APPLE HAS THE TOUCH

Steve Jobs’ latest dog-and-pony show on Wednesday had more wrinkles than Mother Theresa. As the high-tech showman broke out on all-new iPod model, upgrades of two others and a partnership with another iconic brand.

Predictions of a new iPod based on the iPhone’s touch-screen technology turned out to be on the money. The new Touch, the first iPod to forgo the scroll wheel, has the same 3.5-inch, touch-screen display as the iPhone, along with built-in wireless Internet access and the Safari Web browser, enabling search and the viewing of YouTube videos.

And that’s where the partnership with Starbucks comes in. Bring your iPod Touch (or iPhone or laptop) into one of the coffee-peddler’s WiFi-enabled shops, purchase tracks wirelessly and download them directly into your unit. You will need Internet access, obviously (broadband recommended—duh), and fees may apply.

Available next month, the Touch, which Jobs described with characteristic flash as “one of the seven wonders of the world,” will come in 16-gig ($399) and 8-gig ($299) capacities. Cellphone capability? Have patience, kiddies. All in good time.

An even bigger deal in the minds of some iPod-ophiles is a dramatically beefed-up version of the Video iPod, renamed the Classic (or “classic” in Apple’s lower-case lexicon). This puppy boasts a mind-boggling 160-gig hard drive—bigger than a lot of desktop PCs, and roomy enough to house 40,000 tracks or a substantial collection of feature films. Like the new iMac, the Classic’s shell is all metal.

The iPod Nano also gets an extreme makeover, with a newly stubby shape accommodating a 2.5-inch video monitor (same size as the Classic) and the ability to watch video and play built-in games. The 4-gig version goes for $149, and the 8-gig will set you back $199.

Jobs also revealed that the iTunes Music Store will start selling ringtones for the iPhone at 99 cents, plus 99-cents for the full song. But the big news in iPhone land was a dramatic price slashing for the 8-gig model, from $499 to $299, which has a lot of people who stood in line two months ago pissed off.

But they’ll get over it in plenty of time to pick up the new iPod of their choice come the holidays.