Using Facetime on the iPod Touch requires you to set up an Apple ID and also to have the e-mail address of the person you want to contact (and for them to have that e-mail account set up on their own iPhone or iPod Touch). Now, that ought to be straightforward enough, but there are three different apps on the iPod that can be used to enter your e-mail details – the FaceTime app, Mail and Contacts – and the procedure isn’t that well explained.
Earbud headphones and the sonic performance remain the same as ever
The problem appears to be that, even though you can enter in your e-mail into FaceTime, there is an initial verification process required, so you need to be sure you’ve configured the mail client on the iPod Touch too. I ended up searching around on Apple’s web site for a PDF manual before I could get everything set up properly. Once that was done the FaceTime option worked very well, and I can imagine kids going crazy with it – perhaps even switching from texting to ‘facing’ with their friends.
The only disappointment is the almost inevitable price rise. This model reverses last year’s price cuts, with the cheapest 8GB model rising from £149 to £189, while the 32GB and 64GB models go up to £249 and £329 respectively. I’ve seen quite a few pre-teen kids with iPod Touches that their parents bought them last Christmas, but I have to wonder how many of those parents would spring almost £200 for this year’s model.
Verdict
The iPod Touch is an amazingly versatile little gadget, and the improved performance of this model enhances its gaming credentials, while the FaceTime technology will appeal to adults and youngsters alike. The stills camera is unspectacular, but having HD video recording with all these other features suggests that potential Flip or Bloggie buyers will expect to see some significant price changes on these models to sway them from the iPod Touch. That said, the increased prices will probably deter some potential buyers just after a media player, but Apple’s recent track record suggests that it has another hit on its hands. ®
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COMMENTS
And the sound quality is.........
Is this now a lifestyle device, like the iPad?
I thought this was primarily an MP3/4 player, no?
Shame the review never discusses sound quality, Video functionality, codecs (Audio/Video) supported, or anything about what it's primarily designed to be.
En_Croute
Re:If you're going to get an Apple product...
Why go for the iPod touch over the iPhone? One word - price. 16 GB iPhone 4 £499; 32 GB iPod touch £249
The touch does virtually everything the iPhone can do except make cellular calls (Skype calls are still possible using the touch), and now it has the iPhone's nice screen as well. Makes the iPhone seem just a tad overpriced to be honest! Yes, I know you can get the iPhone on contract, but none of them could be called cheap, especially if you're not a heavy phone user.
Personally, I don't want a large clunky iPad so the touch is perfect as a discreet, always-on device to check email or surf about the house or anywhere there's an available wifi connection. I hope they don't stop making them. Of course that's unlikely to happen now that the touch has become the most popular handheld gaming device, outselling the PSP and DS combined:
http://www.gamasutra.com/view/news/30218/Apple_Reveals_Revised_iPod_Touch_The_Most_Popular_Portable_Game_Player.php
Who's it for?
Who isn't going to get an iPhone instead?
Anyone who can't have an iPhone for whatever reason.
- you're employer won't supply you with an iPhone
- you can't afford the £400+ an off contract iPhone costs (a nice simple bit of market segmentation by price)
- you actually need a phone to make calls and can't live with the iPhone's battery life
What's it like as a PMP?
It's an iPod - it's the same as the iPhone and the interface is a subtle evolution of the earlier touch/iPhone. Personally, like most Apple software it's a delight to use (though of course you may hate it).
You must have missed it....
...where he mentions the iPod's "the par-for-the course iPod audio quality."
But again, it's down to your hearing as much as anything. Some people are bothered by the inherent sound quality and some by the lossy compression, but most of us find it hard to tell the difference between FLAC via hi-fi and 64kbps AAC+ via small headphones.
Loudhailer, because I need it.....
@Typhoon Rising
"Hold on, so it records high quality video, but the camera is rubbish? How does that work then?" Simple, the stills are the same size a single frame of video.
