Exclusive: Apple's FaceTime coming to iPod touch, iPad, we detail how
One of our reliable Apple connections (not Jason Burford) just let us know some pretty fantastic news. It's been widely assumed that Apple will start to roll out their FaceTime real-time communication protocol …
Context & Ripple Effects
BGR's source claims Apple's FaceTime protocol will extend beyond the iPhone 4 to the iPod touch and iPad — still unconfirmed by Apple, but it fits an arc the corpus has tracked for years: the iPod touch already handled VoIP back in 2007, and a mid-2009 report said Apple was readying an iPod touch with camera and microphone. The missing piece was always a reason for the front-facing camera; FaceTime is that reason.
First-order effects
- A FaceTime-equipped iPod touch would make Wi-Fi-only devices full video-call endpoints, with the rumored August/September iPod touch refresh the likely delivery vehicle.
- The iPad, currently camera-less, would gain video calling only through a hardware revision — meaning the protocol announcement effectively pre-sells the next generation of both devices.
Second-order effects
- Because FaceTime rides Wi-Fi rather than a carrier network, extending it to iPod touch and iPad routes video calling around carrier billing entirely, shrinking the addressable market for carrier-hosted video services.
- Video calling stops being an iPhone 4 differentiator and becomes a baseline expectation across Apple's portable line, forcing rival device makers to treat front cameras and video chat as table stakes rather than premium features.
Third-order effects
- If Apple keeps propagating flagship software features down its device family, the structural effect is a hardware upgrade cycle driven by protocol exclusivity: each new capability debuts on one device, then pulls upgrades across the rest of the lineup.
The trend: Apple is converting FaceTime from a single-device launch feature into a cross-platform standard, making video calling a default expectation of consumer hardware.