What is the difference between iPod Touch different models or the evolution of iPod Touch. The evolution of the iPod. A Brief History of the iPod. New iPod Touch

In its sixth incarnation, the iPod received a solid Classic prefix. It was deservedly received, because over the years of its existence it has truly become a classic of jukeboxes.

Other models experimented with the form factor; they were at the forefront of the fight for a new audience, a fight that was successful for the company and made it a market leader. But Apple remembers where it all began, what the first iPods were like, the very ones that formed the foundation of today’s prosperity. These were capacious players for those who lovingly collected multi-gigabyte music collections. Nothing superfluous: just a hard drive, a clear display, a high-quality audio path and a proprietary control system. From the mechanical wheel in the very first iPod to the ClickWheel, as we see it in the new models from Cupertino.

Naturally, over the years of six generations, the classic iPod has changed quite a lot. But the most important components, listed just above, have not gone away; they have only changed in the spirit of the times. The disk capacity increased from twenty gigabytes to one hundred and sixty, the display first became color and then suitable for watching videos, and the controls received touch elements and evolved to be as convenient as possible. The sound has also improved, although not much, since the player has always had decent sound.

Nevertheless, for all six years, the iPod remained a familiar “to the eye” white (and then black and silver) “brick”, which became an element of a short but era. The player has appeared in countless films and video clips, appeared on the pages of all notable magazines and almost became on a par with cowboys, cars, McDonald's and Coca-Cola as a symbol of the American way of life. True, many people, those who supported the device from the first models, see it as one of the locomotives of the “digital revolution”. The player is initially associated with the Internet generation, those who grew up on the Internet and cannot imagine themselves without it. It’s not for nothing that Apple has already released a model designed to work with the Internet and on the Internet - no other way, soon they will get their hands on the classics.

Today, the sixth generation iPod is still the same recognizable player in the world. It received another “face lift,” thereby closing the theme of white plastic, which has become iconic for the company and is still associated specifically with Apple. Since the beginning of September 2007, two versions of the iPod Classic have been produced and sold, with 80 and 160 GB disks. In all other respects, both options differ only in dimensions.

Functionally, the devices remained the same; some modern features common to Classic and Nano were added, such as support for Cover Flow and a new, modified menu. In any case, the possibilities and features, both old and new, will not hide from our eyes.

Case and design

With the release of the sixth generation iPod, it became clear that plastic had finally lost its position in the eyes of Apple designers and designers. All currently produced models have metal cases with a minimum of plastic parts. It would seem that what's wrong with this? There is nothing bad, but looking at the metal iPod Classic, you can think and feel a little nostalgic: for five generations in a row, the main color of the iPod was milky white. This color is inextricably linked both with a series of players and with other Apple products: computers, laptops and all kinds of accessories. However, apparently, the company believes that the idea has exhausted its usefulness, and lately they have been actively moving away from boring material. If we talk about the iPod, then about two years ago, with the release of the fifth generation, the player received a black version “officially” for the first time. Before this, there was only a limited edition of U2 edition players with black and red colors. Now the iPod has changed from white to silver, and the black version has replaced plastic with anthracite-colored metal.

The company's new choice is largely controversial, although, of course, within Apple, I am sure, there will be a lot of arguments in favor of silver metal; it is unlikely that the company would have taken such an important step without first thoroughly researching user expectations. Apparently, even today, mass preferences go in circles, and a full revolution is completed, depending on the area, in 5-10 years. There is no other way to explain why the silver color appealed to manufacturers so much, if years ago we already saw and have not yet forgotten silver players, silver phones, silver home audio-video and household appliances, and so on and so forth. The list can be continued almost indefinitely. Any options during the dominance of silver around were received with a bang, including the two most universal colors, black and white. White players, phones and laptops still attract glances and attract attention, but now, apparently, other manufacturers will take up their use while Apple is experimenting with black and silver. Perhaps the silvery color seems secondary only to me, so it would be useful to add a postscript: all of the above is the personal opinion of the author. The following, however, too.

Structurally, the case consists of two panels, both of them are metal, but have differences in the execution technology. The front panel has a slightly rough anodized finish, the back panel is polished to a mirror finish, as is traditional for an iPod. Unfortunately, as practice shows, this coating tends to become covered with a network of small scratches and lose its original shine. Apple has already received complaints about the susceptibility of its players to scratches, but, apparently, a mirror finish is more expensive for its designers. Or making a one-piece structure like the second generation Nano with Classic dimensions is extremely unprofitable.

The arrangement of all elements on the body is the same; fortunately, Apple understands the value of preserving an already streamlined layout in relation to the model with the Classic prefix. On the front panel there is a horizontally oriented display, below it is a ClickWheel. There is quite a lot of free space between the elements, but it is traditionally not occupied by anything. Both side panels and the back panel are left free, the proprietary dock connector is located on the bottom end, and the lock switch and headphone jack are located on the top. As you can see, everything is in its place, where you would expect to find the desired element. Frankly, for the first couple of days after I received samples of the new Nano and Classic, the latter sat in the box. And it was all the more pleasant to discover that the lock switch remained where it was before, and no evil genius began to move it to the bottom end of the case, as was done with the Nano.

There’s not much to say about the player’s design; it’s not for nothing that it’s called classic. The old rectangular shape has not gone away. ClickWheel is already inseparable from the player and almost acts as the main element. Relatively expensive jukeboxes are traditionally aimed at the more solvent and, accordingly, adult segment of the audience, and the iPod Classic is no exception. Therefore, its design is universal and everyday, it will be appropriate everywhere and will not say too much about the owner. However, a similar trend in design today All manufacturers of the top five are actively exploiting them, their products today look much more “mature” and more elegant than just two years ago. Still, portable media players have become established as a product, and today everyone buys them, and not just those same Internet enthusiasts who are talking about. I mentioned at the beginning of the text.

Control

This section can be safely copied from previously written reviews, since the ClickWheel operating scheme remains unchanged in several generations of Apple players. In light of the smaller ClickWheel on the new Nano, it's worth mentioning that the dimensions of the element on the iPod Classic have not changed, they are exactly the same as on previous models. Accordingly, the work scheme remained the same, as well as convenience. There are no complaints about the performance of a single ClickWheel on the tested sample, the element in its socket does not play and works like a clock, although I have already seen references on the Internet about a somewhat careless installation of the ClickWheel in some Nano and Classic batches. Perhaps these are the costs of the first batches, perhaps they are just rumors.

For those who have never held an iPod in their hands, as usual, a description of how ClickWheel works: the “rim” of the wheel is sensitive, it is very convenient to move your finger along it in different directions, this way you can scroll through lists and menus. The button in the center is used to confirm the selection. In addition to touch functions, the “wheel rim” also contains four buttons. Two of them are used to switch between songs, the rest are for calling up the menu and returning to the previous level, starting and stopping playback. There are other applications, but these are unnecessary details. They are mastered during operation, and no effort is required.

Observation in practice: the surface of the ClickWheel, compared to the iPod 5G, has become rougher and, it seems to me, a little less sensitive. This does not bring a noticeable decrease in convenience, but it would still not be superfluous to indicate this fact.

