The Good
Same great user experience
Beautiful, high-resolution screen
Large hard drive capacity
The Bad
Watching long videos can be a chore
Can be too big or heavy to exercise with
Dock not included
Models
30GB and 80GB
Colors
Black and White
The Price
$299 - $349
Some revisions to the iPod are small. Some are huge, changing the very nature of the product. The introductory of the video iPod (AKA the 5th-generation iPod), with its ability to play TV shows, music videos, and movies was one of those huge changes, fundamentally transforming the iPod away from being just a music player.
To accommodate the change, Apple created a new form factor for the iPod, making it wider, and giving it a beautiful, bright, high-resolution a 2.5-inch screen. And, because video files are so much bigger than music files, the capacity of the iPod was raised to 30GB on the low-end model and 80GB (after a short stop at 60GB) at the high-end.
The video iPod maintains the wonderfully smooth and intuitive experience the iPod has long been known for. Buying TV shows and movies at iTunes is a snap and the prices are reasonable (TV shows start at $1.99 per episode, with movies running $9.99 and up).
What’s not quite as smooth, though, is the experience of watching video on the iPod. Because the screen is small and there’s no stand, you’ll be holding the iPod a long time. While this may make sense during travel, it’s not likely going to become a home entertainment option anytime soon (read more about my experiences watching TV on my iPod). In a nice touch, though, an adapter cable can help you show iPod video on your TV, which makes the feature more useful.
Still, the novelty of watching real, great-looking video on such a small device is exciting and the continued refinement of the already-excellent iPod is only a positive.
