Now why didn't anyone think of it before?
Apple launched two products yesterday. A new version of it's iTunes software which doubles up as an online music store. I think that Apple has carried it's philosophy of simplifying everything right down to the name of it's music store which is called.. well, u guessed it right, the iTunes Music Store. No confusion there. Apple also came out with three new versions of it's iPod music player. It is not just an mp3 player anymore. For one, it brings in a new music compression format from Dolby, named AAC (for Advanced Audio Coding) developed by AT&T, Dolby, Fraunhofer and Sony which gives an audio quality that's superior to mp3 at a lower bitrate. The music that Apple sells at it's store is encoded at a modest 128kbps, but I've read reports which bear out Apple's claim that it sounds superior to mp3.
The iPod has evolved further and now sports a new look. Initially I was dismayed that the circular buttons around the touchpad were no longer there, but now I appreciate the logic in Apple's actions. The new iPod does away with any mechanical buttons altogether and supports a touch sensitive front panel. Now you can glide your fingers over the cirular touchpad and also gently touch the buttons to activate the other controls. I think that the buttons have been moved to the top to avoid accidental touching while scrolling with the touchpad. The iPod is also thinner and lighter and guess what.. it has no hard drive. Yeah baby, this one has no moving parts inside either and
The amazing part of what Apple is bring us, is not just the iPod, but the concept of the one-click music store. Without being bogged down by monthly subscriptions and restrictive rules that online music stores have, the iTunes store allows you to buy individual songs with one click, much like Amazon.com. Anyone who has downloaded files with one click using KaZaA will surely appreciate the ability to download songs with the same ease and still be on the right side of the law. I think this is going to be the future of music: Go online, find the song you want and download it into your player (most probably an iPod) with an almost unlimited storage space. Why would anyone want to buy a CD and have to maintain a collection of dozens of CDs when they can have thousands of songs on a tiny, almost weightless device! As usual, it is after Apple launches a product that you start wondering "Now why didn't anyone think of that!"
P.S. A thought: What is apple going to do with the thousands/millions of older iPods it has? And what will guys like lofatmo who bought older iPods just before the launch do? tch..tch..
