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Published On: Apr 19, 2005 10:17 PM
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Published On: Apr 19, 2005 10:17 PM
4G iPods have arrived - what I want in a 5G: Bluetooth and Voice Control
The 4G iPod has arrived, with a return
to 1G and 2G style controls, but what of a 5G?
The fourth generation of Apple's iPod was
released last week, along with supposedly greater supply of iPod minis. The
full-size iPod "borrowed" from the mini the scroll wheel where all the action
takes place for controlling the iPod's software.
I bought my 2G iPod (10GB) in December 2002 before it reached its current exalted status. It was a time when most people saw no point in its capacity to hold one's entire music collection, and long before the popularity of audiobooks and interviews in mp3 format. I now frequently download mp3s from sites such as Doug Kaye's IT Conversations where he features IT conference keynotes and regular IT discussions such as each Friday's "Gillmore Gang". This offers discussions on what's happening in Silicon Valley with various illuminators including authors of the "The ClueTrain Manifesto". I have permission to do this by the copyright holders so that gets around the silly Australian laws mentioned elsewhere in this blog.
I also subscribe to Shawn King's Your Mac Life which is broadcast here in Melbourne on Thursday mornings. I sometimes listen live, and other times set up the Powerbook and VCR to record the videostream for later playback. I also get notification from Audible.com when the mp3 recording of the show is available (usually 1am Friday). I then download the mp3 and import it into my iPod and listen to it when I am out walking or cycling. Interestingly, Audible.com keeps a marker as to when you last listened so you can pick up where you left off. This works on the iPod and in iTunes and indeed when you sync the two, the markers also sync up. Neat!
So with the iPod nearly two years old, and 10GB looking very measly with my unexpected downloading of radio interviews, including "Inside Mac radio" and "Webtalk", it's time to rethink the iPod and what I want in the next version - the 4G isn't yet compelling enough to purchase. I do want more space very soon, especially after stumbling on the Chicago Public Radio's archives, which, in the hosting hands of Gretchen Helfrich
is a
real discovery for me. If you like interesting discussions of an enormous range
of topics and don't mind it getting a little academic, do yourself a favour and
take a look at Gretchen's work. I use software to download the audio stream,
then use iTunes to convert the resulting AIFF file (50 mins is almost 500MB)
into a much smaller mp3, usually about 7MB. Other software, like Amoeba's
Audio Hijack Pro, will let the streaming Real files be converted
directly into mp3s and AAC files.
All this means is that I have to juggle the balance between favourite tunes and recent interviews to keep to my iPod's 10GB limit. Which also means that my iTunes library now exceeds the capacity of the iPod, so when the two are linked they don't autosync. I have to do this manually, adding and removing files that suit my current tastes and keeping to the physical limit of 10GB.
This offers a level of control some people would rather do without, preferring to let the iPod/iTunes combo do its thing and synch. without human intervention. Certainly, one of the criticisms of other digital media players is that they come nowhere near matching this ease of use.
Where I do see improvement is the extension of the iPod's useability. With the new scroll wheel, you can hold the iPod and locate tracks with one hand, principally using your thumb.
But ever since I started using the Sony Ericsson cellphones using Bluetooth to sync. to the Mac (calendars, contacts, internet connections) I have been thinking the iPod could have additional functionality built in.
For instance, my Sony Ericsson 610 phone
allows me to
control my Powerbook's Keynote or Powerpoint presentations, iTunes playlist, and
other apps through the clever use of Bluetooth connectivity and Jonas Salling's
innovative software,
Clicker.
So first thing: the price of Bluetooth chips and Apple's embrace of this Personal Area Network technology (PAN) makes the iPod ripe for its inclusion. I'd like to see those white wires disappear, replaced by a device you can wear around your neck which allows for both headphone connection, and mic./headset connection to your phone via Bluetooth. When your phone rings, the music stops (just like it does with the Salling Clicker and iTunes). Hang up and the music starts up again.
I currently use an early model Bluetooth headset which either clips on or hangs around the neck with a lanyard and allows me to hear my music on my Mac.
These
units never turned out to be popular, but if you wear a helmet for bike riding
they are a better choice than the all-in-the-ear Bluetooth
units.
Second thing: The other technology the Sony cell phone employs comes into play after you have added a new contact. The phone's menus take you through various stages of information gathering, like your new contact's name, phone (choice of several), fax, email, etc. After you have saved, it then asked if you would like to add a Voice command.
You then say the name of the person (or their nickname), the phone repeats it back to you, and Presto! voice recognition and activitation capability. You can also add other comments if your contact has several numbers, so after saying their name, you can then say, "mobile" or "home" or "work", and the phone will ring that number. It's very useful for handsfree operation when driving.
