[angusshangus]

With all the hype about the iPhone no one is taking about a 6 gen iPod. When is it gonna happen? The phone couldn't be the replacement for the video iPod could it? What are the chances the interface looks like it does on the iPod part of the iPhone? Where is the news on this??? The disk on my 3rd generation iPod is starting to die and I'm waiting for what comes next! Someone give me some info! PLEASE!

[hmurchison]

The path is becoming illuminated.

Similar form factor.
Multi Touch
80-100GB hard drive
Wifi ????
Simpler software (No OS X)

[Robo]

We don't know when it is going to happen.

We don't know what the chances are of it sharing the iPhone's interface.

We don't know where the news is.

I'm guessing we won't see it until fall, though. Which is fine.

[angusshangus]

check this out... very interesting... says before the June release of the iPhone..

http://www.macscoop.com/articles/200...mac-on-the-way

[Wyatt]

Originally Posted by angusshangus With all the hype about the iPhone no one is taking about a 6 gen iPod. When is it gonna happen? The phone couldn't be the replacement for the video iPod could it? What are the chances the interface looks like it does on the iPod part of the iPhone? Where is the news on this??? The disk on my 3rd generation iPod is starting to die and I'm waiting for what comes next! Someone give me some info! PLEASE!

Actually, people are talking about it quite a bit.

I think Apple won't release it until about October or so. That's usually when the full-size iPod gets updated, plus Apple won't want to cannibalize iPhone sales by releasing the iPod before it. The iPhone should be out in June, and that would give it a four-month head start on the new iPod while still giving the iPod two solid months of holiday sales.

[jdcfsu]

Originally Posted by angusshangus check this out... very interesting... says before the June release of the iPhone.. http://www.macscoop.com/articles/200...mac-on-the-way

While this article is making a bit of a splash with some of the rumor sites, I tend to agree with Robo and fcgriz in that a release in October is more likely for an iPhone-like iPod. That would be enough time to let the iPhone make a nice splash and still give the non-Cingular, non-phone-lovin people something to enjoy.

[Hobbes]

Here's my guess.

Introduced anytime between 2 weeks from now (!) and fall '07 (at the very latest) as a high-end supplement to existing 5.5G models.

Runs OS X (no question -- Apple didn't develop "OS X" just to run on iPhones. No way.)
Uses the stunning iPod UI demonstrated in the iPhone.
Same multitouch technology, accelerometer, proximity sensor,the whole deal.
Same amazing 3.5" 160ppi screen.
Same ARM processor + GPU chip.
No phone features (of course).
No WiFi or internet features.
Wireless music streaming over a tweaked BT2-EDR frequency that puts the Zune to shame -- well... probably not, but wouldn't that be interesting? : )

80GB model - $399.
120GB model - $499.

80GB 5.5 iPod may be reduced to $329.

Expensive? You bet. And they'll sell like hotcakes. Eventually, once the novelty of OS X on an widescreen, touchscreen iPod fades a bit, and cost components come down, the price will come down as well, and the 5.5G models will slowly begin to be phased out... maybe, if it's released early, even in time for xmas '07.

[zippy]

I'm not so sure it will wait until October. They didn't do much with it this last October, so it seems kind of overdue already. Then again, I can see the reasoning behind a post-iPhone release.

But what it really comes down to is that they need to release something very very soon to recoup the major market share that they are losing on a daily basis to the Zune!!

[angusshangus]

It's hard for me to imagine that Apple will wait almost a year(!) to introduce an update to the video iPod... I wonder what the plans are for the rest of the iPod line.

[chucker]

Originally Posted by angusshangus It's hard for me to imagine that Apple will wait almost a year(!) to introduce an update to the video iPod...

You mean like when they took exactly a year when they went from the 5G to the 5.5G?

[thegelding]

just make the iPhone, but without the phone and the camera, put in a bigger HD and you have a widescreen iPod video with sublaptop size and functions (no optical drive, but still email and web browsing)

could and should be released before the iPhone

g

[Wyatt]

Originally Posted by thegelding just make the iPhone, but without the phone and the camera, put in a bigger HD and you have a widescreen iPod video with sublaptop size and functions (no optical drive, but still email and web browsing) could and should be released before the iPhone g

Ideally, that's what I'd like as well. Unfortunately, I think Apple will probably strip WiFi and Bluetooth out of it, too. The camera will definitely go, and obviously the phone software will, but I think Web access will also get cut (and I will not be pleased).

[Hobbes]

I'd love for the widescreen iPod to have WiFi + email/internet, but I just don't think it's going to happen, at least in the initial rev.

[angusshangus]

I can't imagine the gen 6 iPod will cannibalize the iPhone. I only expect that it'll have the same interface as the iPod portion of the iPhone. Hopefully it has the new "scratch protection" that the iPhone has... whatever that is. Also, it's gotta have plenty of disk space for movies! Hopefully in the 350-400 dollar range.

