As the less-gifted sibling of Apple’s celebrated iPhone, the iPod Touch has had to work hard to prove itself. Now in its second generation, Apple has finally given the iPod Touch a chance to shine by lowering its price (an 8GB model now runs $229), improving the hardware, & practically doubling the features from last year’s original model.

8 things we like about the Apple iPod touch (8GB, 2nd Generation)

• Music gives you satisfaction
• Videos have a nice playback
• Photos pixel are good
• Podcasts options
• Web browsing, email and internet radio
• Games are on for gamers
• Nike+
• Wi-Fi music downloads

2 things we don’t like about the Apple iPod touch (8GB, 2nd Generation)

• Audio quality is average
• Software for iTunes is required

Apple iPod touch (8GB, 2nd Generation) Review

Apple’s updates to the iPod Touch’s design are subtle, but the hardware has definitely changed for the better. A slim volume switch now graces the left edge of the Touch, making it not as hard to make fast volume adjustments. The chromed steel back of the second-generation iPod Touch now mimics the rounded design of the iPhone 3G, giving the device a slimmer profile at its edges.

Minor improvements aside, the second-generation iPod Touch hardware is largely unchanged. Both the first- and second-generation iPod Touch share the same dimensions (4.3 inches by 2.4 inches by 0.31 inch), same glass-covered screen (3.5 inch).

Priced at $229 (8GB), $299 (16GB), and $399 (32GB), the second-generation iPod Touch still commands a high price compared with other MP3 players with similar capacities. When you weigh the price of the iPod Touch against its features, however, the device becomes much more pretty. Provided you can become proficient with its touch-screen keyboard, the iPod Touch is more pocket PC than MP3 player.

As of version 3.0 of Apple’s iPhone and iPod Touch firmware, the device’s stock features are the beginning. The store will be available on your iphone through that you will be able to buy any kind of software music and many other stuff just keep your iphone updated with the latest products you ain’t want to miss a thing.

The Genius feature is easy to use, and the results are fun, provided your music collection holds songs to make interesting connections. With automatic syncing enabled in iTunes you can also transfer them back to your computer.

If you own a first-generation iPod Touch, you can spend $10 to upgrade its firmware to include many of the application capabilities (including Genius playlists) found on the second-generation model. There’s a few features, however, that you’re only going to get on the second-generation. The speaker included on the second-generation iPod Touch is not visible from the outside and its sound quality is far from spectacular. Despite its poor quality, the addition of a speaker makes it not as hard to play games or listen to your morning podcasts without hunting down your headphones. We are also happy to see the inclusion of Nike+ functionality considering the popularity of MP3 players as workout companions. And if you’re interested in making voice memos, using Apple’s Voice Memo feature (OS 3.0 required) or a compatible third-party app.
Web’s more popular content providers are working around the problem by generating specific App Store applications for their content (Pandora Radio and vSnax video are prime examples). They also cannot help but crave the camera and GPS capabilities included on the Touch’s close relative, the iPhone 3G. With any luck, a third-party manufacturer will step in with some clever accessories.

Both the iPod Touch and iPhone let users browse, preview, purchase, and download content from the new iTunes Wi-Fi store. You’ll have to hop onto an available Wi-Fi Web connection to take advantage of the wireless music store, but one times connected, you can search for any artist, album, or song in the iTunes music catalog, audiobooks, and iTunes U educational content. Store purchases need you to enter your iTunes password as a security measure. One times the download is complete, the audio or video is immediately available to listen to and will transfer to your computer’s iTunes music library the next time you sync the device. When its downloading and any interruption in Wi fi, it will reconnect and will start the downloading again.

Having handled our share of touch-screen iPod and iPhone imitators this past year. Tiny things such as album cover art that flips over to reveal track listings, menus that scroll with artificial momentum, and photos that resize with a pinch of your fingers, all illustrate an attention to detail not offered by the iPod’s competitors.

The audio performance is not as good as an ipod. . The balanced and smooth audio quality of the iPod Touch is likely to satisfy the majority of listeners, despite the limited scope of its audio control. There’s still no support for WMA music files, but you can always convert your WMA tracks to MP3 within Apple’s iTunes application.

Pairing the iPod Touch with Bluetooth accessories such as stereo headsets, speaker systems, or automobile stereos is simple, and a record of previously paired devices is stored in the iPod’s Settings menu. The audio quality and wireless range (about 30 feet) using Bluetooth is about what you’d expect from most portable Bluetooth devices, and we are happy to see that the audio from video playback and apps are transmitted over Bluetooth as easily as music playback. They’re disappointed, though, that Apple chose not to fully implement the Bluetooth AVRCP control standards. Users should also note that keeping Bluetooth active on the iPod Touch will take a toll on battery life.

If you’re looking for a way to take video on-the-go, the iPod Touch has a lot to offer. You can load the iPod Touch with video podcasts, TV shows, and iTunes movie rentals. You will feel the difference in viewing the videos it’s much better then the previous one, while color balance and brightness seem about the same. Apple rates the new iPod Touch at 36 hours for music (up from the first-generation’s 22 hours) and 6 hours of video (up from 5 hours). The battery life is even good while watching the videos.

Whatever side of the iTunes debate you take, know that iTunes 8 is a mandatory install for the second-generation iPod Touch. If you haven’t used iTunes before or haven’t upgraded the application in a while, they strongly recommend giving the new application a spin before committing to a new iPod.

Final Words and Conclusion

We think the second-generation iPod Touch is six of the best iPod’s ever made. Inside plus out, the iPod Touch is in a league of its own in the world of portable entertainment. If you have an old, worn-out iPod, plus you’re ready to upgrade, they think the second-generation iPod Touch should be your first consideration.

That said, if you already own an iPhone or an original iPod Touch, it would be hard to justify buying the second-generation Touch. Also, if all you need is a no-frills portable music player, the iPod Touch is probably overkill.

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