Apple touch icon - what is it? Apple touch icon – what is it Conclusions and impressions
When describing the design, we paid a lot of attention to the main innovation of the model: the Touch Bar touch panel above the keyboard. But it is important that this is not only a hardware, but also a software solution. Moreover, the effectiveness of its use directly depends on the software and settings. In this article, we decided to look at the Touch Bar in all aspects and talk about the panel from the point of view of its application in various use scenarios.
First, some general information. So, Touch Bar is an OLED touch panel found in the 13-inch and 15-inch 2016 MacBook Pro models. Touch Bar resolution is 2170x60. The panel replaces the top row of keys and can display various information - depending on the running application, user settings and actions.
Needless to say, the panel can only fully function in macOS Sierra and only if the specific application is optimized for use with the Touch Bar. Of course, all pre-installed macOS applications have this optimization, but third-party developers can also use its functionality. In particular, we will look at how this is implemented in Microsoft Office.
In order to take screenshots with the Touch Bar, you need to install the current beta version of macOS Sierra. Any user can do this by registering in the Apple program, but you must be prepared for the fact that the MacBook Pro will quickly discharge.
To the right of the Touch Bar is the Touch ID fingerprint scanner. It is physically separate from the Touch Bar and is not part of it, but when we open the lid of the laptop, the Touch Bar displays the words “Unlock with Touch ID” and an arrow pointing to Touch ID.
As we noted in the first article, the MacBook Pro 2016 is the first Apple laptop with a fingerprint scanner. And its support first appeared in macOS Sierra. Below we will tell you how to use this feature on your MacBook.
Touch ID
So, when we first turn on and initially set up the MacBook, we are prompted to add a fingerprint.
The procedure is the same as for iPhone/iPad. We put our finger on the scanner several times, and the screen shows how the gray grooves are filled with red.
Once a fingerprint is added, you can add another finger and also specify what types of operations Touch ID can be used for. In addition to unlocking your Mac, this can include use with Apple Pay and confirmation of purchases from the iTunes Store and Mac App Store.
Touch Bar: Standard Options
Now let's get back to the Touch Bar itself. We have already seen what the panel shows before unlocking the computer. And this is what we see by default after unlocking. The screenshot shows the right side. On the left there is only the Esc button, between it and the one shown in the screenshot there is black space. The original screenshot is available by clicking.
So, on the right is the Siri call button. Starting with Sierra, macOS supports Siri, and Apple immediately decided to make its launch as clear as possible. Moreover, during operation you often press this button by accident, because previously the volume up button was located in this place. And it turns out that we are being deliberately pushed to use Siri, willy-nilly.
The remaining icons do not need comments. Except for the arrow. Tapping it reveals a row of touch-sensitive buttons identical to what we see on the top row of a traditional MacBook keyboard. Here is a screenshot divided into two halves: at the top is the left part, below is the right.
The decision seems quite controversial, firstly, to make this view not the main one, but accessible only after touching the small arrow (hit it again!), and secondly, to leave the Siri call icon in this row. However, if desired, all this can be configured. We will tell you how exactly further.
Touch Bar in apps
Now let's see how the Touch Bar works in applications. Once again, if the application is not optimized for the Touch Bar, the bar will always display what is shown above. However, with its pre-installed apps, Apple has naturally made sure that each one actually takes advantage of the Touch Bar's capabilities. For example, Safari. The screenshots below show fragments of Touch Bar screenshots, but the original screenshot is available by clicking.
As we can see, thumbnails of open tabs are displayed here. You can move between them simply by swiping your finger. Comfortable? Perhaps. On the other hand, I can’t say that it’s very clear - the thumbnails are too tiny, and they don’t always allow you to understand which site is which. And switching between tabs in the usual ways is no more difficult. But it's certainly a spectacular opportunity.
Another useful thing on this panel in Safari is “search” and “open new tab”.
The panel may also change depending on what is open in the browser. For example, if a video is playing there, the video navigation panel appears.
