Touch the iPod Touch

I was able to play with the new iPod Touch this weekend at Best Buy. Yep, it’s cool – very cool. The part that would stop me from getting it right now is the price tag. However, after getting a chance to use it for a while I think the best new feature they could have added is the Wi-Fi capability. The Internet is more fun when you get to pinch your way into zooming in and out of a webpage. The screen itself is just plain beautiful. I found that the keyboard that pops up when you want to type in a webpage is fairly easy to type on. I do have smaller hands than a guy would admittedly, and my husband didn’t get a chance to look at that feature when he was there. I have heard reports from other reviewers who have big hands or chubby fingers that typing can be a problem if you don’t pay close attention to where you are tapping, but I can’t say that from personal experience.
Pretty much the Touch is an iPhone without the phone capability. I think this is a nifty thing for those of us out there who just want the cool interface and not the data plan and all the “etc., etc.” that goes along with getting the iPhone. If you get a chance to stop by a retailer who has an iPod Touch on display, you have a pinch at it. It’s definitely one of the most fun gadgets I’ve had a chance to look at in a long time. Yep, I am hoping that Apple will do a $200 price cut on it in two months. :)

The Beat Goes On, and On, and On...

Well, get ready for some reading. This post is going to be a long one. Apple had their big announcement today and yep, there’s going to be a new iPod and a few changes to some old favorites. Oh, where to begin?

The iPod Shuffle: 1GB, $79
The shuffle will get a wardrobe change and come in red, silver, blue, green, and purple. The blue, green, and purple aren’t as vibrant as the previous colors but they are pretty.

The iPod Nano: 4GB and 8GB, $149 and $199
The Nano gets an even bigger wardrobe change with the introduction of video and the new Cover Flow interface. It’s cute…shorter and fatter than before with a 2”screen (320x240) that is the same resolution as the current 5th Gen iPod Video. The whole thing is only 2.75 inches tall. The Nano also comes in new colors…silver, black, red, green, and blue. The 4GB variety is only available in silver. It’s also really thin – only 6.5 mm. The battery life isn’t bad either…5 hours for video and 24 hours for audio.

The iPod Classic: 80GB and 160GB, $249 and $349
This little baby is similar to the 5th Gen iPod Video but with the new Cover Flow interface and bigger hard drives. The colors have changed a bit in that the case is now metal and are available in grey and black (pretty close to the white and black offered in the iPod Video). Both versions come with a 2.5” screen and are a total of 4.1 inches tall. The 80GB is .41 inches thick (10.5 mm) and the 160GB is .53 inches (13.5 mm) thick. Playback time is lengthy with the 80GB having 40/5 hours for audio/video and the 160GB having 40/7 hours. These actually are pretty good prices considering you’re getting double the storage space as the 5th Gen Videos for the same price.

The iPod Touch: 8GB and 16GB, $299 and $399
The Touch is the most innovative iPod of the group. It looks a lot like the iPhone, only without the phone features. You get around the interface the same way you would an iPhone. Full sized touch screen (3.5 inch diagonal) and overall 4.3 inches tall. It’s thin too…only .31 inches (8 mm). Also new to this iPod is the Wi-Fi capability. Now you can download your favorite songs directly to your iPod wirelessly using iTunes that is installed on the device itself. Once you sync your iPod Touch with your computer, it will copy the music you purchased back to the iTunes library on your computer. Considering the screen type on the Touch, the playback times aren’t bad at all with 22 hours of audio and 5 hours of video. It even has Safari on it making it the first iPod to have Internet capability. Yep, I said Internet. In my opinion it’s a little pricey still but considering you’re getting the new interface, it’s not too bad.

Wi-Fi Music Store
As mentioned in the iPod Touch section, you can now download your favorite music through iTunes using the built-in Wi-Fi in the Touch and iPhone. Once you connect your device to your computer, iTunes will sync with it and copy the music you downloaded into your iTunes library.

Starbucks
Apple and Starbucks have come up with a plan to make it easier to download music at a Starbucks store. You can see what is currently playing at your favorite java hangout and also see what last ten songs were in their playlist. You can also download them while you’re there. Most all Starbucks should have this functionality by the end of 2008.

Ringtones for the iPhone
One thing people were complaining about is not being able to put custom ringtones on their iPhones. Now Apple has provided the opportunity to download ringtones to your iPhone through the iTunes store for an extra 99 cents a song. Say you find a song you like on iTunes and want to download it. So purchase it and then decide hey, that would make a great ringtone. Any song with the ringtone icon next to it in iTunes will give you the option to choose 30 seconds of the song, and for an extra 99 cents you can have those 30 seconds as a ringtone as well. Apple’s reasoning is that the $1.98 for the ringtone is cheaper than most ringtones you can purchase online.

Finale
So there you have it -- all the new products and technology that Apple is releasing involving the iPod. If your eyes aren’t worn out yet, head on over to Apple’s website to check out pictures and demos of their new toys.