First Look at the New iPods - With Photos

Posted By Katie

I just got back from a trip to my local Apple Store to check out the new iPods (living just a few miles away is a very dangerous thing). My first impressions overall were much more positive than when I saw the keynote presentation. Specifically I was surprised by the Nanos. I was expecting not to like the new design, we kept hearing it being called the "stubby pod" or the "fatty pod." but make no mistake, this Nano is till...well, nano.

All the new iPods, including the new iPod Classic, are incredibly thin. You could almost slip the new Nano in the credit card slot of a wallet. It's about as tall as a credit card is wide, then obviously wider to accommodate for the new larger screen size. Overall I liked the new colors as well, they seemed "richer" and "bolder" but not quiet as "flashy" as the old iPods. (Though I liked those colors too.) One of the Apple employees commented that when you pick up the nano it's about the size and weight of a potato chip and "almost makes you want to bite it." I smiled and walked away from this person as quickly as possible.

I still have a soft spot in my heart for the iPod Classic, hate the name, love the iPod. In fact, until the wonkyness with the iPhone and incompatibility with third party accessories gets worked out (like ahhem, Apple it doesn't work in my car with the speciality stereo I bought for the iPod!) if my 5th Gen iPod died tomorrow, no doubt I'd pickup an iPod classic. It just "felt" very good in your hand. Just the right size, comfortable to manipulate the control wheel, very lightweight. And I love the new exterior finish. The hardest part is the color choice, silver or black, maybe I"ll take one of each! If you're a music lover and buy the iPod to predominately listen to music, then I think this is the best iPod for your money. I've played around with the iPod functionality of my iPhone and I'm not super impressed. Yes it's very pretty, but not very functional for me with the lack of tactile interface. My 5th Gen iPod on the other hand, I can control that thing and navigate to right where I want to be blindfolded. (Or at least while driving!)

The new iPod Touch is not shipping until the end of September and the stores didn't expect to have any on display before then. I think it will be a great iPod for people who watch video, but that's not me. I also asked the store manager if they had any more information about how the iPhone store credit would work, and they said they knew nothing more other than what was mentioned on Apple's website. I did hear that my store did have a few 4GB iPhones left in stock, and while I was there it looked like there was LOTS of interest in the new $399 price tag of the iPhone.

You can find all the photos from my little trip to the Apple store up on Flickr. These photos were all taken in a hurry with my iPhone's built in camera so I apologize for the quality in advance. (But hey, it will also give you an idea of the iPhone's camera functionality too!) http://www.flickr.com/photos/themaccore/