iPhone & iPod Touch Prediction

The collective wisdom of the Apple Rumor community is that the iPhone will get an upgraded camera. My prediction/suggestion is that the iPod Touch gets the same camera.

Most cell phones these days come with cameras. The one in the iPhone stinks. it is very low resolution for stills, and cannot shoot video clips. The upgrade is pretty necessary.

But why a camera on an iPod?!? The Touch is more than just a music player. It is basically an iPhone without the cell phone chip & antenna. It can do virtually everything else the iPhone can do. They both are a mini personal computer. The iPhone can connect to the net using WiFi or cell phone signals, while the touch is limited to WiFi only.

You can download stuff from the net, watch TV shows, play games, read newspapers, send email, Tweet, etc. There are thousands of applications that you can download & run. Coupon managers, weight loss managers, package shipping...you name it. Almost all these applications run on both the iPhone & iPod Touch.

Except...things related to taking pictures.

The difference hasn't been an issue yet, because the iPhone camera is so bad it is pretty useless. Now, as the iPhone gets an upgraded camera, there will be a lot more camera-related apps (including those that let you take pictures of bar codes on items you want to buy, and tells you the price other stores are selling it for). Suddenly, you start having a bunch of apps that are iPhone only - splintering the Apllication Store market.

My thinking - it should only cost Apple $5 or so to add the camera to the iPod Touch. By doing so, most Touch owners would easily buy enough camera-related apps for Apple to recover that extra cost. Then, there will be no schizophrenia in the App Store - everything will work on both devices - the "it just works" mantra that Apple preaches.

Plus, all the accessories like cases, etc., would all be standard for both items as well, further eliminating confusion.

It is a win-win for Apple: more, happier customers, more money, and a simpler workflow.

I'm waiting until next week, hoping I'm right. Steve, do you hear me?!?