MacRumors.com

Apple Insider has made note of an Apple job listing for an iPod engineer. Readers speculate that the inclusion of several key elements may point at a new direction for the iPod.

The iPod group is looking for a Hardware Engineer. This person will be an individual contributor on a top notch team with responsibilities for the design, implementation, and integration of digital and analog electronics.

Experience in the following areas is important: system integration, digital logic, SDRAM, Flash, ASIC’s, processor selection, ATAPI, various communication protocols (ie: GSM, Bluetooth, IEEE 802.11, Firewire, and USB), display types and video and analog integration.

While it's not unusual to see job listings for engineers requiring certain skills, this listing marks the first seeking these specific communication protocols in regards to the iPod.

Apple CEO Steve Jobs has publicly stated that he feels that video is not in the future of the iPod. However, Time magazine has hinted that the current version of the iPod is a complete rebuild from the ground up, and may contain more bells and whistles than what is currently known.