Review of Apple iPod touch: The Best iPod Ever

[madmaxmedia]

http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,1895,2179701,00.asp

5 stars!

And, yes, the earbuds still suck. But those are my only complaints—and they are minor. The relatively hefty $300 and $400 price tags for 8 and 16 GB, respectively, don't bug me either. Why? This is probably the best portable media player ever made.

Possibly the best new feature is a subtle one: the double click. Pressing the only tactile button on the player twice makes music controls appear over whatever screen mode you happen to be in—Safari, YouTube, etc.

Now let's talk about the really good stuff. How long have we been waiting for not only an iPod with WiFi, but one that lets us buy music wirelessly and quickly? It's here and it is awesome.

No portable media player has ever done this much so easily, or looked so good doing it.

I hope this post is okay by the rules, it's a 3-page review, so I just included some teaser snippets.

[shadowmoses]

Good post, thanks. This is also a good sign these babies may start shipping soon

SHadoW

[viccles]

I wish the review would have commented more about the calendar and the contacts. I'm excited though

[madmaxmedia]

Originally Posted by shadowmoses

Good post, thanks. This is also a good sign these babies may start shipping soon

SHadoW

I was thinking the same thing...

[viccles]

Originally Posted by madmaxmedia

I was thinking the same thing...

I keep hoping that I'll get an email that my touch has been shipped

[nlivo]

that was a good review. i reckon this time next week they'll be shipping. they usually only bring out the review right before they are shipping so maybe we'll be getting a flood of reviews pretty soon. Waiting to here from walt.

[beaker26]

My wallet thanks PC Mag for making it much lighter. Unless something bad comes up about the touch I'm getting one.

[madmaxmedia]

Also, this was interesting-

At full brightness the iPod touch looks a tad better, with deeper, darker color saturation. This is odd, because Apple claims they sport the same 480 by 320 resolution screen with 163 pixels per inch. Clearly, there is something slightly different, but it detracts very little from the iPhone to say that the new iPod touch looks a little better in the color department.

In their slideshow, they have the 2 side by side, and they do look different in the photo:

http://www.pcmag.com/slideshow_viewe...o=7,00.asp?p=y

[Markleshark]

Hm, yes, compared to the iPodtouch the iPhone does look (Ever so slightly) washed out.

[shoelessone]

I'm surprised this article didn't get more attention here.

I can't wait for more reviews to be released, as it's the next best thing (in my opinion) to having the thing in my own hands

That said, at this point I feel like I probably know more about the touch then any reviewer, i know the feature set relativly intimitly, and I've used the iPhone enough to be familiar with the various aspects of the interface.

Hell, I could probably write a 5 page review of the thing myself

[gloss]

This was good to hear. After all the negativity surrounding the device here, it's nice to have a little perspective.

Yeah, you can't edit your calendar entries, but hey, it's still the best PMP on the planet.

[clevin]

don't get me wrong, for what it can do as a PMP, its very good (maybe some users have problems with the capacity and file manager).

the real question is, would it be a good PDA? It sure has the potential: a slim down OS which is 400MB+ in size. a large screen, a wi-fi. But now, the only usable part is a near-desktop-level browser, nothing else.

We shall wait and see how this turns out. And if eventually it won't be improved as a PDA, its not because of difficulties in technology or lacking of interests from users. Its purely a market strategy that is out of greed.

[shoelessone]

Originally Posted by clevin

don't get me wrong, for what it can do as a PMP, its very good (maybe some users have problems with the capacity and file manager).

the real question is, would it be a good PDA? It sure has the potential: a slim down OS which is 400MB+ in size. a large screen, a wi-fi. But now, the only usable part is a near-desktop-level browser, nothing else.

We shall wait and see how this turns out. And if eventually it won't be improved as a PDA, its not because of difficulties in technology or lacking of interests from users. Its purely a market strategy that is out of greed.

All market strategies are "out of greed".

And all companies (that aren't broke) use market strategies.

So I miss your point?

[clevin]

Originally Posted by shoelessone

All market strategies are "out of greed".

And all companies (that aren't broke) use market strategies.

So I miss your point?

no, you didn't miss nothing, I could add, apple's greed in this marketing strategy of iPod touch is as ugly as it gets.

its easy to bashing industry altogether, while the fact is I only interested talking about the product I may put my hand on.

Is M$ greed? yes, is AOL stupid? yes, but I didn't buy nothing from them. So I have no interest bashing them in this post.

