Apple iPod touch 8 GB

Author's product rating:   

Sound Quality	Excellent
Ease of Use	Simple
Look & Design	Excellent
Range of Features	Excellent
Value for Money	Good

Advantages:	Quality is brilliant and all the functions are Useful
Disadvantages:	Fingerprints and Scratches

Recommend to potential buyers:

yes

Full review

Apple IPod Touch 8GB

Apple has always been the forerunner in the field of MP3 players. I bought my first iPod 3 years ago, the iPod 4 GB mini, I was quite pleased at first but after a while the battery stopped working, but it remains to be seen whether or not this is the case with the Touch.

I spent quite a while looking around for the best price, in the end I opted for eBay! I now think that I should've waited for the right one to come around, I chose to buy a new one for £150. However, when I looked at the Apple website they were £199 so I saved £50 which was worth the risk on eBay as it often is. I also bought a case and an i-trip.

Contents
-Starting the iPod
-Looks
-Durability
-Ease of using iTunes
-Music Sound
-Video Quality
-Picture Functionality
-Interface
-The Box
-Weather
-Stocks
-Clock
-Safari
-You Tube
-Contacts
-Map
-Calendar
-Mail
-Calculator
-iTunes
-Storage
-Notes
-Advantag es
-Disadvantages
-What it needs
-Comparison to iPods and other MP3 players
-Value for Money
-Summary
-Product Specification

~~~~~~~Review Starts~~~~~~~

Starting the iPod
I got the iPod first thing in the morning and put the iPod on charge while I went out, at this time it had a cable icon on it, I was unsure what this meant but I asked some friends and I was told that I would need to update the software. I am still only on dial-up so I had to download iTunes from another computer, then install it on mine. I eventually got this and plugged in the iPod and the software was installed. I then began to put music on. All in all I think that this could've been made a lot easier and the software should've already been installed on the iPod rather than me having to do it from the computer.

Looks
The screen is a healthy sized 3.5 inches which is perfect as it doesn't take up too much room in the pocket. There is only one button and this is the home button and I think that it is essential to have this button as it controls the whole iPod. Like I said above I purchased a case for my iPod as I had been told that it would scratch very easily. The iPod has a metallic reverse and despite looking really cool it scratched like nothing else so I used the case. The silver also doubles up as a mirror which increases its functionality further. The front of the screen is surrounded by black who makes it look really stylish but it is a complete fingerprint magnet, that's why they give you a screen wipe. I think that the decision to get a case for the iPod was essential and would recommend it to anyone. The looks are exquisite but I think more thought is needed for the functionality of the reverse as it scratches so easily.

Durability
I haven't dropped it yet as I'm really overprotective of it but it scratches very easily on the back and also traps finger prints on the screen. I also think that the touch screen is liable to go wrong and it controls the iPod so that if this breaks the whole iPod stops functioning.

Ease of using iTunes
This was the next thing that I did when I got my iPod, it includes Quick Time but I think that the iPod needs to come with a CD rather than having to download it. I think that the interface is really good and it now uses the internet to get all of the album details into your computer which makes it very easy to add more music. The iTunes store is now a great deal better and means that podcasts are more readily available. The insertion of videos is still quite difficult and it needs to be thought about in the next version of Itunes. The CD's are also more easy to upload from this is becuase it lets you check with excellent visibility.

Sound Quality
I am pleased with the headphones that iPod supply, they stay in the ear very well nunlike the originals that came with the iPod mini, this means that there is less fuss. The sound itself is crisp and varied, I think that it is essential to put the rght headphone in the right ear, but they are labelled clearly. The sound can be very loud and also very quiet, this is really good because if you wan tot revise or read you can do and then use the iPod as background noise. I think that the quality is brilliant and is better than any of the previous iPods and is even better than my Ministry of Sound CD player, see other review.

Video Quality
I have put quite a few podcasts on ym Ipod and it has blown me away, I think that it's incredible that you can fit a whole video onto one 3.5inch screen. The main problem is that you can't transfer DVD's straight to your iPod without buying software. I think that the capability to be able to move the angle around is fantastic and takes complete advantage of the touch screen capabilities. There is also no gap between the sound and video which would annoy me if there was. I also think that the quality is so good that it can't be long before they introduce an iplayer software download.

Picture Functionality
This is a really important feature on the iPod touch, but is let down by the lack of Bluetooth to get pictures from a phone or a camera, this takes the quality down slightly as it means that you have to put them on a computer and then put them onto the iPod. When you eventually get the pictures onto the iPod the quality is brilliant and is better than viewing them on paper, it is also good because you can zoom really easily onto one piece by either tapping or dragging. This is incredible and means that you can now view pictures in a completely different way. All the pictures are really easy to find and the small thumbnails are vital.

Interface
