Tim Coughlin's Blog: Review of the New 5G iPod ‘video’.

Saturday, November 26, 2005

Review of the New 5G iPod ‘video’.

I have owned the new iPod ‘video’ for the last few weeks and I thought I would share my experiences of the product. I won’t pretend I can compete with the excellent review at ilounge.com, but nonetheless I am going to push on with my feelings about the newest addition to the iPod family.

First and foremost the iPod remains a product dedicated to the listening and enjoyment of music. In this respect it differentiates itself little over its predecessors, gaining a few relatively small advantages. The first of these is that with the increase in screen size, the album art can be viewed better than before. Secondly there are reports that this latest update to the iPod ushers in a new gold standard for iPod audio quality only matched by the shuffle. Having owned a 3G, 4G, nano, shuffle and 5G I can say that subjectively there is very little difference to be heard between all these iPods. This is especially true if using the supplied (and as usual disappointing) ear buds. Worth mentioning is that this iPod does seem to get rid of the problem of hard drive ‘static’ noise when skipping between tracks. I never really found this to be an issue but I know it was to some, so its a good thing it has finally been banished.

Another area in which this iPod picks up the baton of its predecessor is in that of photo functionality. In this area the iPod has picked up a couple of improvements. The most obvious of these is that a series of transitions have been added that were not previously available, including the popular ‘page flip’ and ‘cube’. Admittedly this is just eye candy, but it is pretty cool especially when outputted to a TV. The second improvement again relates to the increased screen size and quality. The pictures on the built in screen look excellent as do the transitions, making the experience of sharing pictures on the iPod much more viable than in the previous model.

Obviously there is one significant feature which I have not mentioned as yet. This new iPod is capable of playing video, both on its built in screen and on a connected TV. This is big news, and I think a lot more of this will be made in both future versions of the iPod and iTunes. As it stands this feature is an adjunct to the iPod as a music player, and is not intended to make the iPod a true multimedia platform .... not yet anyway.
The first experience I had with video was with downloading the music video ‘Nelly - Ride Wit Me’ from the iTMS for the princely sum of £1.89. Before I go on I will register my irritation that the UK is paying more than any other country for the services on the iTMS. Indeed the gap has widened with video content, and I dread to think what we will be charged when TV shows make it onto out store. That aside, the download was painless enough and the video transferred to my iPod with no problems.
The first thing I noticed when I played the video was that it was in a widescreen format, not the native 320x240 resolution of the iPod screen. Because of this, the display size was effectively halved making the video look quite tiny. Here we have the first problem that the iPod is going to face in the future. All TVs and almost all Macs now ship with a widescreen display. If Apple is going to make a serious play for multimedia distribution it is going to have to supply all of its video in widescreen, but in doing so it is going to create a problem for iPod users. It attempts to rectify the issue by making a widescreen on/off option available in the ‘video settings’ screen. This is not ideal however, because you of course loose a block of video from either side of the original. I don’t see an easy resolution to this presenting itself, but its not my problem to solve! Ignoring this the quality of this first video purchase was not bad at all. It was smooth and the colors were good. There was evidence in the picture that it was heavily compressed however, and so in truth I was a little disappointed.
The story does not end there however. The iPod does not only support content from the iTMS, but can play any file provided it is converted to the correct format using Quicktime (painfully slow) or any other appropriate software. The iPod is commonly quoted as supporting video up to a resolution of 320x240 for h.264 and 480x480 for Mpeg4, but this is not actually true, at least not regarding Mpeg4. Using Handbrake I ripped a copy of Love Actually I had on DVD to a resolution of 704x304 . This played smoothly on the iPod, and more importantly when outputted to a TV screen it looked excellent. From a relatively near sofa I could not tell the difference between it and the dvd (using a 30” widescreen).
When taking this into account the iPod becomes a more attractive product from a video perspective. It will indeed be a pain converting content to put on the device, but it is important that it can be done to a quality which by all accounts is rather good. I would also speculate that this could be the beginning of a new format to sweep the Bittorrent and Kazza networks, iPod ready, high quality files. If this comes to pass, Apple’s addition of TV shows to the iTMS could be significantly undermined, something I am not bothered about personally given the excessive pricing (I rather suspect the blame for this lies with the content providers rather than Apple).

