Apple preparing iPod boombox and other gadgets

Apple Insider has learned Apple is getting ready to launch multiple iPod-related digital audio products early next year. These won't be accessories, but "iPod companions", according to sources familiar with Apple's plans.

The first batch may arrive as early as the second week of January at the annual Macworld Expo in San Francisco. One of the products will be an iPod boombox "unlike anything seen in boombox world" and strikingly different from "anything Apple has released in the past."

Details of the device are few and far between, but one source called the gadget an oversized iPod with boombox-type speakers. "It's ideal for use on a bookshelf or on the go," the source said.

The device is rumored to include wireless audio streaming capabilities, but could also rely on a built-in hard drive, iPod dock, or a combination of the three technologies. Nevertheless, the Cupertino, Calif-based iPod maker is expected to market the device as "plug and play music for your home."

Some earlier reports had referred to the boombox as an "iPod radio," suggesting Apple may have considered integrating satellite radio capabilities into the device. Apple is known to have been in talks with Sirius Satellite Radio over the past year, but even the most recent reports on the subject imply a partnership between the two companies has yet to materialize.

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