Apple (Nasdaq: AAPL) 
on Tuesday unveiled a new 1 GB iPod nano music player -- at a discount price. The computer maker also said it would cut the price of its popular shuffle player.
The new 1 GB iPod nano now sells for US$149, while the 512 MB and 1 GB iPod shuffles now sell for $69 and $99 respectively.
Apple's current iPod nano offerings -- including the 2 GB and the 4 GB players -- cost between $180 and $250.
"Now everyone can afford an iPod nano, with our new 1 GB model starting at just $149," said Greg Joswiak, Apple's vice president of Worldwide iPod Product Marketing. "The iPod is the world's most popular digital music player with over 40 million sold, and now even more music lovers can experience the unrivaled combination of iPod and iTunes."
New Price, Same Features
The discounted 1 GB iPod nano model offers the same features as the 2 GB and 4 GB iPod nano versions and holds up to 240 songs or 15,000 photos.
The new model is thinner than a No. 2 pencil, sports Apple's patent-pending Click Wheel and the same high-resolution color screen as the other iPod nano models.
IPod nano allows users to display album art while playing music, view photo slideshows or play games in full color. iPod nano also features the same 30-pin dock connector as the iPod and works with a wide range of over 2,000 accessories developed for the music player.
Dissecting the Price Drop
Apple is leading the music player market, with "iPod" already in place as the generic term for an MP3 player, just as "Kleenex" has become the generic term for tissue. If that's the case, why drop prices?
The pricing strategy is just another indication that Apple is, in fact, the market leader, according to Inside Digital Media Senior Analyst Phil Leigh.
"Apple keeps moving the goal posts. Apple recognizes that the best way to defeat your competitor is to hit him before he's ever in the market, so the company is giving the competition a moving target," Leigh told MacNewsWorld.
Apple has been gradually reducing the price of the shuffle -- and now it has added a display screen to boot. At $69, Leigh said the iPod is now in reach of just about every CD-buying teenager in America.
If memory prices continue falling, it is likely that Apple will reduce iPod prices further, Leigh said.
iTunes Integration
All iPod nano models include earbud headphones, a USB 2.0 cable, case and a CD with iTunes for Mac and Windows 
computers.
Featuring seamless integration with the iTunes Music Store and the iTunes digital music jukebox, iPod nano includes Apple's patent pending Auto-Sync technology that automatically downloads a user's digital music collection, photos or Podcasts onto iPod nano and keeps it up-to-date whenever iPod nano is plugged into a Mac or Windows computer using USB 2.0.
The iTunes Music Store is the world's most popular video download store with more than 12 million videos purchased and downloaded.
Adding Premium Content
Also this week, Apple introduced premium cable programming from Showtime, including recent Golden Globe nominees "Sleeper Cell" and "Weeds," to the iTunes Music Store.
With the addition of the new Showtime programming, iTunes now offers more than 50 popular TV shows available for just $1.99 per episode for viewing on a computer or iPod.
"iTunes allows fans of these hit Showtime programs to purchase and watch them in an innovative way," said Matthew C. Blank, chairman of Showtime Networks. "It is also a tremendous opportunity for non-subscribers to sample Showtime's programming."
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