By Reverend Ox

Steve Jobs is back!  Now most people don’t care, but this dude is the master of making people think that they have to buy a product or they’re not cool.  So what did Jobs and Apple have in store for the people yesterday?  They had some big things ahead for their vaunted music related projects.

Apple released the iTunes 9 upgrade today.  The upgrade gives a few cosmetic changes.  The new version of iTunes will introduce iTunes LP. LP allows you to listen to your favorite artists with all the added extras of buying an album like the liner notes, the booklet photography, and the album cover. 

Presently it’s only available with a limited number of artists, but all the romance associated with physically buying an album minus fighting with the packaging is here and now.  Big upgrade. According to Apple, artists will be given tools to create their own iTunes LP experience.  iTunes Extras is the movie version of LP, offering the specials and outtakes native to DVD releases.

iTunes 9 will also give the user better control of the content on their iPod or iPhone. iTunes 9 also introduces Home Sharing, so content that is purchased can be shared over a home network.

The iPod shuffle will now come in numerous colors or as I call them the  “Apple Tones” silver, black, pink and blue.  Apple is keeping the iPod classic around.  The new classic is a little thinner and has a higher capacity of 160GB while keeping the price at $249. 

The Nano received the most upgrades out of the lineup.  Upgrade is an understatement when you’ve added an integrated mic, a camera for still and video shots, a built-in FM tuner, and a pedometer for the fitness freaks.  This announcement is perfectly timed for the holiday season and the price level is certainly manageable.  The 8GB will be $159 and the 16GB for $179.  Apple is jumping in on the flash-based video market dominated by Flip and Kodak.  The Nano will allow you to playback video or synch with your computer, even allowing you to upload to Youtube with the click of a button.  The really slick function, which Flip and Kodak presently don’t have, is VoiceOver support, which provides audible navigation cues and the ability to make playlists based on your existing libraries.

Ladies and gentlemen, the Touch finally comes in a larger capacity.  It’s only been bumped up to 64GB for $399, but that’s better then nothing.  Apple is really trying to toute the Touch as a competitor in the portable gaming business.    Their argument is that iTunes boasts 21,178 titles, Nintendo DS has 3600, and Sony PSP has 600.  However gamers know that over 21,000 of those iTunes gaming titles aren’t worth anything.

Apple is still holding back the Apple Tablet PC.  Is it a pipe dream?  I would say no.  They have to have something to introduce at WWDC 2010. With the slowing economy, everyone is looking for that perfect gift and with all of those functions in such a small package (despite the larger 2.2 inch screen),the iPod Nano will definitely be the holiday workhorse for Apple.

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