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New iPod announcement expected this week

Written by Rich Fiscus @ 04 Sep 2007 6:46 User comments (3)

New iPod announcement expected this week Details on the new iPod models Apple is expected to unveil this week are being kept secret, but analysts believe they'll be announcing a model with a large touchscreen.
There has been speculation that the announcements could also include iPods that can download music wirelessly, or even the availability of The Beatles catalog on iTunes.

As companies like NBC Universal put more effort and money into finding (or building) alternatives to the online music leader, it's more important than ever for the iPod to keep moving forward. Last quarter iPod sales accounted for nearly 30% of Apple's revenue. They currently make up 7 out of 10 digital media players fols in the United States.

"Competitors seem to always be chasing the last generation of Apple products. It makes it very difficult for competitors to make a dent against Apple in this space," said Michael Gartenberg, an analyst with market research firm Gartner.

New models are expected to reach store shelves in time for the holiday shopping season.



In recent months Apple's iTunes service has been under heavy attack, both from rival media providers and content creators. Content owners like NBC Universal are looking to price their products variably, depending on consumer interest, while other major players like Sony and Wal-Mart are interested in getting some of Apple's download business.

The success of iTunes and the iPod have always been closely related, making it very important that Apple keep consumers excited about both products or else they risk helping competitors take valuable market share from them.

Source: Reuters

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3 user comments

14.9.2007 19:14

Quote:
"Competitors seem to always be chasing the last generation of Apple products. It makes it very difficult for competitors to make a dent against Apple in this space," said Michael Gartenberg, an analyst with market research firm Gartner.
LMAO
There is already portable music players with touch screen and wi-fi. It's just that apple gets whole lot more publicity. I would invest in apple stock if I had the extra money even though they do not make the most advanced players having others follow them just because most people will only know about apple and will buy apple products.

Same with apples iphone, there was a all touchscreen phone on the market before the iphone but people are crazy about apple.

24.9.2007 22:56

The reason why Apple does so well is not because they are always first (they aren't), it's because the UI is always the best.

Newton's UI is STILL better than Palm's or MS's.
OS X kicks Vista's ass any day in UI.
iPod destroys pretty much anything, I will even admit that the UI and iTunes integration kicks my MicroPhoto's ass.
iPhone makes a BlackBerry's interface laughable

Pick up any iPod and you know as soon as you plug it in iTunes will pop up and it is brain-dead-easy to sync or add songs. I don't even bother with Creative's piss poor software for PC, I use XNJB on my Mac.

The reason why Apple get so much press and hype isn't because their products are technically the best, the cheapest (yeah right), or the first; it's because they are able to engineer the best UIs in the industry, hands down

310.9.2007 15:56

Although a touch screen is great i dont want one due to the fact that the screen will become dirty quickly.

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