So Steve Jobs big announcement was the $249 mini iPod. Although I must admit that I find the device to be very applesque - cool, and desirable, I also find that it just doesn't have any value as far as I am concenered. In his keynote her compared it to a $200 256MB flash-based MP3 player - but this isn't a true (pardon the pun) Apple to apples comparison. Firstly, because of the way that other companies sell their products, a list price of $199 means that, in reality, you can buy this device for at least $180, if not lower. Secondly, he specifically choose a bare-bones player like the Rio Cali. Why not the iRiver iFP-390T - it's just as small, costs under $200, and even comes FM Radio, Voice Recording, and an armband to boot - yes it only has 1/16th of the mini's storage, but again - there is a fine-line between the full-fledged players that can hold an entire music collection and players that have small capacities but are used for a 1-2 hour workout. The 4GB players are priced just below the higher-capacity players, and just above the Flash Players. My prediction - the prices on the smaller capacity drives will drop, and the ripple effect will be either a)A cessation of production of Flahs Players or b) A drop in the prices of Flash Players. The $GB Muvo from Creative is already available in the $250 vicinity, while it's 1GB flash cousin costs $400! I think I might consider a mini at the point at which it drops to $149, but by then we will all be wanting a Video iPod instead :)
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