The iPod touch is really in a class of its own

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Anthony Caruana02 March 2008, 10:30 PM

There’s no device we can think of that offers the same combination of features.


The touch doesn’t use Windows Media Player preferring to connect to Apple’s iTunes software with the proprietary Apple cable.

The touch’s face has a single button that powers the device up and returns you to the home screen from any of the apps that are running. The gesture-driven interface is great. There are a few tricks to learn, like pinching when using the web browser or photo viewer to zoom in, it’s very intuitive.

Video playback is spectacular through the 3.5in screen that automatically toggles between portrait and landscape depending on the content being viewed or how you’re holding the device. Sound quality through the iconic white headphones was very good and we couldn’t discern any difference with our test gear.

Once you throw in the Wi-Fi and web browsing as well as syncing with your calendar and address book you’ll find that the touch is more than a media player. Our main complaint is that the 8 or 16GB of flash memory available is too little on a device at this price.



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ningcaptor (New user):

if you were looking for an mp3 or mp4 player, look no further! don't even waste your money on a silly samsung or a dull zen. look to the vibrant, entertaining and always perfect ipod touch!

Pros: Best mp4 player in the market to date! best interface, it's really too simple to use! even my 5 year old rother can use it. and the added feature of wifi ..... i can't tell you how many songs i've bought off the itunes wifi music store! and the best part ..... I own one!

Cons: there are no cons!

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Wazza (Cornerstone member):

I've never been a fan of any contraption that Apple bring out, but this is a neat little piece of kit. It's so simple to use and not too unreasonably priced either.

Pros: Touch screen is great. Good sound quality. Capacity is spot on for your average Joe

Cons: Seems a little fragile when docked into an iPod clock radio

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Dan Warne (Administrator):

I love my iPod Touch. I had a first-gen iPhone and broke it, and thought, "ah well, I'll just wait till the 3G iPhone comes out" but within a couple of weeks I was fidgety and twitchy as I sat on public transport realising I had nothing to do except watch smelly people and school kids get on and off the bus. With the iPod Touch I can reclaim an hour and a half of my day that would otherwise be truly wasted to catch up with some TV that I would otherwise not have time to watch. Coupled with an ElGato EyeTV on my Mac that "tapes" shows I miss in prime time, I can watch em on the way to work, along with ABC TV podcasts of shows like the Gruen Transfer, 7:30 Report and Lateline. Plus the stuff I've ripped off DVD or BitTorrented and then converted for iPod watching using VisualHub. The whole system just works way better than any other device I've ever owned. Of course, I wish Apple made it as easy to rip DVDs as it is to rip CDs in iTunes (and for sure, the original success of the iPod was largely to do with how easy it was to rip CDs in iTunes) but this isn't exactly their fault considering the copy protection issues involved.

Pros: Plays video well. Really really really well.

Cons: Pricey, of course...

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McBanjo (Cornerstone member):

How'd you break your iPhone?

Through physical damage or bricking?

As far as I know, any bricked iPhone can be un-bricked.

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mentalman1369 (New user):

Best in its class and in a class of its own!

Pros: - Amazing screen (esp. for video)
- Fluid, intuitive GUI
- Internet connectivity extremely useful -- ability to quickly check e-mail, RSS feeds, news, weather and more in mere seconds! No computer-booting involved
- Also the usual pros as listed by everyone else (e.g. incredibly thin at 8mm)

Cons: - Average sound quality -- but acceptable as a DAP
- Chrome-finished back is easily scratched -- but I can live with that
- Price is still daunting, esp. for the 32GB model
Maps function not practical enough -- it relies on Wi-Fi in Aus! What do you expect

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Conclusion

Upsides

  • Screen
  • Interface

Downsides

  • Limited storage
APC rating

9/10

 Price: 9/10
Usability: 9/10
Performance: 9/10
Reader rating

9/10

 14 readers voted
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Full specifications

For iPod touch 16GB


Graphics
Screen Size: 3.5 in
Dimensions
Depth: 8 mm
Width: 61.8 mm
Weight: 0.12 kg
Height: 110 mm
Connectivity
Bluetooth: No
Storage
Expansion Card Type: None
Internal Storage (GB): 16 GB
Battery
Battery Type: Lithium Ion rechargeable
Claimed Battery Life: 22 hr
Software
Video Playback: Yes
XP Drivers: Yes
XP Utilities and Apps: Yes
Vista 32 bit Drivers: Yes
Vista 32bit utilities and apps: Yes
Vista 64 bit Drivers: Yes
Vista 64 bit utilities and apps: Yes
Mac OS X drivers: Yes
Mac OS X utilities and apps: Yes
Linux drivers: No
Linux utilities and apps: No
Extras
Headphone Jack Type: 3.5mm standard
Voice Recorder:
FM Tuner:
Warranty
Warranty Length: 12 months
Warranty Type: Return to base
Price
Price (this configuration, at time of review): $549
Video Format Support
DivX support: No
Xvid Support: No
MPEG-4 H.264 support: Yes
MPEG-4: Yes
WMV9 Support: No
WMV10 Support: No
3GPP support: No
Audio Format Support
FLAC support: No
AIFF Support: Yes
Apple Lossless Support: Yes
MP3 support: Yes
WMA Support: No
WMA with DRM support: No
AAC Support: Yes
AAC with DRM Support: Yes
OGG support: No

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