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| New technology and mobility The iPod generation By C. Morel Those who have tried it say it cannot be improved. It combines an elegant design with minimum effort and maximum memory capacity. More than 'just' a digital music player, the iPod has become a fashion phenomenon, incorporating all sorts of applications from tourism to in-car entertainment. A new generation music player
At the end of 2001, Apple launched the first generation iPod, an MP3 player (with an audio format very close to CD sound quality), with a 5 or 10 Gigabyte hard disk capable of storing 2,000 music tracks. Several new versions have followed since then: slimmer, sleeker and with more memory (up to 40 Gigabytes and 10,000 songs). One great advantage of the iPod over classic CD players is that you can go jogging to the sound of your favourite music: the MP3 player format gives you quality sound without the risk of jumps or knocks that can make it unplayable. Small and light, the iPod also has a simple easy-to-use interface. Thanks to the click wheel system, navigating through a playlist on the LCD screen (with titles listed by album or artist) is fast and accurate and only needs a light touch.
To download a complete collection of disks to the iPod, you connect to your computer (Mac or PC) using a USB cable; it is even faster by FireWire (interface technology invented by Apple in 1995, used to share data from Mac or PC with peripherals such as digital video cameras, hard disk drives and printers - FireWire has many advantages over USB). A software programme automatically handles the transfer of your chosen tracks. And if you want to download new material, Apple has the answer: an on-line jukebox allows you to do this for a modest price (about 79p per track or £7.99 per album) allowing you to choose from all the latest releases (700,000 songs). The iTunes Music Store, launched in the US in April 2003 with enormous success (around 100 million tracks have already been downloaded) is now available in Europe. Fans have signed up in droves and close to 1 million titles have already been sold. The iTunes Music Store is a legal and lucrative alternative to copyright material piracy which all major music companies have been fighting against. On top of all this, don't forget that the iPod also functions equally well as a diary, notebook and contacts list (which can be synchronised with the address book on your computer), or simply as an external hard disk where you can store files or photographs. The iPod at Chenonceau
The iPod fashion is spreading fast. Only last month, an impressive new tourist application was launched at the Château de Chenonceau. An excellent combination of heritage and new technology, the iPod was demonstrated as the perfect audio-guide thanks to its lightness (a mere 160g) and its ease of use. Guided tours, offered in two versions (45 or 90 minutes), are available in eleven languages (including Mandarin, Russian and Polish) and allow the user to freely select information on the room of their choice, thus creating their own tour. The sonorous voice of Michael Lonsdale on the French and English versions is accompanied by mood-enhancing period music, all reproduced with the iPod's characteristic sound quality. This first experiment in the use of an iPod as an audio guide in the most-visited private château in the world is bound to have its copycats. The in-car iPod The potential offered by this portable mini player stocked with a phenomenal quantity of music has not been missed by leading car manufacturers. With MP3 auto-radios already in the market, the iPod is poised to make its entry into the world of music-loving drivers. Volkswagen's New Beetle was the first to offer this high-tech accessory along with a Volkswagen connectivity kit as part of its driver experience. Although this option is currently only available in the American market, investment in Europe with the 'Smart i-move' is not far behind. A limited edition of just 100 models was launched in France at the end of 2003, integrating a connection kit and software for playing the iPod through the existing radio system in the Smart car. The experience was repeated with the special 'ForTwo cabrio i-move edition' destined for the German market. The connection kit is now available in all top-of-the-range Smart cars. In June 2004, BMW announced the launch of its "iPod your BMW", having previously joined forces with Apple to invent a solution for integrating the iPod into the BMW audio system using a connection located in the glove box. Now, the driver of a Z4 or a Mini Cooper can easily control their iPod playlist through controls on the fully integrated steering wheel (according to BMW, this includes up to five pre-programmable playlists). So, kilometres worth of music are now available without taking your hands off the steering wheel! Next stop video iPod? Being able to download films and play them back on an iPod is technically possible. However, recent negotiations over reproduction rights and profit shares seem to have broken down for the moment and halted the development of an on-line cinematic version of iTunes. We will just have to be patient...
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