God forbid we should marry two components for convienence!!

I for one like the idea of being able to carry one item that takes care of several needs at once rather than a phone, a PDA and a music player. Why carry three or four items when it makes more sense to carry one item. It's much easier and more convienent.

I can see myself running around with a phone on my belt, a PDA in my pocket, and a Nano on my arm. Before you know it, I've got several items hanging on me and in my pocket.

Apple just doesn't get it!! Convienence, convienence, convienence.

One more thing. I do want to pay for my songs and take them everywhere and burn them on a CD. Is that just too much to ask?

Can I fit a toaster or coffee maker in my pocket? I have been holding off on buying a new cellphone for the better part of this year. My reason for waiting has been that I know someone will come out with a cellphone/mp3 player (with substantial storage, NOT just 100 songs).

This has to be way more than a niche market. I have an iPod mini and love it. However, I'm not that fond of carrying around both that and my cellphone. A converged device would be perfect and I'd pay good money for it.

Yes, the Nokia N-91 but you are going to have to wait until next spring. 4 gig hard drive + 2 MP camera + bluetooth. Very sexy.

Very clever, You notice that Steve, Phil, and John R, are saying a PDA is not good business for Apple. Have to always pay attention to what is not said.

a Hand Top mobile, OS X / Intel device is Not a "PDA" in their minds.

It is much more, it wouldbe an extension of OS X and all of Apple's applications and the Mac, and that's what it's all about.

OK, no PDA, but I'll take 100 OS X / Intel Hand top devices please, I am sure these are already in development.

If I have to carry a very cheap, very small cell phone also, so be it.

I have the Nokia 6682, I thought it would be the all inclusive answer, it is not.

- Don't want the camera
- too clunky
-buttons to small
-web too slow
-phone ok

macguitarman

Very clever, You notice that Steve, Phil, and John R, are saying a PDA is not good business for Apple. Have to always pay attention to what is not said.

a Hand Top mobile, OS X / Intel device is Not a "PDA" in their minds.

It is much more, it wouldbe an extension of OS X and all of Apple's applications, and that's what it's all about.

OK, no PDA, but I'll take 100 OS X / Intel Hand top devices please, I am sure these are already in development

My Treo 650 plays MP3's and it has stereo headphones. I don't see the problem. iTunes has never been that great, so move to the next thing.

I tell you what - it's a complete pain in the backside to have to carry an iPod and a Treo. I would much rather have a disk-based (or, I guess, massive solid-state) mobile device that does everything that the separate devices do.

Apple's design shold be able to easily combine the two in a pleasing form factor. For example, a flip that has on it a small. iPod style colout screen with and click-wheel. Flip that up and it becomes an ear-piece with, underneath, a larger screen with a keyboard below it, built on top of the bit with the disk in it. On the back, a decent camera and a detachable battery. Basically, it's just the screen and controls of the iPod bolted on to the Treo.

Software-wise, a bit of thought would allow us to have iCal, Address Book, iTunes or iPod style music player, a memo pad, to-do lists, etc - ie: Apple versions of the stuff you get on a Treo. A smart phone app, dailer,conference call, speakerphone, sms, mms, browser (a la Safari on Nokia?), etc is pretty much a no-brainer.

Maybe there could even be a lightweight dashboard style app using your always-on GPRS/wireless connection - whichever is appropriate for your GPS location, when you bring it up to quickly see info withough having to start an app.

The sky is the limit with the power of the CPUs and capacity of disks in these devices, and I really don't see why the best software and music player makers (Apple) and the best phone makers (Nokia, Sony Ericsson, Motorola (how cool is the Razr Black?!) shouldn't team up to make it. There is probably no need for Apple to make a phone - it's not core, but it can certainly build all the other bits and preside over the overall design.

I'd buy one, for sure!

I can't get a friggin' mobile phone without a camera now - why?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?

I agree, I don't want my devices to be all bundled together;

Sure you might be able to get a coffee maker/toaster, but what if you prefer espresso to filter, or perhaps you like perculated coffee, theres 3 models there, plus different varieties of toaster (4 slice? crumpet?).

The same can be said for PMPs and Phones, whilst the majority might be happy with the limited features of the iPod, there are others who want a more advanced deck, and after 2 motorollas that were complete flops, I'm sticking with Nokia, so I now have to hope that Nokia team up with iRiver and build my dream device? sorry, i'd rather choice than save a little pocket space.

The interesting thing about otherwise intelligent men making short-sighted statements is that they usually seem to come around and come out smelling okay in the end.

