Wednesday's announcement that Apple's next generation iPod Nano would include an FM radio has prompted many readers to email SAM, the All The Excess! Snappy Answer Man.Question: The new Zune will have HD Radio...why didn't Apple make the iPod Nano HD capable as well?
Snappy Answer Man: Apple is about as worried about Microsoft's Zune as the U.S. fears being invaded by Monaco.
Q: When bands like Led Zeppelin or the Beatles play on the radio, what will I hear on my iPod Nano FM?
SAM: Those artists haven't allowed Apple to sell their music, so I suppose there's a chance you'll be listening when "Get The Led Out" comes on and hear a block of Miley Cyrus instead.
Q: Why did it take so long to get an FM radio in an iPod?
SAM: Our lobbyists were too busy spending millions fighting the satellite radio threat to focus their energy on the FM iPod crusade. Good thing they saved us from that merger that threatened to screw us all, right?
Q: If Steve Jobs was in radio, would his name be "Steve Layoffs?"
SAM: Punch lines are the domain of Snappy Answer Man, and don't you forget it.
Q: When a listener uses the new live pause feature, what will happen at my station? Will our hearts stop? Will we still breathe?
SAM: What does it matter? Obviously all brain activity has ceased, so you're already technically dead.
Q: I'm on the PPM panel in my market. Is there a way to hook my iPod Nano, my PPM and my headphones together without looking like a total dork?
SAM: No.
Q: If somebody pauses the device halfway through a commercial, does the client only pay 50% rate?
SAM: Buddy, just take whatever they're willing to pay you.
Q: Why would anyone listen to FM radio and endure repetitive music and 18 minutes of commercials an hour on the very same device on which you could program sets of your favorite songs without interruption?
SAM: Snappy Answer Man doesn't like it when you stump him. Anybody?
