What Hi Fi Sound and Vision
07 NOV 2007
Apple iPod Touch 16GB
Music, video, internet browsing, and so much more, the iPod Touch puts the ‘multi’ in multimedia
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Let's be honest, those chaps at Apple are pretty darn clever. Not content with lighting the blue touch paper for the MP3 explosion with the release of the iPod back in 2001, Apple has continued to push the boundaries of what we expect from a portable music player.
That's not to say that there's nobody else doing what they do, but Apple has remained ahead of the pack by combining this cutting edge technology with a level of performance, usability and desirability that other products can only dream of.
The company also knows when to listen to its punters. The iPod Touch didn't have the smoothest of entries in to the market place.
Superb sound and picture performance, coupled with a predictably innovative touchscreen interface ensured the Touch and plenty of fans, but there were undoubtedly concerns over the machine's battery life and relatively meagre storage capacity.
Apple clearly listened, dropping the price to offer better value – the original 16GB model came to market at £269 – and upping the battery life to some 36 hours for audio or 6 hours for video content.
Apple App Store is a big success
What's more, the company began to make quite a song and dance about the Apple App Store, which, sure enough, has turned in to a new 'USP' for the Touch and iPhone.
The App Store gives users access to over 44,000 applications – from games to spirit levels, torches to Internet radio – and plenty of them are completely free.
With genuinely useful innovations, such as the Sky+ App that allows you to remotely set programmes to record on your Sky box, the App Store has fast become a real positive for the iPod Touch.
Of course, here's a good time to point out you are of course tied to iTunes with the Touch. Thankfully it's the best music management software around, but if you have a penchant for any incompatible file formats it can make life difficult.
Most people's main reason for coveting this particular Apple model is its brilliant internet browsing capability. Connect to a wi-fi network and the Touch presents a flawlessly smooth, elegant interface that's intuitive to control and renders web pages clearly and accurately.
Sony's X-Series Walkman just can't match the Apple's functionality and usability when it comes to internet browsing.
Smooth motion and clean images
The clarity and size of the screen comes in to its own when it comes to watching videos. The 3.5in screen is a good size for trains, planes and, so long as you're not driving, automobiles, the 480 x 320 resolution presenting natural colours, smooth motion and clean, stable, detailed images.
Bright colours lack a little punch and vibrancy compared to the Walkman but elsewhere it's a more assured performance.
Apple's freebie earphones are much better than they used to be, but we'd still advise an upgrade to make the most of music.
Nevertheless, the iPod Touch remains accomplished sonically, with an open, detailed presentation that delivers vocals especially with impressive insight and subtlety.
If you all want from your multimedia player is music, we see no reason not to go for the larger capacity – and better sounding – Classic, but if video and more pertinently internet browsing are on your agenda then this is the most assured all-rounder and genuine multimedia machine on the market.