Display and menu

The Classic is equipped with the same diagonal and resolution display as the previous two generations, the fifth and “fifth and a half”, namely two and a half inches diagonal and 320x240 pixel resolution. In general, compared to the new Nano, where the same resolution is squeezed into two inches, the Classic does not look very advanced, but that’s why it’s a classic, so as not to rush into the avant-garde. Additionally, VGA would require a larger (and significantly more expensive) display, and intermediate resolutions are generally better suited to widescreen displays. And for those who like higher resolutions, Apple already offers its advanced iPod Touch.

In any case, the Classic display provides a very pleasant “picture” with rich and rich colors, it seems that it is brighter than the displays of its predecessors. This is quite possible, fortunately progress does not stand still, and the official website specifically emphasizes the presence of LED backlighting on the display.

The updated menu looks great too. The signature smooth fonts were complemented by “polished” graphic icons and a background. The list of sections and items now takes up about half of the display. And the second half displays either graphic icons corresponding to an item or section, or, in the case of photos and videos, part of a randomly selected photo or frame from a video. The icons from Apple designers turned out to be very smooth, attractive, and can be appreciated in the screenshots. The backing also looks pretty good, but its appearance depends on the image quality of the album cover or the resolution/compression level of the video. If on the two-inch Nano display this is almost imperceptible, then on the noticeably larger Classic display the image flaws are proportionally more visible. However, pictures for albums can always be replaced, and videos can be found in better quality. The display and menu will remain the same.

The convenience of the menu has remained at the same high level, all elements are in place, and mastering the menu is still easy. The ability to customize items and sections of the main menu has not gone away; their list remains the same, with “video” and “podcast” sections added. Additionally, unlike the new Nano, the Classic now has a Cover Flow option in the main menu rather than the Music section.

So, the default composition of the main menu is: Music, Cover Flow, Videos, Photos, Podcasts, Extras, Settings, Shuffle Songs and Now Playing.

Music. From here, playlists are called up, music is sorted by artist name, album title, song title, genre and author of the music. There is also a song search function item, as well as a new “trick”: viewing album covers, familiar from the iPhone called Cover Flow.

Cover Flow. View all available album covers, select an album to play by cover.

Videos. Watching videos. All files are divided into simple videos, TV programs and video clips (refer to the iTunes store). Here you can also call up video playlists and configure parameters such as video output image format, full-screen playback and subtitle activation.

Photo. Contains all the folders with downloaded images, as well as all the associated settings, from the time between switching slides to the choice of accompanying music, repeat, activation of shuffle and choice of transition type.

Extras. Additional player functions: appearance and settings of the system clock, games, notebook, organizer, notes, stopwatch, alarm clock and password.

Settings. The most voluminous section of the menu, it contains settings for all aspects of the player’s functioning. From this section you can view information about the firmware version, configure the main menu, enable random playback of songs, select repeat playback mode, adjust the backlight operating time and playback speed of audiobooks. In addition, there are settings for the address book, system date and time, and menu language. Separate items allow you to enable or disable trial playback modes, automatic creation of compilations and signals from the built-in speaker - by default it emits quiet clicks when working with the touch area.

Power and PC connection

Continuity is observed here too. The Classic has a built-in lithium-ion battery.

It charges via USB, but if you wish, you can purchase a network adapter, branded or not. It is unlikely that the battery capacity has increased much, but the operating time has increased significantly - for this alone you can award a lot of prize points to Apple. The numbers speak for themselves; to be honest, I have only one explanation for such a significant increase: the transition to a new, much more cost-effective platform. The fifth-generation iPod with a 30 GB drive lasted 14 hours on a single charge, while the Classic with an 80 GB drive and similar dimensions lasted 30 hours. And the 180 GB version lasted 40 hours. The data is for audio and video, both players play 5 and 7 hours respectively.

Traditionally, for all iPods, files for transportation can be recorded on the player like on any removable media (you need to activate the appropriate mode in iTunes), but you won’t be able to view/listen to them on the player. All media is recorded on Classic via iTunes. As I already complained in the review of the third generation Nano, one version of iTunes replaces another, and the “built-in” video converter for all common types of files never appears in them. Apparently, Apple expects that users will receive all video content from iTunes, and it is 100% reproduced on the company’s players. But in Russia, the new Nano and Classic will come with a disc with iTunes, so as not to cause unnecessary complaints from those who still pay for each megabyte of traffic or do not have constant access to the Network at all. For those who are thinking about how to ultimately convert video for the player, I recommend going to Google with a request like “free video converter for ipod.”

The copying speed of devices with a hard drive is traditionally higher than that of their flash counterparts. For the iPod Classic it is approximately 12-15 MB per second, which is very good.

Video, photo, other functions

Still, the half-inch difference in the display diagonal makes a big difference, and it’s still a little more comfortable to watch video on the Classic than on the Nano. True, some coding artifacts and individual pixels are already becoming visible, although perhaps the impression of the Nano is simply still vivid in memory.

I spoke a little higher about the fact that the videos will have to be recoded, so we will start from the fact that a couple of dozen videos and films have already been recoded and “uploaded” to the player. Loading movies before playback takes minimal time and is almost unnoticeable, but otherwise we have the same good old iPod 5G. You can watch the video on the TV screen, that’s basically all the settings. The navigation interface inside the video is clear and familiar. Those who see it for the first time are unlikely to spend any significant time mastering it. Like the Nano, the Classic supports video with a resolution of up to 640x480, although I don’t see the point in storing videos at this resolution on the player’s disk; it is still limited by the display resolution. Although they may be useful for showing others on a large display, so it’s up to the owner to decide. The main thing is not to forget to purchase the required cable.

In general, you can watch movies from the player, I personally watched my favorite Human Traffic while lying in bed, but this activity is still not for everyone. I have repeatedly said that relative comfort begins at three and a half inches (a sample of one such player from Apple is already rushing to the editor at full speed, so keep an eye on the site).

As far as technical aspects are concerned, everything is calm: the video is smooth, the sound is not in a hurry and does not lag, frames do not disappear, “there are no brakes.” It’s unlikely that something like this can be expected from pre-recoded and “tailored” videos for the player.

Photo browsing is traditional for the company's players; if you've seen one, you've seen them all. When you select a folder, fifteen thumbnails are displayed on the display; you can even see some details on them. You can switch between photos by pressing the ClickWheel or using the touch “rim”. If you click play, the slideshow will start. There are quite enough possibilities; no extra “chips” were added to the viewing experience. But, like all new iPods, you can choose the type of transition for a slide show; the effects are well executed and interesting to watch. The value of this little thing increases significantly when viewing photos on a TV or any external monitor.

As expected, the player does not have a voice recorder or FM tuner, but there are new games Vortex, Klondike and Music Quiz 2. Vortex is a rather interesting game and deserves attention. Its essence can be briefly described as a pseudo-three-dimensional circular arkanoid, when the ball flies “deep” into the display, and the racket moves around the circle, obeying the movements of the finger on the ClickWheel.