Now if this technology can be incorporated into a cellphone which is half the size of the iPod, is there room left to include the chip and operating software to do this for iTunes?
So after you have imported a CD, why not have the software ask you to name it by Artist, Album and Track? Using the same Bluetooth headset you listen and talk with, why not search for your preferred song this way too? And allow this extra digital info. to be included in the file when you download it to the iPod.
So I might say, "Blue Eyed Peas" ..."Elephunk"..."where is the love" to locate this particular track, since I have several songs of the same name. If I have just one song with that name, I can "call" it up.
This voice activation doesn't replace the iPod's manual controls, since most will want tactile contact with the iPod, this being one of its most attractive features, almost on an emotional level, which other MP3 players simply can't match.
What do you think? Is there a place for both Bluetooth and Voice Activation on the iPod?
Would this be an "Apple" thing to do, or take away from the iPod's simplicity and purity of operation? It does one thing very well, although the addition of games and contacts mixes the picture. I wonder if Apple asked for these additions to be incorporated, or if the software maker PortalPlayer, offered Apple the capacity?
One final set of thoughts: Using the same technology would also turn the iPod into a very useful voice dictation device, which it already can to via Griffin's iTalk. So you could record your odd thoughts, or even your lectures or presentations for later playback or archiving. And of course because Bluetooth is PAN, you could share your iPod tunes with others nearby with equipped with bluetooth headsets - or would that be illegal in Australia?
(Update - August 10): There seems to be another surge of news coverage of the iPod, since the release of the 4G and its lowered price per GB. Some stories are from holdouts unwilling to be early adopters, and have come to the iPod party late; or they're covering Sony's attempts to develop its version of an iPod "killer"; or some article covers the fast developing iPod accessory after-market.
I wonder if Apple ever wondered just where and how far the iPod would go? Look at this page from Talking Panda. Here they feature exclusive iPod software for translating and speaking common phrases in French, Japanese, and Spanish. Not sure of how to say a word or expression? Bring it up on the iPod, see how it looks, and listen to its pronunciation. Very clever.
Another example of what David Noble
wrote about in his
seminal book, "Forces of Production: A social history of Industrial
Automation" (1984). A quote of iPodic
relevance:
"...close inspection of technological developments reveals that technology leads a double life, one which conforms to the intentions of designers and interests of power and another which contradicts them - proceeding behind the backs of their architects to yield unintended consequences and unanticipated possibilities" (p.325).
Seems to sum up the iPod for me! For more of Noble's work and to hear a conference presentation, head here.
I bought my 2G iPod (10GB) in December 2002 before it reached its current exalted status. It was a time when most people saw no point in its capacity to hold one's entire music collection, and long before the popularity of audiobooks and interviews in mp3 format. I now frequently download mp3s from sites such as Doug Kaye's IT Conversations where he features IT conference keynotes and regular IT discussions such as each Friday's "Gillmore Gang". This offers discussions on what's happening in Silicon Valley with various illuminators including authors of the "The ClueTrain Manifesto". I have permission to do this by the copyright holders so that gets around the silly Australian laws mentioned elsewhere in this blog.
I also subscribe to Shawn King's Your Mac Life which is broadcast here in Melbourne on Thursday mornings. I sometimes listen live, and other times set up the Powerbook and VCR to record the videostream for later playback. I also get notification from Audible.com when the mp3 recording of the show is available (usually 1am Friday). I then download the mp3 and import it into my iPod and listen to it when I am out walking or cycling. Interestingly, Audible.com keeps a marker as to when you last listened so you can pick up where you left off. This works on the iPod and in iTunes and indeed when you sync the two, the markers also sync up. Neat!
So with the iPod nearly two years old, and 10GB looking very measly with my unexpected downloading of radio interviews, including "Inside Mac radio" and "Webtalk", it's time to rethink the iPod and what I want in the next version - the 4G isn't yet compelling enough to purchase. I do want more space very soon, especially after stumbling on the Chicago Public Radio's archives, which, in the hosting hands of Gretchen Helfrich
is a
real discovery for me. If you like interesting discussions of an enormous range
of topics and don't mind it getting a little academic, do yourself a favour and
take a look at Gretchen's work. I use software to download the audio stream,
then use iTunes to convert the resulting AIFF file (50 mins is almost 500MB)
into a much smaller mp3, usually about 7MB. Other software, like Amoeba's
Audio Hijack Pro, will let the streaming Real files be converted
directly into mp3s and AAC files.All this means is that I have to juggle the balance between favourite tunes and recent interviews to keep to my iPod's 10GB limit. Which also means that my iTunes library now exceeds the capacity of the iPod, so when the two are linked they don't autosync. I have to do this manually, adding and removing files that suit my current tastes and keeping to the physical limit of 10GB.
