Apple iPod Touch

reck_uk

sarmia wrote: »

reck_uk wrote: »

Hi Sarmia,

Do you think this will be a lot more than the current one, I can only just afford the 2nd gen?

Sarmia I agree with Marty J, I can't see it being any more than the current model, if anything they may lower the price.

Morporkian

Marty_J wrote: »

They'll also probably sell the remainder of their current models on the Apple Refurb Store.

Thank you for this link! I was searching for it the other day and apparently my eyes just could not find it.

Marty_J

reck_uk wrote: »

I don't think it's down to the animation, there is a noticeable delay before the animation even starts playing. With the Zune HD the display just flows with the movement of the device with no delay. Surely Apple wouldn’t of deliberately slowed down the rotation of the display via the animation speed. Even before I saw the Zune HD this is one of the things I found slightly irritating on the touch.

It's possible the delay was built in in order to minimise any accidental flipping of the device. I'm only guessing here, but it can run some pretty graphically intensive games now (intensive for an mp3 player anyway), so I can't see it struggling with flipping a photo around.

I just imported a tiny little black and white image I made in Photoshop, and the delay is still there, so I can only assume it's intentional.

The iPod Touch currently uses the PowerVR MBX Lite (made by a British company btw), and its replacement will probably use a newer chip, such as the current iPhone's PowerVR SGX, and it'll probably get a RAM upgrade too.

The iPhone is capable of playing back 1080p video, and its main chip, a Samsung S5PC100 with an ARM Cortex A8 CPU, has a built-in 720p codec and also supports HDMI.

A software update and a snazzy new HDMI dock might be all that is required.

I was all set to buy my first ipod touch when the 3rd gen comes out but then I saw the Zune HD I don’t know what to do now. Ideally I’d like a mixture of the 2, the Zune HD’s hardware with it’s nice cpu and oled screen and the apple’s software with the better browser and access to the app store. I’ll just have to wait a few weeks and see what Apple brings out. I don’t think it’ll be as nice, hardware wise, as the Zune but if they can get close I’ll probably still but an ipod.

I think waiting to see what Apple do (and how the Zune HD pans out) is probably your best bet.

Jakg

FWIW you can't upgrade the iPod Touches memory later.

What stereo does he have in the van? Does it have Aux-In or a tape?

Scrilla

Morporkian wrote: »

Oh and yes you will need some cables for hooking up to anything else. Pretty much everywhere sells them. Take a look on the Apple website for what you will need and then go searching online/in the high street to find them cheaper, as their website is obviously far more expensive. (This applies to both iPod Classic and iTouch)

Selection from Amazon.

buglawton

OP mentioned using this in a camper van. Half of the point of the iPod Touch (I have one) is the wireless connectivity that allows you to check email, surf the web and use BBC's iPlayer from the bedside. On the road travelling none of those would be possible. Because of the large touch screen (again, mainly useful for using the internet applications via Wifi) it's also quite a delicate item.

Marty_J

buglawton wrote: »

OP mentioned using this in a camper van. Half of the point of the iPod Touch (I have one) is the wireless connectivity that allows you to check email, surf the web and use BBC's iPlayer from the bedside. On the road travelling none of those would be possible.

I assume the OP's other half, in addition to having a camper van, also has some sort of building to live in.

Because of the large touch screen (again, mainly useful for using the internet applications via Wifi) it's also quite a delicate item.

Delicate?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3WdxvwjARPk

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WgyB-YVDE6Y

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FUR70xhmqv4

Scrilla

Marty_J wrote: »

Delicate?

Not durable enough! :rotfl:

That's what your links reminded me of

buglawton wrote: »

OP mentioned using this in a camper van. Half of the point of the iPod Touch (I have one) is the wireless connectivity that allows you to check email, surf the web and use BBC's iPlayer from the bedside.

I personally think part of the attraction of the Touch and iPhone are what they can do even without a net connection.

reck_uk

Marty_J wrote: »

It's possible the delay was built in in order to minimise any accidental flipping of the device.

That's interesting, it's good to know its not down to limitations of the hardware. I still prefer the instant feedback of the Zune though. It just makes it feel a lot more responsive and less sluggish.

If it's a software setting and not a hardware limitation maybe there is a setting or hack that can be altered to speed up the rotation speed.