Klondike is a classic solitaire game, no less, no more. But Music Quiz now not only asks questions about the music recorded in the player, but also has a separate database of questions dedicated to music and cinema.

The rest of the additional functions have not gone away; the player still has a fairly decent calendar and a stopwatch, which can suddenly come in handy. There is a function for reading notes, with its help you can read guidebooks or regular books.

Sound

Regular, classic iPods in the Apple line have always been standards for sound quality and volume; this also applies to almost any jukeboxes that are traditionally equipped with high-quality audio paths. But with the Classic the situation turned out to be difficult. The fact is that the sample that ended up in our tenacious hands, turned out to be European, intended for sale in Europe, including in France, where, as you know, there are strict restrictions on the output level of portable audio. This is how one single France ruins everyone’s life. No, you. Of course, you can disagree with me and open my eyes to the fact that this is how the health of citizens is taken care of. To which I will answer no less reasonably: adult citizens have the right to manage their own health at their own discretion, as long as it does not interfere with those around them. , who have not reached the age of majority, there are parents or official guardians who are obliged to instill in children and adolescents a desire for self-preservation. But no, it’s easier to limit the volume, and in one fell swoop for all countries, instead of selling “cropped” players in France and in all others. countries - full-fledged.

What am I talking about? And besides, due to artificial limitations, I cannot reliably tell readers how powerful the sound of the iPod Classic is. There is no doubt, the sample plays quite loudly, it easily pumps up the in-ear headphones, but it lags behind the combat editorial iPod 5G by about a third, if not more. And jukeboxes, which include Classic, are very often bought in order to listen through large over-ear headphones. I don’t know about others, but in the case of the Audio-Technica ATH-A500, on which I listened to it, the result was not impressed.

One thing is good: officially in Russia it is the “loud” versions that are and will be sold, but if the player is “gray”, then you can make a mistake. Therefore, I recommend large and trusted stores. In addition, for those who plan for the iPod Classic to be their first jukebox, I can report that Apple is unlikely to make the new player quieter than the old one, and the aforementioned iPod 5G boasts a very decent output level.

Separately, it is necessary to say about the results of the RMAA test: the fact is that the program has a certain “qualification” for the level of the signal at the input, and quiet players are often simply impossible to test, or an error is displayed, or absurd data is displayed. Therefore, you have to record the signal into a WAV file and feed it to the program. At the same time, the signal level in the file is raised slightly by software so that RMAA can “pick it up”. I don’t think that such simple manipulations make serious changes, but I want to side with the player in one aspect: the measured noise level is actually lower, and the result produced by the program should be perceived a little better than what is reflected in the table.

General results

Frequency response unevenness (from 40 Hz to 15 kHz), dB:	+0.10, -0.82	Fine
Noise level, dB (A):	-79.3	Average
Dynamic range, dB (A):	79.4	Average
Harmonic distortion,%:	0.0034	Very good
Intermodulation distortion + noise, %:	0.033	Fine
Interpenetration of channels, dB:	-80.2	Very good
Intermodulation at 10 kHz, %:	0.034	Fine

Overall rating: Good

Frequency response

Noise level

The Classic did not receive manual adjustment of the equalizer, this is quite predictable, but now all the presets, of which there are more than two dozen, are illustrated with an eight-band spectrum analyzer graph, so you can select the one you need simply “by eye.”

Headphones remained the last stronghold of branded white plastic, the set includes “second generation” headphones, they are equipped with “iPods”, starting with the second generation Nano and iPod. They sound quite decent, at a good level for a complete model. There is nothing more to say, with higher quality headphones the player “opens up” much more, this is obvious.

Conclusions and impressions

You can hardly expect a range of opinions, opposing points of view, or subsequent heated debates on forums from iPod Classic reviews. This player appeared because it could not help but appear. At one time, it brought fame to Apple players, and not updating it would be simply disgusting. There will always be a layer of people (albeit not too large) who will prefer players to everyone else, where you can upload files for days on end, and there will still be room. Again, the capacity of the disks has practically exceeded the “musical” needs (there is no talk of clinical cases), but then a video appeared, and the carousel began to spin more than ever.

I think that the iPod Classic, despite the ability to watch videos, will still be bought by those for whom it is important, but not too much, those who listen to music, a lot of different music, and would not mind watching a video or two from time to time. In principle, I myself fit this description very well.

The “cavalry charge” does not reveal any flaws in the iPod Classic. Well, unless, of course, you consider the features of the specific sample being tested as such. A couple of times, slight “brakes” of the animated menu were noticeable; on the Nano, surprisingly, it “runs” more quickly. Several times the player refused to play a song from the search list when pressing the central button, starting it only the second time. These rough edges are quite harmless, especially if you remember that the first thing iTunes offers when you connect the player is to download and install the latest, wonderful firmware. I will repeat myself if I say that in the eyes of the overwhelming majority of potential iPod buyers in Russia, its main drawback was and remains iTunes, and everything else is almost pure advantages. With all this, the Classic is still the same long-familiar iPod for those who want to have all their music with them. A sort of old soldier surrounded by new recruits.

Specifications:

Capacity: 80/160 GB
File formats: AAC, Protected AAC, MP3, Audible, Apple Lossless, WAV, AIFF, JPEG, M4V, MP4, MOV
Display: color TFT, 2.5 inches, 320x240 pixels
Battery: Li-ion, built-in
Dimensions: 103.5x61.8x10.5 (13.5) mm
Weight: 140 (162) g

The first iPod appeared in 2001. In six years, he has already changed six generations. I propose to take a short historical excursion and see how the iPod changed and developed.

iPod, first generation
The very first iPod appeared on October 23, 2001 (soon to be 6 years old!). The disk capacity was only 5 GB (compare with modern models:) The player could play music for 12 hours, and the proprietary control wheel was not yet touch-sensitive.

iPod, second generation
The second generation iPod was released on July 17, 2002. Unlike the first generation, the iPod 2G was released in two versions - for working with Windows and for Mac OS. There were modifications with 5, 10 and 20 GB.

iPod, third generation
The third generation of the player appeared on April 28, 2003 and came with 5, 10 or 20 GB, and then 15, 20 and 40 GB of disk space. The player's operating time was even less than that of the first version - only 8 hours.

iPod mini, first generation
The next version of the iPod was the iPod mini, which was released on January 6, 2004. The iPod mini was smaller, had a 4GB drive, and came in several colors. It was in this version that the famous ClickWheel control wheel appeared.

iPod mini, second generation
The second generation of iPod mini was released on February 22, 2004. The most significant improvement was the increase in battery life to 18 hours. In addition, the player has a 6 GB modification.

iPod, fourth generation (iPod Photo)
The fourth generation iPod, also known as iPod Photo, was released in July 2004. At first the player was released with a monochrome display, but since 2005, iPod Photo has had a color display capable of displaying 65 thousand colors. The disk capacity was 20 or 40 GB, later - 20 or 60 GB. The player could work up to 12 hours without recharging.

iPod shuffle, first generation
iPod shuffle is the simplest and cheapest player in the series. The first shuffle appeared on January 11, 2005 and was released with 512 MB or 1 GB of memory on board. Battery life - 12 hours.

iPod nano, first generation
iPod nano was Apple's first flash memory-based player. The player appeared on September 7, 2005. The first generation nano was produced in three versions - with 1, 2 and 4 GB of memory. In addition to music, the iPod nano 1G could display images in JPEG, BMP, GIF and other formats. The battery charge was enough for 14 jobs.

iPod, fifth generation (iPod Video)
On October 12, 2005, the iPod 5G, known as iPod Video, was released. Firstly, this player could play video. Secondly, it could boast impressive amounts of disk space (30, 60 and 80 GB) and long operating time (up to 20 hours).

