[IxDA Discuss] the new iPod

[Dave Chiu]

> I see more convergence than divergence going on here, marking the  
> two more as variations on a theme than a distinct and separate  
> products.

Greg Joswia of Apple recently confirmed (http://tinyurl.com/3xhzow)  
that "the iPod Touch and iPhone use the same software platform -  
they're both running OS X on basically the same hardware."

The hardware differences: iPod touch lacks bluetooth, GSM, camera,  
speakers, and a microphone (not clear yet). If it had those  
components, it would be an iPhone and not an iPod. The odd thing, of  
course, is that Apple currently lists the iPhone on its home page as  
an iPod, while the iPhone product page seems to indicate that the  
iPhone is an iPhone with iPod functionality.

It's obviously open to discussion about where the products will go  
from here, but I don't see the iPhone disappearing any time soon, and  
doubt the iPod is going anywhere either. So either Apple maintains a  
distinction (however tenuous) between the two products, or they  
merge. And I doubt Apple would merge two premier brands. At this  
point I vote for further divergence, as the always-on internet  
connection on the iPhone enables more interesting interactions and  
the possibility of a portable, hand-held computer. Once the feature- 
set develops further on the iPhone, I could see the iPod touch  
gaining the "missing" features of Mail, widgets, etc. but I don't  
currently see how the iPod touch feature set would supersede the  
iPhone feature set. So in other words, this is all about strategy and  
marketing and product differentiation and not that much to do with  
interaction design (since, again, it's the same software platform on  
both devices).

>> And the browser is probably there as a side effect of enabling the  
>> WiFi music store and the Starbucks collaboration (and not because  
>> Apple really really wanted to include a browser on the iPod)
>
> Now I call "bull" on that.

Oops, I meant WiFi and typed browser in the first instance. mea  
culpa. The rationale for including the browser then follows as you  
described.

Dave