One More Thing...

The speculation about Apple's "special event" on October 12th is running wild, mostly around the so-called video iPod, notwithstanding Steve Jobs' repeated comments that such a product doesn't make sense.

Some outlets are are arguing against it, notably Think Secret. (Has anybody else noticed that Apple doesn't seem to mind Think Secret continuing to operate within the parameters it had used before the incident that got them sued? I didn't think so...

Anyway, I think way to little time is being given to the notion that Apple may be planning to pursue the home theatre, as opposed to the hand theatre, market.

My notion (and, not incidentally, the product I would run out to buy): not a video iPod, but a video Airport Express. Plug it into an outlet next to your (HD) TV, connect it to the TV, and play video content from your PC (maybe not just Mac) on your TV. Said content could be a DVD or content purchased and/or downloaded from the iTunes Music Store.

Unlike the audio Airport Express, a video version would have the means of presenting a UI (on the TV screen), so the playback could be controlled from the playback location (the TV) instead of the host computer.

The only thing about this I think is hard is whether even 802.11g is enough bandwidth to carry an HDTV signal. OTOH, maybe they could stick a hard drive in the device (since the iPod nano has reduced the demand on small drives) and do QuickTime-style buffering in the device.

We'll know soon enough...