Among the iPod lines, it seems that the Nano, which sits in the middle of the pack had made some drastic changes both in shape and features. Now here comes the 5th Generation iPod Nano and built into it are new features like the Video Recording and the FM Radio which are not yet present in the current generations of iPods. Apple Philipines distributor was kind enough to send in a test unit to play around with for a while. I took the Nano up on a long road trip up north to rough it out in the Ifugao Mountains.
Build and Handling. It’s a pretty solid little iPod. It’s so slim it could pass for a bookmark. I was worried at times that it could slip from my hands so I was hoping I could put a strap on it but couldn’t find any place to slip it on. Screen’s larger and vibrant but can be hard to see under bright outdoor light. The iPod Nano is actually an ideal size to bring along for travel. It packs a good amount of songs for such a small size.
Battery Life. The bus ride going to Banaue from Manila and vice versa takes around 9 hours. Without tinkering much and and just listening to an album or a continuous run of a Genius Mix Playlist, I was suprised it lasted that long and the battery didn’t drain for the duration of the trip.
Video Recording. One of the selling points of the new Nano is its ability to record videos (but surprisingly not stills). The MP4 format Standard VGA at 30fps per second is, like it says, is Standard in Quality. Video is decent but audio could suffer in quality as the Mic can’t cope with deeper, bass-y sound. And I think the placement of the Camera and Mic should be somewhere off-center right or left. I found thatmy fingers could be seen when I hold it with my right hand. And there’s this annoying clicking sound as well on the video, have to check if I can turn it off or the Mic is picking up the shutter sound. Check out the video sample below.
FM Radio. It’s a straightforward feature. The Nano supports on-air tagging but it seems radio stations here in the Philippines don’t support that yet, but the station IDs can be seen.
For whom is the iPod Nano for? Well being in the middle of the line can be tricky but I find there are advantages for the iPod Nano.
- Its slim size, light weight and extensive battery life are ideal for travel
- If you need an FM Radio it’s definitely worth it
- If you want an iPod but can’t afford the higher priced Touch or Classic, this would be a better and cheaper alternative
The 8gig capacity retails at Php 8790 and 16gig goes for Php 10,490
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