Low End Mac Reader Specials

TypeStyler For Mac OS X is Now Shipping! Download The Free Fully Functional 60 Day Tryout at www.typestyler.com

OWC: We Make DIY Upgrading Easy! Maximize your Apple MacBook / MacBook Pro. Up to 8.0GB Memory, up to 1.0TB HD & More. Easy Guide + Free, Detailed Installation Videos. Click here

Don't install Parallels to play poker online! Poker Mac will show you how to download and install a native Mac poker application such as Full Tilt Poker Mac.

Laptop Hardware Provided by TechRestore - Overnight Mac & iPod Repairs.

Compare products like desktop computers, apple laptops, apple macs, and LCD Monitors side by side! All the information and reviews to make the best purchasing decision for new mobile phones, sat nav systems, or MP3 players. The Ciao online shopping community makes searching products easy for you.

Kitchens Sync

What about the iPod touch?

- 2008.06.19 - Tip Jar

Popularity:

Bookmark in del.icio.us

With all the hype and noise surrounding the release of the iPhone 3G, many people are left wondering, "What about the iPod touch?"

It would seem that with the updated design of the iPhone, a new revision of the iPod touch will soon be coming out as the "iPhone 3G without the phone". However, I don't believe this is so.

iPhone 3G The cosmetic changes to the iPhone are minor in that the only true change is the new backplate. The iPod touch currently sports a chromed backplate, which all of the larger, more expensive iPods have featured since their introduction. The simple backplate switch is no reason for Apple to pour money into a new design for the touch. I would also guess that the new plastic backplate is mainly designed to help boost range and signal with the iPhone's new 3G radio.

The major internal change to the iPhone is this new wireless equipment, which allows it to utilize the higher performance of 3G networks. As iPods do not use cellular networks, this does not affect their design. The only foreseeable change would be an upgrade to a Wireless-N chipset, but I do not think this is currently possible - otherwise Apple would have made the new iPhone support the 802.11n standard, especially in light of all it other products; all the wireless cards in the current Macs and all the AirPort base stations currently produced by Apple have 802.11n capability.

I must recant what I said previously to a certain extent: I believe that there does exist one upgrade possibility for the touch: hard drives. I believe Apple could eliminate the iPod classic line in favor of a not-so-classic iPod touch with a large hard drive for more videos and applications from the new App Store. This would probably be cheaper than the current touch, because prices on flash memory have not dropped to the same level as a hard drive. This can be readily seen in the MacBook Air, where an upgrade to flash memory from an iPod-sized hard drive nets 16 less gigabytes of storage and about $1,000 more on the price.

Whatever happens to the iPod line, I believe the main thing to look for is the new 2.0 software, featuring the App Store, support for the new MobileMe product, and improved enterprise capabilities. I also predict iPod price drops in the near future due to cheaper flash memory powered by the upcoming multilevel cell technology.

If you find Kevin's articles helpful, please consider making a donation to his tip jar.

Recent Columns by Kev Kitchens

Mac OS X Server Shortcomings in the Enterprise, 08.17. For large organizations, the maximum number of servers, replication issues, limited database size, domain integration and high costs can keep Apple out.
Apple Comes Through, Resolving Overheating iMac Problem, 06.10. After frustration with the local Apple Store, customer service came through by authorizing a repair - and then a replacement when the problem persisted.
Apple Store Headaches over Fixing an Overheating iMac under Warranty, 04.08. The fan never seemed to run on this 8-month-old iMac, but it was getting hot and flaky. The problem was mixed messages from the staff of the local Apple Store.
Snow Leopard and Windows 7 Put the Focus on Optimization, Not Feature Bloat, 03.09. "While there are some advances, the major focus for each new version centers on code optimization and other architectural improvements."
More in the Kitchens Sync index.

