iPod because I can fit about 1/2 of my music collection on there.
If I'm at work and feel like Charlie Parker, I can dial it up. Muse? No problem. Rush? Yes? Mudvayne? Fear Factory? Grateful Dead? Mahavishnu Orchestra? Weather Report? Mozart? AC/DC? Charles Mingus? ZZTop? Dire Straits? It's all in there. If I get in a mood for Liquid Soul I can just dial it up.
With a CD player I have to figure what music I'll be in the mood for when I plug in. Sometimes I guess right, but other times I'm totally off the mark. With my iPod, I never have to worry as with 10 days of music on it I can usually find something I'm in the mood to listen to.
The size of the CD player isn't the problem, lugging around 10 days of music on CDs would be though. ... I love my iPod because I can fit about 1/2 of my music collection on there.
The CD's are part of the "system" size, and your unwillingness to carry them all shows that size/weight is important to you: you're willing to pay more to be able to carry more music at a certain size/weight.
With the iPod Photo, all I'm saying is that this same basic "size" principle also applies for people considering an iPod-sized digital wallet versus lugging around 7lbs worth of laptop.
IMO, digital wallets haven't been particularly successful for the digital photo marketplace because they were fairly expensive single-purpose devices. However, a convergence device (photo+music) changes the paradigm.
Currently, the market reference point is the Belkin $80 Digital Camera Link...although we can increase that price point slightly if a "better" (Apple) solution gets rid of the AA batteries, shrink its size, improve its transfer speed, etc, etc.
Currently, Apple's asking an extra $100 to bump up a 40GB iPod to the Photo version, and while it has a color screen, it can't suck photo's from a camera while on the road, so its still not a competitor (or replacement) to Belkin's Digital Camera Link. As such, I'm personally more likely to spend $500 for a 40GB iPod + Belkin accessory combo in lieu of $500 for the 40GB iPod Photo.
I took a train and flew out of Newark (NJ) Airport yesterday, and I couldn't believe how many iPods I saw during that trip. I swear, at least 1 person in 10 had one, and if you only counted people under 30 (-ish), it was more like 1 in 3. I know of no less than 5 parents who bought their kids iPods or iPod minis for Christmas, and a lot of adults bought one for him/herself or as a gift to their spouse for the holiday. Most people seemed to have either the 20 GB model or the mini. The numbers for the quarter must be outrageous in any case. It's like an epidemic at this point.
My 3G iPod with its row of buttons is a quaint bit of history to these people. Some wondered if it was an iPod knockoff.
I'll be at my local gym again tonight for the first time since Xmas, so it will be interesting to see if I spot a lot more there.
from what i hear from friends its gonna be similar when i head back to school after the xmas break... i remember after the summer when i was one of the only ones, its getting crazy!(crazy good for apple!)
My 3G iPod with its row of buttons is a quaint bit of history to these people. Some wondered if it was an iPod knockoff.
People with newer iPods look at my 2G 20GB model (first model with touch sensitive wheel, but still had the buttons surrounding the wheel) and can't believe the iPod used to be "so big" compared to the latest models.
Comments
Originally posted by J-23
The biggest mistake Apple would make with Flash-based iPod would be a to have a built-in memory card without option to upgrade. I hope Apple will not make this mistake. I will buy flash-based iPod if it has the ability to exchange memory cards, pretty much like all digital cameras nowadays (standard chips of course) This way I would be able to buy 2 or more flash chips with 1GB or 2GB of memory and carry them with iPod.
J-23
Let's say you get 2 2GB CF cards to use with this new iPod. Let's say you're able to purchase them for a fairly cheap price of $150 each. That's $300. Doesn't seem very cost effective to me. You've already spent over $50 more than the iPod mini and all you have is storage and the same price as a 20GB iPod that has 5 times more storage (and comes with the rest of the iPod)
Originally posted by dejo
There already is such a "dongle". It's made by Belkin and is called the Media Reader for iPod.
Seems to me a number of people want a direct camera link (i.e. without a middle device) and a number of people want some sort of card slot in the iPod. And unless Apple provides both, on all models of the iPod, someone is going to be disappointed.