The second generation iPod nano was released on September 12, 2006. Compared to the first generation, it had double the amount of memory (2, 4 or 8 GB), an improved body and a brighter screen, came in several colors and could work up to 24 hours without recharging

iPod shuffle, second generation
The player was released in October 2006. The second generation Shuffle turned out to be completely different from its predecessor. The memory capacity was increased to 1 GB, the battery life remained at the same level - 12 hours.

iPod, sixth generation (iPod classic)
The player was introduced on September 5, 2007. Since the sixth generation, the iPod has been called the iPod classic. Disk capacity is 80 or 160 GB (!). Battery life has also been improved - iPod classic can last 30 hours as an audio player or 5 as a video player. The 160 GB model has even higher figures - 40 and 7 hours, respectively.

iPod nano, third generation
The third generation of iPod nano, also introduced on September 5, 2007, is very different from its predecessor. The memory capacity has traditionally doubled - modifications with 4 and 8 GB are available. The operating time is 24 hours in audio mode and 5 in video mode. Yes, this is the most important thing - iPod nano now supports video too!

iPod shuffle, third generation
The only difference between the new shuffle, released on September 5, 2007, is the presence of a special RED version, the proceeds from the sale of which will go to charity.

Let's finish our review with the most amazing new product, still presented on September 5, 2007 (a surprisingly rich day for iPod releases;) The iPod touch is what many wanted, an iPod with an iPhone interface. In addition to the revolutionary interface for the iPod, the player boasts 8 or 16 GB of memory, 22 hours of audio playback and 5 hours of video playback, and most importantly, Wi-Fi and a built-in Safari browser!

This concludes our chronological review. But it is quite possible that in six months it will have to be supplemented :)

In honor of the recent update to the iPod line, I decided to take a dive into history and remember all the iPod models that came out from 2001 to the present day.

This will be a brief history of the iPod with photographs and a brief description, the most important nuances in my opinion. In particular, I will touch on the latest update to the iPod Touch in a little more detail.

The players are arranged in order of release.

There were only two iPod models: 5 and 10 gigabytes (and the 10 gigabyte version was not released immediately). The battery could last up to 10 hours. The classic iPod had a mechanical scroll wheel. The player weighed 184 grams. The first and last model that was supported exclusively by Mac OS.

In the second generation of iPod, the storage capacity was increased: 10 and 20 gigabytes. Touch scroll wheel. Some second-generation models were Windows-compatible through the Musicmatch Jukebox audio player program.

The third generation iPod became thinner and had a completely non-mechanical remote control. Player memory sizes: 10 GB, 20 GB, 30 GB, 40 GB. Due to the reduced size, the model could only work for 8 hours without recharging.

The iPod Mini is an underwhelming series that only survived two generations. The first one was in production for 2 months. Important characteristics: 4 gigabytes of memory, weight 103 grams, 8 hours of battery life, touch scroll wheel, like in the third generation of the classic iPod, but with the ability to press it (additional actions - due to this, the 4 buttons above the wheel disappeared). The iPod Mini was sold in five colors (including gold).

Initially, the generation did not foretell any surprises. The first models were 20 and 40 gigabytes, had the same monochrome screen, but with an improved scroll wheel from the iPod Mini 1 Gen.

But on October 26, 2004, the Photo model with a color screen (220 by 176 pixels, 65,536 colors) went on sale. This model allowed photographs to be stored and displayed. Versions of 30 and 60 gigabytes appeared.

A little later, the model was slightly modified and called iPod Color. But the essence has not changed.

This tiny player gave a new experience to users, forcing them to listen to music completely at random. According to Apple, many users listened to music on their iPod in random order, which is why the first iPod Shuffle was created as a reflection of the trend.

Models with 512 megabytes or 1 gigabyte were available. The iPod Shuffle weighed a fantastic 22 grams and lasted 12 hours on a single charge.

Visually, it was practically no different from the first generation. A model with 6 GB memory has been added. The gold model has disappeared. Battery life has been improved to 18 hours.

The iPod Nano was designed to replace the iPod Mini and combine the best of the iPod Classic and iPod Shuffle. The model came in only two colors (white and black), weighed 42 grams and ran for 15 hours on battery power. Flash memory: 1, 2, 4 gigabytes. The display was 16 bit, resolution: 176 by 132.

The fifth generation is characterized by a complete redesign of the device, an enlarged screen for watching videos. Screen resolution 320 by 240 (QVGA). In 2006, after updating the model, the maximum memory capacity reached 80 gigabytes. Also, after updating the firmware, it became possible to run some games on the iPod.

The body of the iPod Nano is made of anodized aluminum. iPod Nano received 5 bright colors. Also for the first time, a red iPod appeared, from the sales of which $10 went to charity. The models were 2, 4, 8 gigabytes, and not all volumes were of all colors: for example, the 8 gigabyte model existed only in black and red versions.

October 2006- second generation iPod Shuffle

The miniature player has become even lighter - 15.6 grams. A clip appeared that made it possible to attach the player to clothing. Memory capacity: 1 or 2 gigabytes. 9 color schemes that were added over time.

It was produced in three versions: 80, 120, 160 gigabytes. The player worked from 30 to 40 hours on a single charge (audio), 5-6 hours (video). The front panel of the player was made of aluminum (previously it was made of plastic).

The model lived until 2014, when it was discontinued. This event marked the end of the era of the classic iPod.

September 5, 2007- third generation iPod Nano

The player has received cosmetic improvements. A brighter two-inch color display: 320 by 240. The iPod Nano received a new interface and support for new iPod games (Tetris, Ms. Pac-Man, Sudoku and others).

The first iPod with Wi-Fi and MultiTouch interface came out a little later than the first iPhone, as its more budget-friendly and stripped-down analogue. The player allowed you to purchase additional applications. The iPod Touch, like the iPhone, worked on iOS.

The iPod Touch in the first three generations had a 3.5-inch touch screen with a resolution of 480 by 320. There was only one Home button on the front panel. Battery life is 22 hours audio and 5 hours video.

In the fourth generation, the iPod Nano was again heavily redesigned: the player was stretched out again and the color scheme was completely changed. The iPod Nano added an accelerometer and landscape mode due to the vertical screen. Available models: 4 GB (limited in some markets), 8 GB and 16 GB.

Minor redesign. Important innovation: Bluetooth has been added. Battery life has been increased to 36 hours in audio mode and 6 hours in video mode.