And here we come to understand the main quality of the Touch Bar: it is complete variability, that is, in one application there can be an infinite number of Touch Bar options. Everything depends solely on the imagination of the developers. The main question is that the functionality of the panel complements, and does not duplicate, the already easily accessible application options.
A good option is in the “Calendar”. There, you can easily switch between different weeks using the Touch Bar.
Less successfully done in text editors Pages and Word. The problem is that, for example, marking a piece of text in italics is much more convenient simply with the mouse, because we select this piece with the mouse. It turns out that in order to use the Touch Bar, we first need to make some kind of gesture with the mouse, then drop it, press the button on the Touch Bar, then grab the mouse again.
In general, despite the fact that the capabilities of the Touch Bar in text editors are very wide, in fact it turns out that you either need to relearn and get used to completely new movements while working, or simply perceive the Touch Bar as some kind of optional addition that we, maybe , someday we’ll use it purely for fun, but for now we’ll do it the old fashioned way - with a mouse and keyboard.
This applies not only to text editors, but also to most other applications. For example, QuickTime Player.
Yes, we see a pause button, but in order to pause the video, just press the space bar on your keyboard.
And this is the main problem of the Touch Bar concept and the main challenge for developers: how to make using the Touch Bar intuitive and simpler than the usual keyboard shortcuts and mouse commands? It is clear that a lot here depends on Apple itself, because it is necessary to set an example for third-party developers to show that the Touch Bar can really be used intelligently. And there are such examples. We have already given several examples and we can give more.
Let's say Pages has word suggestions that pop up. This is exactly the option that is impossible, or at least impractical, without a touch screen, and the Touch Bar is just right for its implementation.
Setting up the Touch Bar
The Touch Bar can be customized to suit you, not only in general, but also for each application separately. General settings can be accessed through Settings/Keyboard.
You may notice that the “Configure Control Strip” button has appeared there. This is exactly what you need to set up the Touch Bar. At the top you can also specify what should be displayed by default on the panel.
Control Strip are standard icons on the right side of the Touch Bar. An extended version of the Control Strip opens if you click on the arrow. But if you don't want to do this regularly, you can set the extended Control Strip to show immediately.
So, click “Customize Control Strip” and we see a window with icons, and above them there is the inscription: “Drag frequently used items to the Touch Bar at the bottom of the screen.” Actually, from this it is already clear how exactly we can replace any icon on the Touch Bar with another. Just take the mouse you need and drag it down to the edge of the screen, after which it “jumps” to the Touch Bar and shakes there, like on iOS after a long press.
There is quite a large selection here. There are also useful things. For example, “Screenshot”, “Sleep”, Launchpad, “Show desktop”, “Do not disturb”... So don’t miss the opportunity to create the optimal set.
Thus, outside of applications, we have two levels of Touch Bar customization: the first level - what is displayed by default, the second level - what is the composition of the Control Strip (regular and extended options). But in addition to this, you can also customize the composition of Touch Bar icons in individual applications. For example, below is how this is done in Safari. In the “View” menu we see the line: “Customize the Touch Bar.”
Click on it - and we see a window similar to the Control Strip settings window, but with a set of icons directly for the browser. Well, then we proceed according to the familiar scheme: drag the necessary icons with the mouse and pin them to the desired place in the Touch Bar.
Therefore, software developers must take care not only about the fact of using the Touch Bar, but also about the options for customizing the panel within their application and choosing additional icons. That is, on the one hand, there must be a clear relationship between user actions and the icons that appear on the Touch Bar, and on the other hand, the initial set can be adjusted by the user.
conclusions
Touch Bar is one of the main innovations in recent years. This is a very interesting and promising solution that can significantly expand the user’s interaction with the laptop and make it easier to perform a number of tasks. Hypothetically. In practice, a lot depends on how the Touch Bar functionality is implemented in a particular application and how easy or difficult it is for the user to customize it and start using it in real life.
