Video vs. Audio ... an iPod feature that I want!

This weekend I spent some time with some friends that are into podcast and vidcasting. As we discussed the huge explosion in Internet video content, I started to think about some of the implications. I actually think that the growth of video content is about to drive even more audio content.

My reasoning is that video is simply more difficult to consume than audio! I can listen to audio almost anywhere, anytime. I can listen while driving, working, skiing, etc. Video on the other hand is a much more demanding sensory experience. It requires that I commit far more attention to it, and I can't do it when driving, skiing ... well ... any time that I have to be present to things that might kill me. :-)

As I thought more about this, I realized that two things might emerge. The first will be more attention being paid to the audio tracks being done for video content. This will involve careful production of videos that can be listened to ... audio only. The second thing will be new generations of multimedia players - like the iPod - that allow you to turn off the video when "listening only" to a video. So when I go skiing, I can listen to a video without burning up my batteries displaying content that I'm not even watching!

My request to Apple ... please give me an option to turn off the video display on my iPod when I want to ... so that I can listen when I can't watch!

[tags: apple ipod podcasting vidcasting video players]