VIDEO STARS IN REVAMPED IPOD LINEUP
Apple Inc. revamped its entire lineup of iPods today with special emphasis on video and online features.
The top of the line iPod Touch is, essentially, an iPhone minus the phone. It features a 3.5-inch touch-screen display and interface, plus WiFi connectivity that enables Web surfing and live access to YouTube. Scheduled to ship by the end of this month, the iPod Touch is priced at $299 for an 8 GB model and $399 for a 16 GB.
In today’s press conference at San Francisco’s Moscone Center Apple CEO Steve Jobs also announced that sales of the two-month-old iPhone itself were “on track for a million units by the end of September.” To ensure brisk sales through the holiday season, Apple announced a $200 price cut for the 8 GB iPhone to $399. The lower-capacity 4 GB unit will be discontinued.
Apple’s best-selling ultra-slim iPod Nano will be replaced by a wider version that sports a 320-by-240-pixel 2-inch video screen—about the size and resolution of the present iPod with Video screen. Available this week, the new units are priced $50 less than current Nanos—at $149 for 4 GB of flash memory and $199 for the 8 GB version.
The former iPod with Video is being renamed the iPod Classic. While slimmer, it retains the same surface dimensions and hard drive storage, but with much more storage capacity. Available in silver and black, the 80 GB version sells for $249, the 160 GB version for $349. It is also available this week.
Both the Nano and the Classic iPods now include many of the video display features of the iPhone (such as the ability to select music by browsing through depictions of album covers) but both continue to be controlled by the familiar click wheel.
For the Wi-Fi enabled iPhones and iPod Touch, Jobs also announced the launch of the iTunes Wi-Fi Music Store, allowing users to download digital music directly over a wireless connection. Prices and song selection are identical to the regular iTunes store, and are synched automatically when attached to the user’s computer Mac or PC media library. Video downloads are not yet supported wirelessly.
Jobs also announced a partnership with Starbucks, which will allow the coffee chain’s customers to connect for free to store-based wireless music services, enabling latte-drinkers to purchase the music they’re hearing in the stores. The service will be rolled out over the next 18 months, with more than 600 Starbucks offering the service by this October.
Finally, Jobs earned a huge laugh from the assembled press corps when he demonstrated the iPhone’s new ability to turn songs from the iTunes store into audible ring tones. Choosing John Lennon’s Give Peace a Chance, Jobs said it’s the song he uses to let him know “when NBC is calling.”
Tomorrow’s TVNEWSDAY will feature a Tech Spotlight report on how the new line of iPods can benefit television stations.Copyright 2007 TV Newsday, Inc. All rights reserved.
This article can be found online at: http://www.tvnewsday.comhttp://www.tvnewsday.com/articles/2007/09/05/daily.13/.
Please visit http://www.tvnewsday.com/ for more on this and other breaking news concerning the TV broadcasting industry.

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