APPLE - revamped iPod line (3.09.2010)
The most popular portable audio-video players - the Apple iPods - have been upgraded once again. Apple released official information on this topic on 1st september.
The new iPod Shuffle is the fourth generation of this model. It differs significantly from the third generation model, introduced in March 2009. It is more similar to the second-generation model. The VoiceOver feature from the third generation has been retained. But the new Shuffle has normal function buttons, like the players of the first and second generations. There are no controls on the headphone cable anymore. The impedance of the included headphones is 32 ohms. Like predecessors the player has no display. The new iPod Shuffle has 2GB of flash memory (the only available option) and is smaller than its predecessor. The player can be easily attached to clothing. The dimensions of the new iPod are 29 x 31.6 x 8.7 mm (with spring clip) and its mass is 12.5 g. The manufacturer says that lithium-ion battery lasts up to 15 hours of operation. Charging is via USB when connected to a computer or by a separately purchased adapter. The enclosure is made of aluminum. Five color options are available: silver, green, pink, orange and blue. List of supported formats include AAC (8 to 320 kbps), protected AAC (from iTunes Store), MP3 (8 to 320 Kbps), MP3 VBR, Audible (formats 2, 3, 4, Audible Enhanced Audio and AAX AAX), Apple Lossless, WAV, AIFF. WMA, Ogg and FLAC are not supported. US price is 49 dollars.
The iPod nano has been radically changed. Compared to previous models, the device is smaller, without the click-wheel, without games, camera and video playback. Apart from audio playback, the new iPod nano can be used to view photos on the 1.54-inch touch screen (resolution 240x240 pixels) and has a built-in FM tuner. Nano has VoiceOver function. The impedance of the included headphones is 32 ohms. The dimensions of the new iPod nano are 37.5 x 40.9 x 8.78mm (with spring clip) and its mass is 21.1 g. The player can be easily attached to clothing. According to Apple the battery lasts up to 24 hours of music playback. The enclosure is made of aluminum. The follwing color options are available: silver, graphite, green, pink, orange, blue and also red in limited distribution. List of supported formats include AAC (8 to 320 kbps), protected AAC (from iTunes Store), HE-AAC, MP3 (8 to 320 Kbps), MP3 VBR, Audible (formats 2, 3, 4, Audible Enhanced Audio, AAX, and AAX), Apple Lossless, WAV, AIFF. Again no support for WMA, Ogg or FLAC. Nano has a built-in accelerometer that adjusts the screen orientation. It can also act as a pedometer. The US proces are $149 for the 8GB version and $179 for the 16GB version.
The flagship iPod Touch model borrows a lot of technology from the iPhone. Essentialy it is a portable computer supporting a wide range mulimedia files and wide range of applications. It is equipped with WiFi (802.11b/g/n, 802.11n on 2.4GHz only) and Bluetoth. It has built-in accelerometer, light sensor, three-axis gyroscope, two cameras and a microphone. You can record video with a resolution of 720p. Touch has a 3.5-inch touch screen (resolution 960 x 640 pixels). The dimensions of the new iPod touch are 111 x 58.9 x 7.2 mm. Its weight is 101 g. Apple specs say that the battery lasts for up to 40 hours of music playback. The casing is made of stainless steel. List of supported audio formats is the same as for Shuffel and Nano, again no support for WMA, Ogg and FLAC. The iPod touch prices in the US are as follows: $ 229 for the 8GB version, $ 299 for the 32GB version and $ 399 for the 64GB version.
The iPod Classic, with its 160GB HDD remains unchanged. It is available in the US for $249. The new iPods are expected on the market next week.
Click on the miniatures for larger photographs.
