Count me in the
‘meh’ category
to Apple’s
announcement of
the new iPod
Nano. I wasn’t
thrilled about
them taking the
camera out and I
was twice as
skeptic about
them taking out
video
capabilities for
the device too.
I was in the ‘meh’
group, but once
I got my fingers
on this iPod, I
was a believer.
Apple’s
Multi-Touch
technology is
fantastic. It’s
what makes the
iPod Touch, the
iPhone, and now
the iPad superb
devices. It’s
smart enough to
be unique and
better than
every other
touch screen on
the market, but
it’s simple
enough that it’s
easy to use. The
iPod Nano takes
Apple’s
Multi-Touch to
its smallest
screen ever and
makes a device
unlike anything
that Apple has
put out there.
The Multi-Touch
technology works
on the iPod Nano
like it works on
other devices.
You swipe the
screen to
navigate lists
and menus and
you tap to
activate or
highlight stuff.
You can use your
two fingers to
rotate the
screen. It’s not
a huge feature,
but it’s still
entertaining to
do.
This iPod
combines the
flexibility of
the iPod Shuffle
with the
ingenuity of the
iPod Touch. It’s
small, it
features a 1.5”
display and it’s
46% smaller and
42% lighter than
the last
generation. It’s
about the size
of the older
iPod Shuffles,
but it packs
some quality
hard disc space
and the touch
screen.
Like the last
generation of
Nano, this
generation plays
music in a few
different ways
with some great
features.
There’s shake to
shuffle, genius
playlists and
mixes, and the
ease of syncing
your playlist
and library with
iTunes 10. This
Nano also
features the FM
radio like the
last gen, but
the navigation
of the radio
with the touch
screen is easier
to accomplish
than the
previous method.
On top of the
radio, the new
Nano has some
great utilities.
The Nike + iPod
features are
cool if you have
the device and a
compatible shoe,
but even the
pedometer is
useful.
The other
notable
utilities with
this iPod
include: a
clock, the
ability to sync
pictures, voice
memos with a
compatible set
of Apple ear
buds, a
stopwatch, and
you can
customize your
wallpaper for
the Nano.
I was a skeptic
about this
latest
generation of
the iPod Nano.
But the
inclusion of the
touch screen is
worth the
purchase if you
only use your
iPod for music.
It’s a downside
that this isn’t
set up to do
movies and TV
shows but I
don’t know if I
want to watch
video for an
extended time on
a 1.5” screen,
that’s what the
iPod Touch is
for. You’re
basically
trading the
ability to do
video (and have
a speaker and a
microphone on
the device) for
the ability to
interact with
your music on
the touch
screen. There’s
an iPod for
everyone and
this iPod is for
the music lover
on the go. This
small and
extremely
portable device
is designed
specifically for
music-use and it
does that very
well.