Cool New Features For The iPods

Photo courtesy Apple

As you are probably aware, the day after the new iPhone 4S was announced the world lost Steve Jobs, the brilliant entrepreneur who co-founded Apple. Had he not done all the things he did, many lives including my own would be very different today. People are comparing him to Thomas Edison, Leonardo da Vinci and Walt Disney. It will probably be a long time before we see another great innovator like Jobs. At least I can say I saw him give his very last keynote speech at Macworld a few years ago.

In the midst of news of Jobs’ death and the iPhone 4S excitement, also announced new features and more affordable pricing for the iPod touch and iPod nano. The touch will be available in new black and white models starting at $199 (and include iOS 5 and iCloud services), and the nano starts at $129. This is kind of geeky, but the day Jobs died, my husband bought me (and himself) an iPod nano to remember the sad occasion. So now every time I look at my little pink iPod nano, I’ll definitely remember.

Not much change to the iPod touch, just that it works with Apple’s new iCloud service. The iPod nano now features larger icons for even easier navigation of its intuitive MultiTouch user interface. You can choose from 16 new clock faces (including Mickey Mouse and Minnie Mouse), and it can track your runs/walks (including pace/distance, calories burned and steps walked) out of the box without any accessories. There also is a motivational voice feedback while you listen to your favorite FM station (or favorite music, of course).

The iPod touch $199 version is 8GB, and there also are 32GB ($299) and 64GB ($399) models. The $129 nano is 8GB, and a 16GB version is available for $149 (colors available: silver, graphite, blue, green, orange, pink and (PRODUCT) RED). Visit your nearest Apple Store or apple.com to purchase or for more information.