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iPod touch So... what are your first impressions of the new iPod Touch 4G?

M

MicroByte

macrumors 6502
Original poster
Jul 10, 2008
335
15
If possible, please keep on topic to honest opinions from people who received/purchased theirs today.

Screen: IPS or non-IPS, the screen is beautiful! I've got my 3G Touch next to my 4G and am looking at pictures, web pages, and even the icons look clearer. I've never seen an iPhone 4 screen so cannot compare, but between generations, this is definitely as step up. Side question - do "Retina" optimized icons look better than non-optimized (like how they do on the iPad?

Cameras: I had a chance to play with the cameras in my kitchen/living room and outdoors. Honestly, this won't replace my digital camera, but it serves it's purpose as a decent camera since I have my iPod with me at all times. The pictures do come out grainy with low light. Unfortunately, I could not do any better outside since there are the remnants of a tropical storm blowing through, but overall, I'm satisfied.

Video was really impressive with decent lighting, I think I'll be using it more for this. Indoors, the picture is comparable with my Kodak digital camera that also shoots HD at the same resolution.

Speed: Not sure how to measure this or even compare, but it feels just as snappy as my iPod Touch 3G (also 32GB model). I am somewhat disappointed that there isn't 512 MB of memory, but then I my iPad never really had any problems and it has the same amount of memory also.

Overall, I am very satisfied with the new model. I am blown away by how good games like Spiderman and Mirror's Edge look. Text is also easier to read and I do a lot of web browsing and RSS Feed reading so this is a huge plus. Happy customer here!
 
I went to the apple store during lunch to replace my refurbished 2G and ive been waiting 2 years to be able to use apps like barcode scanners and anything augmented because my phone is 4 years old and im holding out till the iphone goes to some other carrier other than att&t. im not waiting for verizon iphone, just anyone other than att&t! Hell id be happy if sprint releases that ZTE peel and ill pay for mifi and have a VOIP phone.

im really impressed with the resolution of the screen and just being able to have one more capability that i didnt before. I dont even feel like i need to jailbreak it for once.
 
Design:
Compared to my old first-generation iPod touch, this is a thousand times better. It's noticeably lighter, most certainly thinner, and fits well in my hand. It also looks incredible, even when turned off. The buttons feel solid and don't wobble.

However, I'd like to warn everyone to be careful when cleaning the new iPod. The glass is placed within a rubber bezel (just like the MacBook Pros) which will attract a lot of dust. I already have dust particles jammed in-between the glass and the rubber frame of the bezel.

Screen
The Retina display is tack sharp. I don't have any complaints about the viewing angles (compared to the iPhone 4's IPS screen), the colors look perfectly vibrant to me.

Camera
Can't complain about the quality of photos and videos. The front-facing camera is definitely not as crisp as one in the iPhone 4, but it gets the job done. For quick snapshots, it's just fine. For such a small device capable of so many other things, there's nothing to complain about when it comes to the camera.

Performance
The new iPod touch blows my first-generation model out of the water. It's incredibly fast. It opens loads so quickly that I completely forgot about the ability to quickly switch apps by multitasking.
 
Here are my impressions - I just finished syncing, but I've been playing with it non stop.

Design:

Much sleeker looking and feeling than even the 3G touch. It's slimmer, lighter, and from the top it basically looks like a piece of glass. The buttons feel far sturdier, and the device overall just feels solid - the same feeling of quality that the iPad and iPhone 4's have.

Hardware:

I'll start with the screen. It's GORGEOUS. Haters can preach about it being lower quality than the iPhone's all they want. The end result is that it looks amazing. Just absolutely stunning.

The built in mic is a nice addition. From the few short videos that I took, it picks up sound very, very well, and sounds quite good. Far better than mics on any sub-$500 camera that takes video.

The speaker is much improved over the 3G. While the 3G's sounded thin, weak, and overall pathetic for anything aside from game sound effects, the 4G's sounds rich and full, and doesn't begin to distort at higher volume.

As said above, the buttons are also quite improved, and are very sturdy feeling.

As far as the processor, I've yet to put it through its paces. I'm currently downloading Epic Citadel to give it a run through. I may edit later with some impressions on speed boosts, but as far as the basic UI and normal apps go, it's nice and snappy - no lag whatsoever that I've noticed.

Cameras:

While it seems that many are still bitching because the camera doesn't produce images that are 10,000x12,000 pixels, I find the cameras to be great, and astonishingly good for what they are.

Stills: The stills are way better looking than I thought they would be. While the resolution isn't huge, they look good. That's what counts. I took a couple well-lit pics, a handful with mediocre lighting, and a bunch in terrible lighting. Obviously, the best lighting produces the best pic. That being said, even the ones in terrible lighting looked quite good, and in my opinion, much better than the pictures that my 7MP point n' shoot pocket camera takes.

