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Apple iPod touch (8GB; second generation)

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Features

Priced at S$388 (US$279.92) (8GB), S$498 (US$359.28) (16GB), and S$648 (US$467.50) (32GB), the second-generation iPod touch still commands a fairly 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 attractive. Out of the box, the second-generation iPod touch includes an amazing music player, podcast support, video playback (including iTunes rentals and a YouTube player), a Safari Web browser, photo viewer, an email reader (compatible with Outlook, Exchange, MobileMe, Gmail, Yahoo, AOL, or any POP email service), an integrated Wi-Fi music store, and a host of smaller utilities (weather, calendar, maps, stocks, notes, clock, contacts, and calculator). Provided you can become proficient with its touch-screen keyboard, the iPod touch is more pocket PC than MP3 player.

As of version 2.0 of Apple's iPhone and iPod touch firmware, the device's stock features are just the beginning. The new iTunes App Store, accessible from your computer or directly from the iPod touch, lets users download and install thousands of applications, including Internet radio players, games, voice recorders, and social-networking tools. You can also extend the capabilities of the iPod touch using third-party "Made for iPod" hardware accessories such as Bluetooth transmitters, audio/video docks, external battery packs, and speaker systems.


Competing MP3 players like the Samsung P2 (right) do an admirable job emulating Apple's touch-screen control. But when push comes to shove, it's easy to tell which of the two companies has more experience with software design.
The second-generation of the iPod touch also introduces Apple's new Genius feature, which lets you create an instant 25-song playlists based on the musical characteristics of a single song. The Genius feature is easy to use, and the results are fun, provided your music collection holds enough songs to make interesting connections. You can create and save Genius playlists directly onto your iPod touch, and with automatic syncing enabled in iTunes you can also transfer them back to your computer. Oddly, the Touch's Genius feature won't work if you haven't enabled Genius on your computer's iTunes software. If you find iTunes' Genius feature too demanding on your computer's resources or too invasive of your privacy (the feature reports your listening habits to Apple), then you'll need to live without the feature on your iPod as well.

If you own a first-generation iPod touch, you can spend US$10 to upgrade its firmware to include all of the software capabilities (including Genius playlists) found on the second-generation model. There are three features, however, that you're only going to get on the second-generation Touch: a built-in speaker, Nike+ support, and headphone jack microphone input. The speaker included on the second-generation iPod touch isn't visible from the outside and its sound quality is far from spectacular. Despite its poor quality, the addition of a speaker makes it easier to play games or listen to your morning podcasts without hunting down your headphones. We're 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, an investment in a compatible iPod microphone headset (due out in October) will allow you to make voice recordings directly to the iPod touch, provided that third-party developers begin creating voice applications specific to the touch.


Competing MP3 players like the Samsung P2 (right) do an admirable job emulating Apple's touch-screen control. But when push comes to shove, it's easy to tell which of the two companies has more experience with software design.
We're still disappointed that the iPod touch still can't stream Flash video or audio content through its Safari browser; however, many of the Web's more popular content providers are working around the problem by creating specific App Store applications for their content (Pandora Radio and vSnax video are prime examples). We also can't 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.

iTunes Wi-Fi
Both the iPod touch and iPhone let users browse, preview, purchase, and download music from the new iTunes Wi-Fi music store. The store is limited strictly to music downloads--no movies, TV shows, podcasts, or games--at least, not yet. You'll have to hop onto an available Wi-Fi Internet connection to take advantage of the wireless music store, but once connected, you can search for any artist, album, or song in the iTunes catalog, as well as browse by genre, top sellers, featured artists, and new releases. Store purchases require you to enter your iTunes password as a security measure. Once the download is complete, the song is immediately available to listen to and will transfer to your computer's iTunes music library the next time you sync the device. The feature seems to work without any kinks. Even interrupted downloads pick up once a Wi-Fi connection is re-established.

 
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