Apple makes iPod changes, adds SHOWTIME programming to iTunes

Apple had a busy day yesterday with iPod announcements as they rolled out a larger storage capacity nano, dropped the price of the shuffle and added new video content to their iTunes store.

Regarding the nano, Apple unveiled a new 1GB model for $149. This product, which joins the 2GB and 4GB models already available, is thinner than a #2 pencil and can hold up to 240 songs or 15,000 photos. It is, like other iPods, compatible with both Windows and Mac operating systems.

Apple’s news regarding the iPod shuffle was an announcement about price drops on the 512MB and 1GB models. These units are now available for $69 and $99 respectively.

Rounding out Apple’s news yesterday was an announcement that they’d inked a deal with cable television network SHOWTIME to offer some of the latter’s television programming for download from the iTunes store for $1.99 per episode. These shows, which can be viewed on a computer or fifth generation iPod with video playback capabilities, include “Sleeper Cell”, “Weeds” and “Fat Actress”. With these latest additions, the total number of television shows available through iTunes is over 50.