My Review of the ipod touch
Ok, I have had the ipod touch now for about three weeks. The 8GB version. In general, I think this is a great product. The screen is easy to use; it took a bit to get used to not having a scroll wheel, but the features are quite nice.
I use it primarily for video; I convert DVD video using Cucusoft DVD to ipod converter, and it rips video in perfect ipod touch screen size. The picture is crisp; the sound is excellent. :up:up With 8GB, I have 7 episodes of SG1, 1 episode of SGA, the 1 1/2 hour Battlestar Galactica Razor, and the entire Stargate movie on the device. In addition, I have 262 photos, and 76 songs (my ipod video is still my primary music device), and still have 1.2 GB of storage left. It definitely has enough space for plenty of video for a long plane trip.
I considered an Archos or a Zune, but those devices are all so much more bulky than the ipod touch. This thing is thin as can be and weighs practically nothing.
The downside: 1) Battery life. With brightness set at half, I can get between 3 - 4 hours of battery life doing nothing but video. Its definitely not long enough for a long plane ride. (I ordered a LiIon battery pack to boost the battery time for such occasions from Amazon, but it has not arrived yet).
2) In the long term I am nervous about how well the screen will last. I do not find the plastic screen covers useful, and the case I have for it, still leaves the screen open. It is always an accident away from a disaster. I wish they could have put a thin flip top on it, like an old Star Trek communicator.
3) Like all ipods, over time I suspect the battery life will diminish, and like all ipods, the battery is not easily replaced by the user. Again, a shortcoming of the brand. (And I have gotten used to just popping out batteries into my Treo when its battery drains).
4) Like all ipods, Apple is just plain old cheap when it comes to accessories. No case, no charger. You pay $288 for something and you think they could include an AC adapter. But that is a criticism of Apple and not the device.
Inspite of the downsides, I still love this device. The video screen is large, almost 4", it makes for a great way to spend an hour on the elliptical machine at the gym. The ipod touch is cool. It gets huge points on the WOW factor. And while I rarely use the Safari browser for wi-fi (since when I have wi-fi I also have my laptop), it is a much more enjoyable experience for doing things like viewing SatelliteGuys, than using the browser on the Treo. Still... mostly a bell and whistle that won't get use.
I'll eventually expand this review in our reviews section, but wanted to post it here. I give it an 8.5/10. If you want portable video, this is the way to go.