We can't say that the Touch Bar is really useful yet. And expecting your productivity to increase if you upgrade from a previous generation MacBook Pro to a MacBook Pro with Touch Bar would be reckless. And if you consider that most third-party software manufacturers have not yet managed to optimize their applications for the Touch Bar, there is no need to be under any illusions. But, at the same time, the idea itself seems very promising, its implementation is as competent as it can be in real conditions, and the prospects are impressive, given that Apple has already demonstrated more than once how it can convince the entire industry of the need to implement those or other innovations. Will it work this time?
The Apple MacBook Pro (Late 2016) deserves our Original Design Award for its innovative Touch Bar and the deep integration of this hardware element into the laptop's software.
12The first iPod series player was introduced back in 2001. Consumers appreciated its advantages - compact size, high sound quality, compatibility with most headphones and a fairly large amount of memory. Balanced prices also influenced sales levels - the iPod sold 100 million copies within six years. Large selection of Apple players in M.Video Using our catalog, you can buy in Moscow and other cities of the country. Distinctive features of this model include: 4-inch multi-touch screen; ability to connect to the Internet; support for many applications, including e-book readers. You can buy 6 in the online store. Lightweight and compact, it fits even in the narrowest pocket. Despite this, it can even be used to watch videos. The most compact version of the iPod player is the . It does not have a display - its entire surface is occupied by the main control buttons. It can be worn on clothing by fastening it with a miniature clip.
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Apple iPod Touch
The start of sales of the iPod touch made a real revolution in the line of portable multimedia players, because in addition to standard functions, the device offers the user an expanded range of high-tech Apple kit.
Fill your iPod Touch with thousands of your favorite songs and audiobooks, connect on social media and shop online, take photos and post them to Facebook or Twitter, and play professional console-quality games with the incredible functionality of the next generation player.
The world's first turntable with limitless possibilities
Buying an iPod Touch should be primarily for those who strive to always have a multifunctional gadget with them for all occasions. The performance power of the device is based on the following innovations that the developers have equipped the compact player with:
- Desktop-level processor. The functional power of the gadget is explained by the fact that the player is powered by an incredibly efficient and fast A8 processor with 64-bit architecture. This system allows you to run various applications, comfortably use Internet resources and play complex graphic games that work without any time lags.
- Energy efficiency and continuous operation. It is also very important to note that the gadget is designed for long-term use without recharging. In audio file playback mode, the user can forget about the need to recharge the device for as much as 40 hours, while playing games and watching videos, you can count on 8 hours of freedom from wires and connections. This is largely due to the fact that the processor works in conjunction with the powerful M8 motion coprocessor.
- The 4-inch Retina display is even more detailed and brighter. Another compelling reason to buy an iPod touch is the ultra-clear and realistic Retina display, which has a multi-touch control system and is also equipped with a Home button, convenient for quickly returning to the main menu.
- Wireless networks anytime, anywhere. The gadget's body has a built-in Wi-Fi antenna, which allows the iPod touch to support today's popular wireless protocols such as 802.11b/g/n. Thanks to such an Internet system, this is the first model representative of the iPod line, which allows the user to access the iTunes Store and App Store. As a result, the developers were able to place all the possibilities for downloading and purchasing content on the Internet in a compact player body.
- Take pictures, film, post. It's hard to classify iPod touch as a music player, because the gadget also has two high-end cameras for taking professional photos. An 8-megapixel iSight camera is located on the rear of the device, while a second FaceTime HD camera allows you to take rich, color-rich and life-like selfies. Automatic photography and portrait mode allows you to take up to 10 photos per second. The device independently determines the clarity, sharpness, and even whether the eyes are open in the photo, choosing the highest quality frames.
- The world's best mobile operating system. The iOS 9 operating system is fully integrated into the technical base, which allows you to maximize the full range of capabilities of the unique iPod. At the same time, this software base has a set of built-in applications that open up a huge number of high-tech processes to the user. The Safari Internet browser will open the doors to the world of the boundless Internet, with the help of iMessage you can write a message to loved ones and business partners, FaceTime will give you the opportunity to always stay on a video call, and the Siri voice assistant is what you need for users who prefer sound control.
