Apple’s Roadmap: A notebook with integrated iPod mini
Posted by Dennis Sellers 
Jun 29, 2005 at 1:09am
Apple’s roadmap, in accordance with Patent Application 20040224638, reveals one of Apple’s coolest ideas that I personally think could be a market winner.
Apple notebook with integrated iPod mini
A notebook/iPod mini combination may sound like a crazy idea at first, until you actually see it with your very own eyes in Apple’s patent. An iPod mini doubling as a notebook touch pad!
What’s interesting about this notebook/iPod combination embodiment is that it’s not in a separate patent unto itself but rather within the framework of a patent that is primarily covering wireless capabilities that extend up to higher RF frequencies that are associated with cell phones.
Think cellular!
If you take Motorola’s MXC architecture into consideration, as was presented in a recent “Next Wave Series” chapter, then you could begin to see how Apple could actually implement cellular capabilities into this very notebook/iPod embodiment. In that Next Wave chapter I included a question that Motorola posed in their literature as follows: “What if, instead of putting a camera in a phone, manufacturers could easily add cellular or wireless capability to digital cameras?” That same logic could easily be applied to this embodiment. Such a scenario would be quite revolutionary indeed. All of a sudden, this could be seen as a real world product that could be delivered in the not too distant future.
Motorola’s MXC was made available this past February (‘05) and in Freescale’s own press release, they stated the following: “This single platform could equip virtually any product — an MP3 player, a handheld DVD player, a digital camera — to become a fully functional smart mobile cellular device.” It also went on to state that “On-board security solutions help protect consumers and enable widespread access to anywhere, anytime downloads like video files and mobile commerce transactions.”
Yes exactly, or downloads like music files and transactions like buying an iTune or other product that’s available at Apple’s iTunes Store!
See Patent Peek part one for context and further details on “RF: Patent Peek: Apple’s Personal Mobile Radio, TV & Telephony!”
Timing
Motorola states that MXC products could be shipping by early 2006—bummer. It sure would have been nice to see a surprise launch this year. Perhaps Apple is saving this little gem for their first Intel based notebook next June. Then again, they could always add the iPod mini without MXC in this products first iteration, just to get this cool combination out in time for the Christmas shopping season!
Now it’s your turn to voice your opinion. If this specific patent point has gotten your wheels turning, then take a moment and share some of your ideas with us now. Cheers!
Free patent viewer
If you’re curious and want to see all of the patent illustrations associated with this report, then you could simply download this free patent viewer from interneTIFF. Here’s today’s Patent link and quick peek at MXC.
If you missed yesterday’s report that covers much more of this patent, then take a look now.
PAID AD: When it comes to using barcodes you need more than barcode printers and scanners, namely you’ll need to understand which barcode software is a best fit for you.
Leave a comment ⇒
Please post the article topic & comment in our forums. No registration required.
Article Information
Comment on this Article Print this Article Email this Article Digg This
Contributor
Dennis Sellers
Dennis has been a newspaper editor/reporter (seven years) and teacher (seven years). He has over 4,000 magazine, newspaper and online articles to his credit. He has also covered the Mac and tech industries for over a decade for such online publications as MacCentral, MacMinute and now MacsimumNews.