This offers a level of control some people would rather do without, preferring to let the iPod/iTunes combo do its thing and synch. without human intervention. Certainly, one of the criticisms of other digital media players is that they come nowhere near matching this ease of use.
Where I do see improvement is the extension of the iPod's useability. With the new scroll wheel, you can hold the iPod and locate tracks with one hand, principally using your thumb.
But ever since I started using the Sony Ericsson cellphones using Bluetooth to sync. to the Mac (calendars, contacts, internet connections) I have been thinking the iPod could have additional functionality built in.
For instance, my Sony Ericsson 610 phone
allows me to
control my Powerbook's Keynote or Powerpoint presentations, iTunes playlist, and
other apps through the clever use of Bluetooth connectivity and Jonas Salling's
innovative software,
Clicker.So first thing: the price of Bluetooth chips and Apple's embrace of this Personal Area Network technology (PAN) makes the iPod ripe for its inclusion. I'd like to see those white wires disappear, replaced by a device you can wear around your neck which allows for both headphone connection, and mic./headset connection to your phone via Bluetooth. When your phone rings, the music stops (just like it does with the Salling Clicker and iTunes). Hang up and the music starts up again.
I currently use an early model Bluetooth headset which either clips on or hangs around the neck with a lanyard and allows me to hear my music on my Mac.
These
units never turned out to be popular, but if you wear a helmet for bike riding
they are a better choice than the all-in-the-ear Bluetooth
units.Second thing: The other technology the Sony cell phone employs comes into play after you have added a new contact. The phone's menus take you through various stages of information gathering, like your new contact's name, phone (choice of several), fax, email, etc. After you have saved, it then asked if you would like to add a Voice command.
You then say the name of the person (or their nickname), the phone repeats it back to you, and Presto! voice recognition and activitation capability. You can also add other comments if your contact has several numbers, so after saying their name, you can then say, "mobile" or "home" or "work", and the phone will ring that number. It's very useful for handsfree operation when driving.
Now if this technology can be incorporated into a cellphone which is half the size of the iPod, is there room left to include the chip and operating software to do this for iTunes?
So after you have imported a CD, why not have the software ask you to name it by Artist, Album and Track? Using the same Bluetooth headset you listen and talk with, why not search for your preferred song this way too? And allow this extra digital info. to be included in the file when you download it to the iPod.
So I might say, "Blue Eyed Peas" ..."Elephunk"..."where is the love" to locate this particular track, since I have several songs of the same name. If I have just one song with that name, I can "call" it up.
This voice activation doesn't replace the iPod's manual controls, since most will want tactile contact with the iPod, this being one of its most attractive features, almost on an emotional level, which other MP3 players simply can't match.
What do you think? Is there a place for both Bluetooth and Voice Activation on the iPod?
Would this be an "Apple" thing to do, or take away from the iPod's simplicity and purity of operation? It does one thing very well, although the addition of games and contacts mixes the picture. I wonder if Apple asked for these additions to be incorporated, or if the software maker PortalPlayer, offered Apple the capacity?
One final set of thoughts: Using the same technology would also turn the iPod into a very useful voice dictation device, which it already can to via Griffin's iTalk. So you could record your odd thoughts, or even your lectures or presentations for later playback or archiving. And of course because Bluetooth is PAN, you could share your iPod tunes with others nearby with equipped with bluetooth headsets - or would that be illegal in Australia?
(Update - August 10): There seems to be another surge of news coverage of the iPod, since the release of the 4G and its lowered price per GB. Some stories are from holdouts unwilling to be early adopters, and have come to the iPod party late; or they're covering Sony's attempts to develop its version of an iPod "killer"; or some article covers the fast developing iPod accessory after-market.
I wonder if Apple ever wondered just where and how far the iPod would go? Look at this page from Talking Panda. Here they feature exclusive iPod software for translating and speaking common phrases in French, Japanese, and Spanish. Not sure of how to say a word or expression? Bring it up on the iPod, see how it looks, and listen to its pronunciation. Very clever.
Another example of what David Noble
wrote about in his
seminal book, "Forces of Production: A social history of Industrial
Automation" (1984). A quote of iPodic
relevance:"...close inspection of technological developments reveals that technology leads a double life, one which conforms to the intentions of designers and interests of power and another which contradicts them - proceeding behind the backs of their architects to yield unintended consequences and unanticipated possibilities" (p.325).
Seems to sum up the iPod for me! For more of Noble's work and to hear a conference presentation, head here.
Posted: Sun - August 8, 2004 at 01:04 PM |