Apple iPod touch 8 GB (1st Generation) OLD MODEL
by Apple Computer
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Customers in the UK,
Buy this product at amazon.co.uk
for British Pounds
Digital Cameras Photo Reviews of Apple iPod touch 8 GB (1st Generation) OLD MODEL
Customer Review: What a fun toy!
Summary: 5 Stars
Well, let me start by saying that I ordered the Touch on a lark. Got it direct from Apple with free engraving on the back. I must say that this is a really fun toy, at 8GB its just big enough to hold my music collection (6GB), a couple of videos and still have space to cache some video streams, barely! As mentioned elsewhere, the interface is quite cute and innovative. I love a touch screen and I love how big the screen is. Ok, here's the things I love about the Touch so far:
1) Big beautiful screen
2) Touch screen interface
3) Wifi connectivity with Safari, iTunes and YouTube built right into the main screen.
4) Changeable background, finally!
5) Sleek form factor slides nicely into my pocket.
6) Don't have to use it as a cell phone.
7) Flips back and forth from landscape to portrait modes depending on how you hold it or what you are viewing.
8) Power button, thank you Apple for finally deigning to put a power button on an iPod!
9) Automatic brightness adjustment, absolute genius!
10) Seems to remember where you left off on every video on the unit, awesome feature I love it!
11) iTunes: for any iPod you have to count the flawless relationship with iTunes as a big plus, you just can't beat it for reliability, ease of use and great features (and believe me I've tried!)
12) Great Now Playing music page, the album art fills the whole screen and by tapping the middle you get immediate access to repeat and shuffle buttons. Now you can now easily shuffle just a playlist, a feature that has been hard to find on previous iPods.
13) Like any other iPod, accessories abound and are easily purchased just about anywhere!
14) Apple customer service is good imo, they stand behind their product and will replace without much hassle as I know from experience.
15) For only $20 you can get extra stuff like Notes, Weather, Calculator, and stuff like that.
But of course, nothing is perfect. I give this a 5 stars because it is such a great innovation for Apple and a great product, but that doesn't mean that its without flaws and here's the ones I've noticed so far:
1) Touch screen can be a bit frustrating, often doesn't feel me and often I miss the button I'm aiming for with my fat fingers (they feel fat when trying to hit keyboard buttons on that screen anyway!). I understand that this is a "Capacitance" screen which means you can't use a stylus or your fingernail, you have to register firm contact with your flesh on the screen.
2) Screen flipping: although this is a cool concept it can be annoying sometimes. Occasionally the screen flips as I'm moving around and I didn't want it to. So I sit there twisting the thing to and from trying to get the alignment I want. Wouldn't it be nice if you could lock it into the perspective you want and it would just stay there (is anybody at Apple listening?)
3) Hard to operate "blind", as I walk around I like to be able to pause/play or adjust volume without having to look at the screen. Very easy to do on my 5.5Gen iPod, almost impossible on the Touch. I have to pull it out of my pocket almost every time I want to pause or adjust the volume.
4) Sound quality is not quite as good as my 5.5Gen Video iPod or my Archos 605, I've tried it on speakers and headphones and the Video has just a little bit cleaner smoother sound especially at high volume.
5) No built in USB port!
Overall, its an awesome innovative product and if you really like having the coolest new toy (like me!) and money is not a major concern I say what are you waiting for?
2 month update: Well of course you can get cases everywhere for this thing now. Still very happy with my Touch, although I did have to send in for replacement unit due to dead battery, took about two weeks but they sent me a new one and even engraved it like my original. What the heck got a shiny new Touch for free :) I have updated my review, added a positive point, removed a couple of outdated negative points.
Customer Review: Simply Amazing.......
Summary: 5 Stars
This is my first Ipod but my fourth mp3 player. I have always been averse to trendy objects just because everyone else had one, and this is the way I had viewed the Classic Ipod. But then came the Ipod Touch and my curiosity was piqued. This device fills a gap and acts as a pseudo-PDA with wifi and web surfing ability, and is also able to do pictures and video. Though admittedly, on the 8GB model, it is debatable whether video is really and truly an option, as 8GB (heck, even 16GB) is a dearth of space when taking into account there will also be a music library. But as I am not into videos, that was never an issue to take into consideration for me.....but it might be for others. The flash memory is also nice, as this can get jarred around for running and the like, unlike the classic version which is disk based.
I have been playing with it for just one day but so far I absolutely love it. It is very intuitive, although one complaint so far is the fact that on one sync of my photos, for some reason it doubled the amount of photos on the device and made two folders. On a Windows drag and drop model such as the Rio Carbon I have, I could simply go in and delete that specific folder. But now, I must find a way to do this through itunes and the sync process. As I am a new Ipod/Itunes user, this is admittedly a little bit of a pain.
