Just because it can be done, doesn't mean that you have to do it. Well that was one of my Mum's homespun disciplinary lines, sometimes I think computer people should have been brought up better. Technically it can be done, but should you do it?
A phone built into your iPod? There's talk that the next release of Apple's iPod range will add this to one or more models in the line.
Frankly I can't see the point. I can hardly see the point of a camera in a mobile phone, for me listening to music, talking to people, taking photos all live in their own boxes. If I listen to music I'm not going to want to whip out my iPod to take a snap of the underground station I'm passing through.
But .... the iPod touch? Having a camera in that does make sense. I love Skype with its video chat function, particularly using the camera built into my MacBook. If the iPod touch enabled me to log onto a wifi network at home, in MacDonalds or Starbucks, and then get in touch with friends and family well, that does make sense.
Showing posts with label touch. Show all posts
Showing posts with label touch. Show all posts
Sunday, May 17, 2009
Friday, May 15, 2009
Sony X Walkman
Years ago, long before podServe and any thoughts of ripping CDs, my kids loved portable music players. They were cassette tape based and everybody called them a walkman. We went through many units, some cheap some expensive, but they all snapped or collapsed in some way. Irrespective of how they met their end they were all called walkman and were replaced by another walkman even though I don't think a single machine was made by Sony.
Sony just owned the concept of portable music with their walkman brand. Along comes the Apple device and they had a mountain to climb, which they promptly did, so now a portable music player is known as an iPod. Maybe Apple have done a better job as most iPods I see on the Underground are actually made by Apple. Then this morning I opened my newspaper and there's two mentions of Sony. First, at corporate level, it seems they're not doing too well. Second, there's an advert from John Lewis for the new Sony X series Walkman. My mind went back to Sony's last revised foray into the portable music market with a device they dubbed the "iPod killer". How does this unit stack up?
Price- wise they're pitching this against the iPod Touch, and their 16Gb unit is on a par with Apple's 8Gb, same with Sony's 32Gb version. Both devices have a touchscreen, hang on - Sony's is 3 inches compared with Apple's 3.5 inch. That's a mistake, sorry Sony that simply hands buyers the first justification they need to invest in Apple. Nobody in their right mind opts for the smaller screen. If a device needs a screen bigger is better. Sony will warble about all sorts of things but nothing overcomes that extra half inch.
Buttons. iPods have a click wheel, the iPod touch has an indentation. Sony has a button with a label on it. Why? Maybe it's an on/off switch but to label it "Home"? What kind of imbecile do they think's going to buy this? You need to be told it's Home just once, everytime you see this again it's just patronising. At the top of the Sony there are more buttons - one switches on noise cancelling, the other is a volume rocker. Sorry Sony, this is just a sad reminder of all those tacky plastic cassette tape players whose failed buttons and switches consigned them to to dustbin. If you have a touchscreen that's the interface, stick to it.
The Sony has a hole. The hole says Reset. Oh dear, I would have to reset this thing? Of course I'd do that when it goes wrong. So thanks Sony for pointing that out. Apple don't have a Reset button, buyers will conclude their unit doesn't need to be reset.
The Sony is iTunes compatible, it says. I bet its not. I bet if I open iTunes and plug in this Sony iTunes will not synchronise my music library with it, not least because my music is in AAC format rather than MP3.
Anyway, enough of the gripes. Digital Noise Cancelling is what sets this apart from Apple. I've tried DNC headsets - Bose for example - and they're fabulous. Sony have something here. All these units are, as described, portable and they play music. it's a modern miracle that they port all your music, thousands of tracks, but pretty soon you decide you want better sound. Who'd opt for inferior? We rip at twice the iTunes compression setting which delivers a step function improvement, but building digital noise cancelling into the unit, now that's a step forward. You don't have to do anything else, just use this device to improve sounds at a stroke. But will it overcome the other factors?
Here's the choice. Save some money, play MP3s, and get digital noise cancelling. Get a button ridden buggy black thing with a small screen. With a Home button. Or get a sleek white and chrome, bigger screen, button-less unit instead? With Apple's implied cool chic? yes, me too - the noise cancelling headsets are available as an extra. Invest. Sony - sorry.
Sony just owned the concept of portable music with their walkman brand. Along comes the Apple device and they had a mountain to climb, which they promptly did, so now a portable music player is known as an iPod. Maybe Apple have done a better job as most iPods I see on the Underground are actually made by Apple. Then this morning I opened my newspaper and there's two mentions of Sony. First, at corporate level, it seems they're not doing too well. Second, there's an advert from John Lewis for the new Sony X series Walkman. My mind went back to Sony's last revised foray into the portable music market with a device they dubbed the "iPod killer". How does this unit stack up?
Price- wise they're pitching this against the iPod Touch, and their 16Gb unit is on a par with Apple's 8Gb, same with Sony's 32Gb version. Both devices have a touchscreen, hang on - Sony's is 3 inches compared with Apple's 3.5 inch. That's a mistake, sorry Sony that simply hands buyers the first justification they need to invest in Apple. Nobody in their right mind opts for the smaller screen. If a device needs a screen bigger is better. Sony will warble about all sorts of things but nothing overcomes that extra half inch.
