Apple launches $100 iPod, $500 Macintosh

At today's MacWorld Expo in San Francisco, all the rumors were apparently true. Apple today launched a $100 (and $150) iPod music player, and a $500 Macintosh desktop.

The iPod Shuffle is a "pack of gum" sized music player that is based on Apple's shuffle feature. Using the iTunes AutoFill feature, the iPod Shuffle automatically selects songs from a user's music library to fill up the device with one click. Two models were announced, a 512M-byte model that can old about 120 songs for $99, and a 1G-byte model that can hold up to 240 songs for $149. Both models are now available, Apple said.

The iPod Shuffle plugs directly into a PC or Macintosh through the USB port, and it also doubles as a portable USB flash drive in case users want to transfer files between computers. Several optional accessories are offered, including an armband (for athletic activities), a sport case, and docking station. In addition, an optional USB power adapter can charge the Shuffle when it is away from the computer by plugging it into any electrical outlet. The device has an estimated battery life of up to 12 hours, but users can extend that for up to 20 extra hours by connecting an optional battery pack that holds two AAA batteries.

The Mac Mini is Apple's most compact and affordable Macintosh ever, Apple said. Starting at $499, the Mac Mini is two inches tall, and weighs just 2.9 pounds. The computer comes with iLife '05, which includes the updates to Apple's iPhoto, iMovie, iDVD and GarageBand. The suite also includes the newest versions of iTunes, Apple says.

The Mac Mini includes a 1.25 GHz or 1.42 GHz PowerPC G4 processor and ATI Radeon 9200 graphics card with 32M-bytes of DDR memory. Both models include a slot-load combination drive (CD player and DVD player), one FireWire 400 and two USB 2.0 ports, and a DVI interface that also supports VGA. Other features include a 10/100 Ethernet port, 56K bit/sec. V.92 modem, optional support for an AirPort Extreme Card (802.11g), and an internal Bluetooth module. The computer comes installed with Mac OS X version 10.3 (aka "Panther"), and also includes the iChat AV desktop video conferencing software, iCal, Safari Web browser, Sherlock, QuickTime, and iSync, among other tools.

The Mac Mini will be available on Saturday, Jan. 22, in the U.S., and on Jan. 29 worldwide through Apple's Online Store or at Apple's retail stores.