New Apple iPod nano with Camera 8GB – Silver

I. Ferguson

at 2:20 am

I rarely write reviews, in this case I’ll make an exception.

I bought the 16GB 5th Generation ipod nano as a replacement for the old 2nd generation 8GB model. I’m not a fan of Apple but the ipod appealed to me for two reasons, firstly I am subscribed to a lot of podcasts, and being the market leader it is just so much easier on itunes even if the software isn’t the most ergonomic music library I have come across, and secondly, being the market leader it has an amazing array of different accessories and this is where the 5th generation ipod falls flat on its face. Unfortunately some genius at Apple decided to move the cable port from the left hand side to the right which means not only do non of my current accessories fit very well (or in the case of my car charger/transmitter – at all) but very few on the market will either – 5 years worth of accessories wiped out in a single stroke. Whether or not the 5th gen nano will be supported is hard to say given Apple themselves are too busy pushing the touch and the iphone.

I can’t say the nano isn’t an impressive mp3 player, the design looks great, the screen is sharp and sound is as good as any nano. The usefulness of the camera however is debatable and not at all necessary as far as I’m concerned, the camera is also solely a video camera which means it oddly can’t take snapshots – only video. The ability to play movies (something not seen until the 3rd gen nano’s and later) also seems unnecessary for an mp3 player with limited resolution and memory space, although the resolution in this case does seem to be a dramatic increase over the 3rd generation and a slight increase over the 4th. The volume has also been limited on the European models it seems and is noticeably quieter than previous models, I haven’t found this a problem using the ear plugs but it is a problem when connecting it to external unpowered speakers. This generation of nano’s also comes equipped with an internal speaker which seems to work when the earphones aren’t plugged in, its a nice touch although as you’d expect it is both quiet and of poor quality.

If this is your first ipod and you just want to listen to music on the go then this may be for you. If, like me, you are replacing an old nano or are planning on using old accessories to catch up on podcasts during the daily commute in the car you’d be better off looking for a 4th gen nano.
Rating: 2 / 5

Gordon M. Read

at 5:20 am

I like my new 5th.gen. i pod, great new features which are straight forward to use. However the one gripe I do have is why did they change the connecting slot at the bottom ? It has rendered my recently purchased FM car player useless. Also when I slot into my i pod player at home it no longer recharges the battery, definately a step backwards in my view.
Rating: 4 / 5

Mrs. M. E. Pettit

at 10:55 am

This is a really beautiful object. Apple ALWAYS win hands-down in the style stakes and the new iPod nano is no exception. The polished metal casings are more robust than the earlier plastic ones and the range of colours is superb. My daughter was delighted with it (it was a birthday present) and has been very pleased with all the new features. The video camera is fun (but why no still camera?) and the radio receiver is another well-received addition. She hasn’t had it long, so I can’t yet comment on its reliability but I never worry about purchasing such things from Amazon as the returns/refunds policy is excellent and I have never had any problem with anything I have bought in the past.
Rating: 5 / 5