A New iPod Touch Option Quietly Emerges

Sometimes new product releases are made without a lot of fanfare. Sometimes, even Apple products can be quietly trotted out onto the website with minimal advance notice. One such case recently emerged as Apple brought out a new iPod Touch that's a little different from much of its ilk, and may well attract some new business thanks to what it doesn't have.

Essentially, the new device is a version of the fifth generation of the iPod Touch, but it's also somewhat scaled down from much of its brethren. First, the newest version comes in just two colors—black or white—and doesn't have a rear-facing camera to take pictures. It retains, however, the front-facing camera mainly geared toward conducting FaceTime conversations, as well as a lanyard loop. It also boasts 16 gigabytes of storage, which is something of a step down from its 32 and 64 gigabyte cohorts, but the device also boasts the same four-inch Retina display and the dual-core A5 that the rest of the models in the line has.

The new model is also looking like a "budget" entry, since its sales price is currently running at $229, as compared to $299 for the 32 gigabyte version and $399 for the 64 gigabyte flavor.

Even Apple doesn't seem to count this one very hard on the "big deal" chain, giving the new device little more fanfare than a page on the website with a "new" tag and a link to buy it. There was, at last report, no press release around the device and this marks the second time this year that Apple introduced a single model of a hardware line all by its lonesome. Back in January, Apple rolled out a version of the iPad with Retina display that packed in 128 gigabytes of storage, and this was after unveiling the new line of iPads fully three months prior.

This is all a bit strange really; why would Apple wait to bring out what amounts to a scaled-down bargain version of one of its biggest hardware launches? There would likely be a segment of the buying public that would be happy to see a slightly toned-down version of an Apple experience available at a more palatable price range. Perhaps even more odd is the timing; while the iPad difference was about three months, the iPod Touch models got their debut last October. Why is this new iPod Touch making its appearance eight months after the others landed?

While the timing may seem a little unusual to most, the news of a new, less expensive release will likely still prove welcome for some users. Apple does make a sound product, and certainly the kind of product that many users have enjoyed in the past. So while this new iPod Touch release may be unexpected, and a bit out of the ordinary, its content will still make some users very happy.