Apple has updated its entire iPod range, together with a new iOS 4.1 update for iPhone and a redesigned and much smaller Apple TV. At a special media event in London MacFormat got to get hands-on with the new kit. Here’s what we thought.
The new iPod shuffle (2GB, £39) is available in a range of colours and brings back the click wheel that was lost in the previous generation in favour of in-line controls on the earphones. It retains the Voice Control features of the previous version, so you’ve really got the best of both worlds. But apart from the addition of buttons again there are no notable new features to write home about.
The iPod nano (8GB £129, 16GB £159) sees the most radical overhaul, with a new square shaped design and multi-touch screen, but it also loses a couple of features compared to its previous version – it can no longer play movies and there’s no video recording or camera. The new nano runs a special limited version of iOS that’s specific to the device, so while it has apps, which Apple could update through a software update, there will be no 3rd party apps. It’s also picked up a feature from the shuffle – a clip to use to attached it to your clothing. A nice feature is the ability to rotate the screen with a two finger gesture, which means you don’t have to worry about which way up the screen is when you attach it to yourself. MacFormat had a brief play with it at Apple’s media event, and the small screen it did prove a bit fiddly to use with multi-touch, but not to the point of annoyance. We got the feeling you’d get used to it fairly quickly, but it will probably appeal more to younger users with more nimble fingers. Like the shuffle, the new nano is available in a range of colours.
Finally, the iPod touch (8GB £189, 32GB £249, 64GB £329) is now even thinner than before and has the new 960 x 640 pixel Retina Display that debuted on the iPhone 4. It’s also got the new A4 chip found inside the iPhone 4 and the 3-axis gyro. The most important news however is that it features front and rear facing cameras, meaning its capable of taking HD video and still shots, just like an iPhone 4. It can also perform FaceTime video chats with other iPod touch or iPhone 4 users (over Wi-Fi only). This is a crafty move by Apple, since you use a combination of Apple ID and email address to call a device, bypassing network carries entirely. In use, FaceTime worked really well with a call placed to an Apple employee in the Cupertino office. Rather than feeling unnecessarily restricted, as it used to, the iPod touch now finally feels like a proper iPhone, just without the phone part.
The new iPod touch ships with iOS 4.1, which features Game Centre, a new platform that will make it easier than ever to play games online with your friends – it even finds friends for you if you don’t have any. There’s also a new HDR photography feature, which improves the camera feature on the iPhone and iPod touch. When activated it takes three shots in quick succession, at different exposures, then intelligently compiles them together to produce a photo that looks great, even if you’re shooting into the sun or taking a shot in a lot of shade.
But new iPods weren’t the only thing Apple was showing off today. The new Apple TV (£99) is a fraction of the size (and price) of its predecessor. This has been achieved by removing local storage entirely. The device now functions purely as a media streamer and player – it streams content over Wi-Fi from your PC or Mac, and can also stream it from the Internet. There are only HDMI, ethernet and Optical Audio ports on the rear, which keeps things nice and simple. It also runs without excessive heat and is virtually silent in use. The Apple TV interface has also been redesigned, making it easier than ever to access YouTube content and stream pictures from Internet galleries. A big part of the appeal of Apple TV is its Netflix integration, a subscription service for downloadable movies, but sadly this isn’t available in the UK. To encourage Apple TV usage however Apple is dropping the prices on movie and TV rentals, although again UK content is not as wide ranging as US, and not all the TV stations have come on board yet. We had a good play with the new Apple TV interface and it’s gorgeous to look at and worked flawlessly with content from the Internet as well as media streamed from a Mac. The device itself looks great – especially now it’s available in black and small and sleek enough not to clutter up your front room.
Apple also released iTunes 10 today, which features a new viewing option for your media library which combines album art into your list view, as well as Ping, Apple’s first foray into social networking. Ping can best be described as being like FaceBook and Twitter for music. It enables you to follow your favourite musical artists, find out what they’re up to and what your friends are listening to, or what concerts they’re going to. You can also get Ping on Apple’s mobile devices, like the iPhone and iPod touch.
The new iPods and the iOS 4.1 update will be available next week.
