Macenstein

Posted by Helper Monkey

According to the British publication Times Online, Fisher Price will be debuting a new MP3 player aimed at the 2-5-year-old market later this year. Dubbed the “iTod�, the unit is expected to cost £45 (about $78 US), and will ship with 6 songs and 2 stories pre-programmed on it. It is not known whether songs can be added, although it does seem to ship with a USB cable, so it is possible.

Odds are it will ship under Fisher Price’s Kidtronics brand, which was set up to produce low-end electronics for the pre-teen market. The controls rely on pictures, not words, so tykes should be able to figure out that the picture of a star will make the hit “Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star� play.

(Above: image from TheRawFeed)

While the name “iTodâ€? seems like Fisher Price asking for a lawsuit, it IS possible this is just a working title of sorts, and a name less open to Apple litigation is in the works. But at nearly $80, parents could buy an iPod Shuffle and have money left over for a brightly colored protective case (and hold about 240 more songs than the iTod in the process) so I doubt very much Apple is worried about a decrease in market share. In fact, the sooner kids get hooked into having their music with them everywhere they go, the more likely it is they will become future iPod customers for Apple.

Thanks to Macenstein reader Chilly B. for the tip.