Rubenstein may not see now the usefulness of a music playing phone now, but the market will determine the accuracy of his statement. That these devices are in their infancy, and that they are actually advertised on Apple's web site suggest that SOMEONE foresees some potential in that area. Rubenstein has not 'missed the boat' yet, but he's making a half-baked attempt at talking down the competition of music playing phones. Where he (or they) will 'miss the boat' is if they fail to continue to make the iPod line with features that make them unique and marketable enough to compete with music playing phones. It could happen, but I don't see Apple getting into the telephone making business.

Convergence is the way to go, it's just that it often leads to poor design and integration. Then there's the problem of size. QWERTY pads are extremely useful on PDA Phones, but because of that, you end up with a phone that's twice as big as my wallet.

Ideally, I'd want a 8 GB (Preferably a STANDARD flash format, like SD) DAP/Mobile/PDA. The PDA functions don't have to be super-advanced, it just needs to properly sync with Outlook (I keep track of all my appointments/tasks using Outlook).

Jon has missed the boat. He is saying that having a toaster and a coffee maker together wouldn't be good.

But how about a car that flies? (Get it? it's mobile).

How about a PDA that's your phone. Hmm, I have seen those.

What about a car that flies (man, I need one of those)? ** I know, I said that twice, but I really want one.

What about a computer that washes your back in the shower? Well, maybe not.

But convergence is coming especially in mobility products. Why carry two ear phones, and have a cell phone.

I think it's a great idea. Slap one of those fuel cells so it runs for 500 years on one drop of hydrogen and were good to go!

It's only a matter of time before PDA/phones will be able to play music who knows, maybe even have decent digital cameras to boot. As things get smaller and cheaper, more and more technology will be combined into products.

And as for Jon: there is a key difference in functionality between a phone and an mp3 player being separate and them being together: they both fit into my pocket if they're combined into one product. That might appeal to a LOT of people who have an increasing # of devices to take with them on the go.

Agreed. You don't have to carry a toaster and a coffee machine in your pocket. If you did, they would be one device.

The key question for me is: will Apple develop iTunes for Windows Mobile?

I agree completely. It's nice to have more features in less devices... ok, not always, but at least in this case I think it is.

Actually, my AudioVox SMT 5600 works a LOT like a PDA/phone/MP3 player. It has Windows Mobile 2003, with IE, Outlook, and WMP (I know, I know, but it works well for this purpose...) and an integrated Mini-SD card slot. With my 1GB SD card, I have a very nice MP3 player/personal-organizer/phone combination.

I wouldn't say it's the perfect integration of those features, but it's darn close. We're very close to having all the needed functionality combined into one device. As smart phones become more popular, I think we'll see a lot more products like this.

What we need is decent MP3 decoders in these integrated devices like PDAs. At the moment, although you can carry around MP3s on your PDA, the sound quality is very average compared to a quality MP3 player.

"Is there a toaster that also knows how to brew coffee? There is no such combined device, because it would not make anything better than an individual toaster or coffee machine,"

I think there is a toaster that can also make a cup of coffee
I stand corrected: After doing a search, the toaster makes coffee and boils an egg.

Dear Jon:

I don't want a small version of the iPod that snaps like a twig and scratches when you blink at it. I don't want a phone that sinks like a brick and can only hold 100 songs.

I want to buy a 4+ gb smartphone that uses flash memory.

Can you handle that Jon?

Then get verizon, and the new LG phone. Add your own memory, and boom there ya go, it even has an EQ. And two speakers that are pretty damn loud

thanks for the thought but that still looks a little large for me and an 8gb miniSD is going to be like 800 bucks on top of 300 for the phone.

If i could learn to sing then I wouldn't need a music player. What ever happened to whistlin lips as the preferd "take everywhere" music device.

Whats up with Apple? Can't Phill Schiller "beat box" ....drop that beat homee.. as Steve Jobs freestyles the next keynote... With special guest Bill Gates moon walkin across the stage. Its an old school battle to see who is the greatest MC......

I remember a few years ago, Microsoft had to come help Apple out, and their stock was extremely low. Now they are once again sounding like the egostistical company they once were. I love using a subscription service like Yahoo! Music or Napster, it is the greatest thing, since television DVRs. I don't understand their comment "We believe customers want to pay for songs, which then can be taken everywhere". You can download Yahoo! Music to multiple devices, and multiple PCs, all for a monthly fee of 4.95. You can also used it with multiple brands of devices, you are not stuck with an Ipoo. Everyone I show my MP3 player to, with 8,000 songs on it, are amazed! The last time I downloaded MP3s(AAC) from Apple, they were only 128kbits, while Yahoo! Music is 192Kbits WMA.