Apple iPod Classic

How do you better a product that is very good in the first place? You probably strive to make it perfect, with minor tweaks, and fine-tuning. This is the stage that Apple’s Hard Drive based media player has reached, so the focus for it has now shifted from evolution to fine tuning and perfection. And so the original iPod or the iPod Video is now named iPod Classic, which portrays its journey down the years, and officially makes it the seasoned media player in the market that it is. While iPod Touch is all about style, and funk, and is surely going to evolve further and change a lot in coming months and years (especially the storage space), iPod Classic is all about the “been there, done that” attitude.

So what’s changed? Overall, nothing except the storage space. But the new Classic has other subtle add-ons that are prominent in making it a real Classic player. It is not about experimentation, it is about fine-tuning a really good media player. The most prominent change is the storage space. For the same old price of $249, and $349, you now get storage space of 80GB, and 160GB respectively, instead of the older 30GB, and 80GB. So that’s a big leap on the storage front. According to today’s media needs, that is a lot of space. Classic is not supposed to be just a media player anymore. It is supposed to be a media library, where you carry all your media wherever you go. Plug in an AV chord, and access all your media on any television.

The next best change is the introduction of Cover Flow, which made its debut with the iPhone. Browse through your album covers, which combined with improved graphics makes browsing a lot better experience. The click wheel, and the screen size (2.5”) remains the same, but the new screen is clearer than the 5G iPod. To make it more visually appealing (and maybe also a bit tough), the plastic body as been replaced by anodized aluminum. The colors remain the same (Black and White), but white is now silver due to change in material. Battery life has improved a lot, with 40 hours of audio, or 7 hours of video playback. However, the player has got slimmer, with some new curves in line with better ergonomics.

Posted by Gregory / Features