The ability to wirelessly surf the web on the fly is what won me over with the Ipod Touch. I may not use this capability often, but it is nice to know it is in my pocket, as opposed to having to carry around a laptop or the like. I tried the wifi/Safari at the local Panera's and it worked like a charm. One difficulty in using this is that when zooming in, as you must deftly use your fingers to zoom, without touching any links which will inevitably open. On a page like CNN with many links everywhere, this can be challenging. But like all things, there will be a learning curve to this.
Some minor complaints, though admittedly not with the device itself. The charger is contained in a USB cord, so if you plan on taking this away for any length of time like a week-long getaway, you will either need to be near a computer to recharge or buy an adapter. This really should be included. And one thing which I would change is the lack of ANY documentation with the package whatsoever. When I pay $300 for a device, I expect some type of documentation. This does not even come with a disk; I shouldn't have to run out to ANY website before being able to use this.
But all in all, this is truly an amazing device. A caveat however: do not get either the 8GB or the 16GB if you want to carry around a large music collection, or are into videos. This will simply not be enough space. And a note to the people who complain that the Touch should be 80GB instead of 8GB, they obviously do not understand the differentiation between players using flash memory for storage and those such as the Classic which use HDD for storage. Flash memory is **much** more expensive than HDD storage per GB of storage, and thus putting 80GB of flash into this Ipod **at this point in time** (because flash memory costs are always decreasing) would put the price of this Ipod Touch around $1500. At least! Simply not an option.
And an FYI: I have read some reviews which claimed that actual battery life was well below what Apple claimed. In my opinion, turning off the wifi should increase battery life as you will not have the wifi searching for a network all of the time.
Apple did an amazing job on the interface and it is clear in my opinion that this type of device will be the future of interactive graphical user interfaces, where the user will interact seamlessly with a virtual world. This device is a revolutionary, not evolutionary step, forward.
A definite 5 stars.
Customer Review: My Comprehensive Review on the iPod Touch
Summary: 5 Stars
After waiting 2 years to buy a touchscreen/fullscreen iPod (I had been reading rumors for a long time) I was finally given an iPod Touch as a gift a few days ago! It is everything I wanted, and more. Here's why:
COOL FACTOR: The iPod Touch turns heads everywhere I go. A lot of people haven't even heard of it or seen it, so when they see me using it, they're amazed. I go to college and almost everybody has an iPod. But not the iPod Touch.
FUNCTIONALITY: The iPod Touch functions like a charm because the touchscreen is smooth and surprisingly accurate. Unfortunately without a click wheel, you have to take it out of your pocket and look at the screen every time you want to use it, even if you want to change the volume. That is my only gripe, but doesn't overshadow the other things about it.
INTERNET: I use the Wifi to surf the internet more than I expected. Although it drains the battery quickly, I find it useful if I'm on campus and I need to quickly use the internet to google something, IM a friend, or check my email. Amazingly, the iPod Touch picks up wireless networks better than a computer. In any single location, I can have dozens of networks listed.
QUALITY: Fantastic quality. The iPod touch is thin as a pencil, but heavy enough to feel substantial and worth $300. The display is large, beautiful, and vibrant. The chrome back does get scratched, but this has happened with every ipod, so I recommend a full body shield (film for the front and back) to protect it, or a nice case. If you've heard that the iPod Touch doesn't "sound" as good as other iPods, that's not true at all. I found no difference in the sound, and I've been quite pleased with its audio performance.
Questions you'll deal with before making your purchase, and answers for you:
1. "The iPod Touch is over $100 more than the other iPods." True, but the other iPods (classic, nano, shuffle) don't use the latest and greatest technology. It's well worth the extra $100 for the internet, touchscreen, highly-evolved calendar, etc.
2. "But the iPod Touch only has 8 or 16gb! Why pay so much for so little space?" Yes, the Classic has 80 and 160gb of spinning harddrive space, but that doesn't compete with the flash memory in the iPod Touch. Flash memory lasts longer because it's not affected by movement such as exercise, running, or dropping. Why does it cost so much? It's newer technology. To give you an idea, 32gb is the most flash memory available, and would cost you about $1000.
3. "I need more space for all my music and/or movies." You may feel like that's true. The iPod Touch is for someone who actively uses their iPod on a regular basis, managing it, taking care of it. The iPod Classic with all its storage is for someone who dumps all their content onto their iPod and forgets about. I've learned to manage what's on my iPod Touch so that I never have to worry that I don't have enough space.
That's all I have to say for now. The iPod Touch comes with very high recommendations. You, your loved ones, and friends will be ECSTATIC to get this for the Holidays!
