News

Apple Inc. chief executive officer Steve Jobs is alive and well, and pitching new iPods.

Mr. Jobs took to the stage at an exclusive Apple event in San Francisco today in front of a backdrop emblazoned with the famous Mark Twain quote, "The reports of my death are greatly exaggerated," poking fun at a premature obituary posted accidentally a few weeks ago by the Bloomberg News wire service.

But the focus of the event wasn't on Mr. Jobs's health, today's event was all about music.

The iconic Apple CEO unveiled a slate of new iPod devices as well as an updated version of the company's iTunes music store before a packed house of bloggers and industry executives.

Calling it the "funnest" iPod ever, Mr. Jobs showed off a new version of the iPod Touch, which comes with the App Store — Apple's new online marketplace for games and other software — pre-installed and also includes a volume control on the side of the device as well as an internal speaker.

The new iPod Touch will be available in three sizes — eight gigabytes ($259 Cdn.), 16 GB ($329) and 32 GB ($429).

In addition to displaying how the new device handles games such as Electronic Arts Inc.'s Need For Speed and Spore titles, Mr. Jobs also showed off a new iPod Touch commercial which clearly positions the device as a handheld gaming platform ready to challenge incumbents such as Nintendo Co. Ltd.'s DS system and Sony Corp.'s PlayStation Portable (PSP).

Apple also updated its popular Nano device, returning it to its candy-bar form factor, doing away with the shorter model that was unveiled last fall. The new Nano incorporates the same accelerometer included in the iPhone and the iPod Touch, enabling users to tilt the device on its side to view the display in widescreen dimensions.

The new Nano also includes a "shake to shuffle" function which allows users to simply shake the device to skip to a new random song. Mr. Jobs said the new Nanos should be available in a variety of colours by the weekend at $169 (Cdn.) for the 8 GB model and $259 for the 16 GB model.

A new iPod classic (120 GB for $279) will be available for Christmas as will three new ear-bud headphones which include built-in pause-play and volume controls on the cord.

As many analysts predicted, Apple also overhauled its iTunes marketplace by adding a variety of new functions designed to help users organize their music. It incorporates something called "Genius" mode, which automatically recommends new songs for a playlist based on what the user is listening to.

Using Bob Dylan as an example, Mr. Jobs showed how the Genius setting automatically builds a play list that includes tracks from Bruce Springsteen, Joni Mitchell and Beck. As well, the new setting will recommend tracks from the iTunes library for purchase based on a user's musical tastes.

Mr. Jobs said Apple's iTunes store — which is the largest retailer of music in the United States — now features more than 8.5 million songs, 125,000 podcasts, 2,600 movies and 30,000 television shows.

In an effort to boost video downloads, Apple is adding HD TV shows to iTunes for its U.S. subscribers.

Apple and NBC Universal have also reconciled after a very public falling out which saw the media giant pull its shows from iTunes last year. Mr. Jobs said NBC shows such as The Office, Battlestar Galactica and 30 Rock will once again be available through iTunes. Apple did not say whether NBC programs would be made available to Canadian customers.

Since launching on July 11, the company's App Store has swelled to include more than 3,000 applications. Mr. Jobs said that Apple has sold more than 100 million applications through the App Store.

Apple has sold more than 160 million iPods since the first models were unveiled in 2001.