iPod... Do You?

On October 5th of this year I turned 24. I knew my boyfriend had been scheming something up by the way he'd been acting lately, and I was anxious to see if he had planned what I was wishing for... After we both got home from work that evening he asked if I wanted my birthday present now or later. "NOW!" I of course said, and he held out his hand. Oh my gosh, I kept thinking, and it seemed to take me 30 minutes to stretch out my own palm and receive what I'd been waiting for for so long. Into my hand he dropped a small box, just as I knew he would. I looked down into my palm, wondering what the ring would look like... but instead I found the new, green 3rd generation Apple iPod Nano. Ha! Not an engagement, but definitely good enough for me!

I've been wanting an iPod secretly for... well, since about the time they first hit the market. I would have taken anything, really... iPod Classic, Shuffle, Nano... whatever, I just wanted one. I love the sleek look Apple products generally have, and the ability to create and manage playlists really enticed me. I've had a few other mp3 players, but never actually broke down and bought an iPod of any sort. My ever-loving boyfriend listened to me whine about how bad I wanted one (So, so bad. So bad.) and, while it wasn't one of the massive-storage-capacity models, I still fell in love with it... before I even opened the tiny box.

Contents

My beautiful, green (my favorite color!) iPod Nano came in a small, clear box with everything I needed right there. I loosened the Nano from it's plastic holster first, then found underneath a USB cable, the earbuds, some Apple stickers (they sure do work the trademark, eh?), and a small instruction booklet.

So You Say It Plays Music?

The Apple iPod Nano 3rd generation has come a long way since the previous Nanos, and even further since the first chunky versions of the original iPod. In fact, the Apple website dubs it "one small big attraction." The Apple iPod Nano 3rd generation weighs only 7.4 ounces and is 0.26 inches thin; small and light enough that I often forget its in my pocket (and freak out when I can't find it) and it comes in five colors: black, grey, green, red, and blue. It has a new, improved 2-inch viewing screen with 320 by 240 resolution (the most pixels-per-inch of any Apple display so far), as well as a new, improved interface, making it easy for first-time iPod users. With 8gb of space, the new nano claims to be able to store up 2000 songs, but you can also store, view and listen to videos (music videos, TV shows, movies), photos, games, and podcasts with a suggested 24-hour battery life. What more could you ask for in such a tiny package?

iPod... Do You?

As I said before, this is my first-ever iPod, though I've had a few other (cheaper) mp3 players. While I've always wanted an actual Apple iPod, I was hesitant to get one as they're always coming out with newer, better models, and I'm reluctant to spend a large amount of money on something that may be irrelevant within one year. I'm extremely happy, however, with my 3rd generation iPod Nano. With the combination of music, video, and a relatively large capacity, I'm able to store quite a large portion of my music collection (currently 1545 songs at 5.56gb, to be exact) a movie (1.21gb), a podcast and a few games, and still have a little "growing space" left over. Also, I've yet to run the battery completely down, and there have been several times when I've left it playing for around 12 hours and still had about half a battery left. In my opinion, it also charges quite quickly- I've never had to wait more than 20 minutes for it to completely charge, but again, that could be because I've never run it completely down. One of my favorite things about my new iPod is the amount of freedom I have to use it the way I like.

There are several features I really enjoy about the 3rd generation iPod Nano. One of my favorite ways to show of my new toy is the coverflow, a feature first seen on iTunes. The coverflow feature allows me to scroll through the music content of my iPod by album cover; a unique visual feature that not only shows off the album artwork, but also allows for easier selection (after all, so many of us are more visual, and album artwork is what we remember best about our CDs!). I love how small and slight my iPod is; I'm literally able to take it anywhere without it adding any noticeable weight to my person. I'm able to store pictures on it, so I now have other options of showing off my nephew rather than just relying on my phone (... it has terrible picture quality) or an actual stack of photos. The 3rd generation iPod nano is so easy to use... I was slightly disappointed when I opened the package and saw minimal instructions that were mostly pictures. However, in the five minutes I took to "read" the instructions, I felt very confident that whatever it did not say, I'd be able to easily figure out.