The player was the first to use VoiceOver technology, which could voice the names of performers and song titles in 20 languages. For the first time in the series, support for multiple playlists. The player weighs a fantastic 10.7 grams. Memory capacity - 2 or 4 gigabytes.

In design, the fifth generation was very similar to the fourth. The screen was slightly enlarged to 376 by 220. A built-in video camera also appeared. There were models with 8 and 16 gigabytes to choose from.

The design has not changed. Among the important innovations: a microphone has been added to the new headphones that come with the kit. The processor performance and RAM capacity have been increased from 128 megabytes to 256. The VoiceControl voice control function has been added.

The player has become as miniature as possible. At the same time, it had a full-fledged bright touch screen (240x240), on which only one icon was placed. Video playback, camera and speakers have been removed. Weight - 21.1 grams. The same 8 and 16 gigabytes are available. The iPod Nano now has a clip (like the iPod Shuffle) and also adds the ability to attach a strap. Several options for displaying dials have been added to the interface. First signs of Apple Watch?

A triumph of minimalism in the series.

The smallest iPod model to date. It is still produced and sold successfully. It is in demand among athletes due to its size and the presence of a clip.

The player weighs 12.5 grams, the battery lasts for 15 hours of listening to music. Anodized aluminum body. The memory size is exclusively 2 gigabytes. In 2015, the player received a color redesign.

New sophisticated design with two cameras: for Face Time conversations and HD video shooting (720p). The screen, with the same dimensions, became more contrasty, the resolution increased to 960 by 640. Exactly the same Retina screen was used in the iPhone 4.

Apple switched from Samsung processors to its Apple A4. The iPod Touch added an accelerometer and a gyroscope. Ended support in iOS 6.1.6.

Exclusively for 16 gigabytes. The iPod Nano has been pulled out once again. Apparently the single-icon interface of the sixth generation was not a big success. The player weighs 31 grams. On April 15, 2015, the color scheme of the players changed.

The iPod Touch 5Gen received a more contrasting retina screen increased to 4 inches with a resolution of 1136 by 640. RAM was increased to 512 megabytes. Improved cameras. The rear camera allows you to shoot 1080p video and 8 megapixel photos. Finally, the iPod Touch has received several bright colors. Memory sizes: 16, 32, 64 gigabytes. The port for connecting to a computer and charging has changed - now the iPod Touch comes with a USB->Lightning cable.

The iPod Touch 5G has an Apple A5 processor, exactly the same as in the iPhone 4S and iPad 2, which means it is comparable in performance to these devices. Supported by Apple up to iOS 9, released in the fall.

Well, the latest update to the iPod Touch happened quite recently. Visually, the model is completely similar to the fifth generation, but there are several important improvements and changes.

The processor in the iPod Touch 6Gen immediately became A8 (with an M8 coprocessor). It is the A8 and M8 that are installed in the iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus.
A 128 gigabyte variation of the iPod has gone on sale.
RAM doubled to 1 gigabyte
5 updated colors: space gray, blue, pink, gold and silver.
8 megapixel iSight camera and improved front HD FaceTime camera. The first question that arises is: is the camera comparable to the iPhone 6 camera? No, it’s a little worse and shoots at about the same level as the iPad Air 2.
In the 6th generation, the recess for attaching the lace was removed. Now you can’t hang the player on your hand...

Afterword

Here's an excursion into history. I'll dwell on the new iPod Touch for a moment.

The 6th generation of iPod Touch is a significant leap in performance. There is no redesign, because the 5th generation iPod Touch is already close to ideal in this regard. To be honest, the fifth-generation player is already starting to slow down on iOS 8.4 and iOS 9 (not surprising, given the weak processor). Therefore, Apple urgently needed to do something about it... They did. The result is a nice gadget with capabilities on par with the top-end iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus.

Should I buy an iPod Touch 6 Gen or not? You decide. The price of the player is 2-3 times less compared to the iPhone (depending on the amount of memory). The iPod Touch has always been a cheap alternative to the iPhone without calling capabilities or a GPS module. Now almost nothing has changed, it’s just that with this update Apple has greatly reduced the gap between the top devices in the lines. If you have an iPhone, I don’t see much point in buying an iPod Touch. If you need a high-quality music player with a good camera and the ability to install applications from the App Store, but finances do not allow you to look towards the iPhone, then the iPod Touch is a good investment.

Readers: What kind of iPod do you have? How do you use it?

The iPod is a phenomenon. iPod is any player in the USA and many other countries. iPod is culture. The iPod is sales and what allowed Apple to survive in difficult times, and then rise to the top of modern business, because for a long time Apple received most of its profits from sales of the player.

In this article I want to tell you the history of this wonderful device. It appeared back in 2001. It wasn't supposed to revolutionize the market, but it did.

year 2001. First generation

Started selling on October 23, 2001. The first generation, as I already said, was not supposed to make a revolution. It was not equipped with record-breaking storage space and was quite bulky... But it made people talk about it. Just as they later discussed the iPhone, and later the iPad, users before the release of the first iPod argued furiously about whether the device would be a success, or whether it would fail miserably and “Apple should not be poking its nose into a market that is foreign to itself.” Do I need to tell you who was right?

The first generation of devices had a number of disadvantages, and the main disadvantage was that they only worked with Mac computers.

The volume of the hard drive installed in them was 5 gigabytes (later a version with 10 Gigabyte storage was released), and the interface for connecting to the computer was not a port familiar to everyone, but a FireWire interface. And the branded touch wheel was not yet available.

Second generation and year 2002

These players were released on July 17, 2002. In them, Apple took into account the sales experience of the previous generation. In particular, support for computers running Windows has appeared. True, it consisted of releasing two different versions of the player - one for Mac, and one for Windows. The amount of built-in memory has also increased. Now these were 10 and 20 Gigabytes, on which up to 4 thousand songs could be recorded, according to Apple.

Third generation, 2003

The release of the third generation of the player on April 28, 2003 was a big milestone in the history of the iPod. It was in this generation that the player acquired those features without which it would be impossible to imagine the iPod for a very long time. A 30-pin proprietary port and a proprietary Touch Wheel appeared. The range of available memory sizes has expanded: 10, 15 and 30 GB, then 15, 20 and 40 GB.

This generation also introduced branded accessories for the player: a case with a clip for wearing on a belt, headphones, and a control panel, which were supplied with the player.

2004: Fourth generation, iPod mini

In the fourth generation of players, in addition to numerical improvements: increasing the amount of memory, for example, player control was also improved - touch buttons migrated to the touch wheel, thereby completing its formation and leading to the form in which it still exists.

iPod mini covered two directions at once: they were bright and beautiful, and, at the same time, they were smaller and cheaper than their “big brothers”, although they provided a relatively modest volume for storing music - only 4 GB (even less than the first model 2001), while still being equipped with a hard drive.

2005: iPod photo, iPod Video, iPod mini 2g, iPod nano, iPod shuffle

This year was probably the most generous year for new iPods.

The iPod Photo came out, which was essentially a 4th generation player, but equipped with a color screen. There is, as the name suggests, the ability to view photos.

