With the iPad mini now joining the iPhone and iPad 2 in Apple's sub-$400 product lineup, the company is expected to reduce its investment in the iPod touch going forward.
Apple announced on Tuesday that sales of its new iPod touch, iPod nano and iPod shuffle have exceeded 3 million since launch.
Apple's new iPhone 5 and revamped iPod line may soon be getting the first official "Made for iPhone/iPod/iPad" (MFI) accessories, as third-party manufacturers are reportedly set to meet with the company to discuss the terms of implementing the devices' Lightning connector.
Apple Senior Vice President of Worldwide Marketing Phil Schiller on Tuesday reportedly responded to a customer's question regarding the lack of an ambient light sensor in the fifth-generation iPod touch, saying the media player is too thin to incorporate the component.
Apple's latest iPod nano has been pulled apart to reveal a number of anonymous, Apple-branded chips, though NAND flash from Toshiba and a Bluetooth chip with FM radio from Broadcom could be identified.
Apple's new fifth generation iPod touch takes the model upscale, with a higher entry price that supports better components and features while making room for the newly redesigned iPod nano (and last year's iPod touch) below it.
Apple's new seventh generation iPod nano changes the model's direction from being a square, wearable, audio-only faux-iOS device to being a sort of mini iPod touch, but lacking any cameras, mic, WiFi or apps beyond the typical iPod features bundled with it.
Apple on Thursday rolled out a software update for the seventh-generation iPod nano just days after the first units started shipping from manufacturing plants in China.
With Apple's new iPod touch now available, the portable media player has been dissected to discover 512 megabytes of Hynix RAM inside its A5 processor, as well as a home button design different from the iPhone 5.
Coming on the heels of reports that some iPod touch orders are being shipped out, Apple on Wednesday released a new TV ad for its iPod family of products, highlighting the revamped media players first announced in September.
While speculation of an Apple-built HDTV has cooled somewhat amid the launch of the iPhone 5 and expected "iPad mini," one analyst says the company's next market disruptor is already here, and it's not a TV.
As with previous iPods, Apple's newly released fifth-generation iPod touch and seventh-generation iPod nano ship with a special set of headphones that lack integrated controls and do not have a built-in microphone.
Customers on Tuesday began receiving word that their order for the new fifth-generation iPod touch and seventh-generation iPod nano has shipped and should arrive in the next week [updated]
Apple on Tuesday released a digital user's guide for its fifth-generation iPod touch, while a separate report allegedly ran a benchmark on the new device to find an A5 series processor clocked at 800MHz, providing performance on par with the iPhone 4S.
Apple is gearing up to begin shipping its latest iPod touch and iPod nano revisions, but supply of the new portable media players is expected to be limited at launch.
Texas Instruments, one of the largest ARM licensees designing chips for smartphones and other mobile devices, is opting out of mobile chips to focus on embedded platforms, even as Apple's A-series chip business grows and hires away TI staff.
iPod Socks, a cloth accessory that Apple has sold for years to protect its portable music players, have been removed from the company's online store.
Apple has redesigned the headphones that will ship with its portable devices for greater comfort and sound quality, and the new EarPods will be available with the iPhone 5 and its new iPod lineup, and will also be available for purchase separately.
Apple's new iPod touch features the same larger 4-inch screen as the iPhone 5, while sporting a design 6.1 millimeters thick that weighs just 88 grams. It also adds Siri support, comes in five colors, and includes a new wrist strap called the iPod touch loop.
The redesigned iPod nano has a 2.5-inch multi-touch display and features a tiny home button, just like on larger iOS devices, with integrated Bluetooth and the new smaller Lightning connector.
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Neil Hughes
AppleInsider Staff
Mikey Campbell
Daniel Eran Dilger
Katie Marsal
