New ipod

Via GMSV, we see new patent app by Apple approaches the issue somewhat differently: Apple may "abandon the iconic wheel that has become virtually synonymous with its popular iPod music players."

Mercury News writes that the company had "previously explored replacing the click wheel with a virtual one as part of a touch-sensitive display. But now Apple appears to be looking at a third option: a touch-sensitive frame surrounding the display. Rather than click a physical button or press a virtual one on the screen, users would touch an area on the frame to operate their iPod."

Here are the details:

"This application has designs for a new iPod/Tablet/Phone (or dare I say it, Newton-like device) which put the touch sensitive areas into the bezel surrounding the iPod’s screen (as well as on the screen and sides of the device). The user interface seems particularly well conceived and relies on on-screen indicators of the control surface’s function. In addition to buttons the surfaces can act as scroll surfaces. The interface works by the user selecting a control to change (in the picture below- position in the song, volume, balance) and then, using the bottom surface to scroll, adjusting the element in real time (Fig. 19).