At the start of the event today Steve Jobs received a standing ovation from the assembled crowd, and took a moment to thank everybody for their support and encourage us all to be as generous as the organ donor who saved his life. He's "vertical" now, and claims to be already at work coming up with some "incredible new products" for the future. We're just glad to have you back, Steve! Video is after the break.
Apple sure took long enough to get to this, but just as rumored, the iPod nano is seeing a hotly-anticipated refresh today. The big addition? A camera that just so happens to shoot stills and live video. On the lower left of the new nano, you'll find a camera as well as a speaker, but unfortunately you'll have to sync it with your computer before you upload it to YouTube. The camera-laden nanos will be available starting today in a rainbow's worth of hues, with the 8GB model pegged at $149 and the 16GB edition at $179. Oh, and oddly enough, the iPod nano is officially the only dedicated iPod with a camera, leaving the iPod touch -- and every human on the planet -- scratching their head in confusion.
Couldn't see this one coming, right? Apple just announced an update to the iPod touch line. It's not exactly a major overhaul to the player, but prices have fallen, and it appears that the new models use the same CPU as the iPhone 3GS, since they can run OpenGL 2.0. The big news is actually no news, however: there doesn't appear to be a camera, contrary to all the rumors. You'll just have to make do with 8GB of storage for $199, 32GB for $299, and 64GB for a whopping $399.
Apple just announced iPhone OS 3.1, which includes Genius recommendations for the App Store. It's available today for free to iPhone users and iPod touch users with 3.0. Developing...
Ready to pay more for the same music? Good! We've just spotted some new "Deluxe Version" albums in iTunes, which apparently are part of the "iTunes LP" experience in the upcoming iTunes 9, if the album blurbs are to be believed. The albums pack in bonus material like art, videos and additional recordings. Sounds just like Cocktail to us, and we're sure Apple will be explaining it all soon enough.
Update: It's more or less official now, complete with a non-working "Download iTunes 9" button and everything. Apple's mainly touting the new interface for the store in this blurb, but we know it's just a front for taking more of our hard-earned cash and putting it in the hands of starving musicians. The nerve.
New features mentioned:
Improved store navigation, including persistent navigation menu.
Full window iTunes store. For times when that sidebar is just too much.
Previews from anywhere in the store -- don't have to drill down to preview.
iTunes LP includes lyrics, liner notes, video, photos and "more."
iTunes Extras. It's like DVD extras, but with iTunes. Not clear if it includes director's commentaries, but let's hope.
Update 2: It's now official, and Apple has fleshed out some more functionality.
Genius Mixes. It's like Genius Playlists, but it plays forever like a radio station.
App management, letting you set up and arrange your home screens on the iPhone and iPod touch. You can drag and drop to move certain apps or whole pages of apps.
Home sharing enables file transfers between up to five local computers of songs, videos and even apps.
