New A8 iPod Touch Clocks in at 1.10GHz, Includes 1GB RAM and Bluetooth 4.1

[MacRumors]

The new iPod touch with an A8 processor and upgraded 8-megapixel rear camera just launched this morning, but TechCrunch's Matthew Panzarino already has one in hand and has run some benchmarks on the device.

According to early testing, the A8 processor in the new iPod touch appears to be running at 1.10GHz per core, which is slower than the 1.39GHz per core the iPhone 6 runs at, presumably to manage battery life. In Geekbench 3, the iPod touch scored 1379 on the single-core test and 2440 on the multi-core test right out of the box. The previous-generation A5 iPod touch scored 215/410 on Geekbench's single and multi-core tests, so the new sixth-generation iPod is six times faster and a massive improvement over the fifth-generation iPod.

Labeled as iPod7,1 instead of iPod6,1 as expected (the previous-generation iPod's model ID was iPod5,1), the new iPod touch ships with Apple's latest operating system, iOS 8.4, so it works with Apple Music out of the box. Like the iPhone 6 and 6 Plus, the iPod touch has 1GB of RAM to go along with its A8 processor.

The new iPod also includes an M8 motion coprocessor for recording motion activity that's uploaded to the Health app, and it supports 802.11ac wireless. Its 64-bit A8 processor is a major improvement over the A5 processor in the older iPod touch, and it includes support for Metal, bringing much-improved games to the device.

The iPod touch has one feature that hasn't yet made it into other Apple products -- Bluetooth 4.1. It's the first of Apple's devices to offer the new specification. Bluetooth 4.1 is more reliable, offering less interference with LTE bands, improved power management, and better data transfer.

Available in several new colors, the iPod touch is priced at $199 for the 16GB model, $249 for the 32GB model, $299 for the 64GB model, and $399 for the 128GB model. It's available from the Apple online store beginning today.

Apple's also released new iPod nano and shuffle models in updated colors, but the internal components of those devices have not changed.

Article Link: New A8 iPod Touch Clocks in at 1.10GHz, Includes 1GB RAM and Bluetooth 4.1

 

[garylapointe]

I like that you can go from 16GB to 32GB for $50 if you want it!
(I prefer that price point than forcing you to 64GB for $100 more).

Gary

 

[redheeler]

Clocked lower than the iPhone 6... pretty much what you'd expect. Still, for an iPod at that price point it isn't bad at all.

 

[Tubamajuba]

1 byte of L4 cache?

 

[Homme]

I'm very very surprised and shocked it has BT 4.1

Meanwhile Apple where's the software update for BT 4.1 for all BT 4.0 devices... Because that needs to happen

 

[Andres Cantu]

So, in terms of CPU, it should perform similar to the iPhone 5s with an A7 chip (since the Geekbench scores are very similar). In terms of GPU, however, it should be significantly better.

 

[redheeler]

I like that you can go from 16GB to 32GB for $50 if you want it!
(I prefer that price point than forcing you to 64GB for $100 more).

Gary

I think that a $749 iPhone in 2015 should come with 32 GB standard.

 

[sza]

I like that you can go from 16GB to 32GB for $50 if you want it!
(I prefer that price point than forcing you to 64GB for $100 more).

Gary

This is exactly what Apple is expecting.

 

[AngerDanger]

After not expecting much of anything but a color change, anything seems good. Especially the same processor as the current iPhone.

 

[FSMBP]

I'm very very surprised and shocked it has BT 4.1

Meanwhile Apple where's the software update for BT 4.1 for all BT 4.0 devices... Because that needs to happen

Is Bluetooth 4.1 a software update to 4.0 or a hardware feature?

 

[TheRainKing]

From 215/410 to 1379/2440 is quite a difference. And yet they both support iOS 9.

 

[MacFather]

Deleted.

 

[Mighuel]

Is Bluetooth 4.1 a software update to 4.0 or a hardware feature?

It's a software update.

 

[commander.data]

Hopefully someone tests the GPU soon. 4" devices are about 30% lower resolution than 4.7" devices and the CPU is about 30% down-clocked so a 30% drop on the GPU would be right in line.

I'm very very surprised and shocked it has BT 4.1

Meanwhile Apple where's the software update for BT 4.1 for all BT 4.0 devices... Because that needs to happen

BT4.0 hardware may be capable of BT4.1 with a software update, but what are the regulatory requirements? I doubt Apple is going to want to recertify all their existing devices with all the regulatory agencies around the world.

 

[ackmondual]

Article didn't mention it has the same sized, 4" screen, which isn't a lie at all, but still the biggest omission from Apple IMO. I need to charge my IpT5 every day if I play games, but I think I'll continue using that until it finally croaks. I'm disappointed enough to say f@$ it!

 

[garylapointe]

I think that a $749 iPhone in 2015 should come with 32 GB standard.

I'd like that even more, but if they aren't I like the $50 upgrade option.

My mother knows how to take photos with her iPad better than the (very simple) digital camera that she's had for years. I'm tempted to get her one of these to use as a camera.

She knows how to share photos with this (since she knows how on the iPad) and they'll automagically go to her iPad for her.

Gary

 

[OriginalMacRat]

I think that a $749 iPhone in 2015 should come with 32 GB standard.

64GB iPhone 6 is $749... So you are saying you want LESS storage?

 

[jicon]

This is very welcome. No Touch ID, but that isn't a dealbreaker for me. Public beta of iOS9 shows some significant slowness over iOS8.4 on the v5 iPod Touch, and maybe some of that is beta related, but the addition of another 512MB of RAM is quite important and welcome.

I use the Touch in the office for emails, notes and dropbox, and will continue to do so. No cell phone in my life, and I'd prefer to keep those pricey contracts away from me if I could without throwing down $1000 for an unlocked phone.

 

[azentropy]

Why no Touch ID ? Why??

I'm sure to keep costs down... Starts at $199
Although I do find it ironic that the only product with Touch in the name doesn't have Touch ID!

 

[Michael Goff]

Prediction: New iPod means iOS 9 is the last for the current one.

 

[redheeler]

64GB iPhone 6 is $749... So you are saying you want LESS storage?

The 16 GB iPhone 6 Plus is also $749, so no

 

[subjonas]

Cook: iPod6,1... shoot, did we not release those? Oops. Into the trash they go...

 

[FasterQuieter]

I wonder if it has the Watch App? That would be a surprise.

 

[bladerunner2000]

Should have put more focus on the battery life instead of making even faster when its completely needless as its always been fast enough.

 

[neuropsychguy]

I think that a $749 iPhone in 2015 should come with 32 GB standard.

How about 64 GB standard with 128 and 256 upgrade options? That'd shake things up.