Impeccable aesthetics and durability
The design of iPod touch will not leave anyone indifferent, because the device is made of high-strength anodized aluminum, which also ensures the lightness and mobility of the multimedia player. The gadget is presented in a wide color palette, which gives every connoisseur of high technology and mobile freedom the opportunity to choose a player not only as a multifunctional assistant, but also as a stylish and ergonomic accessory. A nice addition is also a leather strap for carrying the player on your hand - the iPod touch loop.
By purchasing an iPod touch, you are not only making the right choice, but also a good deed, because Apple donates part of the proceeds from the sale of gadgets of this line to the global fund to fight AIDS in Africa. Keep up with the times while listening to quality music with iPod touch.
By looking at the server error log, you may find entries like this:
File does not exist: .../public_html/apple-touch-icon-precomposed.png
File does not exist: .../public_html/apple-touch-icon.png
This means that when the user entered your site, two images in png format were requested, but not found (error code 404). Please note that the image apple-touch-icon-precomposed.png is requested first, and then apple-touch-icon.png. I’ll explain later why I’m focusing on this fact, but first let’s figure out what these pictures are.
What is apple-touch-icon.png
Apple-touch-icon.png is a miniature icon that should represent your website or web page. It is intended for users accessing the site from devices with a mobile operating system (iOS). What is this icon for?
Just as desktop users can bookmark any web page in their browser, iPhone or iPad users can use Web Clip to save links to their favorite sites as icons on their devices. These links, represented by icons, are called web clips.
A shortcut to your website on the device screen is a powerful tool for being remembered. So I think it's worth putting a little effort and spending a little time into creating the icon. What happens if you don't?
This is what happens when a user clicks the button to add your site icon to their device screen. The device starts looking in the root of the site for an icon named apple-touch-icon-precomposed.png. If it doesn't find it, look for apple-touch-icon.png. How are these two pictures different?
It's the names of the pictures. If you name the website icon apple-touch-icon.png, the device will apply standard effects typical of Apple icons to it - add highlights, shadows, and round corners. If you don't want any effects applied to your site icon, name it apple-touch-icon-precomposed.png.
If the device does not find either apple-touch-icon-precomposed.png or apple-touch-icon.png, then the touch iPod, iPhone or iPad will save the screenshot as an icon. This means that the shortcut to your site will be faceless, the log will be updated with new error warnings, and unnecessary requests will load the server.
How to create apple-touch-icon.png
The IOS 7 Apple developer website describes in some detail the requirements for icons and recommendations for their placement on the site (freely translated by the author of the article).
- An icon in PNG format with the name apple-touch-icon.png should be placed in the root folder of the site
- If you want to specify an icon for a single web page, or replace a website icon from a web page with a specific icon, add a link element to the web page:
In the example above, replace custom_icon.png with the icon file. - To specify multiple icons for devices with different resolutions, such as to support iPhone and iPad devices, you need to add a sizes attribute to each link element as follows:
- The most suitable element size for the device, if sizes are not specified, is up to 60 x 60.
If the site does not have an icon that matches the recommended size for the device, the smallest icon that is larger than the recommended size will be used. If icon sizes do not exceed the recommended size, the largest icon will be used.
If your web content stands out in a special way, such as a recognizable color scheme, it makes sense to include it in the icon. To ensure your icon displays properly on your device, follow the guidelines in this table.
Many webmasters complain that Apple makes a webmaster's job more difficult. Maybe so, but I don’t see a big problem here. Monitoring some well-known web resources for the presence of an apple-touch-icon in the root of the site showed the following: Apple - icon size 152x152 px, Yandex - 57x57 px, Odnoklassniki - 129x129 px, Facebook - 57x57 px, VKontakte and Google apple -touch-icon not found.
Well, in conclusion, you can create an icon for your website of any size, with or without an effect, using an online generator by following this link.
Talking about the iPod Touch as just a new model in the iPod line doesn't make sense. Talking about the player as a stripped-down iPhone is the same. If only simply because it stands out too much from the line, and phones are simply not cut down to players - they are more expensive. There are even disputes as to which segment the resulting device should be classified into. The iPod Touch does not resemble a PDA, although it has almost the full functionality of these devices, it is not a web tablet, although the Web in its performance is quite good, and you can’t just call it a player or PMR. In order not to rack my brains, I used the most neutral of suitable names: media player. It is clear that, by and large, almost any modern personal audio device fits this definition. That is why I used it as broadly as possible, matching the functionality of the iPod Touch.
