Apple's iPod Continues To Defy the Naysayers (online at http://www.osopinion.com/perl/story/15863.html)
Now that a few months have passed since the iPod's introduction, it's a good time to take a look at how Apple's MP3 player is doing.
Back in late October when Apple's new iPod MP3 player was first introduced, it was met with much fanfare, including a slew of positive reviews. Despite the high praise, anti-Apple naysayers cast doubts on the success of Apple's latest digital innovation.
Feedback from the peanut gallery in osOpinion Talkback Forums reiterated that Apple was making "a HUGE mistake" by limiting the product to only the Macintosh market. They said that Apple would never be able to see a return on its investment.
It never crossed these naysayers minds that there are several companies that don't release hardware for the Mac, yet they had the gall to look down upon Apple for giving their preferred platform the same snub treatment.
Not For Everyone What the naysayers didn't understand, was that Apple limited the iPod to only the Macintosh market because the Mac market was the only platform that could guarantee the largest percentage of hardware compatibility for the company's new device.
Then, the naysayers said that the iPod's price was higher than what consumers would be willing to pay. I suppose it hadn't dawned on these people that the iPod was priced well within reason compared to all other high-end MP3 players in its category.
In addition, the iPod's features could have justified a price as much as US$50 more than what Apple charged.
Not Quite Lastly, the critics suggested that the iPod should not even be considered in the same category as the most elite -- yet large and heavy -- MP3 players on the market. This, the naysayers claimed, was because the iPod would never be able to match the hard drive capacities of the elite drives while maintaining its small size and light weight.
Now that a few months have passed since the iPod's introduction, I thought it might be a good time to take a look at some of the data that is available and try to see who is right.
Positive Return First, at the recent Macworld Expo, CEO Steve Jobs announced that within two months, Apple managed to sell around 125,000 iPods. This sales surge occurred even after many insisted the iPod would never let Apple see a positive return on its investment.
Second, a well-trafficked online shopping site currently ranks the iPod at the top of its most popular MP3 players list. That fact helps to dispel the notion that nobody would be interested in an MP3 player that was developed for only 5 percent of the computing market.
Finally, although Apple won't announce the name of the manufacturer who develops the ultra thin, ultra-compact 5GB drive used in its iPod (probably to keep other MP3 manufacturers from using the same vendor), it was reported that Apple admitted only Toshiba makes a 5GB drive that is small enough to occupy the iPod.
Great Expectations What's significant about that fact is that Toshiba recently announced 10GB and 20GB drives that are the same size as the company's former 5GB version. That development would suggest that Apple now has the capability to sell a 20GB iPod without increasing its weight or size.
It looks like the iPod not only shut up the naysayers, but also can continue to outperform the competition long into the future.