At the very beginning of the year, the iPod came out, “betraying all the behests of our ancestors” - equipped with flash memory instead of a hard drive, miniature, without a screen and with a ridiculous price. The iPod shuffle arrived triumphantly. Not much can be said about him. Its main feature was playback in shuffle mode. Such a “stripped-down” device at first glance quickly fell in love with young people and athletes.

iPod Video was released on October 12, 2005 and replaced its photo counterpart. His screen got bigger and he could watch videos. In top models, the operating time has increased significantly - from 15 to 20 hours of continuous playback. Need I say that the capacity of the hard drive has increased?

iPod mini 2g was not much different from its predecessor. A 6 GB version of the player has appeared, and battery life has increased significantly. In the same year, the model was discontinued, giving way to the following new product for this year:

Before the announcement on September 7, 2005, there were rumors that a “full-fledged” iPod would be released, equipped with a flash drive. And so he came out. However, a shock to the public was the discontinuation of the then extremely popular iPod mini. But, as always, Apple was not mistaken and soon the snow-white or mirror-black players won a huge army of fans. How could it be otherwise - they were small, light, fit comfortably in the hand, had a color screen and a chic Touch Wheel and reliable flash memory instead of a hard drive. The only drawback was the small amount of built-in memory, but for those who considered this drawback critical, there was the iPod Video.

2006, iPod nano 2g, iPod shuffle 2g

This year there were no updates to the “large” models, which, by the way, happened for the first time in the entire history of the player.

The second generation of iPod shuffle turned out to be probably the most successful - the form factor changed, turning the player from a “flash drive” into a “badge” that hung on clothes and did not interfere with the owner in the least. The new form turned out to be very successful and “lasted” right up until 2009.

The second generation of iPod nano, released on September 12, 2006, followed Apple's design trends and moved away from a glass-plastic body to an aluminum body. But it acquired new color options, catching the audience that was lost after the mini production ceased.

This date became another milestone in the history of Apple. On this day, the company presented the iPhone (all readers should have had a tear of emotion roll down their cheeks), and along with it the new iPod players

In connection with the release of a completely new iPod, the model, built on the same principle as before, has become morally obsolete. However, it was called a classic in time and thereby satisfied the needs of those who did not need a touch screen and a bunch of programs in the iPod touch.

The iPod nano has undergone a strange metamorphosis - it has been flattened and has become like a small Classic. It didn’t look as good as previous generations, but it did have a larger screen.

And here is the younger brother of the revolutionary device of 2007: the iPod Touch. It became a kind of “stripped-down iPhone” without a radio module and GPS. Apple could well have positioned it as a PDA, which it essentially is, but they caught the trend of the PDA market dying out and very competently presented the new product as a player, not lacking in brains, but a player.

2008 iPod nano 4g, second generation touch

This year was a bit of a bad year for iPods, as it was completely and exclusively devoted to the iPhone. However, there was a novelty in it and a very successful one:

nano is back to its usual appearance! At the same time, it “smoothed out” and acquired an oval cross-section, which only benefited it. However, in addition to the external changes, there were also internal ones. An accelerometer was added to it and a lot changed: mixing tracks by shaking the device, the Nike+iPod function and many other pleasant moments appeared. A voice recorder appeared.

Touch has become more like an iPhone, and performance has improved slightly.

2009: third generation iPod touch and shuffle, fifth nano

iPod nano has a camera and an external speaker. Otherwise these were only cosmetic changes.

Apparently, this generation of shuffle was an experiment for Apple to gauge how users would perceive the dramatic change in controls. I’ll say right away: they didn’t take it. Of course: the player itself returned to the form of a flash drive (although it did not lose the “clothespin”), it lost all controls, which, for some unknown reason, moved to the headphones, i.e. for consumables.

In the third generation, as well as in the third generation iPhone, there were quite significant changes in the internal filling of the player: the processor frequency and the amount of RAM increased and a separate graphics chip appeared.

year 2010 - iPod touch 4g, iPod nano 6g, iPod shuffle 4g

a year in which the iPod line received many changes. Both radically new and well-forgotten old ones.

The iPod shuffle has returned to what I consider to be the most successful "badge" form factor, allowing it to be worn on clothing. At the same time, it became even smaller than the second generation icon. Thank God, they returned control from the headphones to the player.

The iPod nano has seen the most changes this year. He became... completely different. Of the usual nano elements, only the screen has been preserved... But it has become touch-sensitive, like its older brother. Well, adopting is the best thing. The player has greatly decreased in size, becoming almost as miniature as the shuffle, and has acquired a clothespin for attaching to clothing on the back panel. Removed: camera, microphone, games, search functions, built-in speaker, ability to play video, reminders, calendar, world clock, contacts, notes, ability to select a larger font. The voice recorder function is now available only when a compatible headset is connected. In general, shouldn't it have been worth calling this model, for example, shuffle HD?

But in the iPod touch, all the improvements are for the better: a new A4 processor, a Retina screen, cameras. It would seem like a small list, but all these things brought the player to a new level of quality, making previous models irrelevant.

Well, that seems to be all. When I sat down to write this article, I did not at all expect that it would captivate me so much and grow so much. But it is impossible to write about the wonderful players from Apple in a nutshell - they are all worthy of admiration and a separate large article. I hope you had as much fun reading this article as I did writing it.

Although with a noticeable delay, we still offer you an overview of the current line of Apple iPod players, which we tried to make as rich as possible with useful information. Here we offer you not only a story about the new functional and design features of the iPod, but also an answer to your question how good they sound in different headphones.

This has already become a tradition: every fall, Apple updates its line of iPod players. And every time everyone looks forward to what changes will appear in the new generation? However, any slightest deviation from the usual standard (set a year earlier by Apple itself) arouses criticism along with interest. And although Apple is often very conservative in terms of design, carefully preserving its own developments of past years (the consequence of which is, in fact, the recognition of the iPod, iPhone, MacBook, iMac, etc., regardless of generation), the public often turns out to be even more conservative. For example, many did not accept the iPod shuffle, which lost the control wheel and acquired an elongated shape.

This year, Apple also prepared surprises, and again, quite bold ones. However, along with these surprises, Apple also made a nod to conservative buyers by returning the familiar design of the iPod shuffle and leaving the iPod classic alone (concerns that the only iPod on a hard drive is no longer available are unfounded: the classic remains in the iPod line). In addition, the design of the iPod touch has changed minimally, although the functionality has increased very significantly. But which player has undergone the greatest changes (both in terms of appearance and in terms of capabilities) is the iPod nano. That's where we'll start.

iPod nano

Personally, the iPod nano has always seemed like the golden mean between the large classic with huge disk space and the miniature shuffle with no screen. If you just needed to listen to music, and there was no need to store your entire media library on the player, then the iPod nano seemed like the best option. In addition, the relationship between the elongated shape of the body, the small screen at the top and the touch wheel at the bottom seemed to me a masterpiece of design art (I admit, I still can’t part with my black second-generation iPod nano). Apparently, Apple also understood that the design of the iPod nano was optimal, so all these years they practically did not change it - they only made minor adjustments.

