Articles and whitepapers

iPod Technology in the Home (1/3/2006)

By Neil Farrow, Monitor Audio

MP3 (MPEG-3 or Moving Picture Experts Group Audio Layer III) is an audio-only compression standard. It is a relative of MPEG-1 - a low-bandwidth video compression standard used for the Internet - and MPEG-2 - the high-bandwidth audio and video compression standard for DVD technology and digital TV broadcasting.

The German company Fraunhofer Gesellschaft (FhG) was originally involved in MP3 development back in 1987, and holds key patents regarding the technology. In 1995 FhG applied for the patent of MP3 in the USA and was granted it on November 26th, 1996.

Since the beginning of 1999, the popularity of MP3 increased to such an extent that major manufacturers started flooding the market with MP3 players. The reason for this popularity was generally size and portability. The people's love of music together with total freedom, flexibility and simplicity, just needed one further element.. an iconic 'cool' brand.

Enter the iPod

Apple decided to up the ante on the MP3 market by introducing the first iPod back in October 2001. The iPod is a small battery-powered device in a plastic casing with headphone outputs and a simple user interface designed around a central scroll wheel. Most iPod models store media on a built-in miniature hard drive, while a lower-end model, the iPod shuffle, relies on solid state (flash) memory.

Apple iPod

Apple uniquely focused on promoting the small size, good looks, power, and ease of use of the iPod. This coupled with Apple's music (and now video) download website iTunes for Mac and PC, has started the emergence of a whole new era in accessible, simple-to-use, portable music and video.

iPod in the custom install market

Whilst the custom install (CI) industry has much to offer everyday people with home security and entertainment, it is seen as unaffordable by the masses, and seemingly struggles to impart the benefits of manufacturers' varying formats and technologies. This is probably partly due to the complexity of these technologies and the information 'overload' that the working public has less and less time for.

With over 43 million iPods sold worldwide, 14 million during the Christmas 2005 quarter alone, and iTunes having an 83% share of the download market, the iPod has caught the public's attention and imagination, and it is this that the CI market needs to harness.. and quickly!

Many manufacturers are now offering 'media servers' which the public are slowly beginning to understand, but features, form factor, and price are still evolving, along with varying and sometimes conflicting technologies. Microsoft, for instance, is working on plans to develop its own rival to the iPod, a departure from its current strategy of concentrating on developing media player software for other manufacturers. Contrary to industry expectations, Apple's dominance of the digital media market is growing, and Apple's so-far successful venture into video has given Microsoft little option if it is not going to surrender the living room - where many see the future of computing going - to its rival.

MP3 players are not popular because of their audio quality, but because of their size and convenience. You can have your own personal music on tap, any time, any place. This will inevitably have to factor in the future of home entertainment systems. The household wants all the whistles and bells as long as its function and core understanding is easy and its size is small.

Home products for iPod

New products are already being built around the current iPod, and they vary from the complicated to the out-of-the-box simplicity that most families crave. For example, Sonance has applied its custom-installation know-how to the iPort.

The Sonance iPort docking station for iPod

This docking station for the iPod creates its library from the AAC/MP3/WAV/Apple Lossless tracks stored in your iPod. It can share with the nearest set of speakers or with a whole-house audio system. Once the iPort is installed, an iPod can be simply plugged in and its digital music can be enjoyed on any system. The iPort is also the first product of its kind that supports video output, allowing still photos and slide shows to be displayed on the TV.

Installation of the iPort is not too complicated, and can be integrated with other existing home audio products or whole-house solutions - which must be music to the CI market's ears. Indeed the user not only understands and accepts this concept but will moreover demand to tell you, the installer, about his/her favourite track lists and coloured wacky accessories!

A more simple, but nonetheless effective example of iPod flexibility, is the Monitor Audio i-deck. This small three-piece separates hi-fi system uses a central 'docking' amp to house the iPod. It is designed to appeal to the user who wants to both upgrade from their old 'square' mini hi-fi system and have an iconic 'cool' product design in the living room or kitchen. The i-deck can also integrate with the home computer via a 30-pin connector at the back of the product for direct iTunes download. Indeed future models include AM/FM radio and an S-video output for playing music videos on a larger screen.

The Monitor Audio i-deck docking amp with speakers

Conclusion

iPod as a brand is now established and accepted. Expanding the brands' role in home entertainment will be key for the future of Apple and custom installers. With Apple's CEO, Steve Jobs, on the board of Disney, and Disney's' purchase of Pixar a few weeks ago, Apple has made it plain that home entertainment is where it wants to be. With film studios and animation companies behind it, a possibility of a telecoms tie-up ahead, an iconic brand name such as iPod in its sweaty palms and Mac hardware that is more stable than the PC platform, it is hard to see where Apple can go wrong in the future of the home entertainment industry.

The thing is, will the CI market be using this major resource and simple integration rationale to its full potential, or will it still be trying to sell an inordinate amount of differing technologies to a public that doesn't really care?

Neil Farrow is the International Marketing Manager for Monitor Audio, designer and manufacturer of high-quality loudspeakers.

www.monitoraudio.co.uk