Review: 4th gen Apple iPod Touch

Watching a presentation or playing with the newest 4^th generation iPod touch for a minute or two and in a crowded room with lots of people and cameras is certainly no substitute for actually having it in your hand and test driving it through constant use in a real-life everyday environment.

And since it’s a huge leap forward from the third-generation iPod touch and shares similar features with the incredible iPhone 4, it would only make sense to use those, plus some of the new features as a basis for comparison.

At a quick glance, by itself, the new iPod touch looks similar to its previous counterpart, but putting the two side-by-side, you can’t help but notice not only its sleekness – but also how substantially thinner and narrower the new model really is. And when you realize what’s under the hood you’ll be doubly impressed. Another noticeable difference, but perhaps less significant to some, is the placement of the on/off button, which has been conveniently relocated from the left to the top right, consistent with the iPhone models. For that I say, thank you very much!

Retina Display

I’ve been using the iPhone 4 for more than just phone calls and I admit to becoming somewhat spoiled by the crispness of the its 960 x 640 display. But powering up the iPod touch, you immediately feel an equal pleasantness to your eyes, as it too now features the high definition Retina display, making viewing photos and watching videos on the 3.5”  screen, composed of engineered glass, also a pleasurable experience.

Cameras, Mic, HD Video

Adding front and rear cameras as well as a built-in microphone to the iPod touch, were certainly a welcomed addition, as these features were not available on the previous models. The front camera offers VGA quality and the rear camera records video in HD in 720p at 30fps. And while it lacks a built-in flash like the iPhone 4, the recordings are quite respectable in even less than ideal lighting conditions.

While I haven’t had a chance to experiment with it, you can also use the $4.99 iMovie app to edit your movies and create your own masterpieces.

FaceTime – Video Calling

For me the pièce de résistance has to be the introduction of FaceTime video calling for the iPod touch. Of course, with the cameras, built-in mic and iOS4, this is now possible.

Currently, to make a FaceTime call you would use a telephone number as an identifier to connect to the other party, but since, there’s no phone number associated with the iPod touch, you need a common denominator to find your party – an e-mail address.

And it’s amazingly easy to set up.  Through your Settings, you set up a FaceTime account using your Apple ID. Then you can designate one or more e-mail addresses that you can associate with the particular device. All you have to do is confirm those e-mail addresses.

To make a call, click on the FaceTime app on your home screen, add a new contact or select an existing one and click the FaceTime button. You can also initiate calls directly through the Contacts app. It’s that simple. It works like a charm and faster than dialing a phone.

Game Changer

There’s no doubt in my mind that FaceTime is a game changer as it has the potential to truly revolutionize the way we communicate with each other – as email, cellphones and text messaging has done in the past. But, when it was first released, some felt that it would take time to reach critical mass, since it was limited only to those who owned iPhone 4s. But with its availability for the iPod touch, it’ll be more affordable and more accessible to people, bringing video calling one step closer in reaching critical mass.

(photo on the left taken with an iPhone 4, the photo on the right taken with the 4th Gen iPod touch.)

The original photos were 2592 x 1900 and 960 x 720 respectively. Of course they have been reduced to 255 x 192 for display purposes. To see full images, click on them and then zoom in.

Not iPhone sans Phone

If you think the iPod touch is simply an iPhone 4 sans phone, you must note that while they share similar features, they may not be exactly the same. The new iPod touch does feature the Retina display, but not IPS (In Plane Switching), giving you the ability to view the screen at an almost 180 degree angle. The rear camera on the iPod, while it does yield a decent photo, is roughly 0.7 megapixels compared to the iPhone’s 5.0.  And the iPhone 4 has two microphones and two speakers, whereas the iPod touch has a single speaker and a single mic.

Amazingly, the single speaker offers great sound reproduction while the omnidirectional mic pics up FaceTime audio incredibly well despite its position at the rear of the iPod next to the camera.

While purists make give you a hard time comparing specs of these features, actually comparing the pricing of the 32GB iPod touch to the non-contract 32GB iPhone 4 price,  interestingly enough, you’ll see, it’s less than half.

The iPod touch also ships with iOS4.1, which includes a plethora of features from iOS4 including multi-tasking, Folders and iBooks, as well as new features found in iOS4.1 – Game Centre, iTunes Ping and TV Show Rental (US only) which we’ll look at in upcoming posts.

The Bottom Line

The new iPod touch is an incredible new device and the more I use it the more I begin to appreciate what it has to offer. And what absolutely amazes me is how Apple engineer and designers have been able to compact all of those features into one light, slim little device. ( I guess the phone and antennae must take up a lot of real estate in the iPhone 4)

And if you can ignore its few shortcomings compared to the iPhone 4,  it’s a significant jump with respect to its predecessor and unlike anything else on the market. The A4 chip, the Retina display, HD 720p video, voice recording and of course FaceTime, make the price of admission (8GB $249, 32GB $319, 64GB $429 all CDN)  an incredible bargain for what you get.

Greg Gazin is the Real Canadian Gadget Guy.

Follow me on Twitter @gadgetgreg

Tags: apple, FaceTime, Gadget Guy, gadgetguy, iPod Touch