Do not get my wrong. I have loved Apple iPods for many years now, and my iPhone is a great part of my life. However, I have started to wonder what else will be added to the traditional iPods, to keep them fresh. Have they reached the limit of necessary features?
Despite my reservations, watching the Apple keynote of this new product has led me to head down to the Apple store and pick up a 16 GB 5th Generation iPod Nano, to add to my "collection."
First reactions? This Nano appears just as sleek and beautiful as the commendable 4th generation Nano. In fact, at first glance, you would not think must different about the newer version. I quickly tried out the recording of video. This was average. It is nice, if you carry your Nano everywhere, to have the ability to take video. Cool. When played back on the Nano, the video looks pretty good. It's average, when played back on your computer. Again, far from bad, but in the age where digital cameras have some great movie modes, you have to simply call the iPod Nano video average, but most of all convenient. Fun too.
Personally, I have found myself most interested in the new Pedometer built into the Nano. It can keep track of your steps during the day, if you keep the device on you all day. I think this could push me to be more active. Again, is this feature really necessary in an iPod? I'm not sure, but keep in mind that this product is popular among fitness gurus for its portability, almost feather-like weight, and solid state memory.
Finally, in a pinch, to listen to a sporting event or particular talk radio show, the new nano includes a FM Turner. Blah you might say? Yes, that is not particularly exciting, BUT the Nano adds one cool feature to FM Radio. You can "pause," the radio up to 15 minutes, such as you might do with the DVR connected to your television. It works flawlessly. Before one asks, no, you cannot schedule radio recordings. Still, the new nano will make FM radio a bit more modern, with this pause function.
Overall, it does seem as though Apple is not quite sure how to keep adding features that are truly remarkable to the iPod Nano. The Nano is the best selling MP3 player in the history of the planet, more sold than any other iPod to date. However, the Nano's best features continue to be its size, ability to sync great content from your iTunes library, portability, and great user interface. The click wheel continues to make finding your music and videos relatively easy. Again, the Nano is superb, but the new features are probably a bit specific on if they will be useful to you or not.
The updated nano is that bit more advanced with a few new features, particularly for many the ability to record a quick video, easily, will be attractive. However, if you have the last generation Nano, I would not worry about upgrading too soon, unless having the absolute latest device and new "features," are important to you. Fantastic device, but not much different than before.
Product Features
- 2.2GHz Intel Core2 Duo T6600 Processor (2MB L2 Cache, 800 MHz FSB)
- 4 GB DDR3 RAM (2 Dimm), Max supported 8 GB
- 320GB (7200RPM) SATA Hard Drive, LightScribe SuperMulti 8X DVD±R/RW with Double Layer Support
- 15.6" Diagonal High Definition HP LED BrightView Display(1366x768); Intel Graphics Media Accelerator 4500MHD (shared) with up to 1.6 GB total available graphics memory
- Genuine Windows 7 Home Premium 64-bit, *Up to 4 Hours of Battery Life
Processor, Memory, and Motherboard
- Hardware Platform: PC
- Processor: 2.2 GHz Intel Core 2 Duo
- Number of Processors: 1
- RAM: 4 GB
- RAM Type: SDRAM
Hard Drive
- Size: 320 GB
- Manufacturer: Portable
- Type: Serial ATA
Ports and Connectivity
- Modem: Fax / modem
Cases and Expandability
- Size (LWH): 10.1 inches, 14.9 inches, 1.3 inches
- Weight: 6.35 pounds
58 of 62 people found the following review helpful: |
Fully Loaded Laptop at a Great Price, October 27, 2009 by J.Haris
I decided it was time to upgrade my laptop and looked for several weeks for the right combination of price, hard drive, RAM, Bluetooth, battery, numeric keypad, etc. This laptop has it all. I thought my replacement laptop would be a second Mac since I bought a Mac for my wife six months ago. However with Windows 7 getting good reviews and a price one-third of the cost of an "equivalent" Mac, my decision was what PC did I want. The DV6-1350 has all the features I was looking for including the new DDR3 RAM instead of DDR2 and Bluetooth. I also like having the 12 cell battery pack attached. The extra "bump" on the bottom doesn't bother me. Ergonomically the keyboard is great. My last laptop was an HP and I am pleased with the reliability. I am really liking Windows 7 in it's functionality. It starts up almost instantly from sleep mode. This is great laptop at a very good price.