Customer Review: Scotty beam me up!
Summary: 5 Stars
Apple 8 GB iPod Touch
Fellow human beings, we have officially now launched into a true space age like device! Space age product is the category i give this of delectable piece of silicon!
I had just gotten a unit free with our local distributor here (actually a friend's unit really!) along with any MacBook purchase (Apple MacBook MB062LL/B 13.3" Notebook PC (2.2 GHz Intel Core 2 Duo Processor, 1 GB RAM, 120 GB Hard Drive, 8x SuperDrive) White )
This new deal from www.jarirbookstore.com in Riyadh was one of the best promotions i have seen. Within 5 days this offer went out of stock!
Anyway, the device was definitely from the future. It really is "the" mini-computer and internet device that we all pictured of having like on Star Trek!
Most notable features:
* The screen touch ability ...i cant really describe the experience u must try it to believe it (in consulting circles they use a term "experience based differentiation (EBD.) They differentiated!
*Seamless connectivity to any WiFi (that includes the Access controlled version as well..one can find the MAC address under About within the iPhone menu)
*Apple lossless audio playback: now this was the feature that my ears were shocked by. I listened to similar music on both Touch and classic iPod (apple lossless codec) and they have done something with the playback of this version! it sounds crisp and clear!
* iCal, contacts, YouTube feature are all some of my favorites as well. There is a different "feel" to having those funny videos on the fly and showing them to friends semi-intantly.
* Apps, Apps and more apps: this bit is for my friend (Waleed) who was a bit hesitant about the devices; he is a former PDA user of all other types of devices which come with a ton of 3rd party applications. Well this platform is new and is building good ground for a ton of apps: http://www.apple.com/webapps/productivity/index1.html
They have built several great productivity apps for this platform and i am sure it will eventually become mainstream development. There is no shortage on what can be made for this device!
* Last but not least: this is not a "dummied" down version of a very popular computer operating system. Folks considering this or the iPhone from the PDA perspective should appreciate that application class of this device are actually as close as u get from your standard desktop applications; example on the Safari web browser equipped on this device is in fact the same on an Windows or a Mac version of Safari.
Granted they are a bit off on the overall features but no one up to this point built a PDA application which runs like a desktop class application. (maybe they have and i am not aware of it!)
Final thought:
the iPod touch experience is seamless internet.... like what amazon.com is to online shopping!
Customer Review: The iPod Touch Soars Over the Skys
Summary: 5 Stars
It's a plane, it's a bird, no... it's the iPod touch? The iPod Touch soars high over all other gadgets that have come out in Singapore in the past few years. It is amazing how you can now view, listen and touch your music all at the same time. Along with that, you can even surf the web with the fastest internet browser available today, watch your favorite movies and videos with the stunning graphics on the 3.5-inch (diagonal) widescreen screen (http://www.apple.com/ipodtouch/specs.html) from iTunes or even from You-Tube like no other iPod before. Another great feature is the Wi-Fi music store, where you can buy as much music as you want on the go. You can do all this on the 8-millimeter thin iPod touch. Apple says it is the best iPod they have ever made other than it's big brother the iPhone (not available in Singapore yet) and with what I have seen, there is no doubt about that. By looking at the ratings that people have given the iPod Touch on Amazon.com, it looks like at least 90% of the people who own this product agree with me by giving a 4 or 5 star rating. My favorite feature is the Safari web browser. It looks exactly like the same browser you have on your Mac. You can zoom in and out with just two fingers. Surfing the web on the iPod Touch is first class. You-Tube is great to have as one of your main applications. You can view nearly all videos at the touch of your fingers. When you watch it on the large screen the iPod has, be prepared to be amazed. Viewing your music is better than any iPod before. You can scroll through your music just like before, sorted by genre, song name, album, artist and so on. New in the music application is that if you turn your iPod to it's side, you are instantly able to view all your albums in cover flow, like on iTunes. If you hear a song you like and have your iPod handy, you can just easily tap the Wi-Fi music store and search for the song you want just like on the iTunes music store. To buy the song all you have to do is log in to your iTunes account and click "buy song". The only downside I find to the iPod Touch is that you can surf the web, buy songs on the Wi-Fi music store, and view videos on You-Tube only if you are in a Wi-Fi area. For videos you don't have to worry so much because you can still watch them if you have downloaded them on to your iPod earlier. Just like the past iPods you can still view your great photographs, but this time, you can view them in landscape or vertical mode by just simply turning your iPod sideways. I have now been using my iPod for over a month and there is nothing stopping me from saying that in my opinion, the iPod Touch is the best gadget ever made and sold in Singapore because of its sleek design and its truly amazing applications.