iPod touch ≠ iPhone - phone

are you a phoner or a podder?

I don't have time to read through the US publications. So I don't know how they are introduced on US publications.
But as I've expected, many Japanese publications and blogs are saying that iPod touch is an iPhone sans phone.
To be honest, I was one of them when I've posted my first (Japanese) blog entry immediately after the live chat reports of US Apple Special Event on Gizmodo and Engadget.

 As I attended the Apple Special Event in Japan and touched the real thing I've totally changed my mind.;I also got to talk to Stan Ng for brief moments.

 Not many companies can come up with product or product line-up that is this well thought out.

After all, 'iPod touch' is an 'iPod' and it is meant to be the device you'd enjoy your favorite contents on and the device that you'd carry around along with your cell phone.

 If you chose the 'IPod touch'-way you'd check e-mail, stock price, weather and use Google Map with your Blackberry Pearl or other phones of your choice; Blackberry pearl would be 'MY' choice ;-)

 By seeing what feature 'iPod touch' has, you will get a clearer picture of what 'iPod' stands for and what 'iPHONE' stands for.

 These two pictures from Jan '07 may give youeven better ideas about what this is all about:

 These are Apple's definition of IPod,  phone and mobile Internet device.

 iPhone is the sum of all three and iPod is... an iPod!
 It is true that there are slight overlaps and crossover features but the 80% of what's been said on these slides are true even after the intro of iPod touch.

 As I look through some of the Japanese articles, they seem to be confused about multi-touch screens, too.
 They tend to think, multi-touch is the premium feature you  can buy with extra $50.
 Wrong again.

 iPod Classic is not the iPod touch sans multi-touch. It is the 'Classic' iPod.
 Remember the old days? When you were grow your music collections just past the iPod and then Apple came up with bigger capacity iPods?
 iPod Classic came from that vector of revolution.
 It is your 160GB, take-all-music-with-you-anywhere iPod.

Now some people may ask why iPod classic doesn't have the multi-touch.
Well, imagine flicking through 160GB of music. I don't think I have the patience to do that.
Click-wheel is a much better interface to do it.
I think iPod Classic made clear that Click-wheel, one of the three HID method Apple has contribute, is not dead.

I think, you'll get what iPod nanos stand for and IPod shuffle stand for.

It is so amazing that each and every one of the five products, shuffles, nanos, Classics, touchs and iPhone, have such distinct characteristics.

 You have to put a good amount of thoughts to build a product lineup this good.