Monday, April 13, 2009

Capabilities of the new iPod video

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The capabilities of the new iPod video continue the developing process of the old capabilities – software, hardware and compatibility with other devices.

Concerning the software, it is well-known that the iPod in general and the iPod video in particular play MP3, audible audio book, WAV, M4A/AAC, protected AAC, AIFF and Apple Lossless audio file formats. Since the 5th generation iPods there is another possibility of playing m4v and mp4 MPEG-4 video file formats. Only non copy-protected WMA files may be copied to an iPod. Other formats are not possible to be played by the iPod and this is the case of FLAC and Ogg Vorbis formats.

Besides, the iPods are especially designed for matching the iTunes media library software. This online music store appeared in 2003 and it sells songs and it was thought exclusively for the iPod users and not for other portable music players. This may have contributed to the success both the iPods and the iTunes music store and to the great development and improvements of the iPod’s capabilities.

The software of the new iPod video has new features – personalized recommendations and video content that can be played on a Pc or transferred to the iPod. The software was upgraded to Version 6, fact that represents a development and a distinct achievement.

Concerning the hardware of the iPods one may say that the first generation iPods were recharged only through FireWire with the help of a small power adapter. The 4th generation iPods may have been charged over USB. The 5th generation iPod may be charged with the help of a dock connector allowing the FireWire cable to be plugged in for the recharge.

Compatibility of the iPods with Windows is the idea of Apple, realized in 2002, fact that contributed to the creation of a Windows version of iTunes in 2003. The iPods could be made to be compatible with a Macintosh and there is also an iPodLinux project.

Some additional features may be mentioned while speaking about the iPods in general and iPod video in particular. The iPods can display text files, fact which is very useful. There are also PDA calendars, some games that were interesting several years ago but they seem outdated nowadays. The games available on almost every iPod except the iPod shuffle are brick, parachute, solitaire, music quiz. The most interesting game is the music quiz, playing some fragments of some songs and waiting the user to identify the song from a list. The disadvantage of this game is that it uses a lot of battery power.

All these capabilities seem to be improved in the case of the new iPod video except the creation of other games or the introduction of new ones. This may be seen as a disadvantage, but if taking into account the fact that it is a case of a portable music player this aspect does not have such a great importance.

The innovation is of course the video capability, although the main features of the new iPod stress on great improvements in the image and sound quality. The video image is surprisingly smooth and in this way may replace the skeptical attitudes with joyful exclamations.

Although it is not the first attempt of bringing video on a portable handheld device, this achievement seems to be the most successful. This success is due to a lot of required work and complicated changes in the software and hardware as well. In a way or another, Apple seems to be the champion in creating special portable devices and maybe some other steps will be taken in the development of the small video portable devices. In this way, maybe a special compatibility with more devices may be developed, ensuring other periods of great success. Other online stores may appear and develop in the tradition of the iTunes music store. Due to iPods from the Apple Company legal content of the downloaded and paid music or TV shows, episodes or other materials is ensured.

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Saturday, April 11, 2009

Critics on the new iPod video

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The new iPod video has a wide range of new qualities and among these, the most important is, without any doubt, the video feature. Due to the fact that the market already had a small and portable device which basically played games, but also played videos, the new iPod video was released with some suspicions of the critics. The video iPod is hardly the first portable video player on the market, as the device belonging to Sony claims to be the number 1 portable video player in the world, but it is principally used to play video games. Even so, the sales of this new product turned out to be surprisingly high, a fact which was obvious shortly after the first semester.

The main concern regarding the product was the fact that due to the small screen, the people willing to watch a serious movie on it would be limited. In fact, studies show that most people prefer to feel the actual movie, while watching it in front of a big screen, like the one in the movie theatres. Even more, the new cell phone with a video feature which was so famous in Asia was used for watching movies only for a few minutes, considering the fact that it had a small screen which couldn’t allow catching all the quality details of the movie. The critics even mentioned the fact that, while being on a bus, in a cab or waiting in line at some office, the video iPod with its tiny screen might be a good solution, after all. This is due to the fact that this activity is considered a great snack or a great break. Based on this, the analysts mentioned that if Apple wanted to really hit the market, they should opt for an iPod with a bigger screen, so that customers would be eager to watch even the long movies on this device.

Another aspect which was highly debated was the fact that the battery life of this new device lasts less than expected. While the play station portable has a battery which lasts up to 8 hours while watching a movie, the iPod video only provides 2 hours of battery life, which is a big disturbance, when trying to watch a full length movie on this small digital device. Another thing that the critics attacked was the fact that the iPod takes too long time to download various movies. If for the play station portable, this task is doable in less than 3 hours, while the QuickTime 7 Pro took almost 12 hours to encode the video in an iPod-friendly format.

The sales of the new iPod video show the fact that the public accepts and wants this new product with a lot of interest, due to the fact that it can play music, store pictures and play movies at the same time, a fact which makes it a multifunctional device. Even if the new item received many criticism, the shirt-pocket-size new video iPod, seems to be one of the most preferred objects of the teens of today, as they use it to store and listen to thousands of music and other audio files downloaded straight from the Internet or from DVD’s, cameras and from the computer files.

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Advantages and disadvantages of the iPod video

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The new iPod video became famous due to its huge memory and the capacity of playing video, due to its slim design and longer life battery. Still, there are voices that point out some disadvantages and highlight different negative aspects.