But at some point it became clear that it was no longer possible to hold on to the old (no matter how good the old was), we had to come up with something new. And Apple came up with, in fact, creating a completely new player. The elongated shape changed to a square one, the wheel disappeared, and a touch screen appeared in its place. The old menu design is also a thing of the past, giving way to the now fashionable iOS icons. At the same time, Apple did not have the task of creating a miniature communicator (or micro-tablet), so there is no full-fledged operating system in the iPod nano. Only the external side of iOS is preserved (even down to the smallest detail, so iPhone / iPod touch / iPad owners don’t have to get used to the interface at all). The only significant difference in the nano interface from Apple's iOS products is the absence of a Menu button. Thus, to return to the main menu, you need to scroll through the current screens to the right - as if they were leaves that were placed on top of the leaf you need.

However, these are all external aspects. As for the essence of this pseudo-iOS, it is worth noting that it is impossible to install additional programs and remove existing ones. This, in fact, is the answer to the question why the player was called nano, replacing (and not supplementing) last year’s nano. They just have the same functionality. More precisely, the new player has it even lower. Unlike last year's version, the new nano cannot shoot video. And the video playback function is now missing. Among the features not directly related to sound, the nano 2010 only allows viewing photos and counting the distance traveled when walking and exercising on a treadmill (when using the Nike + iPod set). The app is called Fitness (on last year's iPods it was called Pedometer).

There is no built-in voice recorder anymore. But, fortunately, they left the radio and Genius mixes (read more about them in the review of last year's iPods). Something interesting happened with the Podcasts application. You can listen to audio podcasts without any problems. But when I loaded the video podcast of the Apple presentation, only the audio part was played, and instead of the video, the player displayed a static picture. Thus, in terms of functionality, the new iPod nano is a step back. And, presumably, much of what last year’s nano could do was sacrificed for design. At the very least, there is simply nowhere to place the camera and microphone. Almost the entire front surface of the player is occupied by a touch capacitive screen with a diagonal of one and a half inches and a resolution of 240x240. The back side is closed with a clip for attaching the player to clothing; The thickness of the case, made from a single piece of anodized aluminum, is similar to the iPod shuffle and is determined by the diameter of the headphone jack (that is, it can’t be any smaller). The side edges are rounded; on the top we see silver volume up/down buttons and a sleep mode button. At the bottom there is an Apple connector for connecting an iPod to a computer and a standard-size headphone jack (3.5 mm).

So, was the game worth the candle? Probably yes, if we talk about ease of use. Firstly, in terms of compactness, the nano is very close to the iPod shuffle. This is probably the smallest of all MP3 players with a screen. Secondly, the nano has a clip for attaching to clothes and volume up and down buttons. Now you can turn the music quieter or louder by touch without taking out the player right in your pocket. This is especially true in winter, when your hands are in gloves and you really don’t want to take them off :)

On the other hand, you won’t be able to move to the next track without pulling out the player; here the nano loses to the new shuffle. Likewise, you can’t pause or resume playback without using the screen. But overall, I would call the new nano an “iPod shuffle with a screen.” The paradox is precisely that the nano of 2010 is much closer (both in functionality and appearance) to the shuffle than to the nano of previous years! But what exactly is the iPod shuffle?

iPod shuffle

Actually, everything basic about the iPod shuffle has already been said. The smallest and cheapest player in the Apple line has been returned to the design that everyone is used to. More precisely, the main element of this design is the buttons located on the wheel and inside it. The difference between the new design is that the body is now not rectangular, but square. Plus, there are buttons at the top to enable the VoiceOver function.

The rest is nothing fundamentally new. Like the iPod nano, the shuffle has a body made from a single piece of aluminum, with a clip on the back for attaching to clothing. Uses a standard (3.5 mm) headphone jack. Since all controls are now located on the shuffle body, you can use any headphones, including without a headset. As for functionality, there are no innovations here compared to the 2009 shuffle version. Therefore, we refer you to the article about players of 2009.

iPod shuffle is available in five colors, but you don't have to choose the storage capacity: all models are equipped with 2 GB of flash memory.

iPod touch

Finally, we got to the new iPod touch. Apple's top MP3 player, in principle, in its previous versions was already more than just an MP3 player. Now, having stepped forward in step with the iPhone 4, the iPod touch has completely broken out of the iPod line (especially considering that the iPod nano has lost functionality, approaching the iPod shuffle). Let's put it another way: for those who just need to listen to music, there is no point in purchasing an iPod touch. This is a device of a different category.

The main thing is that using iPod touch you can now communicate by voice. No, the 3G module and telephone functions did not appear there (otherwise the iPod touch would have turned into an iPhone). We are, of course, talking about the FaceTime function. However, this is of fundamental importance, especially in the context of the fact that FaceTime has recently been included in Mac OS X. Thus, while at work, you can use your iPod touch to call home (if you have an iMac or MacBook at home). Or contact the owner of an iPhone 4, wherever he is.

Of course, using FaceTime on iPod touch is limited by the need to be connected to Wi-Fi. But, if you think about it, you are unlikely to need to use this function on the street. But you can call from a cafe, hotel room, office, etc. will be very useful (provided your interlocutors have Apple products on Mac OS X 10.6.4 and iOS 4).

Let's take a closer look at how this function works! We'll be testing FaceTime on iPod touch and MacBook.

FaceTime

First of all, you need to download and install the beta version of the FaceTime application for Mac OS X from the Apple website. Only version 10.6.4 and later is supported, but this is common practice for Apple. The file size is small - 13.4 MB. Installation does not cause any problems, but after installation you need to create an account. More precisely, register an e-mail that will be used for calls. It is supposed to be possible to use an Apple ID, but I was unable to do so. Perhaps because the password did not meet FaceTime's requirements (the program wants at least 8 characters, including numbers and letters). But there were no problems with the MobileMe login. However, in any case, you will need another email (which you will register via iPod touch).

Once you've registered emails on your Mac and iPod touch, you can use FaceTime just like the standard iPhone calling feature. That is, for example, to make a FaceTime call, just open a contact in your address book and click on the FaceTime button (if you are using an iPhone 4, then by opening the contact, you can choose whether to call normally or via FaceTime). The actual process of communicating via FaceTime will not be a big surprise to anyone who has ever used Skype. The only thing worth paying attention to is the button with the image of the camera on the iPod touch (bottom right). It will be useful if, for example, at some point in the conversation you need to show your interlocutor something that is happening at the moment (for example, if you are at some event). You press a button and the image automatically (and very quickly) switches from the front to the rear camera. Why can't you just rotate the iPod? Because its settings are optimized specifically for shooting a face at arm's length. But it is not suitable for shooting distant objects.

Other iPod touch features

The new iPod touch has a lot to boast about beyond FaceTime. . We will only describe the design and subjective impressions.

Externally, the new iPod touch is not much different from the iPod touch of previous generations, however, it weighs even less - only 101 grams (instead of 115 grams for last year's iPod touch). This happened due to the fact that the case became thinner - 7.2 versus the previous 8.6 mm. It certainly makes a big impression when you hold it in your hand. I can't believe that such a light and thin device can be so functional. By the way, another detail worth paying attention to is the absence of a plastic insert on the back side in the upper right corner. Apparently, for the first time, Apple engineers managed to design a Wi-Fi antenna in such a way that the metal case did not shield.

