Apple's up to something.

They've announced that they have a 'breakthrough product' that is 'not a mac' but apparently involves collaboration between the Quicktime and iTunes teams, along with other unspecified teams.

It has been hinted that this is a hardware product, not a software product, and Apple's scheduled a special event for this coming Tuesday, the 23rd (the same day that Windows XP will officially launch) to unveil it.

A lot of the speculation (based on the teams mentioned) is that it will be a music product, somehow tied to MP3s, but not anything like an ordinary MP3 player.

So what is it? I have two ideas, and I'd be happy if either is right, though I'm also excited at the prospect of something new and unexpected (and I'm beyond hoping that it's a newton-based device).

Possibility #1: A wireless, connected MP3 player. Consider an MP3 player that had an airport card that, along with a revised version of iTunes on your home Mac, could reach out to your machine, either through a local Airport network, or through the internet (from work, vacation, etc.) to constantly refresh the music in the device with music from your larger connection. Now imagine that the product is half the size of a deck of cards, and had the capability, through audio navigation, to select specific songs in your hoe collection for download and storage?

Possibility #2: A thin-client iPad. Not technically a mac, this device wouldn't have a hard drive, any media bays, or even a true operating system. Instead it would be a 'remote display' for an existing Mac. Running through Airport, it would mirror the computer's display anywhere within Airport's range, streaming audio both to and from the device, allowing iTunes playback anywhere, and with a touchscreen, also allowing web browsing or email reading and composition from the living room couch. I've written about the possibilities an iPad holds before. Tuesday's surprise might simply be the thinnest, simplest, and cheapest incarnation of those mentioned in the article.

Time will tell, but it's quite a novel surprise to have a largely mysterious product announcement on the way. It's sort of a rush.