Taking into account that there are few perfect things made by the human hand, these aspects may be used by the iPod video creators for further improvements. Therefore, the customer’s reviews are very important and the suggestions may be really taken into account.

The fact that the screen is bigger is great, but the surface is easy to scratch, aspect that is more in the cons category. Although the image is excellent and the clarity screen may be easily compared with the TV set’s screen quality, there are still some problems with freezing video images. There is a great achievement the fact that the light, sun or other previous obstacles are annihilated, but another important problem is the unresponsiveness in some cases.

The dimensions of the new iPod video are great, but there is no way you may watch it with more than several persons. Anyway, it was designed for personal not collective needs and you may still share your photo album and music or video music preferences with one person. The flat screen is large enough to enjoy your favorite videos.

Although the life battery is longer, the complaints concern the short battery life for video. And this complaint may be balanced by the fact that the video is played with no flaw. The pros of the new iPod video are considered the cool look, the impressive number of features, the great organization of the music menu so that you may even rank your favorite songs. The cons of the new iPod video are considered the absence of FM option, the fact that no cradle is included, the impossibility of connecting the iPod video to the computer and the cost.

The amazing new features concern the sound quality – it is clearer and stronger with a bass that is stronger articulated, the sound is also louder than that of the previous generations. The other good features are the easy control, the video feature is classified with “great”, but the flaws regard the interruption of the sound between the tracks, being blanked out. There are still other suggestions regarding the battery life, taking into account the amount of music that the new iPod video has.

The pros may be gathered together pointing out the thin and attractive enclosure with a great display, the best sound, 15-20 hours of music, new clock and the time in other parts of the world. The cons highlight the incompleteness of the video integration that suggests the experimental project aspect, absence of the new games, no changes in the interface, the smaller screen than expected especially for video features edition. Another disadvantage concerns the slow transfer of photos direct from the camera.

Some critics point out the fact that the design and the features of the new iPod video may be seen from different perspectives. Therefore, the complaints and the satisfaction may be contradictory. These aspects may be seen from a movie lover perspective, an audiophile or photographer or even from a simple consumer with no great expectations. That is why you may find musician’s reviews or video addicted reviews that are in contradiction. You may decide in which category you may be situated for deciding if the new iPod video is worth the money or not.

From the same point of view, you may say that as a music player the new iPod video has superior quality of sound. As a screen for the photo album, the clarity of the screen may win the competition with any TV set’s screen. As a movie player, the iPod video is below the expectations, but it may be considered a great step in the video technology.

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Reviews about iPod video

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The new iPod video has stirred a lot of reactions, a lot of reviews, discussing the advantages and disadvantages of its utility, quality and features. These reviews are important especially because of the fact that the new iPod video was launched without a serious study of the market, of the customer’s tastes and wishes. From this point of view this is a daring initiative and a great step in the video development.

The reviews usually point out the amazement and the great success concerning the new iPod video, but also highlight some aspects that may contribute to its improvement. For example, the great advantage of connecting the iPod video to the TV set and playing the videos on it is well-received. But on the other hand, the fact that the iPod video cannot be connected to the computer is seen as a disadvantage. The transfer from iPod to computer is not possible and this fact may be a suggestion for the designers and creators of the iPod video.

Some customers are in love with this device because of the possibility of watching the favorite TV shows and ABC hits like “Lost” and “Desperate Housewives” even in the road. The stress of loosing the relaxing TV show or film may be very unpleasant especially in the case of difficult days at work. Therefore, the possibility of watching them on an iPod video is an excellent idea. Besides, the iPod video matches the crazy contemporary lifestyle, giving the opportunity of checking the e-mail, of finding out the time in other cities very useful especially in the case of people that travel a lot.

Satisfaction and pleasant remarks are the main notes for the new iPod video, as it is really a great product. The fact that it has more features, more quality, longer battery life and smaller dimensions, thinner display is enjoyed a lot. A small disadvantage, compared to the great new benefits, is the fact that the images, photos from the iPod video transferred to the TV set are too bright, although very clear and nice.

Another great advantage is the fact that the customers may listen to the music over 14 hours (it depends on the model). But the reviews point out a disadvantage – the fact that the video playback time is only 2 hours. Another disadvantage is the fact that the iTunes from the iTunes Music Store are too expensive, but taking into account the great quality of the sound this may not be such a great disadvantage. Besides, the equalizer may be set for a better quality sound.

Some other reviews highlight the fact that the screen quality is clear and maybe clearer than of the most TV sets. This aspect may be put together with the fact that the screen is better and bigger although the display is smaller and thinner.

A special attention may be paid to the fact that, as in other cases, some defect items may be in sale, but it may be exchanged within 14 days. Another disadvantage that completes the fact that the iPod video cannot be connected to the computer is that it doesn’t work well with wireless FM transmitters. This problem may be also managed with a cassette adapter for the iPod so that it would work great.

Unresponsiveness and freezing video images are other problems mentioned in the user reviews. Hardware problems and the low quality of some songs may be other possible problems according to the reviews of the customers. These aspects seem to point out the fact that this technology is not mature enough and the new iPod video is from some point of view an experiment and a way of testing the market.

Anyway, the fact that the new iPod video has reduced dimensions and may fit any pocket. Besides, the high resolution and the great quality of the songs are exclusive advantages and are mentioned by the customers with joy and satisfaction.

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