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Apple Fall Event 2010 Discussion Thread: iPods and AppleTV

Discuss Apple's Fall Event announcements here!

By Norman Chan  |  Sept. 1, 2010

Apple is just about ready to unleash this year's iPod updates at their Fall Event press conference in San Francisco. Buzz about a revamped Apple TV, iTunes streaming, and a radically redesigned iPod Nano are the leading rumors, and we'll have all the details as they go live in the post below. Apple is also streaming this event live-- the first time they've done so for any product announcement in years -- apparently to test the capabilities of a massive new server farm (in anticipation of a a future streaming iTunes feature, perhaps?) . The sure-to-be-hammered feed will be available on Apple.com beginning 10AM PDT for Mac and iOS only.

Which rumors will turn out to be true, and which will go up in smoke? Discuss in the comments section below--the Steve Jobs reality distortion field is about to be turned on!

Our full recap will come right after the event ends. But here are the quick highlights as they come out so you can discuss.
 

iOS 4.1

HDR photos built into Photo app -- software will combine three photos into one.
Game Center finally out. Achievements, friends lists, etc.
Epic Game Demo: Project Sword. Fantasy RPG using Unreal Engine 3. Out this holiday. 
- Epic Citadel just popped up in the App Store.
Out next week for iPod and iPhone, free download over iTunes
 

iOS 4.2 Preview

iPad update
AirTunes renamed AirPlay: Streaming audio, video, and photos over Wi-Fi
Out in November! Free update for iPad, iPhone and iPod Touch.
 

iPods

All new design for every model of iPod
 

iPod Shuffle

4th gen. Users missed the buttons of the second gen, so they're back. Smaller than the second gen. Buttons + voice over + playlists. Welcome return of the 2nd gen shape. Black navigation ring. Genius mixes added. 15 hours of music. Comes in five different colors.
$49.
 

iPod Nano (Full recap and analysis here)

"Smaller and better." Just a screen! No buttons. Multi-touch-based.  
Also has a clip, like the Shuffle. About the size of the shuffle (looks like the rumored 1.7 inches). Actually, a little bigger than shuffle (about 20%).
24 hours of battery life. 
Four icons fit on the home screen. Music, photos, clock, radio, podcasts, fitness. Customizable front page. Can add icons like albums, songs, genres, composers, etc.
Interface looks like iOS.
Swipe controls look easy to use. on-screen buttons pop up too.
Screen orients itself (accelerometer inside?) depending on how you hold/clip it. 
Comes in the same four colors as the shuffle + Product (RED) and graphite.
8GB ($150) and 16GB ($180)
 

iPod Touch (Full recap and analysis here)

Steve Jobs says it's the most popular portable game player in the world...
Even thinner than last model. same 30 pin connector. Doesn't look like there's a steel band around it. Still has the all-metal backing.
Hardware features
  • Retina Display. 24-bit color. LED. 
  • Apple A4 Chip
  • 3-axis Gyro
  • iOS 4.1 with Game Center
  • FaceTime with front camera. 
  • Rear camera with HD video recording
40 hours of music playback
8GB at $229, 32GB at $299, 64 at $399
 
No word about the iPod Classic. Is it dead, or just not updated?
 

iTunes 10

New logo for iTunes. No more CD in the logo. 
Interface is slightly changed, though looks mostly the same from the demo screenshots. 
Discovery is the new big thing. Announcing "Ping". Social network for music. A twitter/facebook like feed for music activity. Friends and follows. Your profile will have a custom top 10 chart that your friends can follow.  
Each artist will have their own page. You can follow them, too.
Can be as public or private as your want. You can create a "Circle of friends" so no one else can follow you.
Ping is on iTunes, iPod Touch, and iPhone.
iTunes 10 is available today.
 

Apple TV

First, what users want from Apple TV. Users want movies and TV shows on Apple TV. Professional content, not "amateur content". Is that a knock against Youtube video? Users want HD content, lower prices, and they "don't want a computer".  Stream, not sync. 

