Apple updates iPod range as expected

The ‘Let’s Rock’ event is still running so the announcements are not finished, but here’s the details on the iPod updates so far. There’s not much that hadn’t been leaked before the even started, so it’s up to the ‘one more thing’ to supply any surprises. Here’s the new range:

• iPod Shuffle – five colours available in either 1Gb $49 (£32) or 2Gb $69 (£45)
• iPod Classic – Just one model from now on, the slimmer version with 120Gb of storage. Selling for $249 (£179), available in a silver or black finish.
• iPod Nano – returns to the taller shape as shown in recently leaked photo’s. Has a built in accelerometer to detect orientation, and the rumoured ‘shake to shuffle’ feature is included. Battery life is 24 hours for music, 4 hours for video. Available in a range of bright colours with the 8Gb at $149 (£109) and 16Gb at $199 (£149).
• iPod Touch gets an iPhone style curved back, built in volume controls (visible in the image below) and speaker. The Nike+ receiver is also built in. 8Gb at $229 (£169), 16Gb at $299 (£219) and 32Gb at $399 £279). Battery life is 36 hours for music, 6 hours for video. Ships with firmware 2.1. Apple appear to be pushing the iPod Touch as a portable gaming device.

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iPhone 2.1 firmware on September 9th?

Most news sites have now settled on iTunes 8 being announced at the September 9th special event. The latest rumours are now suggesting iPhone firmware 2.1 will also be released, but with a few unexpected extra’s. No word on what they are, but ArsTechnica are pretty confident there’s something new coming. Could this finally be copy/paste support?

Further leaked images are suggesting the previous iPod Nano images were real,so what else will be announced? Ipod Touch updates are a good bet as are price reductions or capacity boosts on the other models, but Apple is sure to have something that isn’t expected. Although the rumoured subscription service would certainly surprise, knowing Apple there’s something coming that no-one has thought of. News on the Macbook refresh has been absent for a while now, so will this be it? I’m hoping the laptop announcements are made later in the month and there’s something new unveiled.