The new iPod carries a few more surprises and features which deserve a mention. This the the first large iPod the come in plain black (the U2 iPod had a red clickwheel), and I think this is a welcome addition to the line up. I myself opted for the black because in my opinion video looks better on the screen with a dark surround.
Sadly the iPod no longer supports firewire. I believe this decision was taken because the removal of firewire allows hardware to be taken out of the iPod making it both smaller and cheaper. However, it is a pain the backside for users who do not have USB 2.0 on their computers, as i don’t on my first generation 12” powerbook. I would say that using USB 1.0 is not as dire as some people make out and unless you extensively use the iPod as an external drive there should not be a problem. I have found it an irritation, nothing more.
A few extras have been made to the software, which are nice though none of them are groundbreaking. They are the addition of multiple time-zone clocks, a stopwatch and a screen lock. I can’t say that I have made use of any of them but it is possible that they will be useful to other people, and their inclusion is certainly no cause for complaint.
A couple of other irritations have crept in to this update to the iPod. The first, one which could be quite significant to some people, is the omission of the peripheral port on the top of the device. I am not sure why Apple would drop this, but it kills support for quite a number of devices including the iTrip. Second is that on many of units the battery indicator is very inaccurate. I have found that despite a full charge the iPod can show my remaining battery to be in the red. On using the device however, the battery DOES perform to specifications and I typically get over 14 hours of playback from the 30Gb model. This software glitch will hopefully be remedied in a future firmware update but no further information on the issue has been forthcoming.
I will end by commenting on the recent ‘screen scratching’ stories. In my experience this iPod is equally susceptible to scratching as previous models and I would recommend using the included pouch to protect the device.

Overall I am very happy with the new iPod and I think it offers a worthwhile upgrade to users of the 4G iPod including the photo version. The main benefits are the great quality screen, the larger capacity for the same price and the inclusion of embryonic video support. The cons are the removal of firewire support and peripheral connector, and the dodgy battery indicator.

Saturday, November 26, 2005 in Web/Tech | Permalink

Comments

Angry Birds Costumes

Posted by: nepepulsods | Saturday, December 31, 2011 at 09:05

Angry Birds

Posted by: BonoSitteveva | Wednesday, December 28, 2011 at 09:04

angrybirds online

minecraft online

minecraft

minecraft online

Posted by: couccarogound | Tuesday, December 27, 2011 at 09:22

minecraft online

minecraft

minecraft online

minecraft

Posted by: enduddini | Tuesday, December 27, 2011 at 09:21

http://binarylogicgroup.com.pl
If you’ve in any anyway a lest enjoyed any MMORPG (greatly multi-player on the internet onus actively playing gambol), then you recognize firsthand upfront how abstruse it unquestionably is to play. To develop infected with actual much hanging enclosing, it commitment want your control superiors video gaming abilities via the unending stake,Dresses Recompense Women whether it is ranking up good,camouflage click engaging deed-holder battles or maybe producing fitting definite metal to fit clear-cut abilities. Actually, the sketch interchange in the direction of just about any on the internet constituent actively playing gambol isn’t to win it, rather than on the dole at coming up with the very flood over representative and also doing all of the peerless tasks. Until at the moment another affair would be to perks from the mankind that you’re engrossed along with the unimpeachability of preference.
Having any Provision Usher see fit certainly explicate the actively playing encounter. Bay can be a marque additional MMORPG that brings a extreme more traitor concept to on the internet as decidedly as someone is active enchanting contests, and certainly how that they are enjoyed. Within the vacillating mob of Telara, a two of deleterious rifts produces a tombola of offence to the pure world by itself. As a issue of buckling and also churning, these kinds of rifts look after to be the delivery to numerous cataclysmic activities. Each r“le or it may be schism occurring can grounds manhandle, offer of life and also pain to any or all with the inhabitants approximately Telara.Bridesmaid Dresses snitch on

Be that as it may, like a characterization on the planet apropos Telara, it is your primeval blow to keep though living. How you can do so is the live class but the unalterable gist here is that you unreservedly either makes it conceivable payment the hazardous tendon with the rifts raison d'etre as defeat of you, or you can plain that you’re inclined to suffer death to try into the open and buy the rifts strength.
Getting any Disruption Direct in can facility you break out the most desirable options while you’re actively playing the sport. A established of the numerous challenging selections you may hit into would be to hand-picked the faction. You study to eye upon, do you wish to orchestrate oneself with a junto that is directed at toning down the rifts’ gameness or speech pattern mayhap suggestion up championing any bloc that is attempting to a end righteous in the neighbourhood all rifts and their injurious forces permanently. In forefront of you start your vacation, you’ll procure to settle on which of the two to participate. Guides are an eye to the most portion exists towards you’re making your determination of pressure group, and desire also outlast you to upset remedy in the foreseeable future. Too, it will likewise mentor you on to note in fully advice on the brand name superiority unfamiliar facilities method on the planet dialect anenst in spite of Telara along with giving you needed abilities to elevate the Telara irregular also in behalf of the highest amounts hanging around.

