Steve Jobs strides back onto Apple stage

Steve Jobs stepped back into the spotlight for the first time in nearly a year last week, drawing a standing ovation before unveiling new and cheaper iPods for Apple Inc.

Dressed in his trademark black turtleneck and jeans, Mr Jobs took the stage and thanked everyone in the Apple community for their "heartfelt support".

Mr Jobs, a pancreatic cancer survivor, spoke with characteristic passion about new products and dropped his signature line - "one more thing" - before introducing a new iPod nano with a video camera.

It was his first public appearance since returning to work in June after six months of medical leave, during which the charismatic corporate showman underwent a liver transplant.

"I now have the liver of a mid-20s person who died in a car crash and was generous enough to donate their organs. I wouldn't be here without such generosity," an emotional Mr Jobs told the audience, urging them to all become organ donors.

"I feel great. I probably need to gain about 30 pounds, but I feel really good. I'm eating like crazy. A lot of ice cream," he later told the New York Times in a short interview.

"I'm sure (Jobs) looking so frail - the guy's had the most extreme surgery you can have - didn't help matters, but I think people have come to grips that the torch is going to be passed. It's just a matter of when," said Dave Rovelli, managing director of US equity trading at Canaccord Adams.

Apple's stock has doubled this year, valuing the company at $155 billion - triple that of smartphone arch-foe Research in Motion - and second only to Microsoft's $221 billion among tech companies on the S&P 500.

The audience at the event in San Francisco included Google Inc chief executive Eric Schmidt, who recently stepped down from Apple's board amid increased scrutiny from regulators about the companies' ties.

With Mr Jobs back as the public face of Apple, some were already looking ahead to what the company may have in the works. There was no sign of the much-talked-about tablet device, which many observers now say is more likely to emerge later this year or next. Never confirmed by Apple, investors hope it will become Apple's next growth catalyst.

Analysts say the company is working on a touchscreen device - some have labelled it an "iPad" - that may resemble a larger version of the iPod touch. It would be a connected device perfect for movies, games and surfing the internet with an affordable price point, below $1,000 (€680).

Apple's last big game-changer, the iPhone, launched more than two years ago but has many years of growth ahead of it.

From a product standpoint, the event played out as predicted.

"The announcements that were made were not particularly surprising - a lot of it was expected. But on the flip side, Steve Jobs making an appearance was definitely a pleasant surprise," said Kaufman Bros analyst Shaw Wu.