I was gifted my first-ever non-refurbished iPod this Christmas, a shiny new Nano courtesy of my wife. She heard me grumbling how I screwed up the headphone jackhole (what? what else am I going to call it?) and she jumped at the chance for a Christmas layup. I’ve taken to wearing it on a Belkin wristband underneath my shirt cuff and next to my beloved $8 Casio F-28w. (I like to snake my headphones down my sleeve and out of the way, which is similar to what I’d do with my old iPod. It keeps me from accidentally pulling the buds out of my ears while I’m doing things.) The Casio is the present she bought me last year and has become, perhaps, my favorite watch ever. Why? It just works, and still retains the same face it did when Casio began making digital watches in the 80s. I only take it off when I sleep or shower (and even then, I probably don’t need to).
The new Nano in Action. Also, new facial hair. Old watch.
That’s one of my complaints about the new Nano (not that I don’t like it, I do). It doesn’t work as a watch, despite the umpteen stylish watch faces that come pre-loaded. Why? Because you are required to push the damn button and wait two tenths of a second before being able to see the time (and then only if you have remembered to set the clock to appear). Sorry, I need only glance at the Casio.
Second, they removed the admittedly infrequently-used video capability of the Nano seen in the previous two generations. It can’t be a lack of processing power or memory. It must because they decided they want a square form factor and that, if folks wanted video, they’d buy an iPod Touch. Fui.
Third, I for some reason, I can’t sync my calendar to the Nano, which is a pity considering how they’re pushing all this iCloud nonsense stuff.
I am grateful for the lack of gaming options, as I’ve learned that I get easily addicted to games like solitaire, which offer no conceivable end. (Must…get…to…$50,000…must…win…three…hands…in…a…row)
The radio is also a nice feature and works really well.
Since I’m one of the few people on the planet who do not have an iPhone or an Android, I do wonder if the Nano would make for a good mini-iPhone. I know Apple has dismissed such rumors in the past, but I’d totally dig a wristphone. I already like to keep it on my wrist all the time, and I wouldn’t mind a phone that didn’t do EVERYTHING. My current phone, while it gleefully NOT capable of doing everything, is just awful. Its theoretically capable of going online, through some arcane plan my wife pretends to enjoy, but it takes tens of minutes for it to get data. It theoretically has a camera, but can’t take pictures worth a damn (and even then, you can’t share them). Its theoretically a touch screen device, but it only responds when you don’t want it to, such as when it is in your pocket.The screen is locked, but I’m constantly draining my batteries by making the thing light up. Worse, if I have it set on vibrate, it will buzz a bit with every jostle, trying to fool me into thinking that someone is calling me. My Nano, however, needs to be purposefully woken, which is very nice. So, Apple, do it. I want a cool iPod wristphone that simply lets me take/make calls and listen to my iPod without a huge and unnecessary data plan.