Apple 4th-Generation iPod
July 28, 2004
The iPod is a strangely magical thing. It's one of those devices, like TiVos and Game Boys, whose use rapidly leads to dependence, and each generation promises something new and exciting. The latest one is, without being contradictory, both a modest hop forward and a complete overhaul.
The most publicized enhancement (besides a $100 price drop) is longer battery life. The iPod now has juice for least 12 hours, up from 8. In fact, in my test, it lasted just over 13 hours though, like a car's gas gauge, the battery meter showed "empty" long before it had run dry. Still, you should charge your iPod when you're not using it, because it uses a small amount of power just sitting there.
The other major new feature is the Click Wheel, borrowed from the highly coveted iPod Mini. The Click Wheel repositions the control buttons to more or less their original spots (Menu on top, Play/Pause on bottom and Fwd and Back on their respective sides). Also, its center button is once again something that you push instead of just touching. While these changes may seem cosmetic, they do reduce the chance you'll accidentally hit the wrong button.
My favorite evolution is in On-The-Go playlists, which you can now save. Until you rename them on the computer, they show up as New Playlist 1, 2, 3, etc. You can also now remove individual tracks from your current On-The-Go list. I'm still waiting for the day when I can delete iPod's tracks and playlists using the device itself, because once I've returned to my computer, I can no longer remember which songs I don't ever want to hear again.
To me, the new "Shuffle" feature runs both hot and cold. Apple says "shuffle songs in the main menu" and it's true, though it might not be what you imagine. Once you tap the command, it starts shuffling through your whole library. Certain people I know are fans of this kind of potluck playing, and I am capable of enjoying the serendipity. Still, I would prefer that the real Shuffle option, from Settings, be placed in the main menu. That way you could toggle between your shuffled and ordered experiences — genres versus albums, for instance — without seven extra button taps. (Also, the Shuffle algorithm is still less than satisfying: while shuffling through 1,643 songs, two of the first eight tracks it pulled were from the Beastie Boys.)
These are all smallish issues, ones that probably shouldn't plague you if you bought an iPod two weeks before this one came out. But you should know that internally the new iPod is a ground-up reconstruction, and its really compelling applications — the ones that very well might get the goat of anyone unable or unwilling to upgrade — are still secret. All that Apple is saying is that there's more to this than what's being publicized.
If you're thinking about finally getting an iPod, now's your chance. If you're thinking about handing down your current iPod and getting a new one with a bigger hard drive, now's your chance. But don't feel pressured into upgrading, because no major bragging rights will go to the possessors of these latest iPods. That is, not yet
