Sep 12

iPod Touch 2.1 Update

"The funnest iPod ever" is not the most clever marketing line Apple came up with so far, or maybe I am not smart enough to get to the blessing of its inner meaning. Anyway, as long as I won't buy an iPod Touch, and Apple won't send me one as a present, either, I can't really dig into the device, especially since I am not one of those considering portable media players a "fun device." For me, the portable media players are exactly the stuff you need when traveling and your companions are not quite the ones to chat with.

Now that I told you once again a few things about my position relative to portable media players, let's move on and see what's new with the iPod Touch. No, no problems yet, everything's just fine, although the new iPods are not available yet all over the world. While the devices didn't manage to reach every corner of the planet yet, the iPod Touch 2.1 update is widely available, as long as you're not living in North Korea or some remote island without any Internet connection, so let's talk about it, shall we?

Here's what the iPod Touch 2.1 update offers to its users:

- Speed: overall speed improvements, including faster backup.
- Stability: Safari runs like a puppy, and sites that crashed it before are now loading as well as possible.
- Configurable iPod Shortcuts: more flexible shortcuts, thanks to the "Edit" button available in the "More" window (unfortunately not available for Videos).
- Genius: "smart" playlists, but no "smart" guide for iTunes Store purchases. Anyway, for that, there's the Genius in iTunes 8!
- Battery Life: Much better, as early reports are showing.

We talked about this before, but let me remind you that the iPod Touch 2.1 update is worth $9.95 for those having the OS 1.x, while those with version 2.0 already installed can get it as a free update. Like it or not, you should pay for this, since it can turn your "old" iPod Touch in a whole new portable multimedia monster!