Video iPods?

Industry panel expects iPod video revolution
CNET News.com
August 15, 2005 4:05 PM PDT


Even Apple's constituents are expecting a new video-enabled iPod by the end of the year.

Representatives with Microsoft and Texas Instruments recently said Apple will more than likely be one of two companies announcing portable video players before the end of January 2006; creating yet another new trend in multi-function gadgets.

"From a chip standpoint there is no reason that they couldn't release a video iPod," Doug Rasor, TI's vice president and strategic marketing manager said during the company's recent "Toy Tour" press junket in San Francisco.

Apple has widely been expected by insiders and enthusiasts to release a video-enabled iPod in September.

As has always been the case, Apple representatives politely declined to comment on the company's future product plans, especially when it comes to the iPod.

But that hasn't stopped the endless wash of weekly "scoops" about when a video iPod will appear and what it will have under the hood.

"I think you will see that Apple has a tendency to do the thing that they say they won't do and then do it better than anyone else," said Chris Crotty, an analyst with iSuppli. "Wasn't it just last year that Steve Jobs said that Apple was not interested in a flash memory-based iPod? Now with the launch of iPod shuffle, Apple is expected to convert iPod mini line into flash."

Despite its public dismissal of a video iPod, Apple has left the iPod evolution door wide open ever since last year's release of the iPod photo with a color screen.

More recently, Apple started tinkering with selling video clips on its iTunes Music Store and included the mention of the word video in some patents filed in 2004.

Even Microsoft is predicting a video iPod by year's end. Erik Huggers, a senior director with Microsoft's Windows client division said Microsoft fully expects a video-enabled iPod and that Apple should expect Microsoft to rally its own troops in the next few months.

"By CES [the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas in January], you will hear more buzz on portable media from us and our partners," said Erik Huggers, a senior director, for the Windows client division at Microsoft.

Posted by Michael Singer


+ Source: here


Of Video iPods and iGlasses
Microvision blog
Friday, July 22, 2005
Macsimum News: Of Video iPods and iGlasses

Robert Cringely—a columnist with whom I often disagree—wrote an interesting “I, Cringely” column this week on the Apple/Intel deal. While I think he’s off base on many points, he has a fascinating take on the rumored “video iPod” and a concept I’ll call iGlasses.

Cringely’s thoughts: “Apple of course has said it isn’t doing a Video iPod. To suddenly change their mind is nothing new: They’d describe it as the technology finally coming along to the point where it can finally support a video device that meet’s Apple’s high quality standards. But I don’t think that’s clever enough for Apple.

“This week, France Telecom’s wireless unit Orange SA announced that it was buying 230,000 video headsets so customers could look like Levar Burton and watch movies on their 3G mobile phones. The stereo headsets plug in to the mobile phones. Video quality isn’t very good at 320-by-240 (hey, that’s precisely NerdTV quality!), but what about a higher resolution display, possibly a retinal scan display, for the Video iPod? It’s the only way to extend Apple’s ‘Year of HD’ to its tiniest platform.

“Nearly all of the retinal scan patents are held by Bothell, Washington-based MicroVision, a company I have written about in the past. And from the look of the SEC filings, a lot is happening up there in Bothell. As always I have no insider information at all, but it wouldn’t surprise me if Apple introduced a super-high-capacity iPod and a separate retinal-scan display. It will be aimed at the very high end of the price scale, just like the Apple Cinema Display originally cost $4,000 for what now costs less than $1,000. The retinal scan display won’t be cheap, but it will be cool, and it will be some permutation of HD, too.”

(Actually, the original 23-inch Cinema Display wasn’t quite $4,000 and now goes for around $1,500, not $1,000. But what’s a few hundred bucks between friends?)

I have no idea whether Cringely is onto something or just has an active imagination. But imagine something like a light weight baseball style cap with ear buds with two little screens/mirrors hanging from the visor, close enough to give the perspective of viewing a very large HD screen. Macsimum News reader Dave Trapp also thinks it’s an intriguing concept.

“Consider those on commuter trains and buses, kids on a trip, or someone sitting in their living room wishing to view a different movie (or TV show) than others in the room,” he says. “Such iGlasses could replace a monitor on a standard desktop. They likely will be expensive at first but lots of potential users would find iGlasses worth that initial cost. And once in production costs are anticipated to drop rapidly. iGlasses have a secondary advantage. When the hardware and software are revised, each eye could receive a different perspectives making the first practical 3-D movies and computer presentations.”

posted by BJ # 9:49 AM 2 comments

+ Source here


Apple in talks to introduce videos to iTunes
Report: Version of iPod that plays video may be unveiled by September
July 18: CNBC’s Jim Goldman on reports that iTunes may soon have video.

MSNBC
Updated: 12:17 p.m. ET July 18, 2005

Apple Computer recently held discussions with major recording companies, seeking to license music videos to sell through the company’s iTunes Music Store, according to a report in Monday’s edition of The Wall Street Journal.

The talks are a possible prelude to a version of Apple’s hit iPod music player that plays video — a version of the gadget that the Journal says the Cupertino, Calif., computer and electronics company has told some entertainment-industry executives could be unveiled by September.

+ Source here



Source describes rumored video capabilities of future iPod
appleinsider.com | By Kasper Jade | Thursday, May 13, 2004 Published: 02:00 PM EST

here