[madmaxmedia]

Originally Posted by clevin

don't get me wrong, for what it can do as a PMP, its very good (maybe some users have problems with the capacity and file manager).

the real question is, would it be a good PDA? It sure has the potential: a slim down OS which is 400MB+ in size. a large screen, a wi-fi. But now, the only usable part is a near-desktop-level browser, nothing else.

Yes, it is not a good PDA out-of-the-box. But the likelihood that it cannot be improved thoughs hacks and mods seems remote, given how much progress has already been made with the identical-OS running iPhone.

[clevin]

Originally Posted by madmaxmedia

Yes, it is not a good PDA out-of-the-box. But the likelihood that it cannot be improved thoughs hacks and mods seems remote, given how much progress has already been made with the identical-OS running iPhone.

exactly, I said "we shall wait and see". of course, an official policy of openness would encourage developers and benefit users more.

[MacBytes]

Category: Apple Hardware
Link: Review of Apple iPod touch: The Best iPod Ever
Description:: When we tested the Apple iPhone back in June, one thing was very clear: Minus the pesky phone part, the iPhone was the best portable media player we’d ever seen. The iPod touch is just that—and so much more. It takes all the wonderful things about the iPhone—cover flow, multi-touch interface, a luminous screen—and adds so much more, like Wi-Fi access to the iTunes store. All told, the touch has earned PC Mag’s highest rating (5 out of 5) and is our new Editors’ Choice in portable media players.



Posted on MacBytes.com
Approved by Mudbug

[MacRumors]

PCMag posts a review of the Apple iPod Touch, which is expected to be released later this month. The review is quite favorable and starts with:

The relatively hefty $300 and $400 price tags for 8 and 16 GB, respectively, don't bug me either. Why? This is probably the best portable media player ever made.

The author describes the iPod Touch as "much skinnier" than the iPhone, a bit shorter and a hair wider. They cover many of the features and focus on some of the new features introduced with the iPod Touch. The Wifi iTunes store appears to work quite well with a full iTunes experience in your hand. The Starbucks integration has not yet been activated (due October 2nd).

One new feature in the iPod Touch that was previously demonstrated in the Guided Tour video is the "double click" on the home button.

Pressing the only tactile button on the player twice makes music controls appear over whatever screen mode you happen to be in—Safari, YouTube, etc. Even if the player is locked, double-clicking will bring up a set of music controls that features track information, play/pause, forward and backward within a playlist or album, a Music button to take you directly to the Now Playing screen, and a Close button to escape.

The review also provides a final answer on the editing abilities on the Touch. There is no email, and no way to edit or enter Calendar events. Contacts, however, can be edited on the iPod Touch. The review concludes favorably however:

At $300 and $400 for 8 and 16 GB, respectively, these are not cheap devices, especially considering the storage limitations. Still, factor in the slick interface, elegant Web browser, the beautiful glass display, the seamless integration of the WiFi music store, and the iPod touch is worth the price. No portable media player has ever done this much so easily, or looked so good doing it.

Article Link

[mithun914]

The author describes the iPhone Touch as "much skinnier" than the iPhone,
u mean ipod touch

[fixed]

[Eidorian]

It's nice to finally learn the truth to some of those features.

[BiikeMike]

I'm excited!

I can't wait to get one, and then for the hacks to come out so I can have an iCal editor in my pocket! (My Blackberry sucks at that, only one calendar with no color coding) Nice favorable review, good to know it's worth the money

(and it's worth the mention that I posted this about 2 hours ago, mistakenly an hour after MadMaxMedia posted it [admin edit: merged threads]) (())

[arn]

Apple also posted a "Feature Guide"/manual for the touch:
http://manuals.info.apple.com/en/iPo...ures_Guide.pdf

arn

[pgwalsh]

I wish they'd make a larger one. It may seem selfish and unrealistic, but I could see using this just to browse the web on my couch or on a bed. I could use it as an ebook reader add tv capability and I'm good to go. A 10 to 13 inch screen wold fit the bill nicely.

[syklee26]

hopefully in a very short time after the shipment someone will find a way to port some programs from iPhone to Touch. I do want that note function too as well as stocks and weathers.

[fastbite]

I have a feeling that the good reviews are going to come thick and fast -- the problem for me and many others now is going to be: Should I get an iPhone or the touch??? I guess the touch is a safer bet to start with...