iPod Nano revamp to see widescreen display?

Apple is said to be preparing to revamp its iPod Nano music player with a third-generation case design that not only introduces a new colour scheme but also sacrifices the gadget's skinny looks to add a video-friendly widescreen display.

According to a 9to5Mac.com report, moles in China claim the new Nano will be offered in black, silver and burgundy, along with a lighter blue and a lighter green than the current, 2G Nano ships in.

The story has little to say about the player's specs, but it does claim the landscape-oriented display "takes up about [the player's] surface area", implying that the new Nano will look like a smaller version of the current hard drive-equipped iPod. The face of the player will be approximately 2 x 2in, the site alleges.

It also maintains that upcoming next-gen iPods will lose the familiar look once the Nano gains it, replaced by iPhone styling. Think iPhone with hard drive and all the telephony stuff taken out. Well, that's what's being claimed anyway, and given the similarity between the iPhone and the video-centric iPod mock-ups that were popular on the web a year-and-a-half ago, maybe it's not such a far-fetched claim.

Corroboration may come from Korea. Today, local media claimed Apple has stopped advertising its hard drive-based iPods on the back of an alleged worldwide shortage of the player. If true, could this be the sign of an update coming up close?