iPod generation 5.5: My Thoughts
Better late than never, I am finally posting my thoughts on revision 2 of the 5th generation iPod. I just got one the other day and this isn�t a review but a collection of my likes and dislikes regarding the latest iteration of the iPod family. I have been an iPod owner beginning with the 5Gb 1st generation iPod and every generation �pod� since then. I�m not going to bore you with �when I was your age� stories about battery life and the lack of album artwork but I did want to congratulate and give a �wag the finger� at Apple regarding their latest iPod iteration.
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The latest full size iPod was released in September of 2006 at an Apple special event and not much remains changed. The new iPod was sold in 30 and 80 gigabyte capacities from 30 and 60 gigabytes. The iPod also received a longer video playback of 6.5 hours on the larger version. The two great improvements is support for 640x480 video playback and a brighter screen. This iPod was built for video because that was the day that Apple released its iTunes store with full feature length films for purchase.
The first improvement that I noticed was the huge increase in brightness. I love the new screen for everything that it brings. The new iPod plays movies better than ever and while I�m in the car, I can see the screen without having to spend too much time looking away from the road. The brightness is 50% better in my opinion and if you want to see how much better, just play a video on the new player and hit the select button twice. You can move the slider down to 50% and that�s a good idea of where the previous generation iPod was in terms of brightness.
It appears that the previous full size iPod�s battery provided 20 hours of music playback and 4 hours of video. I thought it was far less but the new high capacity iPod is rated at 20 hours of music and 6.5 hours of video. Of course, this is the �best case scenario� and will diminish if you constantly change tracks, turn on the equalizer or play music with the backlight on. I appreciate the included search feature. Users have anticipated this feature for a long time and its nice to see this inclusion. Now that its there, I don�t know how I ever got along without it.
I still wag my finger at Apple for not supporting PDFs and RAW images on the iPod. I still wish you could save on-the-go play lists with a name other than �new playlist�. A peeve that I�ve almost given up on is the scratch ability of the iPod. I still have to judge case reviews based on how much they scratch the iPod and when Apple is pushing video downloads so heavily, you�d think they�d at least make the screen scratch resistant. I wouldn�t mind a few millimeters of thickness added to the case in exchange for shiny appley goodness throughout the life of the iPod.
COMMENTS
didnt even know i had a 5.5 or that they had even changed them. good to know
20 hours seems pretty genorious, i get about 15 hours on my 30gig and thats going from one podcast to the next (no video).
i left the screen protector on mine and i bought a case for it so hopefully thatll prevent any scratches. still seems pretty dumb that you spend $250 on something that scratches so easy
apple should fix it when they come out with the next ipod. im definetly looking forward to an iphone like ipod with the widescreen and the cool little finger hover jog
Adam, my I bring your attention to this:
"The new iPod plays movies better than ever and while I�m in the car, I can see the screen without having to spend too much time looking away from the road."
Well it's illegal to use a cell phone, whilst driving - but is this the same situation as using a 'video' iPod whilst driving?
Jason, yes they did update them in September for the Christmas season. The iPods have always been scratch prone and its difficult to make a device that doesn't scratch, is not ugly and can still withstand pocket change. The zune does that by using a rubber outside skin but it picks up lint very easily.
The 30gb models to get a slightly less battery life, from what I've heard.
Sam, it's not ilegal yet to have a DVD player, GPS, radio and laptop computer all at your dashboard yet. Plus no one can really see a movie is playing when we're on the highway, it just looks like an iPod mounted that is turned on and could be playing anything. There are also holders for the PSP and you can use an FM transmitter to play movies and whatever content is on there through your speakers as well.
driving while on a cell phone are only illegal in some states.
in most states tho the driver isnt suppose to be in view of a tv screen while its playing, you can have it just not watch it (just the passengers can watch)
interesting. Thanks for the update Jason.