If it had some wifi features that would be cool. Maybe apple could do right where MS and the Zune blew it. That feature of the Zune has great potential but MS sure blew it! I say let people send eachother any song they want... How is that any different or easier than me burning a CD for a friend?

[Robo]

Originally Posted by angusshangus I can't imagine the gen 6 iPod will cannibalize the iPhone. I only expect that it'll have the same interface as the iPod portion of the iPhone. Hopefully it has the new "scratch protection" that the iPhone has... whatever that is. Also, it's gotta have plenty of disk space for movies! Hopefully in the 350-400 dollar range. If it had some wifi features that would be cool. Maybe apple could do right where MS and the Zune blew it. That feature of the Zune has great potential but MS sure blew it! I say let people send eachother any song they want... How is that any different or easier than me burning a CD for a friend?

It might not cannibalize sales but it'd certainly steal a good bit of the iPhone's thunder. I just don't think we'll see it until the fall. That's when the iPod has been updated for the last few years anyway.

The "iPod video"/6G iPod will probably have a slightly larger screen than the iPhone, though. The iPhone's screen is, what, 1.5:1? I'm thinking we'll see a 4", 16:9 screen. That'd fit almost perfectly onto the shape/size of the current iPod, btw.

[angusshangus]

I sure hope u guys are wrong about the 6 gen coming out this fall!

[chris e boy]

Originally Posted by Hobbes Here's my guess. Introduced anytime between 2 weeks from now (!) and fall '07 (at the very latest) as a high-end supplement to existing 5.5G models. Runs OS X (no question -- Apple didn't develop "OS X" just to run on iPhones. No way.) Uses the stunning iPod UI demonstrated in the iPhone. Same multitouch technology, accelerometer, proximity sensor,the whole deal. Same amazing 3.5" 160ppi screen. Same ARM processor + GPU chip. No phone features (of course). No WiFi or internet features. Wireless music streaming over a tweaked BT2-EDR frequency that puts the Zune to shame -- well... probably not, but wouldn't that be interesting? : ) 80GB model - $399. 120GB model - $499. 80GB 5.5 iPod may be reduced to $329. Expensive? You bet. And they'll sell like hotcakes. Eventually, once the novelty of OS X on an widescreen, touchscreen iPod fades a bit, and cost components come down, the price will come down as well, and the 5.5G models will slowly begin to be phased out... maybe, if it's released early, even in time for xmas '07.

Spot on in my opinion, with one or two inaccuracies. I don't think there will be a 120gb yet, they'll do a 100gb version first. Im also sticking by my "sometime in march" prediction.

I don't think they will worry about it impacting iPhone sales since they are two different markets. The iPhone is only 8gb, which if anything would place it in the Nano market... but people will still buy Nanos because of the enormous price difference. Like a lot of people, I prefer to keep my music player and phone seperate.

[Hobbes]

Originally Posted by chris e boy Spot on in my opinion, with one or two inaccuracies. I don't think there will be a 120gb yet, they'll do a 100gb version first. Im also sticking by my "sometime in march" prediction.

March sounds pretty reasonable to me too...

[Wyatt]

Originally Posted by Hobbes March sounds pretty reasonable to me too...

They use 1.8" drives, and the biggest capacity available in those is 100 GB (Toshiba released a 100 GB drive this month). So no, there's no chance of a 120 GB model for quite some time.

[psmith2.0]

The cool thing is that all these possibilities are now wide open, since the iPhone has been unveiled. We know a) that something very OS X-ish can run on something small, b) that they've developed a really cool navigation/input method that can be adapted to anything, c) all the functions most of us would like (e-mail, Internet, pictures and music) CAN be made into a small, "shirt pocket" device from our favorite company (we don't have to "settle" for Palm, Windows Mobile or whatever else that was there prior to January 9).

We've been dreaming about this crap for years - I have, anyway - and now it's so cool to see it here. More than five years ago (early 2000) I mocked up an orange and white "iContact" type of PDA. Since then, I've done several "fantasy" mockups of handheld doo-dads running something very reminiscent of OS X (screen-based controls/navigation, icons zipping around, touching the screen to control actions, etc.), all the while thinking "I know this is totally not workable, but it's fun to dream...".



It only took another 4-5 years for "real life" to catch up. And it's astounding to see!

I think the iPhone is just scratching the surface of what they have planned. This is wonderful "proof of concept", but imagine what this all means for other devices, or even for future enhancement of existing Apple gear (displays and notebooks especially).



Very cool stuff. I'm excited about this iPhone, but, even more so, what it means for other things 1-3 years from now that we've not even imagined (but are probably sitting on a table in a lab in Cupertino, in prototype form, being critiqued and reviewed by Jobs and Ive as we speak). To be a fly on the wall deep inside 1 Infinite Loop...