A flash would have been nice, but I'm not complaining. The pics look good, and much, much better than I expected, so I'm ecstatic.

Facetime: The front facing camera is exactly what you'd expect for a video call. It looks quite good, while making facetime calling not lag like crazy.

Video: The HD Video is impressive. Again, much better than I expected it to look, even in terrible lighting. I'm in the middle of a thunderstorm at home, and only have one small light on in my room - leaving it quite dim. Even with those conditions, the video looked good. I expect to make a lot of use of the video.

Audio:

This was quite unexpected, but the audio quality, to my ears, is significantly better than the 3G Touch, and even the iPad. It sounds thicker, well balanced, and just overall much nicer. I don't know if it's the new set of headphones, or the device itself, but it's a very nice addition regardless.


Overall:

I've VERY happy with the new Touch, and it's way beyond what I expected. If anyone is still on the fence thanks to that BS report about the screen, or the MP count of the camera, please - do yourself a favor and ignore both. Neither are an issue whatsoever, and anyone who's seriously making an issue over them doesn't know what they're talking about.
 
LadyEnoki said:
.. ive been waiting 2 years to be able to use apps like barcode scanners and anything augmented ...
Click to expand...

Sorry to hijack the thread, but unfortunately those things probably won't work all that well on the new Touch. Most regular barcodes needs to be read by a camera with some macro ability - i.e. one that does autofocus - and the Touch's camera cannot do that, and augmented reality programs usually do their best job with GPS and compass, and neither of them is built into the touch. :(
 
MicroByte, ColinEC and NoiseMaker.

I appreciate the detailed reviews. Heading over to the US at the end of this month and will most likely pick one up as they are cheaper than here.

Thanks.
 
Noisemaker said:
Audio:

This was quite unexpected, but the audio quality, to my ears, is significantly better than the 3G Touch, and even the iPad. It sounds thicker, well balanced, and just overall much nicer. I don't know if it's the new set of headphones, or the device itself, but it's a very nice addition regardless.
Click to expand...

You need to compare with the same headphones. Apple headphones degrade over time, so new ones sound better than old ones.

Nice reviews guys, keep 'em coming. :)
 
Tobster3 said:
MicroByte, ColinEC and NoiseMaker.

I appreciate the detailed reviews. Heading over to the US at the end of this month and will most likely pick one up as they are cheaper than here.

Thanks.
Click to expand...

No problem - I'm very, very impressed with the new Touch. I knew it would be nice, but I never expected it to be THIS nice.

I can see it getting a lot of use for basically everything.

If you don't want to wait, you may want to see if you can get a friend in the US to ship one to you. It would easily fit into a flat rate box, which is something like $13 to ship international.
 
Warbitrary said:
You need to compare with the same headphones. Apple headphones degrade over time, so new ones sound better than old ones.

Nice reviews guys, keep 'em coming. :)
Click to expand...

I just tried it out with my old set, and the new set. Sound quality is the same, so that's attributable to the device itself.

The only noticeable difference in the headphones is a volume increase in the new set. I had to up the volume a couple of notches with the old pair to get the same volume levels.
 
Thanks for your calm thoughts guys heh :)

I havn't had an ipod touch or iphone before but am planning on getting the 4g touch. 512 mb did annoy me at first but that was a knee jerk reaction, always happens when something is overhyped or too much is expected. As for what everyone is saying it seems to run perfectly fine, i have used my friend's ipad a fair bit and never ran into problems.

I'm glad the screen is great. No IPS, well whatever, i dont make a habit of trying to read screens at iregular angles hehe :).

Personally cameras on phones/portable devices have always been a gimmick for me, so whats in the 4g is just an added bonus, it wasnt even on my list of things i wanted :).

Out of curiosity is the device "too" thin?

Now if only I could get one in Australia sooner!
 
Not sure how relevant mine will be, since I switched from an iPod Nano 3G (yes, those cute fat ones) to an iPt4. I just wonder... how could I have possibly gone so long without one? I love playing around on the huge screen. Love, love, LOVE the apps (already playing around with a personal finance assistant and retina wallpapers). The screen, is beautiful. I love having a camera handy and have already snapped shots to upload to FB. Haven't played any games yet, but I'm sure that's a slippppery slope.

Speaking as someone switching from a non iPt to the iPt4, I couldn't be happier. (And of course providing that the clicking bug during recording stays fixed!). I will resolutely ignore all the hate going on. :)
 
Cerebral said:
Thanks for your calm thoughts guys heh :)

I havn't had an ipod touch or iphone before but am planning on getting the 4g touch. 512 mb did annoy me at first but that was a knee jerk reaction, always happens when something is overhyped or too much is expected. As for what everyone is saying it seems to run perfectly fine, i have used my friend's ipad a fair bit and never ran into problems.

