“The Beat Goes On” for Apple

These are strange times for the Cupertino-based Apple Inc. I cannot recall for the life of me the last time seemingly every rumor surrounding an Apple press event turned out to be… True. Does it count as irony when the most unlikely scenario to occur was that everything was right?

Whatever.

Today’s event in San Francisco was basically the kickoff of Apple’s traditional holiday iPod blitz, and they certainly did not disappoint any of their customers. The iPod shuffle line was the least-modified of all of the models, receiving only new colors. The 1GB specification still stuck, as did the form factor and the pricetag.

The iPod Nano is where it all started getting hectic. Those purported rumored pictures that surfaced online couldn’t really have been any more accurate (since they were so blurry, you know.) iPod chibi - I mean Nano - got bumped up to 4 and 8GB capacities while retaining their same price points. It got totally redesigned in the process. Extremely diminutive with a chubby appearance, the iPod nano got a 2-inch screen and video playback.

The original iPod was redubbed “iPod Classic“. It’s still hard drive-based, and it’s still $249.99 or $349.99. It’s got an all-new casing and a better battery life and screen. Oh yeah, I almost forgot - It also now starts at a whopping 80GB of space for the $249 model and 160GB for the $349 model. Both the the nano and classic get a new UI that allows for Cover Flow and split-screen navigation. It’s some really neat stuff and shows a real commitment to improving the classic user interface that made iPod so very popular.

A fourth iPod model emerged, the iPod Touch. Yeah, it’s basically iPhone without the phone and AT&T parts. Complete with touchscreen, the same iPod interface, and even the Safari web browser. 8GB for $299 and 16GB for $399 ensures that Apple just ruined some other company’s day. Apple’s iPhone got a price drop as well. The 4GB model is being phased out and is priced at $299 until all of them sell out. The 8GB iPhone will retail for $399. Both the iPod Touch and iPhone will be able to use Apple’s new iTunes Wi-Fi Music Store, which is exactly what the name implies.

The updated range of existing iPods will be available this weekend, while the iPod Touch gets released “in a few weeks”. The only thing we know for sure is that Apple has probably ruined the holidays for every other DAP manufacturer. Ho, ho, ho indeed, Steve Jobs.