Commentary: iPod for Windows. What's the iDea?

COMMENTARY--Is Apple's recently announced iPod for Windows such a good idea after all?

When the first iPod was released, Windows users were tempted. Who wouldn't be? The iPod was the first MP3 player to market to use super-speedy Firewire connections, it had gobs of storage space, and it had Apple's usual stylish design. In time, various workarounds were found to cover the cross-compatibility gap, such as Xplay and EphPod.

Then last Wednesday Steve Jobs announced that Apple would be selling Windows-based iPods from late August. Problem solved, right? Everyone goes home happy with a bright shiny iPod strapped to his or her waist, and Apple presumably makes scads of money in the process.

Actually, it's not quite that simple, or at least it seems that way to me. Moving the iPod over to the Windows platform says a lot about both Apple's short term goals and long term problems. On the positive side, Apple's bound to get some short-term financial boost selling to the Windows market, presuming enough MP3-crazed punters stump up at least AU$645 for the base 5GB model.

When the iPod was originally launched, Apple wasted little time in utilising the potential of the device as a tool to sell Macs and convert Windows users. Straight off the bat, introducing the Windows iPod nixes that little scheme. Why spend thousands shifting platforms when AU$645 worth of Windows iPod and a Firewire card (say, AU$150) will get your digital music plans humming along just as well? Apple could presumably start trying the same approach by talking up the benefits of iTunes 3 over MusicMatch Jukebox, but that's a pretty limited strategy.

The difference lies in the software; Mac users will bop along with iTunes 3 while Windows users will utilise MusicMatch Jukebox. Given this scenario, I enquired with Apple what they would see as the best alternative for someone looking for a cross-compatible iPod. Without a fraction's hesitation, the answer was the Windows iPod; you can download iTunes 3 for free, but MusicMatch Jukebox costs money to buy. A day when Apple representatives suggest Windows over Macs was a day I didn't think I'd see in my lifetime.

The practical upshot of all my enquiries is that if you're in the market for an iPod, the best way to buy such a device would be to ensure the largest possible exposure, which means buying a Windows iPod and setting up Macs to use it when needed. If that can be done, the reasons to buy a Mac iPod vanish; you'll have an MP3 player that works everywhere, with Windows as the main base. That can't be good for Apple.

Then there's the matter of supporting two different product lines. The internal components may be indentical, but the software they ship with, and more importantly, the machines that they'll be connecting to couldn't be more different. Apple will have to bear the cost of supporting both platforms. One of the beauties of OS X (at least in theory) is stability. Any non-Microsoft employees out there willing to talk up the stability of Windows? No, I didn't think so.

Windows is a tough platform to support; there's all sorts of non-standard things that one might do to a Windows PC that Apple will suddenly have to deal with. Early Adaptec Firewire cards, for example, don't exactly match the IEEE1394 specification -- will they work? Has Apple had to consider this kind of stuff before? The answer is no -- with a few exceptions, there's very little that you can do within warranty to a Mac that Apple doesn't already know about.

Two product lines also presumably means two different sets of repair schedules, parts inventory and even labelling systems, and none of those things are free.

The other problem for the Windows iPod is that Apple's suddenly moving into a much more crowded market. Windows based MP3 players are thick on the ground, be they small solid state devices like Panasonic's SV-SD80 or high capacity devices such as Creative's Nomad Jukebox 3. There are also direct challengers to the iPod in this space, like Toshiba's USB2.0 Gigabeat. Apple fans have historically been willing to pay a premium for a premium brand device, but I'm not sure that all Windows users are that picky.

The iPod is a great little device, and the new models are particularly enticing. Having good products that geeks like myself drool after is a good thing for Apple's short term profit lines. Removing any reason to consider Apple for anything but a one-off purchase, on the other hand, could be an extremely bad thing in the long run.

Is the Windows iPod a bit of canny marketing, or a bit of a mistake? What do you think?