Well, the rumors were true: Apple’s new iPod includes video support. Now that it’s here, it’s hard to see how it could have taken so long. After all, all full sized iPods now sport color screens and more hard drive capacity than my PowerBook G3 had, and it could play video.
The evolution, though, is still impressive: thinner than the original iPod, a claimed 20 hours of battery life (thought they would have learned not to boast about that), and up to 150 hours of video. Plus an included S-Video cable to play it back on the big screen.
The interesting part of the announcement is the sale of video through the iTunes Store (guess we can’t just call it the iTunes Music Store any more). Episodes of Desperate Housewives are available at $1.99 a pop, as are episodes of Lost (and supposedly others, though the landing page for TV shows doesn’t appear to be there yet).
Music videos will also be available for download, and in yet another example of the music industry’s craniorectal tendencies, they’ll also cost $1.99 a pop. Hmm, let me think: for my $1.99, I could get two songs, one four-minute music video, or 45 minutes of a TV program that I could theoretically Tivo and download to my iPod anyway. Hmm.
Update: Best blow by blow so far is Paul Boutin for Engadget. And how uncool is it that Front Row and the Apple Remote are only available (apparently) with an iMac, and otherwise only work with the iPod? I want that “ten-foot experience” with a Mini. Or for my PowerBook.