And, of course, we can’t help but mention the new Retina display with a record resolution of 960x640. The picture on the new iPod touch really looks more saturated and juicy than on the old iPod touch / iPhone 4. As for the notorious pixels, which are now invisible, then, of course, this is not happiness, but for the sake of fairness it is worth admitting that this is not an invention of marketers. If you compare the screen of a new iPod touch with the screen of an old iPhone in a store, pay attention to the Camera application icon. The monolithic metallic color really clearly shows the difference: in one case we see a fine mesh, in the other, no matter how closely you look, you won’t notice any mesh.

Camera

Like the iPhone 4, the iPod touch can now shoot video at 720p resolution. You can shoot in vertical or horizontal orientation. In addition, switching between photo and video shooting modes is very convenient. Plus, it is possible to edit the captured video. It should be noted that the microphone copes quite successfully with recording loud sounds - for example, video recording from a concert in a club will be of quite acceptable quality (of course, for use at home).

Below you can see an example of a video recording and, if necessary, download the original video file.

The camera in the player shoots at a modest resolution of 0.7 megapixels. When you take a photo, the smallest details of the picture are visible on the screen, but in the finished photograph the details become indistinguishable due to noise. It looks as if the device intentionally increases the ISO. The explanation for this may lie in the camera's rate of fire: it can shoot approximately 3 frames per second. Touching anywhere on the screen while shooting allows you to adjust the exposure relative to a specified point. There is also digital zoom. Here are some example photos:

Battery

The manufacturer claims that the iPod touch can last up to 40 hours of music playback and up to 7 hours of video playback. We conducted testing in which the player played a set of music in different formats, mainly MP3 with a bitrate from 192 to 320 Kbps and WAV (uncompressed, 1411 Kbps). In this mode, the player worked with the screen off at medium volume and with standard headphones for about 32 hours, after which there was still a little charge left. It was enough for about 30 minutes of playing Angry Birds. In video mode, the player played films in high definition (it should be noted that such films look very impressive on the player screen) at 3/4 of the possible brightness and lasted 6 hours and 10 minutes. The performance is very good, comparable and even superior to many modern players.

In addition to the iPod touch, the battery life of the iPod shuffle and iPod nano was tested. The results are as follows: shuffle - 16 hours (15 hours stated), nano - 22.5 hours (24 hours stated)

The sound of Apple iPod players

There is a lot of debate about how Apple players actually sound. For some reason, some people are sure that the sound of iPods is, by definition, bad. Now we will slightly dispel this myth - at least for new generation players. Let's first look at some graphs and tables with the amplitude-frequency characteristics and harmonic distortion of all three models.

The player's headphone amplifier needs to be tested at a low-impedance load, since only in this case a number of specific problems are revealed. We used a special RightVolume Two test device containing load resistances of 16, 32, 64, 300 Ohms. An E-MU 0202 USB sound card was used as the digitization interface. The most revealing tests are frequency response and harmonic distortion. In this case, in order not to clutter the article, we present only the results where headphones were used as a load, and not load resistors.

Let's start with the younger model - the iPod Shuffle.

Test	without load	Philips SHE-9850 (12 Ohm)	Sennheiser PX100 (32 Ohm)	Sennheiser HD 600 (300 Ohm)
	+0,11, −0,57	+0,82, −1,15	+0,40, −0,44	+0,09, −0,47
Harmonic distortion,%	0,0014	0,205	0,0014	0,0014

Frequency response graph:

Some jaggedness of the graph is noticeable, but in practice it is not audible. The unevenness of the frequency response is low, there are no very large dips or rises. They were also not noticed during listening.

As for harmonic distortion, it is most active with Philips headphones that have a low impedance of 12 Ohms. This is common practice for players. However, the low distortion levels for the remaining loads were striking - they consistently remained at the same level as in the no-load measurements, which is commendable.

Test	without load	Philips SHE-9850 (12 Ohm)	Sennheiser PX100 (32 Ohm)	Sennheiser HD 600 (300 Ohm)
Frequency response unevenness (from 40 Hz to 15 kHz), dB	+0,04, −0,33	+0,53, −0,80	+0,27, −0,30	+0,06, −0,31
Harmonic distortion,%	0,0011	0,141	0,0038	0,0030

Frequency response graph:

In this case, the frequency response is also quite smooth, no sharp jumps are observed. During listening, no obvious flaws were noted.

In terms of distortion, the picture is similar to the Shuffle, only the amount of distortion with the Sennheiser PX100 headphones is slightly higher. It’s quite strange that a lower-ranking player (Shuffle) has a slightly better and more detailed sound than a higher-ranking player (Nano). But the difference in the sound of the players is barely perceptible.

Well, the last one is the iPod Touch.

Test	without load	Philips SHE-9850 (12 Ohm)	Sennheiser PX100 (32 Ohm)	Sennheiser HD 600 (300 Ohm)
Frequency response unevenness (from 40 Hz to 15 kHz), dB	+0,09, −0,45	+0,84, −1,17	+0,34, −0,10	0 +0,12, −0,45
Harmonic distortion,%	0,0014	0,194	0,0015	0,0014

The similarity of graphs and figures with Shuffle indicators is noticeable to the naked eye.

Harmonic distortion:

As for volume, the iPod Touch was the loudest. With 300-ohm headphones, it still sounds quite comfortable for listening, although there is no talk of a large reserve. Next comes, oddly enough, the iPod Shuffle, which is slightly ahead of the iPod Nano in this regard.

Overall, the iPod Nano and Shuffle are decent players in terms of sound, but only if you use medium impedance headphones with them. With high-impedance headphones, the sound is good, but quiet, which makes you think about the need for an external amplifier. But that’s not why these players were made so small so that they could be connected to another contraption that was several times larger in size than the player itself! iPod Touch, at the same time, can be used with high-impedance headphones. Well, with low-impedance ones, the sound is distorted in all models.

conclusions

The update to the iPod line turned out to be too bold in some ways (iPod nano), and in others, on the contrary, too traditionalist (iPod shuffle), but in general the 2010 lineup leaves the same impression as most of the new Apple products: this, definitely an event. Moreover, Apple again sets the standards for the entire industry. iPod touch can easily be called the most functional and advanced solution of this form factor among those devices that do not have telephone functions. It would be hard to call it an MP3 player, because it is much more than an MP3 player, and therefore, in the market it will have to compete not so much with players, but with various options for mobile computers. And so far there are no worthy competitors for it. In turn, the iPod nano is an example of what a simple MP3 player should look like (although not everyone will like its functional poverty compared to the previous generation nano). iPod nano is aimed primarily at those people who, being partial to beautiful things, have not previously owned an iPod and came to the store for an MP3 player. Finally, the shuffle is a concession to those who categorically rejected the buttonless versions of the 2009 and 2008 shuffle. This move demonstrates that, for all his self-confidence, Steve Jobs knows how to admit his mistakes and still respects the opinions of people who care about his company’s products (and not just strives to shape it like a prophet).