I wasn't able to put any music/movies/TV shows/podcasts/games (wshew!) on my iPod for about a week; my boyfriend and I just moved and the one thing we don't have (that I really, really itch for) is a computer. Lucky for me, I have a nice friend who offered to put a few (100!!) songs on it for me. I followed him to his computer, watched him connect it, and literally two minutes later I had the earbuds in and the music blasting for me and only me. Needless to say, I listened to those 100 songs about 100 times apiece the first few days. I finally was able to start putting my own music collection on my iPod, and continue to customize my music pretty much daily. With iTunes I've created customized playlists and downloaded the album artwork I prefer. I've also ventured past the music to the movies and TV shows and have been having a lot of fun showing them off to my jealous friends and watching them. I've also learned how to make playlists for my movies and TV shows. The simple instructions were very appealing to me; I like to figure new toys out by myself, and I had just enough help.

In most cases the third generation Apple iPod Nano should be easy enough to figure out, however, people unfamiliar with this kind of technology may get stressed at the lack of instructions. While it doesn't really bother me, this is possibly one of it's biggest downfalls. Another downer is that the way Apple expects you to charge the Apple iPod Nano is by connecting it to a computer with the included USB cable. While this works well, it's annoying for people who don't always have a computer handy (ahem... ME). Luckily for me, our home stereo system has a docking station for iPods, enabling me to charge it whenever I need to. Not everyone has this option, however.

Overall I highly suggest the new 3rd generation Apple iPod Nano to anyone looking to buy an iPod but not necessarily wanting to spend the big bucks on the bulkier versions. Featured in several magazines and on covers just in the last few months (Consumer Reports Magazine, Billboard Magazine, MacWorld Magazine) it's plain to see why and how the 3rd gen. iPod Nano is so popular. It's ease of use and relatively large storage space combined with it's new, improved features (coverflow, an enhanced resolution screen), and tiny size make this the perfect iPod for new iPod-ders.

In a Nutshell:

Sound - Very good, but could be improved upon. Many of my CDs that have skips in them (and even some that won't play at all on most of my CD players) play quite nicely on my iPod. There are a few occasions where there will be minor skips or fuzziness to the sound, but overall the sound quality is above par, even when the volume is turned up high. This iPod has an mp3 bit-rate of 16 kbps - 320 kbps and a frequency response of 20 Hz - 20,000 Hz.

Ease of Use - As I stated above, the new Apple iPod Nano is extremely easy to use. The instructions included are adequate enough for those most novice mp3-player users, and this new iPod is very simple to figure out. Menus and options are labelled clearly.

Durability - Thankfully this new iPod is durable enough that the dozen (or more...) times I've dropped it haven't caused it any damage. I'm merely 5 feet tall, so granted I generally don't drop it from a high distance, but it has taken tumbled on anything from thick carpetting to rough concrete. Because the screen is such a large (and obviously valuable) part of the iPod, I would suggest buying some kind of carrying case, as it is definitely possible to scratch and scuff the screen and body of it. However, the tumbles my iPod has taken so far haven't caused any noticable damage.

Portablility - This iPod is so small and weightless I don't even notice it when I have it in my pocket. It is incredibly easy to take-along in a purse or pocket without taking up any space at all. This teeny iPod has a width of 2.06 inches, a heighth of 2.75 inches, and a depth of only 0.26 inches. It weighs only .74 ounces.

Battery Life - The battery life is suggested to be 24 hours. I've fallen asleep for a good eight hours with my Apple iPod Nano on and upon waking noticed that the on-screen battery display showed only about a third of the battery was used. I've noticed video uses more battery than just music (obviously). The rechargeable lithium battery charges very quickly via the included USB cable, though you can also charge it with other accessories, such as a car kit, or some stereo systems.


By the way, my boyfriend asked my father the following day for his permission to marry me. How old fashioned! Turns out he HAD been scheming, but the new rental has him a little short on cash. I hear through the grapevine it won't be long, but I'm still waiting for that tiny (non-iPod) box...



**UPDATE- For Christmas I bought my fiance a new, black 3 G 8 GB iPod Nano. He's incredibly happy with it, and I'm incredibly happy that he finally proposed :)

As this is my first electronics review, please let me know via email or comments what changes/additions you suggest.