iPod Integration with Mobile Phones, Radio
Wade Roush of Technology Review makes some arguments that tend to work against some of the things I argued earlier regarding Apple and mobile service providers working together.
Specifically, he argues that the group of users that will prefer non-integration is greater than the group that prefers digital music player + mobile phone integration. He cites the difficulty of integrating the two into something workable.
As an aside, I've got this idea in my head of an iPod phone. The click wheel would be the numbers from 1 to 9. Top left click is 1, top click is 2, top right click is 3, etc. Obviously you'd need some more buttons to cover #, 0, and *, and something to toggle between number pad and navigational pad. An alternative to that would be to make it a flip phone; the outside would be the music player interface and the inside would be the cellphone interface. These are rough ideas, but I'm sure someone out there can come up with something that will work well.
In any case, I can't help but disagree with Roush's assertions. I think an integrated solution will be immensely more popular than a non-integrated solution for the mere fact that it simplifies the users' life. It makes me think of the integrated stereos that came out in the 1980s and 1990s, ultimately incorporating radio, records, tapes, and CDs. Would users have preferred to have those all as separate devices? I don't think so. And I expect the same for small carryable devices. As a matter of fact, Roush falls with me on that preference, despite citing the facts against him.
In another iPod integration note, Sirius appears to be in talks with Apple to bring their satellite radio service to the iPod. Personally I think iPod needs to incorporate AM and FM radio as well as both satellite providers like Sirius and XM Radio. Why should Apple be partial when it can milk both of them while consumers get the benefit of competition? I suppose there may be some hardware issues in terms of stuffing them both in there, but it can't be something impossible to overcome.
Specifically, he argues that the group of users that will prefer non-integration is greater than the group that prefers digital music player + mobile phone integration. He cites the difficulty of integrating the two into something workable.
As an aside, I've got this idea in my head of an iPod phone. The click wheel would be the numbers from 1 to 9. Top left click is 1, top click is 2, top right click is 3, etc. Obviously you'd need some more buttons to cover #, 0, and *, and something to toggle between number pad and navigational pad. An alternative to that would be to make it a flip phone; the outside would be the music player interface and the inside would be the cellphone interface. These are rough ideas, but I'm sure someone out there can come up with something that will work well.
In any case, I can't help but disagree with Roush's assertions. I think an integrated solution will be immensely more popular than a non-integrated solution for the mere fact that it simplifies the users' life. It makes me think of the integrated stereos that came out in the 1980s and 1990s, ultimately incorporating radio, records, tapes, and CDs. Would users have preferred to have those all as separate devices? I don't think so. And I expect the same for small carryable devices. As a matter of fact, Roush falls with me on that preference, despite citing the facts against him.
In another iPod integration note, Sirius appears to be in talks with Apple to bring their satellite radio service to the iPod. Personally I think iPod needs to incorporate AM and FM radio as well as both satellite providers like Sirius and XM Radio. Why should Apple be partial when it can milk both of them while consumers get the benefit of competition? I suppose there may be some hardware issues in terms of stuffing them both in there, but it can't be something impossible to overcome.
posted by Vincent at 2:17 PM
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