For those who were turned on from the first lines and are now drawing up plans for an angry letter, I will make a remark. The iPod Touch is a device made using the iPhone's developments and some design borrowing, rather than the actual iPhone without a camera and radio module. I am well aware of the similarities between both devices and deliberately abstract myself from trying on the iPhone impressions on it. Therefore, if it seems to you that the Touch and the iPhone are twin brothers, think so for your health. I am not trying to refute this point of view, nor to push the opposite one. It’s just that, at least for the sake of objectivity, it’s much more reasonable and logical to consider the Touch as a separate, independent device, without making too many analogies and passing comparisons of “little things.”
Now, it seems, we’ve decided on the delivery method, now it’s not a sin to move on to the device itself. It's no secret that the appearance of an iPod with a touch screen has been expected for a long time, long before rumors about the iPhone began to spread, and even more so before the company introduced the phone to the general public. Expectations were reinforced by sketches that appeared here and there on the Internet, and some of them, in principle, were not so far from what turned out in the end. So it’s still unknown whether the idea of what matured in the minds of Apple’s designers was the first, a “super player” or a phone.
One way or another, in September of this year, the iPod Touch was officially announced and began shipping to stores. The device did not make a big splash, since it was clear that it would be in many ways similar to the iPhone, which had already set people on edge. If Touch had appeared earlier, it is clear that the excitement around it would have been many times, if not an order of magnitude, stronger. And the position of the device is somewhat blurred by the same phone, because it has a player almost identical in capabilities and design. Perhaps, taking this into account, Apple did not immediately supply Touch to stores in large quantities; at first it was easy to buy the new Nano and Classic, but not the Touch. A certain shortage attracted an additional bit of attention to the player, and Apple has never disdained simple but effective solutions. Now, of course, the situation has returned to normal, and players have gradually begun to make their way to Europe and to us.
In order not to feed you for a long time with discussions about the market, positioning and other unimportant details (just kidding), I’ll move on to the technical details.
The main detail in the Touch, the thing around which, in fact, the entire device is built, is, of course, the display. It has a diagonal of 3.5 inches and supports Multi Touch technology, when touches with two fingers are registered at once. They have not spared any memory for the player; today there are two options available, 8 and 16 GB. You won’t be able to expand the memory yourself; it’s unlikely that we’ll see a slot for memory cards in Apple products in the near future; they don’t even exist in laptops. If the display and memory are counted as two whales on whose backs Touch is based, then the third will, of course, be Wi-Fi support (802.11 b/g). Looking ahead, I will say that it was implemented perfectly and was definitely in place.
Otherwise, everything is typical Apple style: there is no radio or voice recorder, but there is a calendar and an Internet browser. By the way, you can listen to the radio from the network, or, which, in my opinion, is better, just turn on Last.FM with your own selection.
To make it easier to read and digest, this review of the iPod Touch will be divided into two parts. The first part, accordingly, will be devoted to impressions of the design and controls, as well as typical player functions. In the second we will talk about the player’s Internet capabilities and additional functions. All belated conclusions and impressions that were not included in the first part will also be included there.
Case and design
There are no color options or combinations of materials for such a high-tech model; everything is extremely serious. The player should be as recognizable as possible, but at the same time strict and universal in design. It is practically devoid of family features of the line; it is a product of a new era in the life of the company, and in its design it almost does not take into account the past. Almost, because the only thing that connects it with the iPods we are already familiar with is the polished back panel with the traditional bitten apple.
The front panel is made in a “radical black” color. There was no attempt to visually merge the display with the rest of the surface of the panel; it stands out quite clearly. The only element that breaks up the blackness of the panel is a small white square inside a single button. It is located in a recess, which also serves a design purpose: only on it can the eye be caught.