Buttons. iPods have a click wheel, the iPod touch has an indentation. Sony has a button with a label on it. Why? Maybe it's an on/off switch but to label it "Home"? What kind of imbecile do they think's going to buy this? You need to be told it's Home just once, everytime you see this again it's just patronising. At the top of the Sony there are more buttons - one switches on noise cancelling, the other is a volume rocker. Sorry Sony, this is just a sad reminder of all those tacky plastic cassette tape players whose failed buttons and switches consigned them to to dustbin. If you have a touchscreen that's the interface, stick to it.
The Sony has a hole. The hole says Reset. Oh dear, I would have to reset this thing? Of course I'd do that when it goes wrong. So thanks Sony for pointing that out. Apple don't have a Reset button, buyers will conclude their unit doesn't need to be reset.
The Sony is iTunes compatible, it says. I bet its not. I bet if I open iTunes and plug in this Sony iTunes will not synchronise my music library with it, not least because my music is in AAC format rather than MP3.
Anyway, enough of the gripes. Digital Noise Cancelling is what sets this apart from Apple. I've tried DNC headsets - Bose for example - and they're fabulous. Sony have something here. All these units are, as described, portable and they play music. it's a modern miracle that they port all your music, thousands of tracks, but pretty soon you decide you want better sound. Who'd opt for inferior? We rip at twice the iTunes compression setting which delivers a step function improvement, but building digital noise cancelling into the unit, now that's a step forward. You don't have to do anything else, just use this device to improve sounds at a stroke. But will it overcome the other factors?
Here's the choice. Save some money, play MP3s, and get digital noise cancelling. Get a button ridden buggy black thing with a small screen. With a Home button. Or get a sleek white and chrome, bigger screen, button-less unit instead? With Apple's implied cool chic? yes, me too - the noise cancelling headsets are available as an extra. Invest. Sony - sorry.
Friday, October 05, 2007
iPod Touch Springs Into Life
One of the things I like about my CD ripping service (www.podserve.co.uk) is the chance to play with new toys, and today it was the iPod Touch. A client had invested in one while on an overseas trip and plugged it into an HP Windows PC expecting it to synch music and videos.
Result - nothing. First the iPod Touch began to charge so the unit was functioning, then it appeared in My Computer as a photographic device. I was called over to try to work some magic. A quick look at the PC verified the situation being as reported with no new iPod icon in the iTunes source pane. My first thought was to install the latest version of iTunes, despite my clients belief that this was not going to solve the problem. Acording to the client iTunes update had been run when the new device was plugged in - just a matter of days ago.
"Humour me" I said, and loaded the latest iTunes from my USB drive. It took ages to load, so we made small talk about the wonders of technology, until finally the new iTunes had taken root. Instant succes, I appear to be a minor techie god, the iPod Touch starts to synch as required.
Client mainly wants video content so to check it works OK we go to the Apple site and download a couple of movie trailers. "Wow" says client (actually using another word with one more letter) at the image quality. "Can we get on the internet?' We could, in just a few seconds. I was amazed to see the iPod Touch found more wireless networks than the PC and one was unsecured, so we clicked our way onto the worldwide interweb. It was great, fast, cystal clear and easy to enlarge the page image. Client immediately notices how much better this is than BlackBerry.
Moral of the story - if you're having problems with an iPod Touch (or any other iPod for that matter), make sure you have today's version of iTunes not just what you think might be recent. Don't assume for the sake of a few minutes downloading.
Second moral - if you want to play with cool toys set up a CD ripping service in London.
Result - nothing. First the iPod Touch began to charge so the unit was functioning, then it appeared in My Computer as a photographic device. I was called over to try to work some magic. A quick look at the PC verified the situation being as reported with no new iPod icon in the iTunes source pane. My first thought was to install the latest version of iTunes, despite my clients belief that this was not going to solve the problem. Acording to the client iTunes update had been run when the new device was plugged in - just a matter of days ago.
"Humour me" I said, and loaded the latest iTunes from my USB drive. It took ages to load, so we made small talk about the wonders of technology, until finally the new iTunes had taken root. Instant succes, I appear to be a minor techie god, the iPod Touch starts to synch as required.
Client mainly wants video content so to check it works OK we go to the Apple site and download a couple of movie trailers. "Wow" says client (actually using another word with one more letter) at the image quality. "Can we get on the internet?' We could, in just a few seconds. I was amazed to see the iPod Touch found more wireless networks than the PC and one was unsecured, so we clicked our way onto the worldwide interweb. It was great, fast, cystal clear and easy to enlarge the page image. Client immediately notices how much better this is than BlackBerry.
Moral of the story - if you're having problems with an iPod Touch (or any other iPod for that matter), make sure you have today's version of iTunes not just what you think might be recent. Don't assume for the sake of a few minutes downloading.
Second moral - if you want to play with cool toys set up a CD ripping service in London.
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