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May 8, 2007

speculation

Touchscreen iPod rumors go mainstream

Posted May. 8, ’07, 12:23 PM PT by Dan Moren
Category | Apple » Speculation

Touchscreen iPod rumorsSo, unnamed sources tell me that Apple is poised to release an iPod that will double as a doorstop. Keep it under your hat, though.

But seriously, folks: When even Think Secret says that they think a rumor is unlikely, you know you’re really grasping for straws. The rumor site quietly posted a story on Monday suggesting that the 6G iPod, which would feature a touchscreen, would be dropped today, noting at the same time that the source was unproven and the information had “yet to be confirmed by other sources at this time.” A later update said that “reliable sources” had claimed there would be no iPod update this week.

And yet, ABC News published a story today about the impact of those few lines:

That lightly sourced rumor, which has since been retracted by the site, was enough to get traders moving on Wall Street. Shares of Apple shot up more than 3 percent during trading yesterday with no real news coming out of Apple’s Cupertino, Calif., headquarters.

An Apple spokesperson tells ABC News the company doesn’t comment on speculation about its products and noted that Apple does not have any public announcements scheduled in the next few days.

Kudos to ABC News for even getting that much info out of secretive old Steve. While the Mac community found such a rumor pretty unlikely, ABC lays it out facts style by pointing to the threat of cannibalizing iPhone sales.

It’s a sound point: the iPhone is a gamble for Apple, and while I have little doubt that sales will be good, I’d suspect that sales of a 6G touchscreen iPod would be even higher. Until the iPhone has had a little time to sink in, I wouldn’t expect any new iPods. But I’ll agree with one analyst questioned by ABC in saying that new iPods will probably start showing up before this year’s holiday season. The 5G iPod form factor will be over two years old at that point, which will be the longest time between generations of the main iPod line ever (not counting the 5.5G “late 2006” iPods, which were basically a marginal update). I’m sure we’ll all be foaming at the mouth for a new iPod by that point, zealots that we are.

[via MacSurfer]


1 Comments

munir said:

good ol' "true" video ipod rumors. i remember when i bought my 5g ipod in december of 2005, i happened to check the rumor sites that morning which mentioned a true video ipod was due within a few months. luckily, i didnt buy into that talk.

May 8, 2007 12:42 PM

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