The already mentioned rear panel and side panels are left empty, life is in full swing around the ends. At the top left, where you would expect to see the lock switch, there is a small elongated button with a short stroke; it serves to turn the player on and off and backlight the display. Here you will also find a recess in the metal part, covered with a plug made of smooth black plastic. There is obviously a Wi-Fi antenna hidden behind it.
At the bottom there was a place for connectors. There are only two of them, a Dock connector and a headphone jack. There are no other elements on the body.
In my opinion, the designers did everything right. The player is not designed for a particular mass audience; it is more a symbol of technological leadership. At the same time, its audience is the most mature of all iPods, so it should look accordingly, like a technically rich thing at an appropriate price level. This is what the player generally looks like.
The “eternal” combination of black and silver is used; this option simply cannot be spoiled, and with the normal work of designers, it brings the most abundant results. For all its brevity, the iPod Touch turned out beautiful. It is important that the beauty of the device is not the usual “Apple” one with rounded shapes and soft colors. In the case of Touch, it is rather “business class beauty”. The player is beautiful, just like a pistol or an army knife with a black blade, or a black lacquer St. Dupont lighter can be beautiful. That is, in itself, as an object with color and shape, whose purpose recedes into the background.
Control
Perhaps this is the first time you have to think about how best to start this part of the review; usually everything happens by itself. I think it would be quite fair to call the Touch a player with the most technologically advanced control system that we have ever tested. At the same time, you shouldn’t sing its praises just because the player has a touch screen, fortunately we’ve already seen such ones more than once, take, for example, the same Archos products. What really makes the Touch stand out from the crowd is the display's sensitivity and Multi Touch support. We will focus on them in more detail.
Obviously, all player controls are touch-sensitive, with the exception of turning it on and off. Accordingly, absolutely all manipulations are performed by pressing the buttons shown on the display. A particularly important art of interface designers is to make all these buttons visible, large enough and placed in the right places. At the same time, you need to take care of yourself and not forget about all sorts of beauties designed to lure salivating potential buyers into the strong and welcoming embrace of sales consultants. In short, you can make a very user-friendly interface, but it won’t look all that great. On the other hand, a visually beautiful interface can look simply charming, but during operation provoke a continuous stream of curses from the happy owner of the device.
Having pulled these two vectors into a strong sea knot, you need to link this whole thing with the display machinery, the circuits that are directly responsible for recording touches.
In general, the developers faced a very serious task, and it is all the more pleasant to report that, on the whole, they coped with it successfully. True, it’s too early to cry with happiness, there are rough edges, as without them, but in general everything is very, very pleasant (this concerns management).
All significant elements, that is, those that are clicked or moved, are well rendered and mostly stay in place, where you expect to find them. I deliberately did not read the instructions in order to evaluate in practice the user-friendliness of the iPod Touch interface. With other iPods everything has long been clear, and the “menu-ClickWheel” tandem is very intuitive. And here is a touch display, bright icons, all sorts of sliders, and even Multi Touch. Even a seasoned gadget geek can (in theory) get confused. True, this does not happen. At first, the only button under the screen works as a universal “return”; when pressed in any situation, the user seems to be grabbed by the scruff of the neck and pulled out of the jungle of the interface into the main menu. And literally after a couple of minutes of communication, the finger already gets used to jumping across the entire display to the upper left corner, where, as a rule, there is a button to go to the previous menu. It also happens that you often have to “jump” down, on the contrary, to select these same lists.
In terms of purely physical convenience, this does not cause any complaints, although, for example, my palm is short and wide, and my fingers, accordingly, are also not particularly suitable for cleaning test tubes. However, there were no problems with reaching somewhere with the tip of the thumb, for which a deep bow to the designers. Frankly, I was initially expecting something like this, because at first the device seemed a little large when taken in the palm of my hand.
Also involved in the control is the player’s position sensor in space, which is well known to those who have read at least a couple of articles about the iPhone. There is even a small curiosity associated with it. The resulting sample had already been loaded with some music, and I began to look for how to switch to the Cover Flow album cover viewing mode, so spectacularly shown in the presentation. But somehow it was impossible to find it, there was no separate item anywhere, like in the menu of the new iPods, and the manipulations did not lead to anything close to what was intended. As usual, the box opened very simply: you just had to turn the player horizontally while viewing the list of songs or albums.
