2006 iPod: better than ever?

Can you imagine Apple in 2001? The company with shrinking market share and nowhere to go? Computers were their world about to be taken over by Windows. Yet in 2001 they introduced an iPod, a product that had been known before as an MP3 player. But Apple engineered iPod to perfection and took the market by storm. There were several smart design decisions differentiating iPod from the rest of the market. iPod has always been slim and elegant. It had a breakthrough navigation wheel, making it extremely easy to operate and a couple of other nice features like a single cable for charging and downloading. Since 2001 everybody started chasing Apple for the MP3 crown, but so far the distance seems to be growing, not shrinking. Even in 2005 we had two trend-setting models (the unbelievable thin Nano and the so-called Video iPod). So what will 2006 bring to the table?

Birds are already singing there is a true Video iPod in the works. True Video you ask? Yes... have you noticed the latest iPod has never been officially called a "Video iPod"? On the Apple's website it is just an iPod that is "thin and plays video". The true video iPod is said to have a 3,5 inch display. That means the display will cover almost the entire surface leaving no space for the navigation controls. The same source says the click wheel will be digital - or should we say - emulated in software. This direction is fairly obvious, since software does not take any physical space, so the iPod will be thinner. Apple has recently filled a touch screen gesture patent that supports the idea of a virtual controls. The concept is very nice but has several drawbacks with current technology. Pressure - sensitive touch screens are very soft. They bend when pressed to mark the press point, but that makes them very fragile, almost impossible to be dropped into a pocket where other items and dust may wreck them. Apple has been beaten for the relatively soft Nano screen, so I believe they don't want the story to repeat. There is another variety of touch screens, being used in Tablet PCs. Tablets are very hard and scratch - proof, but you cannot operate them with fingers. They use induction technology and can be operated only with a special stylus.

My bet is Apple will use a capacitive technology perfected by Synaptics that has just appeared in the Samsung SPH-V6800 phone. The phone has a touch sensor located beneath the LCD. This combination delivers the perfect touch screen solution - something Apple always looks for. A screen that can be made of hard glass or scratch - proof plastic, while still being operated by a finger. So have we just solved the puzzle? May be... Predicting is always hard, especially when you have to predict the future.

On the other hand I still wonder if the new iPod will have A2DP Bluetooth inside. That would be something! Being able to wirelessly stream the music to my headphones or my car stereo and hopefully being able to pick up the telephone conversation without the need to swap headphones...