Zeb White

Asst. Business Manager, Staff Writer

Apple revealed a stunning new iPod lineup Wednesday featuring refreshed versions of the iPod Touch, the iPod Nano, and the iPod Shuffle. It also announced a new social network built into iTunes plus a smaller version of its AppleTV.

The most innovative iPod update was the iPod Nano, which shrunk considerably and now features a 1.8 inch touch screen similar to that of the iPhone. While it sacrificed the video display and camera of the previous iPod Nano, it gains a lot of new features due to the sleek multi-touch interface.

The new iPod Touch now features two cameras and Facetime (Apples video-calling service introduced with the iPhone), which makes it even more like “an iPhone without the phone.” The iPod Touch also received an updated design and a software update.

The iPod Shuffle, now in its 4^th generation, returns to the classic 2^nd generation look with a scroll wheel, except smaller. Once again available in five colors, the iPod Shuffle’s price dropped to $49.

iTunes received a complete makeover with the announcement of Ping, a social networking service integrated into the Store. Ping can be used to “like” songs, and to follow iTunes users and artists.