The New iPod Line
The Word Is Underwhelmed...
I'll start off with the lowly iPod Shuffle. Admittedly, I've never been a fan of this entry level iPod. I will say that it always was quite small, but I never could get past the "no screen feature." The one thing it has always needed is a screen, and the competition offers it. Color nonetheless in some cases. At any rate, what does the redesign do: still no screen and they make it smaller. Oh, and they add a clip. Is a clip a reason to upgrade? I think not. A screen would be far more compelling to me.
Next up is the iPod Nano. The big news is that it now has an 8 GB storage capacity max. Big deal when we realize that the Sandisk Sansa e200 already has that, and a slot for removeable media. Oh, and the other news is that the colors are back. Remember the iPod mini pastels that the younger crowd went crazy for? Well they're back, but this is only a return of a previous feature that should never been eliminated (they were quite popular on eBay). Apple probably planned this so they could do away with it, to bring it back later. Those that are into fashon accessories can get excited, but I'm not.
The top end of the product line is the iPod Video. The big update is that there is finally an 80 GB version for sale. At $349, it seems fairly priced. Unfortunately, it's either the mammoth 80 gigger, or the entry level 30 GB. How come there is nothing sized in between? They should have at least kept the 60 GB one, or updated the 30 GB to 40 GB's. Also, the folks on the web were far more imaginative than anything that Apple came up with. No Bluetooth or WiFi. Even more disappointing is the screen size is the same, making movies quite painful to watch, and not the "true video iPod" that the faithful have been waiting for with the virtual scroll wheel. Forget about any radio reception: FM, XM satellite, or the new HD, it's not to be found.
While I'm sure the Apple faithful will buy these in droves for the holidays, I'm simply underwhelmed. For the company that dominates the portable music player market, I don't see the level of innovation that we've come to expect. This is an update of their line to keep Apple competitive, but nothing even close to revolutionary here. Are they deliberately letting the competition catch up?
OK, if you've made it this far, and let me finish my thoughts, feel free to tell me how awesome Apple is, or not.
After months and months of speculation, fancy Photoshopped mockups, and even slick videos (that prompted heated arguments of authenticity), the wait is over and the new iPods were introduced today. I just finished going through the new line, and I'm really not impressed at all. Now before you scurry down to post a comment saying that "Apple is awesome," or the like, take a look at how I arrived at this conclusion.
I'll start off with the lowly iPod Shuffle. Admittedly, I've never been a fan of this entry level iPod. I will say that it always was quite small, but I never could get past the "no screen feature." The one thing it has always needed is a screen, and the competition offers it. Color nonetheless in some cases. At any rate, what does the redesign do: still no screen and they make it smaller. Oh, and they add a clip. Is a clip a reason to upgrade? I think not. A screen would be far more compelling to me.
Next up is the iPod Nano. The big news is that it now has an 8 GB storage capacity max. Big deal when we realize that the Sandisk Sansa e200 already has that, and a slot for removeable media. Oh, and the other news is that the colors are back. Remember the iPod mini pastels that the younger crowd went crazy for? Well they're back, but this is only a return of a previous feature that should never been eliminated (they were quite popular on eBay). Apple probably planned this so they could do away with it, to bring it back later. Those that are into fashon accessories can get excited, but I'm not.
The top end of the product line is the iPod Video. The big update is that there is finally an 80 GB version for sale. At $349, it seems fairly priced. Unfortunately, it's either the mammoth 80 gigger, or the entry level 30 GB. How come there is nothing sized in between? They should have at least kept the 60 GB one, or updated the 30 GB to 40 GB's. Also, the folks on the web were far more imaginative than anything that Apple came up with. No Bluetooth or WiFi. Even more disappointing is the screen size is the same, making movies quite painful to watch, and not the "true video iPod" that the faithful have been waiting for with the virtual scroll wheel. Forget about any radio reception: FM, XM satellite, or the new HD, it's not to be found.While I'm sure the Apple faithful will buy these in droves for the holidays, I'm simply underwhelmed. For the company that dominates the portable music player market, I don't see the level of innovation that we've come to expect. This is an update of their line to keep Apple competitive, but nothing even close to revolutionary here. Are they deliberately letting the competition catch up?
OK, if you've made it this far, and let me finish my thoughts, feel free to tell me how awesome Apple is, or not.
--Jonas
Technorati tags:
ipod, Apple, new ipod, nano, shuffle, video ipod
posted by digitaldoc at 9:14 PM
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