The most important parameter – display sensitivity – is excellent, you can rest assured about that. All buttons are pressed the first time, “flips” and failures are extremely rare. Anyone who happens to type text using the Touch on-screen keyboard will remember it for a long time, because it is implemented, as they say, “as it should” (the same keyboard in the iPhone). Only when typing texts, sometimes the player registers the wrong letter, you have to type it again, but the size of each of the buttons is much smaller than the pad of a finger, I’m generally surprised that a couple of letters are not registered at once. In short, there are no complaints about the sensitivity; it really makes a very good impression and is one of the “wow factors” of the model.
The reliability of fixing the position of the finger deserves special mention. I've seen quite a few touch screens, but Apple's one made a lasting impression on me for this reason. When viewing photos, they are scrolled through with short “strokes” of a finger across the display. The solution is not new, it is very convenient and spectacular. So, if you “take” a photo with your finger and start “carrying” it in different directions, the player does not show any signs of embarrassment and unquestioningly follows all commands. The software implementation (certainly excellent) of this method fades into the background; the impression is made precisely by the fact that the position of the finger on the display is read without the slightest delay or error.
And finally, a few words about Multi-Touch. I’ll say right away that the technology is very promising and interesting, but so far it only serves to achieve a wow effect at presentations, and is used for approximately the same thing by the happy owners of the iPhone and iPod Touch. At least, this is the opinion I have. With Touch, you can use your fingers to pinch apart a photo, web page, or video. It looks, of course, very interesting, beautiful and futuristic. But in most cases the same effect can be achieved by double-clicking on the display (strangely, the word “click” has caught on, but the word “tap” has not). Personally, this is much more convenient for me, although, of course, it is clear that personal preferences should not be extended to all future owners.
The “roughness” mentioned at the beginning boils down to the keyboard, which takes a little getting used to, since the number of incorrect operations decreases with use, and the initial invisibility of some buttons. For example, the button to return to the previous level in the upper left corner is often not very noticeable against the background of other elements, and the place is not very good; in my opinion, it would be better to place it down. Otherwise, as already reported, the Touch controls are very smooth and thoughtful; behind the outward simplicity you can feel the man-days spent on fine-tuning.
In conclusion, it is enough to say that all the declared technologies actually work and work well. The combination of a sensitive touch display, gyro sensor and Multi-Touch provides a fresh approach to controlling portable technology, and a new word in this rather conservative area is worth a lot. Apple has clearly managed to gather bright minds in the field of ergonomics and human interfaces, and they eat their bread for good reason.
Display and menu
At least half of the impressions from the display were outlined a little higher, fortunately it also acts as a control element, and the only one. But, of course, it’s worth talking about the picture separately.
There is an opinion that it’s time to adopt newspaper practice, when many journalists and correspondents who write have a couple of dictionaries of synonyms on their desks, and if they have something to describe, they quickly pull out synonyms from there to make it even more colorful. Your humble servant, I confess, still writes “the old fashioned way,” from his head, without taking advantage of the fruits of progress, which have already become outdated. Each time, accordingly, you have to invent epithets for the image on the screen. But this does not add more hair to my still young head. Well, let's not talk about sad things.
When launching a product at the Touch level, there was no way to screw up the display. Actually, no one expected this from Apple. What was not expected did not happen, contrary to ordinary life situations. The device has a wonderful display, very bright and clear. In the first samples, however, there was some problem with the black color, which was not black enough, but now it has already been successfully resolved. Photos, of course, will not fully convey the quality of the image on the display; you will have to describe it verbally. The display diagonal is 3.5 inches. Those who read my reviews and listen to podcasts may remember that I have repeatedly said that it is from this diagonal that comfortable video viewing begins. So it is, but not the diagonal of one alive Touch. The most important thing about its display, in my opinion, is the resolution of 480x320 pixels. It provides remarkable picture clarity, especially photographs and videos, which, in fact, was required to be proven. Traditionally smooth fonts look even smoother, while the amount of text information that can be displayed on the display is many times, if not an order of magnitude, greater than necessary. In most cases, the amount of unused screen space is quite large, so the user is not in danger of getting confused in buttons and inscriptions, although if desired, one could cram so much onto the display that it would make communicators on Windows Mobile envious.
