Automobile Blog

New iPod Nano impresses, Zune improves

Back in 2004, when I got my first MP3 player, I never cared that it lacked a camera, Web browser and crystal-clear video playback — features that are now common on digital media devices.

Apple’s latest iPod Nano and Microsoft’s freshest Zune, both released within the past week, offer these kinds of perks and plenty more. Neither is right for everyone, but both serve as a reminder of how far digital media players have come in just a few years.

iPod Nano

Apple has sold more than 100 million iPod Nanos since launching the first one in 2005, and the latest version should cement its title as king of the prom.
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Red is a colour that has very few associations.

Ferrari is one of them, Alfa Romeo is another and well, Fiat India thinks you should be associating red with their spunky new small car, the Punto. Yes, you read it right, Punto and not the Grande Punto. You see, when the ‘Grande Punto’ first came out some three years ago, Fiat was still manufacturing the ‘Punto’, which is why this one got the name Grande or ‘big’. Now that the erstwhile Punto has been retired, the Grande Punto has lost its Grande, so there.

But let’s get back to our discussion about the colour, and I admit, it looks good in red. Heck, it looks good in any colour and if I may dare say, it is the best looking small car on sale in India today, at least until Fiat introduces a scorpion-badged Abarth version.

It also has one of the most sorted rides, has very good high speed stability and feels like it’s built to last a pounding for a couple of Raid de Himalayas. Is that enough dope for you to stop reading further and go ahead and book yourself a Punto? I fear not, so let me explain in as structured a manner as possible. (more…)

New iPod pricing for SA revealed

The new range and pricing of iPod nano, iPod touch, and iPod shuffle released in South Africa

Apple unveiled their new range of products at the iStore in Sandton. The iPod touch, iPod nano and iPod shuffle have all received feature upgrades. The products are currently being distributed around the country.

iPod nano

The new iPod nano is fitted with a variety of new features. A VGA camera with a resolution of 640×480 can take photos, and encode video using H.264 at 1.5Mbps and 30 fps. 15 video overlay effects can be applied in real time.

A new microphone captures audio and allows for applications such as voice memo. There is also a built-in speaker and a much-requested FM tuner. The live radio stream can also be paused and resumed. A pedometer has also been added, and this syncs with the Nike+ training companion.

The aesthetics have also been given an upgrade. The screen has been increased to 2.2 inches and the device is encased in polished aluminium, which comes in a eight different colours: silver, black, purple, blue, green, orange, yellow and pink. (more…)

Android-powered Archos tablet out-specs Zune, iPod Touch

Say what you will about the Android OS being behind Apple’s OSX touch OS, there are some things you can measure definitively and those are hardware specs.

Archos released its new Android-based mini-tablet information today and wow is it impressive. To put it in comparison with the Zune/iPod screens for instance, it has almost three times the pixel area (800×480 vs. 320×480 for iPod and 272×480 for the Zune). The screen is also over an inch larger.

The device comes in the typical 8, 16, and 32GB sizes but it also has huge laptop hard drive versions which store up to 500GB of data. That even puts the new 160GB iPod classic to shame. The HDD option, however, doubles the thickness and adds 100 grams of weight. (143,2×78,8×10,4 mm – 182g• ARCHOS 5 Internet Tablet Hard Drive series: 143,2×78,8×20 mm – 286g) (more…)

Apple’s iTunes 9 Makes it Easier to Share, Organize

Apple’s iTunes program is one of the most popular software products in the world. The company says hundreds of millions of copies of iTunes have been downloaded, far exceeding the 220 million iPod music players it has sold.

That’s because many people use iTunes to organize, play and buy music and videos on their computers, or to burn music CDs, even if they don’t own iPods or iPhones. Ironically, the vast majority of iTunes copies are on Windows PCs, not Apple’s own Macintosh computers, because Windows machines are much more numerous.

Last week, Apple released its ninth major version of iTunes — which first came out in January, 2001, before the iPod even existed — and I’ve been testing it. This release is the biggest overhaul of the familiar program in recent years, with improvements in the look and functionality of each of the software’s three main portions: the media jukebox, the built-in store and the synchronization features that move media and applications to and from iPods and iPhones. (more…)

New iPod Nano impresses, Zune improves

Back in 2004, when I got my first MP3 player, I never cared that it lacked a camera, Web browser and crystal-clear video playback — features that are now common on digital media devices.

Apple’s latest iPod Nano and Microsoft’s freshest Zune, both released within the past week, offer these kinds of perks and plenty more. Neither is right for everyone, but both serve as a reminder of how far digital media players have come in just a few years.

Apple has sold more than 100 million iPod Nanos since launching the first one in 2005, and the latest version should cement its title as king of the prom.

At first glance, the new Nano seems very much like the previous version. It has retained its skinny legginess and curved sides, along with its crisp screen and slightly annoying shake-to-shuffle music feature. Astute gadget hounds may notice it has a slightly enlarged screen — it’s now 2.2 inches on the diagonal, up from 2 inches.
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iPod Touch excels in sound quality

I find it hard to evaluate an MP3 player until I’ve lived with it for a little while. Specifications, demos, and even quick hands-on tests don’t tell you the most important thing: how does it sound? Can you listen to it for an hour? A week? The rest of your life?

On Tuesday, I spent a few hours with the 32GB versions of Microsoft’s new Zune HD and Apple’s latest-generation iPod Touch. To me, these are the top-of-the-line competitors in the MP3 player market–if you’re a serious music listener with nearly $300 to spend, these are your two choices.

On a straight specifications basis, each of them has clear advantages.

The iPod Touch excels as a portable multifunction computer, with tens of thousands of available applications, and it’s the only choice for Mac users. The Zune HD has superior music-discovery features, particularly when used with a Zune Pass subscription. Plus, it has an HD Radio and a sophisticated desktop PC client that makes iTunes look stale. (more…)