[thegelding]

the thing is the iPhone appeals right now to only cingular customers...how many is that? so the iPhone might sell a million phones this year in the U.S.

now this iPod would have a market size of cingular times 10 or more ...so will apple "sit" on a potential of 10 million "iPod video plus" sales to protect the sale of 1 million iPhones?

i think they do both and make lots of money

but then for me it would be a win win...i can get an "iPod video plus" and still keep my current phone service and plan...if no iPod V+, then i wait a year or two till either the phone opens to more service contracts or i wait a year or two to switch service....

so what does apple want, or what can apple do...perhaps they can only make so many of these and are fine with selling a million a year...or maybe they can make a ton of them quickly and sell 20 million a year...

i also see this as a trojan horse...think of all the PC iPod users now gettting a true taste of OS X, even in a lite form...suddenly they are getting an iMac or macbook for home use

g

[psmith2.0]

I agree completely.

[Hobbes]

Originally Posted by Vb Nerd They use 1.8" drives, and the biggest capacity available in those is 100 GB (Toshiba released a 100 GB drive this month). So no, there's no chance of a 120 GB model for quite some time.

Ah, right, the 5.5G iPod uses 1.8", not 2.5" (I was thinking about Samsung's new 160GB/120GB/80GB 2.5" drives).

Apparently, Seagate has 120GB/60GB 1.8" drives -- but no idea how expensive they are.

Hmmm.

Originally Posted by Vb pscates2.0 I agree completely.

Me too. There's some fascinating stuff ahead, and more opportunities than Apple's had a long, long time.

[bassplayinMacFiend]

Well, I can think of about 21 million reasons why Apple might want to delay introduce of this vastly revised iPod. After all, you wouldn't want to leave all those people who just bought an iPod with a bad taste in their mouths.

[Wyatt]

Originally Posted by bassplayinMacFiend Well, I can think of about 21 million reasons why Apple might want to delay introduce of this vastly revised iPod. After all, you wouldn't want to leave all those people who just bought an iPod with a bad taste in their mouths.

When have updates ever been delayed to satisfy people who just upgraded? They didn't stop selling PowerBooks months before releasing the MacBook Pro (or even a day before). If you're stuck with the previous model, Apple's argument is that you still have a great product. You just have a different one.

[bassplayinMacFiend]

Originally Posted by Vb Nerd When have updates ever been delayed to satisfy people who just upgraded? They didn't stop selling PowerBooks months before releasing the MacBook Pro (or even a day before). If you're stuck with the previous model, Apple's argument is that you still have a great product. You just have a different one.

Yes, I know this has been Apple's MO for many years. It's just the iPod universe is an order of magnitude larger than the Mac base. That's the only reason I mentioned it.

I was thinking if you announced now (or during Superbowl XLI) you may anger these purchasers. If you announce the new iPod in the June - August timeframe, then it could be looked at as the "Upgraded for the '07 holiday season" model which could garner a more positive response. You know, more of a "Wow! Look at the '07 holiday model! I gotta sell my almost 1 year old iPod and get one of these!" vs. "Crap! Look at the new iPod announced 6 weeks after I got mine. How much am I gonna lose on my <2 month old iPod if I want to get a new one?"

[Wyatt]

Originally Posted by bassplayinMacFiend Yes, I know this has been Apple's MO for many years. It's just the iPod universe is an order of magnitude larger than the Mac base. That's the only reason I mentioned it. I was thinking if you announced now (or during Superbowl XLI) you may anger these purchasers. If you announce the new iPod in the June - August timeframe, then it could be looked at as the "Upgraded for the '07 holiday season" model which could garner a more positive response. You know, more of a "Wow! Look at the '07 holiday model! I gotta sell my almost 1 year old iPod and get one of these!" vs. "Crap! Look at the new iPod announced 6 weeks after I got mine. How much am I gonna lose on my <2 month old iPod if I want to get a new one?"

I actually totally agree with you, just for different reasons (not stealing the iPhone's thunder). I'm sticking to my October prediction (although I think it's a slim possibility they'll announce something in September that's not shipping immediately).

[Wraven]

Originally Posted by Vb Nerd I actually totally agree with you, just for different reasons (not stealing the iPhone's thunder). I'm sticking to my October prediction (although I think it's a slim possibility they'll announce something in September that's not shipping immediately).

I have to think that when Apple announces the 6th gen widescreen iPod it will be shipping immediately. I don't think they'd want another paper launch on their hands like they do with the tv, Airport Extreme, and iPhone. This would give all the prognosticators out there time to tear it apart...

"What? They don't have a 500GB hard drive in the new iPod? No HD??? ON NOES!!!1!!"

[turtle]

Originally Posted by Wraven I have to think that when Apple announces the 6th gen widescreen iPod it will be shipping immediately. I don't think they'd want another paper launch on their hands like they do with the tv, Airport Extreme, and iPhone. This would give all the prognosticators out there time to tear it apart... "What? They don't have a 500GB hard drive in the new iPod? No HD??? ON NOES!!!1!!"

I totally agree with you!

[thegelding]

yes, the iPodV+ gets a special keynote and steve announces, shipping today...otherwise the current iPod sales tank huge time (can you image steve shows this and then says, shipping in october??? ha)


i think we see a special keynote in march, but that is just me hoping...

g