Remember, remember
The 5th of September
And Apples new iPod Event
I can think of no reason
That this iPod season
Is something that we will forget

Ah, another Apple media event. Apple seems to like giving them and we love viewing them. For many of us it’s yet another opportunity to put on our seer’s hat (mine is a purple beanie with glittery zodiac signs inscribed around the brim and the obligatory USB port in the back) and guess, divine, or do that hoo-doo we do so well and predict what goodness Apple will lay on us this time.

Judging from the event notice, it’s a safe bet that what will be announced will concern iPods. I don’t think I’ll get too many who’ll argue that the current iPod design is a bit long in the tooth. Still, Apple should be applauded for maintaining a design that is functional even in the face of so many ’me-too’ designs. Even Microsoft’s Zune has a passing resemblance to the iPod.

All that, in my never so humble opinion, is about to change. Here’s my short list of what’s coming on September 5th. Dust off those piggy banks boys and girls, you’re gonna wanna buy a new iPod.

Big Display: OK, this is a given. The current iPod displays are wee to non-existent depending on which iPod you look at, which pretty much followed Steve Jobs’s thinking that the iPod was all about music. Even Steve will admit that the iPod’s role in personal entertainment has expanded somewhat and needs a screen that reflects that change.

The iPhone is an obvious hint of what’s to come; wide screen iPods are almost guaranteed, but also expect bigger screens on the nano. If the shuffle survives (I think it will but renamed. How about the iPod Dinky? The weePod? iPod bitty?) it will finally sport a screen and the appropriate controls.

No Scroll-Wheel: The user interface of the iPod has gone through some subtle, but significant changes since the first iPod was introduced. Mechanical scroll-wheels gave way to electronic versions. Now Apple will likely toss the scroll-wheel all together in favor of spiffy touch screens and new graphical user interfaces that allow a more interactive experience. Again, look to the iPhone for cues, but the iPod will do more than what current iPhones can do. Remember that the iPod is a storage device, so navigating that storage easily will be something that Apple will want to do to maintain its competitive edge.

Look for several methods of accessing and viewing media and files. With the nice big screens that will be available, more UI options present themselves.

WiFi and Bluetooth: Again, these are givens. Connectivity is key to the survival of the iPod as a discrete device. One has to only look at the Palm’s PDAs to see how quickly devices can become irrelevant.

iPods have always been more than a music player, but accessing and playing music and other media is still its prime function, and so it must do it better than any current device available. That means the new iPods must be able to grab media content almost anywhere, and not just any media content, YOUR media content.

Your music, your movies, your photos will be accessible from your iPod no matter where that content is and no matter where you are, as long as you have a WiFi connection available. This will likely be accomplished through .Mac, which now sport 10GB of online space as a default. That’s plenty of room for most folks to keep music and other stuff constantly available.

Tight iPhone Integration: Here’s one that some folks may have missed.

The iPhone is a great device, but what if it had access to more than 30 GB of storage? Full length movies and an entire season of Heroes...oops! Make that Grey’s Anatomy ready for viewing anywhere.

There’s no reason the iPhone and the iPod can’t play well together, and doing so will open up new ways of doing things while you’re away from home.

Revamped iTunes: To take advantage of all of this connectivity goodness iTunes will have to change. Look for more integration with .Mac and possibly Google. You’ll be able to sync playlists to .Mac so that you can grab them while you’re away. One of the primary playlists to pay attention to is ’Recently Purchased’ which will help keep media purchases in sync whether you buy it on your iPhone, iPod, or iMac.

OS X: A lot of folks are hoping for this one, and I think it will happen. In order for the user interface to change a better OS is required and Apple has already proven that OS X can be shoehorned into a portable device.

If you thought the iPod dock port opened up the iPod world wait until OS X climbs on board; all sorts of things now become possible. I’m talking applications and exciting new accessories, like games and game controllers, office apps and input devices and much more.

New Hardware: To run OS X and to support the new screens the processor and graphics chips must get a serious upgrade. That could mean more Intel inside, but that’s no guaranty. iPhones use a 620MHz ARM processor and if Apple can get them cheap enough there would be no real reason to switch.

So, there you have it, my list of what’s coming. Am I right? I think I’m close. If you think I’ve missed something let me know.

Now all we have to do is wait, and that’s the part I hate he most.

Vern Seward is a writer who currently lives in Orlando, FL. He’s been a Mac fan since Atari Computers folded, but has worked with computers of nearly every type for 20 years.