The home screen is really easy to navigate to and from when you click the on/off button once it locks the screen, if you hold it down you then have to slide across the screen to turn it off, this is the same when the phone is locked. You can also set a pass code which is very useful if you don't want people to see things on you're iPod. The screen is really sensitive and is perfect for navigation, it is also good because the touch features cover flow. This is when you turn the iPod onto its side and then you can slide your hand across the albums to choose what you want to do. This works for picture, film and video. All of the sections are easy to navigate and has been cleverly designed to allow easy choice.

The Box
I like the box and it shows you what the iPod can do before you even open it. In the box you get a screen wipe, essential as it traps so many fingerprints. Obviously you get an iPod you also get a USB cable but no charger or software. It also comes with a good pair of ear phones.

Weather
This came on the latest software and is really good but it isn't very quick. Despite being useful, you can just get a normal podcast everyday.

Stocks
This is really good and you can keep an eye on your finances whilst on the move. I think that it should be made easier to navigate it though

Clock
This has a great deal of features, firstly you can see the different times in different places, but this could be made easier by being able to just click on the map. You can also set a time watch and can set different lap times. You can also set a timer so that you slide down the amount of hours and minutes; this has another use for seeing how far you can spin the minute reel!!!

Safari
This is the iPods in built internet browser and requires Wi-Fi to work; this is the equivalent of wireless broadband. It is really fast and you can zoom in on each part of the screen. You can use tabbed browsing which means that you can do more than one thing at a time. I like using the iPlayer to watch videos but the problem is that it is easier to do all of the above on a normal computer.

You Tube
This is really good and is extremely easy to navigate because it gives you featured videos to watch. I think that this can be developed by being able to download videos from you tube. The quality of both the video and the sound is top class.

Contacts
It's easy to add people to this and is also easy to access and browse between them. It shows them easily and means that you can see all of the contacts. This is one of the functions that make it more of a PDA

Map
This is really good and reminds me of the AA road planner. The advantage of this is that if you stop in a service station you can stop and use the Wi-Fi to plot the next section of your route and keep it saved into the iPods memory.

Calendar
Really good and you can easily add different events for the day or the time. This is especially good because it means that you can put birthdays in and make them repeat each year. You can also put your birthday in and it will play birthday music to you.

Mail
It gives you most email providers but is lacking hotmail which is probably the most useful. However it does have Yahoo, Google and AOL to name a few. You can add your own mail server if you have good technology knowledge.

Calculator
It's a normal calculator, not scientific but would be quite handy for doing your shopping.

Storage
I chose the 8 GB because it was cheap and it doesn't need to be that big anyway. The other sizes available are the 16 GB and the 32 GB which are much more expensive and personally I don't think it is worth the extra investment, but it depends what you want from an iPod

Notes
This makes the iPod into more of a Personal Organizer; it automatically corrects your mistakes which is good and bad as it sometimes makes it wrong.

Advantages
The iPod truly is lovely and the colour scheme is really well thought about and makes you want to look at it. The sound is also really good and crisp and means that you can listen to the iPod without fiddling with the sound. The pictures are really good and the zoom is brilliant. I think that the new iTunes is also a highlight as is the You Tube.

Disadvantages
There needs to be a charger and an iTunes CD in the box as this would cut down on time taken to get going. I think that being able to download podcasts would be really useful, but I can see why they haven't put this ability in, because it would mean that there would be huge amounts of people downloading large videos. I also think that the reverse scratches far too much and it catches too many fingerprints on it. I think that the value could also be better. I will go through what the iPod actually needs in the next section. I think that it would also be useful to be able to put full DVD's from the DVD drive to the iPod.

What it needs
I think that it could be useful to have a camera as it could match the true quality of the iPod display. I think that Bluetooth would be a good idea, and also for the iPod to double up as a memory stick and then you could keep files safe on it. I think that being able to download videos and podcasts would be useful as it would use broadband from somewhere else. I think that different colours would be good as it could give some more variation.

Comparison to iPods and other MP3 players
The iPod touch is difficult to compare to other MP3 players because there are very few others that are touch screen. I think that Apple has always been far out in front but this completely reflected in the prices. The iPod classics are quite comparable and although not being touch screen they have a very large memory which means that you can put full DVD's on them.

Value for Money
I think that to buy this new would be very expensive but to buy new or used on eBay it is good value. I paid £150 and I think that when I eventually get broadband it will be worth it as I can browse the internet and use the software updates that I have acquired. I think that it is only worth buying when you have broadband. I think that the 8 GB is by far enough as it is difficult to put DVD's on the iPod.

Summary
A truly brilliant revolutionary piece of technology which is current technology dependant to get the best from it you should have broadband in the home. It plays music shows pictures and you can watch videos. I think that it needs Bluetooth or a camera to get better functionality from it. I give it 9/10 as it is let down by a few small problems.

Thanks for Reading my Review
Rhys