Remember the hype when
Apple's iPhone came out?Well, times and technology have moved on over the past
3 years and touchscreen phones are now available for as little as Rs. 7,000.
So, where does the Portable Media Player (PMP) fit in, when phones are
the new jack-of-all-trades? Well, for that, let us look at the iPod Touch,
which is an iPhone without the phone in it. The iPod Touch is a PMP that does
media playback, but it also a pretty handy web surfing tool and can have
programs or applications installed in it, just like a computer. So, let's get
into its various aspects:
1. Looks: The iPod touch takes the sleek and cool look of the iPhone. In
fact, it is even slimmer, since it does not have the phone's hardware. At
around 4.3 x 2.4 x 0.33 inches (L,W,H), and weighting 115 grams, it's size is
at par with many touch screen phones. It feels well built, but the huge expanse
of glass for the screen means you will want to invest in a good quality case
soon to protect it. The back, being of a shiny chrome like most iPod's, gets
scratched very easily.
2. Features: Well, it can play plenty of Music formats, a few video
formats, it can show your photos on its big 3.5" screen, and can surf the
internet via it's built in Wi-Fi. It has got bluetooth, a Youtube player,
Contacts, an Organizer and notes, apps for checking the Stock Market and
Weather (which are internet based), and an app for showing you maps all over
the world (also Internet based). It does'nt come with a Camera, but for me, the
worst omission is the lack of FM.
3. Interface: Easily one of the best things about the touch. It has a
touchscreen with an accelerometer, which means that when you tilt the player
onto its side, the screen orientation changes while playing video, photos,
music or using the organizer or web browser. The animations are smooth and
respond easily. The onboard keyboard is difficult to use for those of us with
not so dainty fingers. Also, the various icons on the screen can be moved and
customized. Sadly, apple still does not allow us to put it our own pictures as
the background, as in our computers.
4. Music and Video: i. Music:The iPod remains a good music
player and that is one of its primary functions. You can surf through albums,
podcasts quite easily, and with even the basic 8GB model, store at least 1,000
songs. The apple supplied earphones are next to useless and don't do justice to
the device. Spend a few hundred on a better pair, like a Creative EP-630. Also,
the device goes into standby mode to save battery life and you have to keep
unlocking it like a phone to access the music. If you don't want that, you can
switch it off, but then the screen constantly remains on and does not dim to
save battery life. That is annoying. Sound quality is clear and non-irritating,
but some may prefer the more lively and warm sound offered by competitors
products from Sony, Samsung etc.
ii. Video: With its screen, videos look very good on the iPod. Indeed,
it also remembers where you paused a video and when you play it back, it
restarts from that position, which is useful if you watch movies in 2 or more
sittings. However, it can only play back movies on the .mp4 format. Which means
that most Divx files, which is a very common format, has to be converted with
an external software on your computer. No problem, lots of software's are
available for free. But all of them take a long time to convert, and that is
very irritating.
5. Games: The iPod Touch is touted as a 'gaming' iPod. In fact, lots of
games can be downloaded for free from the Apple Apps Store. But all the good
ones like Need For Speed cost money. Since it doesn't have any buttons to use,
you control it via moving the device and using the touchscreen. It may not
match the Nintento DS or the Sony PSP as a handheld gaming device, but it does
better than most mobile phones.
6. Internet: The iPod touch has Wi-Fi, but no 3G. Hence, if you are around
a Wi-Fi spot which is unlocked, it will log and and you can surf the internet
quite easily. The Safari web browser in this is very good for that and you can
zoom into web pages. You can also access youtube videos which look quite good.
However, having used this, I can say that there are not that many free Wi-Fi
hotspots in the city, so the utility of this feature gets rather limited.
7. App Store: When you buy an iPod Touch, you get access to Apple's App
Store which contains as many as 1,00,000 applications to download. They
are of many, many kinds, from PDF viewers to lots of Games, to apps which keep
a track of how many calories you have burned etc. The problem is, many apps are
internet based. Even the PDF reader requires you to transfer files via the
internet, i.e. via the devices in-built Wi-Fi. This is also annoying. Why can't
it just let me transfer via a good old fashioned cable?
8. Battery:Apple claims upto 30 hours battery life with audio and 6
hours for video. But, most of my usage pattern at least has a mix of audio,
video and playing games. With a full charge, the iPod lasted around 3 days with
mixed usage. Of course, with only audio functions, it lasted a good 5 days,
with moderate usage. With video, the battery would survive, with 50% screen
brightness, for around 2-3 movies. Gaming drains it down within 3-4 hours.
9. Uses: Given it's size, weight and somewhat perceived delicate nature,
the iPod touch will be best used in the house or while travelling. However, I
would not recommend using it when exercising or jogging, as they weight and
size is felt in your pockets. I would recommend the iPod Nano as the iPod to
but if you want a jogging companion.10. iTunes:When you get an iPod,
you can transfer songs only with Apple's iTunes Software, which has to
downloaded. Now, this is a very good organizer and you can access the App Store
via it, but why can't I be allowed to simply copy-paste the files and songs I
want from my computer?
11. Should you Buy One: Well, at a price of around Rs. 10-11k for the
8GB verison, Rs.15-16k for the 32GB one and Rs.19-20k for the 64GB variant, the
iPod touch does not have many competitors in India, as the Microsoft Zune and
the Sony X-Series Walkman are not sold, but the real compeition comes from
touchscreen mobile phones like the Nokia 5800 and the Samsung i5700 Galaxy, which cost around Rs.13-14k. Of course, Apple has it's App Store and Interface going for it, but touchscreen mobiles may catch up. For now, if you are willing to spend above Rs.10,000 for a PMP, the iPod Touch is a good choice.