I would love to have a camera link, I'm just not convinced it's feasible.
The Belkin Dongle does not insert pictures into the iPod photo library, is extremely slow, and I don't think it reads CF.
Originally posted by slughead
I would love to have a camera link, I'm just not convinced it's feasible.
The Belkin Dongle does not insert pictures into the iPod photo library, is extremely slow, and I don't think it reads CF.
I believe a lot of this photo functionality is not easily feasible. Otherwise, Apple would have done it.
True the Belkin Media Reader does not insert pictures in the iPod photo library (probably due to lack of processing power on the iPod), is slow (according to most reviews; the Belkin Digital Camera Link is faster in this regard in exchange for camera battery life) but does read CF (Type 1 and 2) as noted on the info page for this device from Belkin.
Originally posted by Chris Cuilla
Well...so...okay...this doesn't appear to be true. Sorry.
Ok, your right, they can sell it: but is pretty much a niche market. With no way of directly transfering photos from camera out of the box, 'cept for using third party addons which draw a lot of battery life, and frankly look kinda ugly.(i.e SD card reader Compactflash Reader), it's all kinda pointless. Niche market = bad idea.
Originally posted by pyriX
Niche market = bad idea.
By that reasoning, Macs are a bad idea too.
http://www.dvformat.com/articles/vie...e.jsp?id=29726
Basically it is ONLY a photo carrying device (think smaller iPod photo - music). Sells for $99. Similar features to iPod photo though.
Originally posted by Chris Cuilla
Here is a brief article/review about a related product that I thought was worth sharing:
http://www.dvformat.com/articles/vie...e.jsp?id=29726
Basically it is ONLY a photo carrying device (think smaller iPod photo - music). Sells for $99. Similar features to iPod photo though.
For a digital picture display I found this:
Details can be found here . If only it weren't $300 though. It would be perfect on my desk at work.
Of course the included software only does Windows, which is a strike against it, but it will work just by plugging in memory cards with .jpg/.avi files on it.
Originally posted by PBG4 Dude
For a digital picture display I found this:
Details can be found here . If only it weren't $300 though. It would be perfect on my desk at work.
Of course the included software only does Windows, which is a strike against it, but it will work just by plugging in memory cards with .jpg/.avi files on it.
I think this kind of product will be the wave of the future. The main obstacle is (of course) cost. I want to have a dozen or so throughout the house...and...I don't want to update them with a CF memory card. I want it wirelessly fed to the frames.
A dream? Perhaps. It will require some new low-cost, low-power color flat display technology...and low-cost, low-power WIFI chips too.
Originally posted by Chris Cuilla
I think this kind of product will be the wave of the future. The main obstacle is (of course) cost. I want to have a dozen or so throughout the house...and...I don't want to update them with a CF memory card. I want it wirelessly fed to the frames.
A dream? Perhaps. It will require some new low-cost, low-power color flat display technology...and low-cost, low-power WIFI chips too.
Ask and you shall receive, kind of.
It's not cheap, but like all tech the price will eventually come down.
Ugh. Looked at the specs and the software is PC only.
Originally posted by PBG4 Dude
Ask and you shall receive, kind of.
It's not cheap, but like all tech the price will eventually come down.
Ugh. Looked at the specs and the software is PC only.
There you go. Now just drop the price by 90%.
Originally posted by dejo
By that reasoning, Macs are a bad idea too.
Not quite. Macs apeal to a wide variety of people from students to businessman to games and graphics designers.
iPhoto does not appeal a wide variety of people (if any). I cannot think of a market that would appreciate the iPhoto to the extent of actually buying it. Hence, it is a niche market. Hence, Macs are not.
I got my iPod Photo earlier this week. I've spent the better part of the week organizing my photos and uploading them to my iPod.
Over the past three evenings I've used the iPod Photo on all three, away from home, in front of the televisions of friends and family, entertaining the lot with on-the-go playlists and slideshows of trips we've taken, family picnics and significant events. It's been a hit. The pictures bring the emotion and the memories, the music brings the fun.
