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 Apple's (AAPL) iPhone 3G, announced earlier this month and shipping July 11, has taken away a lot of attention from its cousin, the iPod touch. And rightfully so: The new iPhone is now cheaper than the iPod touch (excluding monthly service fees) and has a fast, always-on Internet connection, which the iPod doesn't.
But we think there's still a huge market for the iPod touch, such as people who don't want to pay a minimum $70 per month for phone and data service, people who use non-AT&T (T) wireless carriers, and people who like keeping their mobile phone and MP3 player separate.
So we don't expect Apple to leave the iPod touch alone. But if it's going to become the first "mainstream wi-fi mobile platform," as the company has been calling it, it needs some improvements. Specifically, we'd like to see:
- More storage for the same price. The 16-gig unit should drop to $299; the 32-gig unit to $399. (An 8-gig iPhone will cost $199 after carrier subsidy; a 16-gig iPhone will cost $299.)
- A camera. The iPhone's camera is a novelty, but it's a useful one, and we'd like to see it on the touch, too. Video recording also makes sense, especially with a 32-gig drive.
- Mic and speakers. People are going to use this as a wi-fi Internet phone. So it'd be helpful if Apple included a microphone. Speakers would be nice so a small group could listen to tunes or calls.
- A bigger version. Increasing the screen size to five or seven inches would make movie-watching and Web-browsing much better. Load it up with enough features and capabilities, and you're looking at a mini-tablet computer, and we think there's a substantial market for that.
We think some of these changes could come as early as this fall. We don't expect Apple to do much to the iPod touch during the back-to-school shopping season -- during which they're giving away iPod touches to Mac buyers. But sometime around mid-October, when people start sniffing for holiday presents, we expect Apple to refresh the iPod touch.
Anything particular you'd like to see in the next edition of the iPod touch? Let us know in comments below.
See Also:
Apple Gives Mobile App Store A Boost: Free iPod Touch For College Mac Buyers
Phone 3G No-Shows: Adobe Flash, Video Recording, Copy And Paste
Apple's New iPhone Strategy: More Units, Less Revenue
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