Apple's New Toys

[BahrainLad]

Some very nice kit just launched at the Macworld SFO Expo, including iPod Mini's (the size of a business card) and new iLife applications.

(Although typical of Apple to launch a highly-desirable consumer product less than two weeks after Christmas.....)

[BayAreaLondoner]

I suppose I don't really see the point of the new iPod mini.
It is smaller, but not that much smaller. Its capacity is less than a third of the smallest iPod "Classic" yet only costs $50 less.
See the comparison chart (http://www.apple.com/ipod/specs.html) on the Apple site.

[WeatherJinx]

I think there's more to this than meets the eye. Yesterday, the day after Apple launched the iPod Mini (http://www.apple.com/ipodmini/) at Macworld Expo, saw the start of the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas - probably the world's most influential gizmo exhibition.

There are likely to be new players launched here, competing in the same new sector that Apple has identified - High End Flash Memory/Low End HD.

With a month or two to go before the Mini goes on sale, anything could happen. Indeed, rumours are already surfacing of the possibility of pre-release pricing adjustments. Apple UK has said today that it will almost certainly reduce its indicated price point of £199 (which looked like a bit of a rip-off compared to the US pricing), to closer to the £150 mark.

This move could give Apple the opportunity to test the price-point ahead of its potential competitors. Remember you can always drop your price, but rarely can you get away with increasing it. Risky? Perhaps, but that's business.

Jx

PS - anyone who wants to see more of Apple's 'new toys' here's (http://www.apple.com/quicktime/qtv/mwsf04/) the link to Steve Jobs' Keynote speech (QuickTime (http://www.apple.com/quicktime) required)

[BayAreaLondoner]

Not being a big Apple user (the iPod is it), I wasn't very familiar with Apple's MO.
I was watching the Screen Savers on TechTV and they said that the early adopters will pay the $299 and then Apple will drop the price to $249. My long-time Apple-using friend said the same.
However, even at $249 I think it is overpriced. The other factor is that if this is a "sports player" for people on the go, is having a platter that spins quickly in it a good idea? I'd prefer a flash-based player for my infrequent gym visits.
My long-time Apple-using friend's opinion differs - he quite rightly points out that flash players have a much smaller song capacity and he doesn't want to download new songs everytime he works out.
My counter to that though is that flash prices drop rapidly. The 1GB CF card i bought for my digital camera last year cost me the same as the 128MB card I bought a few years before.

[WeatherJinx]

BayAreaLondoner

The price already is $249 (http://www.apple.com/ipodmini/). Some observers are predicting a fairly quick drop to around the $199 mark, with the possibility of an additional lower and higher-priced model - all dependent on forthcoming mini HD specs from Hitachi..

Jx

[BayAreaLondoner]

Errr... yeah that's what I meant.
Brain not in gear whilst typing :)
So I meant it would drop to $199.
I'll get me coat.