I'm glad the screen is great. No IPS, well whatever, i dont make a habit of trying to read screens at iregular angles hehe :).

Personally cameras on phones/portable devices have always been a gimmick for me, so whats in the 4g is just an added bonus, it wasnt even on my list of things i wanted :).

Out of curiosity is the device "too" thin?

Now if only I could get one in Australia sooner!
Click to expand...

The memory thing isn't an issue. I just tried a few of the more intensive iPod Touch/iPhone games that I have, and they ran fine and loaded significantly faster than they did on my old 3G Touch. The haters can bitch about the 256MB RAM all they want. End result is that it still runs nicely.

I don't get the whole IPS thing. You can still see the screen just fine at any angle you'd ever hold it at, as well as the ones you'd never hold it at. :confused:

I looked at the camera as a gimmick, and figured, like most that it would just be crappy pics suitable for facebook and such. I was wrong, and I think I'll use the camera as much as the iPod app.

As far as the thinness, no. It's not too thin. It's just right. It reminds me of the top lid of a MacBook Pro. Thin, but not uncomfortably so. Just...Nice. It feels right in your hand. While gaming as well. :)
 
Loving my new touch. Screen is absolutely beautiful. This is my first touch device... have to get used to typing without keys. Hence this short review!
 
noisemaker said:
If anyone is still on the fence thanks to that BS report about the screen, or the MP count of the camera, please - do yourself a favor and ignore both. Neither are an issue whatsoever, and anyone who's seriously making an issue over them doesn't know what they're talking about.
Click to expand...

On the contrary, you don't know what you're talking about. The screen report is most certainly not BS, as evident by all the media reviews . The fact that you deny any problems just reveals how low your standards are and simultaneously invalidates your review.

About the camera, the MP count isn't the main issue. No auto-focus is more problematic.
 
fertilized-egg said:
Sorry to hijack the thread, but unfortunately those things probably won't work all that well on the new Touch. Most regular barcodes needs to be read by a camera with some macro ability - i.e. one that does autofocus - and the Touch's camera cannot do that, and augmented reality programs usually do their best job with GPS and compass, and neither of them is built into the touch. :(
Click to expand...

Can someone confirm if these apps work with the new camera?
 
Noisemaker said:
Audio:

This was quite unexpected, but the audio quality, to my ears, is significantly better than the 3G Touch, and even the iPad. It sounds thicker, well balanced, and just overall much nicer. I don't know if it's the new set of headphones, or the device itself, but it's a very nice addition regardless.
Click to expand...


What does external speaker sound like? Better then old speaker?
 
I am a bit blown away by the new Touch-- I LOVE IT! I've looked at the iPhone 4 screen before, so this comes at no surprised that the retina display is amazing. Yes, no IPS, but it's still better than 90% of the screens out there. I have compared both my 3G Touch with my 4G Touch and the 4G blows the 3G out of the water. I was, however, disappointed at the camera since the few photos that I have tried were grainy, but I will take daytime photos tmr and see how it fairs. I'm just glad that I can FINALLY use some camera apps, though!


 
Noisemaker said:
No problem - I'm very, very impressed with the new Touch. I knew it would be nice, but I never expected it to be THIS nice.

I can see it getting a lot of use for basically everything.

If you don't want to wait, you may want to see if you can get a friend in the US to ship one to you. It would easily fit into a flat rate box, which is something like $13 to ship international.
Click to expand...

Unfortunately the Koreans will charge me Duty & Taxes on top. Have tried and been stung before. :mad: It's cool, I can wait. :)
 
StephyWu said:
On the contrary, you don't know what you're talking about. The screen report is most certainly not BS, as evident by all the media reviews . The fact that you deny any problems just reveals how low your standards are and simultaneously invalidates your review.

About the camera, the MP count isn't the main issue. No auto-focus is more problematic.
Click to expand...

Yeah. Ok.

How about this; I have one, and you clearly don't. And, instead of wasting my time arguing with you about why I'm allowed to have an opinion, I'd rather spend that time playing with my brand new iPod Touch.

:rolleyes:
 
I think the external speaker sounds pretty good. It won't replace high quality headphones, but it does not make me cringe when I listen to it.

Going from a 1G touch to the 4G is quite amazing. The display is so much better than the 1G. I honestly did not know what I was missing. Recording videos is really nice (except for the clicking), and the photos don't look half bad either. Great for a quick snap or for Facebook.

One of the other things that was really noticeable was the performance. It's so fast compared to my 1G. Surfing the web is fast, using multiple apps is fast, it's awesome!

Haven't been able to test out FaceTime yet, though I want to. I also want to get some more games.

Overall, extremely pleased with the 4G and have a lot of fun with it so far! I really need a screen protector/case though, lol.
 
How does the touch 4 speaker sound (loudness, clarity, etc) when compared to touch 3, iphone 4?
 
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