New Apple TV is a fourth the size of the original Apple TV. It's all black.  REALLY small.
Power, HDMI, and Ethernet ports. 802.11n Wi-Fi also included. 
Tall aluminum remote.  
HD video (assuming 720p, since 1080p wasn't specified)
All rentals, no purchases. Content is never permanently stored on Apple TV.  
Ok, on to the pricing: 
$4.99 for first run HD movies, the day and date they come out on DVD. About the same price as Blockbuster.
99c to rent HD TV shows, commercial free. 
Not all the Studios will be involved. ABC and FOX only first. No NBC, Time Warner, or Cable networks. 
Netflix streaming built-in. Not a separate app. 
YouTube streaming for video, too. 
Photos for MobileMe or Flickr. 
Stream music, photos, and video from iTunes on a Mac or PC. Aside from the rentals, not sure why this is better than using an old MacBook as a media streamer with Boxee or Plex.
Streaming from iPad is pretty neat. Buy on iPad, stream to AppleTV and not lose your place.
Price is $99, as rumored. Available in September (in about 4 weeks). Pre-order begins today.
101 Comments
AdSapienon Sept. 1, 2010 at 9:15 a.m.
I know I will be surprised if the new generation of iPod Touch doesn't mimic the new iPhone's industrial design.   
iTV doesn't really concern me so hopefully that doesn't take up the majority of the presentation. 
 
Here's to hoping that today doesn't make me regret buying an iPhone 4. 
ehsanon Sept. 1, 2010 at 9:16 a.m.
Get ready to rumbbbble!!!
fryon Sept. 1, 2010 at 9:35 a.m.
Erm... granted, I don't work in marketing, but what's the purpose of intentionally restricting the number of eyeballs on your big, expensive press event? More eyeballs = more sales, no?
Forteon Sept. 1, 2010 at 9:41 a.m.
@fry: I think they are trying to limit the strain on thier streaming servers.  Apple needs to restrict the number of viewers so the tubes don't get too jammed.  This wouldn't be a problem if the broadcast was on, say, uStream or TWiT.tv, but Apple likes to keep things internal. 
TheAdminon Sept. 1, 2010 at 9:42 a.m.
I'm giddy as a school girl! Who knows what our beloved leader, Steve Jobs, will tell us we need to buy today... 
bagels staff on Sept. 1, 2010 at 9:43 a.m.
If the iPod Touch rumours pan out, I'd consider it. I like my Android, by still want to try this iOS stuff out. Unless the iPad gets a spec bump in January, that is.
intoblivionon Sept. 1, 2010 at 9:44 a.m.
Ipod Classic being dropped, I CALLED IT!
Lasheon Sept. 1, 2010 at 9:46 a.m.
@fry said:
"Erm... granted, I don't work in marketing, but what's the purpose of intentionally restricting the number of eyeballs on your big, expensive press event? More eyeballs = more sales, no? "


I hear next year they plan to roll out coverage on a Facetime-exclusive basis.

 

That said I'm sure it won't be hard to find a mirrored stream on Justin.tv or uStream.

Forteon Sept. 1, 2010 at 9:48 a.m.
@intoblivion: No way.  Unless they have a high-cap nano, the Classic is staying.  Every musician I know (7) owns whatever iPod has the most gigs. They need at least one player with 160 GB of storage because some people have collections that big, and they are locked into the iTunes music eco-system (usually out of laziness).  For those people they will not buy a new iPod that has any less memory. 
gakonon Sept. 1, 2010 at 9:49 a.m.
My TCOM professor was talking about the event this morning.  He played for us an audio clip from NPR which speculates that Apple will be unveiling a new "cloud-based music service", which seems like a fancy way of saying it's a streaming music service.  Literally one of the lines from this clip is "Why store your music on a hard drive when you can just stream it?"
 
I wasn't aware we were already over storing music on drives.  Also, the idea seems to be that instead of buying music, you just stream music for some monthly fee.  Obviously it's just speculation, and even the speculation is kind of fuzzy.  To me, "cloud based" at least suggests some type of ownership of the content, because you're storing it in the cloud and not on local storage.  But this specific bit of speculation suggests they would be rolling out a paid streaming music service, and that doesn't seem like a replacement for iTunes at all.  And if you don't own the content because you just stream it on demand, I don't see that as cloud-based at all.
Lasheon Sept. 1, 2010 at 9:55 a.m.
@gakon5 said:

"My TCOM professor was talking about the event this morning.  He played for us an audio clip from NPR which speculates that Apple will be unveiling a new "cloud-based music service", which seems like a fancy way of saying it's a streaming music service.  Literally one of the lines from this clip is "Why store your music on a hard drive when you can just stream it?"  I wasn't aware we were already over storing music on drives.  Also, the idea seems to be that instead of buying music, you just stream music for some monthly fee.  Obviously it's just speculation, and even the speculation is kind of fuzzy.  To me, "cloud based" at least suggests some type of ownership of the content, because you're storing it in the cloud and not on local storage.  But this specific bit of speculation suggests they would be rolling out a paid streaming music service, and that doesn't seem like a replacement for iTunes at all.  And if you don't own the content because you just stream it on demand, I don't see that as cloud-based at all. "


Speaking as a Scotsman who pays for Spotify -- a cloud-based streaming music service in Europe -- I can clarify a way in which this might operate.  
 
Because I pay for Spotify Premium, I get access to their mobile app which lets me stream on the move via 3g but it also allows me to compile playlists from the database and store them as encrypted files which I can play on my phone in 'Offline Mode' through the Spotify app. This allows me to use my phone as essentially my main MP3 player as I have saved a library with albums upon albums of songs on my offline playlists.  
 
If I wish to purchase the track I can do so and then it is mine to put onto whichever dedicated device, laptop, etc I wish. It's a fantastic service for £10 a month ($15 approx.) 
 
Edit: to clarify, the offline mode also functions on laptops, computers, etc when you are a paying user, it's not just for mobile phones.
intoblivionon Sept. 1, 2010 at 9:58 a.m.
@Lashe said:
" @gakon5 said:

"My TCOM professor was talking about the event this morning.  He played for us an audio clip from NPR which speculates that Apple will be unveiling a new "cloud-based music service", which seems like a fancy way of saying it's a streaming music service.  Literally one of the lines from this clip is "Why store your music on a hard drive when you can just stream it?"  I wasn't aware we were already over storing music on drives.  Also, the idea seems to be that instead of buying music, you just stream music for some monthly fee.  Obviously it's just speculation, and even the speculation is kind of fuzzy.  To me, "cloud based" at least suggests some type of ownership of the content, because you're storing it in the cloud and not on local storage.  But this specific bit of speculation suggests they would be rolling out a paid streaming music service, and that doesn't seem like a replacement for iTunes at all.  And if you don't own the content because you just stream it on demand, I don't see that as cloud-based at all. "

Speaking as a Scotsman who pays for Spotify -- a cloud-based streaming music service in Europe -- I can clarify a way in which this might operate.   Because I pay for Spotify Premium, I get access to their mobile app which lets me stream on the move via 3g but it also allows me to compile playlists from the database and store them as encrypted files which I can play on my phone in 'Offline Mode' through the Spotify app. This allows me to use my phone as essentially my main MP3 player as I have saved a library with albums upon albums of songs on my offline playlists.   If I wish to purchase the track I can do so and then it is mine to put onto whichever dedicated device, laptop, etc I wish. It's a fantastic service for £10 a month ($15 approx.)  Edit: to clarify, the offline mode also functions on laptops, computers, etc when paid at a premium. "
Spotify is a very good service in my opinion 
billygoat117on Sept. 1, 2010 at 10:06 a.m.
Does anyone else think it's stupid that to watch the livestream you have to have the newest version of OSX on a Mac product? Maybe I'm foolish for assuming that they want people OUTSIDE their grasp to see what they have to offer. Apparently they only care about preaching to the converted.
intoblivionon Sept. 1, 2010 at 10:08 a.m.
IOS stream is stunning
Addfwyn is online on Sept. 1, 2010 at 10:10 a.m.
Really enjoying the stream, nice and high quality.   
HDR on iPhones will be kinda cool, had to have apps for that before.
intoblivionon Sept. 1, 2010 at 10:12 a.m.
Epic Games turning up, that's a surprise
jelekeloyon Sept. 1, 2010 at 10:13 a.m.
That's a pretty iPhone game.
Addfwyn is online on Sept. 1, 2010 at 10:13 a.m.
I still don't think iPhone is a good as a gaming platform, but Game Center is a good step for that. 
 
Also, the Epic Games demo looks VERY impressive, I have to say.
jelekeloyon Sept. 1, 2010 at 10:15 a.m.
Gamecenter achievements on Giant Bomb?
intoblivionon Sept. 1, 2010 at 10:16 a.m.
Airplay = Streaming?
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