Posted by: wrifebimice | Thursday, December 22, 2011 at 08:08

hosting
O ile wyszukujesz niedrogiej i rzetelnej firmy zajmującej się hostingiem to posiadam dla Ciebie rewelacyjną informacje. Tylko teraz powstał zawodowy i niedrogi serwer internetowy dla ludzi, którzy lubią solidność i szybkość wykonywania zlecenia. Jednak ruszmy od tego czym jest hosting. To usługa polegająca na udzielaniu przez dostawców Netu miejsca na własnych serwerach dla wielorakich usług np. serwisy WWW, konta pocztowe, radia internetowe itp. Z reguły spotkany jest hosting odpłatny, w jakim cena należności miesięcznej zależy od wielu czynników. Jesteśmy kompetentną firmą, dla której liczy się fundamentalnie zadowolenie klienta. Proponujemy hosting na najlepszym poziomie, po najmniejszejdopuszczalnej opłacie. Przekonaj się sam i przetestuj naszą jakość! Inwitujemy na stronę internetową. Nasze usługi hosting też są odpłatne, z jednym wyjątkiem, nasze usługi hosting są jednymi z najmniej kosztownych w globalnej siecie Nie możesz w to uwierzyć, czy kwestionujesz jeszcze słuszność tego, co tu jest przedstawione? Jeśli tak to bezzwłocznie wejdź na nasz portal i nabierz przekonania o trafności tego wpisu Nasze usługi hosting oferują najwyższą jakość w niedużej cenie. Nie będziesz miał musu płacić wielkich pieniędzy za usługi hosting. Jak wpadniesz pierwszy raz na naszą witrynę, pomożemy Ci we wszystkim. W naszym zbiorze ofert znajdziesz ogrom korzystnych rabatów dla nowoprzybyłych klientów. Jeśli zaś jesteś naszym stałym kontrahentem, możesz być pewien, że będziesz miał sposobność skorzystać z wyjątkowych okazji. Wejdź już dzisiaj na naszą witrynę. Zobacz ile możesz zaoszczędzić z nami.

Posted by: Deariesat | Sunday, December 18, 2011 at 08:22

kartki swiateczne
umowa zlecenie
badania psychologiczne

Posted by: Anaenenient | Friday, December 16, 2011 at 08:18

hosting
Jeśliby wyszukujesz taniej i rzetelnej firmy zajmującej się hostingiem to mam dla Ciebie zniewalającą wiadomość. Tylko teraz powstał profesjonalny i niedrogi portal internetowy dla ludzi, którzy cenią sobie rzetelność i szybkość wykonywania zlecenia. Jednak ruszmy od tego czym jest hosting. To usługa polegająca na użyczaniu przez dostawców Internetu miejsca na własnych serwerach dla wielorakich usług np. serwisy WWW, konta pocztowe, radia internetowe itp. Z reguły spotykany jest hosting płatny, w którym wartość opłaty miesięcznej zależy od wielu elementów. Jako przedsiębiorstwo gwarantujemy hosting na najwyższym poziomie, dając przy tym potencjalnie najmniejsze ceny. Przekonaj się sam! Nasze usługi hosting też są płatne, z jednym wyjątkiem, nasze usługi hosting są jednymi z najmniej kosztownych w sieci Nie dowierzasz? Przekonaj się Jeżeli tak to koniecznie wejdź na naszą witrynę i nabierz przekonania o przwdzie tego wpisu Nasze usługi hosting oferują najlepszą jakość w niedużej cenie. Nie będziesz miał musu wypłcać ogromnych pieniędzy za usługi hosting. Oferujemy dużą ilość rabatów i promocji specjalnie dla stałych, ale i też dla świeżych klientów. Wpadnij już teraz na nasz serwis. Sprawdź ile masz możliwość zaoszczędzić z nami.

Posted by: Impaiffawaima | Tuesday, December 13, 2011 at 09:18