In addition to the new iPod Shuffle, iPod Nano and iPod Classic, Apple CEO Steve Jobs revealed the iPod Touch, which he described as “One of the Seven Wonders of the World” during Apple’s special media event held in San Francisco last September 5, 2007. The iPod Touch is the first iPod that features Apple’s revolutionary multi-touch interface similar to that of the iPhone, which was released in June of this year.
However, unlike the iPhone, it is a bit smaller and much thinner. Like the new iPods, the iPod touch features music, photos, and video. One of its main features is a built in WI-FI antenna located at its backside. It boasts of being the best portable web browser in the world, allowing users to easily surf the internet and zoom in and out of any webpage with just a tap of a finger. It has the Safari web browser built into it as well as instant access to YouTube and online search engines such as Yahoo and Google.
The iPod touch comes in black and has a 3.5 inch widescreen display as well as a built in accelerometer, which is a sensor for auto-landscape viewing of photos and video. Flipping it horizontally automatically moves images and video into landscape position for easier viewing. With Cover Flow built into its interface, the iPod touch allows users to flick through their music libraries via album cover artwork when choosing the album which they want to listen to. It contains the same pinch and spread zoom controls for photo viewing introduced in the iPhone as well as a slide to unlock feature.
The iPod touch also allows for easy hookup to the iTunes WI-FI Music Store where users can browse and preview music for free as well as purchase music wirelessly. Music downloaded into the iPod touch automatically gets uploaded into your iTunes music library once it is synched with a computer. Its battery life is capable of 22 hours of audio and 5 hours of video playback. It comes in an 8GB model that sells for $299 and a 16GB model that sells for P399. It shall be shipping worldwide later this month and will be available in several localized languages.
An Apple and Starbucks partnership has also been announced. Upon entering a participating Starbucks store, users will notice that their iPod touch will have the iTunes WI-FI Music Store automatically detected, with a Starbucks icon appearing on the iPod touch’s main menu. This allows users to see what song is being played or has been played by the store, as well as preview, purchase, and download these songs at iTunes over WI-FI.
Overall, the iPod touch is a breakthrough product that puts together all the best things the iPod and iPhone have to offer: music, video, photos, and WI-FI web browsing; all in a full touch screen interface that fits within the palm of your hand. Its amazing features are packed neatly into its slim and sleek body, ushering in a new era of iPod technology.