Apple Preps for Holidays - New iPods and Price Cuts

Leave it to our old friend Steve Jobs to walk out on stage and tell everyone what they wanted to hear... almost. Everyone was expecting some new iPods, and Jobs and Co. are releasing three new models for the holiday season, plus some new colors for Shuffle. On top of that, new features and some price moves were announced... all good, but no doubt it's going to irritate those that have just bought iPhones.

iPod Nano

First on the list is Nano, which is getting a total redesign for the 07-08 holiday season. Gone is the super-slender tall design of yore, as Apple decided Nano would be better after some weight gain. It's not actually heavier than the original, but it is wider and shorter... hence the "fatty" references it's been getting.

Other specs include include a 2-inch, QVGA, 320 x 240 screens that is (supposedly) 65-percent brighter than previous models, an "enhanced" UI with its own version of Cover Flow, three packed-in games, and a batter life of 24 hours of playback for audio and 5 hours for video (so Apple says).

Nano will ship in two sizes: 4GB and 8GB, though the 4GB is only in Silver.

iPod Classic

Next up is 'ol faithful, the regular iPod, which is now being called "Classic" as it hits its sixth revision. Not a ton is changing here, but it is being updated to stay up to date with the latest tech.

These improvements include an "enhanced" UI with its own version of Cover Flow, an all-metal shell, and an all new 160GB capacity (wow). The 80GB model will get a price drop to $249, while the new 160GB model will suck $350 out of your bank account.

iPod Touch

Want that super slick touch interface on the iPhone without the... phone. Good news for you! Apple has sliced off the phone functionality of the iPhone, and rather than just call it "i," slapped a Pod and Touch in there to round it out.

If you've seen or played with the iPhone, there's not much difference other than the fact Touch can't make calls... not that that's a bad thing, the iPod part of the iPhone is pretty slick. The Touch seems to be a bit slimmer (8mm, again... wow). Surprisingly, a lot of the other nice things built into the iPhone remain, including Wi-Fi, built in web browsing, and the ability to buy songs from iTunes via their new Wireless iTunes store (which iPhone owners will get in a future update).

The iPod Touch will come in 8GB and 16GB capacities priced at $299 and $399 respectively. Ouch!

iPod Skittles Shuffle - Taste See the Rainbow

Taking a few notes from Nintendo (and their ability to make old things new again), Shuffle isn't getting any major overhaul, but instead getting a fresh batch of fun, fruity colors to enjoy. Just remember, these aren't candies.

iPhone Price Drop, and Ringtones

Finally, iPhone users can make and apply custom ringtones for incoming call pleasure. The system is pretty imaginative, letting people create custom ringtones right from the songs they've bought in iTunes, except you have to pay an additional 99 cents to use it as a ringtone. In other words, you basically have to buy the song again, even though you've already paid for it. BOOOOOOOO!!! Remember, Apple doesn't really have customers, they just have millions of mini ATM machines that wear white earbuds.

Does Apple really not like their early adopters? As they announced all their new products, they dropped the bomb that the 8GB iPhone is really what their customers want, so as of right now it's $200 cheaper. Enjoy it world! And while that's great for those who haven't already coughed up $600 bucks for one, implementing a price cut that steep after only two months is sure fire way to make existing 8GB iPhone owners feel cheap and dirty.

Oh, and the 4GB model.... I think it's been discontinued, but Apple conveniently forgot to mention its fate.

***UPDATE***

It looks like Apple decided to rethink their price drop a bit, and are now offering folks who paid up the nose for iPhones over the last few months a "$100 in-store credit towards the purchase of any product at an Apple Retail Store or the Apple Online Store." It's something, but why not offer folks $100 back on the 4GB model, and $200 back for the 8GB model? If it is a store credit, all the money will still be in Apple's coffers. Better yet, why not give people their money back, so they can spend it as they please. New iPhone customers get that luxury, why not the Apple-crazed early adopters that stood in line for these things?

My take... it's better than nothing, but an in-store credit that makes the iPhone $100 more expensive for early adopters wouldn't be enough to satisfy me as a customer. I wouldn't call it a strikeout, but it's far from a home-run in my book... more like a foul-tip.

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Comments

I'm SO excited about the new iPod line. I'm not really a fan of iPods in general, but the Touch is just too awesome to resist. I actually just placed my order for one as a birthday gift for myself. Luckily it ships out just in time!

While I spent a while debating over an 8GB iPhone or a 16GB Touch, I realized that I keep my music and my phone completely separate to begin with in terms of how they're integrated into my everyday life and would much rather have the extra space for music for long trips which is when I tend to use my iPod most.

As for "Remember, Apple doesn't really have customers, they just have millions of mini ATM machines that wear white earbuds" I nearly spit out my iced tea when I read that. Well put! :)

That was very funny. I too was eating and It almost went airborne. ATM machines, where do you come up with these things?  Laughing

Check out the interview the Trib did with Steven Jones, one of our cohorts at Capable, about the recent price drop.  Thought I'd share.

 

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