Marty_J wrote: »

its replacement will probably use a newer chip, such as the current iPhone's PowerVR SGX, and it'll probably get a RAM upgrade too.

A faster cpu, more memory and an oled screen are all i'm after. I'm not bothered about a camera which is all i've heard rumour wise regarding the new ipod.

Marty_J wrote: »

I think waiting to see what Apple do (and how the Zune HD pans out) is probably your best bet.

I think longer term once Microsoft have got a better online store for music and apps and developers have had chance to populate it with apps the Zune could give the itouch a run for its money.

At the moment Apple are over charging (nothing new there) and they have a crap system for authenticating apps. The most annoying is not allowing developers to create applications that provide the same or similar functionality that already exists via apple applications, even if they are better. Google are having problems getting their cool google voice app on and there are concerns that spotify may not make it on because it'll impact itunes. I remember the story of a developer spending a long time writing a podcast application which when submitted to the app store was denied because apple wanted to provide that functionality themselves, what about letting the customers decide which application to use.

I don't know why they don't just make it an open system, after all you don't need Apple's permission to load software on your mac.

In the short term i'm almost certainly going to get the next gen ipod touch, but it'll be interesting to see what options are out there in a couple of years. At the end of the day the more competition the better when it comes to us consumers.

Marty_J

reck_uk wrote: »

A faster cpu, more memory and an oled screen are all i'm after. I'm not bothered about a camera which is all i've heard rumour wise regarding the new ipod.

Speeds bumps are almost certain. An OLED screen is less so. Apple haven't used it in any of their devices, though they have to start somewhere I guess. Apple does have a patent for an OLED keyboard that can change what is displayed on each key, so they have been playing with the technology.

I think longer term once Microsoft have got a better online store for music and apps and developers have had chance to populate it with apps the Zune could give the itouch a run for its money.

Well it's hard to conjecture like that, but the iPod is very deeply entrenched, and Apple sell more of them in 3 months than Microsoft have sold Zunes period. This despite having the world's largest software company behind it, having three years to make a dent in the market, being comparatively priced to Apple's offerings, and besting the iPod in a number of features. The Zune is a perfectly fine music player, but it's not revolutionary, and that's why it failed to gain any traction in the market.

If the Zune HD is going to take on the iPod Touch, it's going to have to be way better than it. Not just a bit better, but a lot better.

And of course, it's not compatible with Macs. Now, I know on the surface it looks as though Macs have a tiny market share, so it's not worth bothering with them, but if you dig a little deeper, you'll see it isn't so. Macs have some 5 - 10% market share (depending on who you ask). If we eliminate all the Windows computers that are in use in businesses and doing duty as cash registers and the like, that percentage jumps quite a bit. If we also consider that young people are more likely to use an mp3 player than older people, and they're also more likely to use a Mac (Apple laptops are the most popular computers in US colleges), then that percentage jumps again.

In short, by not supporting the Mac, Microsoft are ensuring that a key segment of the market for mp3 players will never, never ever ever, buy a Zune no matter how wonderful it is.

At the moment Apple are over charging (nothing new there)

I think their prices are pretty comparable to Microsoft's.

and they have a crap system for authenticating apps. The most annoying is not allowing developers to create applications that provide the same or similar functionality that already exists via apple applications, even if they are better. Google are having problems getting their cool google voice app on and there are concerns that spotify may not make it on because it'll impact itunes. I remember the story of a developer spending a long time writing a podcast application which when submitted to the app store was denied because apple wanted to provide that functionality themselves, what about letting the customers decide which application to use.

I agree that the system may not be perfect, but developers do agree to the T&Cs, which makes me wonder why someone would turn around and break them, then cry about what happens.

I don't know why they don't just make it an open system, after all you don't need Apple's permission to load software on your mac.

It's a little bit different though. With the iPhone, Apple have to agree to the carrier's T&Cs, which they have to police if they want to have an app store. For instance, AT&T's terms prohibit Apple from allowing any application to originate a VoIP call over their network. So, Google Voice went bye bye.

In the short term i'm almost certainly going to get the next gen ipod touch, but it'll be interesting to see what options are out there in a couple of years. At the end of the day the more competition the better when it comes to us consumers.

I totally agree. I hope other companies continue to nibble at Apple's heels, forcing them to improve their products.