Niche market? Perhaps. It fits my needs like a glove mind you.
Originally posted by Carson O'Genic
As much as the idea for the iPod becoming a docking station for digital cameras makes sense, I wonder if this feature would really have that much demand.
The digital wallet market is probably contracting because it is a less needed tool as flash memory prices have fallen faster than bigger megapixal cameras have increased storage demand.
(FWIW, I've seen a battery powered device that takes a flash card and burns its contents directly onto a CD-R).
I have a 5 megepixel camera, quite typical for consumers I believe. I bought a highspeed 1GB CF card for about $70. That card holds enough pictures for most short duration trips.
Sure. But when that isn't adequate, we have to look at what our alternatives are, and their respective trade-offs.
If I'm out longer (e.g. a multiweek vacation), I bring my powerbook...
That's one solution. The trade-off is its cost and weight.
FWIW, I generally do the same thing if I'm travelling on business (in part because I have to be carrying my laptop anyway), but for vacation, I generally don't do this for a variety of reasons, including baggage weight restrictions (carry-on as well as total baggage) and even the lack of electrical power to recharge in "off the beaten path" destinations.
Everything has its pro's and con's. Afterall, if compact size wasn't a feature, wouldn't we all still all be carrying $25 Sony Walkman CD players instead of $250 iPod's?
-hh
Originally posted by -hh
Everything has its pro's and con's. Afterall, if compact size wasn't a feature, wouldn't we all still all be carrying $25 Sony Walkman CD players instead of $250 iPod's?
-hh
The size of the CD player isn't the problem, lugging around 10 days of music on CDs would be though.
If I'm at work and feel like Charlie Parker, I can dial it up. Muse? No problem. Rush? Yes? Mudvayne? Fear Factory? Grateful Dead? Mahavishnu Orchestra? Weather Report? Mozart? AC/DC? Charles Mingus? ZZTop? Dire Straits? It's all in there. If I get in a mood for Liquid Soul I can just dial it up.
With a CD player I have to figure what music I'll be in the mood for when I plug in. Sometimes I guess right, but other times I'm totally off the mark. With my iPod, I never have to worry as with 10 days of music on it I can usually find something I'm in the mood to listen to.
I'm next in line for one.
Originally posted by PBG4 Dude
The size of the CD player isn't the problem, lugging around 10 days of music on CDs would be though.
The CD's are part of the "system" size, and your unwillingness to carry them all shows that size/weight is important to you: you're willing to pay more to be able to carry more music at a certain size/weight.
With the iPod Photo, all I'm saying is that this same basic "size" principle also applies for people considering an iPod-sized digital wallet versus lugging around 7lbs worth of laptop.
IMO, digital wallets haven't been particularly successful for the digital photo marketplace because they were fairly expensive single-purpose devices. However, a convergence device (photo+music) changes the paradigm.
Currently, the market reference point is the Belkin $80 Digital Camera Link...although we can increase that price point slightly if a "better" (Apple) solution gets rid of the AA batteries, shrink its size, improve its transfer speed, etc, etc.
Currently, Apple's asking an extra $100 to bump up a 40GB iPod to the Photo version, and while it has a color screen, it can't suck photo's from a camera while on the road, so its still not a competitor (or replacement) to Belkin's Digital Camera Link. As such, I'm personally more likely to spend $500 for a 40GB iPod + Belkin accessory combo in lieu of $500 for the 40GB iPod Photo.
-hh
My 3G iPod with its row of buttons is a quaint bit of history to these people. Some wondered if it was an iPod knockoff.
I'll be at my local gym again tonight for the first time since Xmas, so it will be interesting to see if I spot a lot more there.
Originally posted by BuonRotto
My 3G iPod with its row of buttons is a quaint bit of history to these people. Some wondered if it was an iPod knockoff.
People with newer iPods look at my 2G 20GB model (first model with touch sensitive wheel, but still had the buttons surrounding the wheel) and can't believe the iPod used to be "so big" compared to the latest models.