New iPod w/ colour display

Quite amazing.

The Internet sites that follow Apple's coming product releases are buzzing with speculation that the iconic computer maker is preparing to unveil a 60-gigabyte iPod that would become its top-of-the-line offering.

Apple, of Cupertino, California, declined to comment on the reports, which gained momentum in recent weeks after a key supplier announced plans to produce a larger portable hard drive. In the past, Apple watchers used Hitachi's announcement of its 1-inch hard drive to accurately predict the arrival of the popular iPod mini.

But if true, analysts said the move by Apple would be among the most significant yet to transform the popular iPod music player into a broader entertainment platform that would raise the stakes in Apple's competition with Microsoft Corp.

Among the Apple rumor sites, ThinkSecret cited "highly reliable sources" in reporting that Apple would announce a 60-gigabyte iPod within the next 60 days, in time for the holidays. (For story, see: http:/www.thinksecret.com)

Quite amazing indeed.

Colour screen could be used to display pictures, maybe even video. How many images are you able to put on 60GB of memory? A whole lot!

An product like this has endless possibilities. A number of portable DVD players on are alreadty on the market and many consumers use their notebook PCs to watch movies while on the road. Plus, the screen on the current iPod is too small to make watching movies practical.

"You have to be careful you don't turn it into a digital Swiss army knife where you have a lot of functions, but none of them has a lot of strengths," McGuire said. "You have to be careful about diluting the brand."