About a week ago, Apple started circulating the news that they were about to release a groundbreaking new product (and it wouldn’t be a Mac).
Well, the product is here. It’s not exactly groundbreaking but it does have some nifty features.
Basically, the iPod is an MP3 player. As MP3 players go, it’s top of the range. It’s small, it has long battery life and it can store thousands of songs.
The really nifty stuff is the way it interacts with Macs. Plug it in and it automatically synchronises setlists with that wonderful piece of software, iTunes.
File transfer comes courtesy of the emmy-awarding winning, ultra fast Firewire. The iPod also doubles up as a 5GB Firewire hard drive. Niiice.
So what’s the catch? The price.
It’s going to sell for $400. Ouch!
For that much, you can get an iMac in New York or Washington.
Localised price reductions are nothing new and Apple are probably right not to advertise this one. While it probably is motivated by a desire to help the cities affected by September 11th, advertising the fact would be pretty crass.
Apple also stayed pretty quite about the 1 Million dollar donation to the Red Cross.
I guess they’ll make their money back by selling iPods.