Today Apple Inc. is expected to announce a wide variety of updates across its product line. Updates expected include:
- New Apple iPod Nano, Touch, Classic, & Shuffle
- iPod Touch Cosmetic Update
- iPod Touch & iPhone Software Update to 2.1
- iTunes 8.0
- Mac OS X 10.5.5 & 10.5.6
- New Price Points for Many Apple Products
New Apple iPod Nano, Touch, Classic, & Shuffle
This rumor has been confirmed by many sources, originally coming from Kevin Rose, one of the founders of Digg.com. The new Apple iPod Nano is rumored to be the first non-touch iPod to have a motion or orientation sensor. A drawing of a new iPod Nano was released several weeks ago by MacNN, and has now been updated to a rediculously close photo as follows:
iPod Touch Cosmetic Update
It is rumored that there will be some minor design changes to the iPod Touch, improving functionality and cutting the cost of building the device. These new devices will be shipped with the highly anticipated version 2.1 of the iPod Touch / iPhone software
iPod Touch & iPhone Version 2.1 Software Update
Shortly after, if not simultaneously with, the release of the iPod Touch cosmetic updates today, the highly anticipated version 2.1 of the iPod Touch / iPhone software should be available. iPhone 3G consumers should be very happy about this announcement. Complaints relating to poor network connections with malfunctions ranging from dropped calls to poor 3G connectivity to lagging software should be addressed in the new version of the iPhone software.
iTunes 8.0
A fresh update of the software downloaded by tens of millions of people worldwide should be receiving an update today. Kevin Rose stated that the new software “really is a true point upgrade, it deserves the new 8.0 name.”
The update should include:
- New audio visualization (this one)
- Genius playlist
- Genius sidebar
- Grid view (with ability to change icon size)
The genius playlist is said to use your iTunes library as a reference for the type of music that you like, and will offer song suggestions from the iTunes store based on your current music. This new feature may even have the capability to do this with movies.
Here is a photo of what Kevin Rose predicts iTunes 8.0 will look like:
Mac OS 10.5.5 & 10.5.6
It’s almost a certainty that Apple will release Mac OS 10.5.5, but what is more interesting is the release of version 10.5.6. It it’s a little bit more far fetched than the other rumors, but is said to have integrated Blu-Ray support, which would allow for a new line of Macbook Pro’s to include Blu-Ray players.
New Price Points for Many Apple Products
Apple wanted to stop the cannibalization of their iPods from people purchasing iPhones, so they have decided to widen the gap in price between the $199* 8G Iphone 3G and their lower cost iPod line. Apple Inc. is said to be lowering their gross profit margin to 30% from an original 35%, hoping to increase the volume of the products in which they sell. This will allow Apple Inc. to hold a competitive advantage over competitors such as Microsoft, which has announced the release of Zune 3.0 to compete with the new iPods.
Apple wanted to stop the cannibalization of their iPods from people purchasing iPhones, so they have decided to widen the gap in price between the $199* 8G Iphone 3G and their lower cost iPod line. Apple Inc. is said to be lowering their gross profit margin to 30% from an original 35%, hoping to increase the volume of the products in which they sell.