iPod Nano - The Perfect Gift?
Published Tuesday, February 07, 2006 by Aarya Srinivas | E-mail this post
Update - 7th Feb 2006 - Just saw this news that Apple has launced a 1GB version of the iPod Nano, and would retail at 149$. Meanwhile the Shuffle would be sold at 69$ for the 512MB and 99$ for the 1GB version.Have you gifted an iPod Nano to someone lately? Has someone gifted you an iPod Nano recently? Do you know someone who has gifted someone special an iPod Nano? I dont know whether you answered a YES to any of the questions above, but I personally know atleast 10 people who have either gifted or recieved an iPod Nano as a gift in the last couple of months. What is it that works for the Nano...
- Size does matter - Its by far the best looking and smallest mp3 player out there in the market. Apple has really scored on this aspect, kudos Steve.
- User Friendly - All you need to operate the iPod is with your thumb. The Nano might be smaller than the earlier iPods but the ease of breezing through menus is unique to the iPods.
- Price - I know some of my friends must be cursing me now. Are you telling me that the iPod Nano is cheap? Give me a break dude. Ok if you are done with what you wanted to say, here is my take. The 2GB version sells for around 180$, street price now. A CF / XD card with a 2GB capacity today costs around 120$ or thereabouts. If you add another 60 bucks, you get a sexy, sleek and an mp3 player with a wonderful sound quality. That in my opinion is pretty reasonable. Having said that, if they could over the next couple of years get the price down to around 100$, it would really take the market by storm (not that it has not done so already).
- Far Better - Its far far better than that stupid iPod called the Shuffle. The 1GB version of the shuffle sells for around 130$, I think thats absurd pricing for an mp3 player with no LCD screen, leave alone color or non-color screen,
- Battery Life - Yes, it is supposed to last longer than the previous iPods, but when other mp3 players run for around 30 hours on a single AA battery, I think Apple should start working on their battery and battery life for their future iPods.
- Charging through USB - I have seen many people see this as an advantage, but somehow I am not very comfortable nor am I convinced. I would like to charge through my AC power source and not connect my iPod to the computer, Apple could have atleast added a charger with the Nano.
- Accessories Kill You - Where Apple really kills you and your wallet are the accessories. Lets take stock... you want a charger which works on the mains, add another 40$. want a good silicone or leather protection to avoid scratches to your fragile Nano... add another 30-40$. Need better earphones, which would make the music sweeter to listen to? add another 30-40$ atleast for a decent set of earphones. Apart from these there are speakers...docks (dont ever buy this its just money down the drain for no use). The alternative is to get third party accessories, because Apple's pricing is atrocious.
- Screen Size & AV Output - The screen size is pretty small, but I guess thats the biggest they could muster in a player so small. The Photos feature in the nano is just a nice addition, yoy typically would not like to strain your eye too much to see your photographs. One thing that I wish that Apple had added to its Nano is an AV output, where you could play music / show photographs on your TV or Music System.
:)