How many devices can the iTime(AKA iWatch) replace?
When thinking of the iTime/iWatch, we think of a device that does more than monitoring your heart rate, counting your steps, reading your emails and answering your calls.
The moment the iTime becomes a media player, and depending on how well it performs, streaming iTunes content, a question arises:
What will happen to the iPod?
The iPod is very much a “legacy” device, and its Touch, and Nano versions, especially, are extensions of that legacy, as an iconic music player, standing the test of time, by constantly upgrading its features, yet never to a point where it loses “Touch” of what it is. The latest incarnations of the iPod saw the implementation of features that are commonplace in iPhones and iPads, such as multi-touch Retina display, Siri, iMessage, Email and Internet browsing. In the Nano version we see, for the first time in a portable iDevice, the presence of an FM Radio receiver.
The iTime is a device that, at least on paper, is very likely to stream iTunes content, which begs the question of how much thunder, the iTime will steal from the iPod.
What if the iTime will feature an FM receiver, which is one of the most attractive features from an iPod Nano user perspective? Is the entire iPod product line at risk?
The answer to this may very well be the reason of such secrecy, surrounding the iTime/iWatch Pandora’s Box. The ability to wear a music player/radio receiver that reads emails and answers phone calls is tough to beat indeed. One thing we have learned over the years, is that Apple’s trend of patience and perfectionism is not about building hype or anticipation, although those are nice perks. Apple understands the value of protecting its brands from each other, for as long as users love them.
The potential of an iTime device to replace the iPod is real, as far as specs and performance, but will it? Not likely, and here is three reasons why:
- Shoppers will be much more motivated to own an iTime device, if they already own an iPhone. Existing iPod users will hardly see a need for an iTime device, unless they are interested in doing more than listening to music.
- It is still unclear whether iTime will work on its own, or will it side-kick an iPhone, or even an iPod Touch. In which case, iPod Touch users have little to worry about.
- The iPod is an iconic brand for which there will always be a market, regardless of its additional functions. Shoppers don’t simply buy a music player, they buy an iPod, which, just like “the Jacuzzi”, or “the Xerox machine”, tells a lot about the value of a brand.
This is why, while the iTime/iWatch has the potential to replace some notable Apple devices, it most probably won’t.