Links for the Day

Mac of the Day: iMac Core Duo, Jan. 2006 - The first Intel-based iMacs ran at 1.83-2.0 GHz, came with 17" and 20" displays.
Group of the Day: Mac Pro List is for those using a Mac Pro.
November 23 in LEM history: 99: Should I buy a USB card? - 01: Can a low-end Mac be an only Mac? - Palm Desktop without a PDA - CyberDog saves the day - 05: How Consumer Reports could compare Macs fairly - Speakers for your Mac - Living with the hi-res 15" PowerBook - Birth of the PowerBook - Daystar 1.9 GHz iMac G4 upgrade - 1.92 GHz PowerBook upgrade
Support Low End Mac

Recent Deals

Best eMac Deals, 11.18. Used 1 GHz Combo, $100; SuperDrive, $269; 1.25 GHz Combo, $119; SD, $319; 1.42 GHz Combo, $289; SD, $498.
Best Mac OS X 10.6 and Mac Box Set Deals, 11.18. "Snow Leopard", single user, $25; 5 users, $45; Mac Box Set, single user, $139; 5 users, $180; Server, $414. Shipping included.
Best Xserve Deals, 11.18. Used 1 GHz dual G4, $649; 2.3 dual G5, $795; 3.0 4-core Xeon, $1,899; refurb 2.26 4-core, $2,499; new, $2,888; refurb 8-core, $2,999; new, $3,449; more.
Best 15" MacBook Pro Deals, 11.17. Used 1.83 GHz, $750; 2.16, $800; 2.33, $900; refurb 2.4, $1,299; 2.53, $1,449; 2.66, $1,699; 2.8, $1,899; new 2.53, $1,579; 2.66, $1,799; more.
Best Power Mac G4 and AGP Video Card Deals, 11.17. Used 400 MHz, $50; 933 MHz, $80; 500 dual, $60; 867 dual, $90; 1 GHz dual, $150; 1.25 GHz dual, $225; 1.42 GHz, $499.
Best Mac OS X 10.5 Deals, 11.17. "Leopard" upgrade, $80; single user license, $135; 5 users, $173; Mac Box Set, 5 users, $230; Server, 10 users, $340; unlimited, $850. Shipping included.
Best Mac mini Deals, 11.16. Used 1.42 GHz G4 mini, $379; 1.66 GHz Core Solo, $419; 2.0 Core 2, $450; new 2.26 GHz nVidia, $580; 2.53 GHz, $769; Server, $990.
Best iBook G4 Deals, 11.16. Used 12" 1.07 GHz Combo, $210; 1.33 GHz, $298; 14" 1.33 GHz, $398; 1.42 GHz, $479; SuperDrive, $498.
Best iPod shuffle Deals, 11.16. Used 1 GB, $35; 4 GB, $65; refurb 1 GB, $39; 2 GB, $59; new 2 GB, $55, 4 GB, $75. New and refurb prices include shipping.
More deals in our archive.

About LEM | Support | Usage | Privacy | Contacts

Entire Low End Mac website copyright ©1997-2009 by Cobweb Publishing, Inc., unless otherwise noted. All rights reserved. Advice presented in good faith, but what works for one may not work for all. Please report errors to .
LINKS: We allow and encourage links to any public page as long as the linked page does not appear within a frame that prevents bookmarking it.
Access our RSS news feed at http://lowendmac.com/feed.xml.
Email may be published at our discretion; email addresses will not be published without permission, and we will encrypt them in hopes of avoiding spammers. If you prefer your message not be published, mark it "not for publication." Letters may be edited for length, context, and to match house style.
PRIVACY: We don't collect personal information unless you explicitly provide it. For more details, see our Terms of Use.
Low End Mac is an independent publication and has not been authorized, sponsored, or otherwise approved by Apple Inc. Apple, the Apple logo, Macintosh, iBook, iMac, eMac, iPod, iPhone, PowerBook, MacBook, MagSafe, Mac Pro, Apple TV, and AirPort are registered trademarks of Apple Inc. Additional company and product names may be trademarks or registered trademarks and are hereby acknowledged.