Overall, menus, photos, and videos look great on iPod Touch. The colors of the display are bright and saturated, and the brightness is additionally adjustable. But the main advantage of the display, of course, is the resolution.
The main menu of the iPod Touch is represented by large square graphic icons; they are well drawn and stand out against the default black background. On the “desktop”, in its upper part, there are seven “application” icons. These are Safari, YouTube, Calendar, Contacts, Clock, Calculator, Settings.
At the bottom there are four “sections”: Music, Videos, Photos and iTunes.
Safari. Internet browser.
YouTube. A bookmark to the well-known video resource YouTube, the display of information is optimized for the iPod Touch.
Calendar. Calendar.
Contacts. The contact list can be edited directly from the iPod Touch.
Clock. Clock: world clock, alarm clock, stopwatch, timer.
Calculator. A regular calculator, with buttons directly on the display. There is a memory function.
Settings. Settings.
Music. Everything related to listening to music is concentrated here: calling playlists, sorting the list of songs by title and artist name. Additionally, sorting is carried out by genre and the name of the creator of the musical work. There are also separate items for calling audiobooks, podcasts and compilations downloaded from iTunes.
Videos. Only a list of videos, settings in another section.
Photos. View photos, list of folders with photos, settings in another section.
iTunes. Online music store iTunes Music Store.
Words about the convenience of the menu in relation to a player with a touch screen lose a fair amount of their meaning, especially against the backdrop of a large display. Nevertheless, at least a few words need to be said about him. First of all, it is worth noting that all menu items are visible; even those that were previously placed in the “additional” section, such as the calendar, contacts or calculator, are included in the main list. This significantly reduces the number of transitions to get to what you need. If you leave settings aside, the number of manipulations for any function is reduced to a couple of touches on the screen.
It’s good that all the settings are collected in a separate section, so you don’t have to look for any adjustments in the sections with which they are associated and not find them. In a word, the menu is organized conveniently and clearly; no time is required to master it and remember what is where.
Power and PC connection
If you write about iPod, then, traditionally, this block can be written even with your eyes closed. Still, little changes here from generation to generation. The batteries in iPods are still lithium-ion, and Apple traditionally does not indicate their capacity. The Touch battery has a capacity of 1000-1200 mAh, this conclusion can be made based on indirect evidence. It is charged via USB; a network adapter is traditionally not included in the kit; it must be purchased separately.
Any data can be downloaded to the Touch via iTunes. At the same time, unlike other iPods, the Touch model does not support Disk mode, that is, you cannot copy files to the player for transportation. At least with the current firmware. A new one, however, has not yet appeared.
In general, despite its external differences in many aspects of its operation, the Touch is still the same good old iPod. So if you've ever owned an iPod, you won't find anything new in the way the Touch interacts with your computer.
The Touch has an interesting feature that's worth mentioning; it reminded me of laptops in some ways. Its essence is briefly this: if, while watching a movie, the battery charge drops to 20 percent, the player displays a warning about this. At first glance, this is an insignificant detail, but the warning allows you to refuse further viewing and save the charge for several hours of listening to music. This can be very useful on the road. It is noteworthy that a warning is also displayed when the charge drops to 10 percent.
As far as operating time is concerned, the situation is as follows. The stated figures are 22 hours for audio and 5 hours for video. However, it’s simply not possible to test the player’s operating time accurately, without extraneous factors: the sample is (for now) the only one, so in the midst of testing I had to give it away for a couple of days so that the Touch could fly to a neighboring country and show itself in all its glory. In addition, the player is constantly connected to “refuel” files or check other parameters, thereby recharging. Therefore, the operating time will have to be shown with examples. During the test, the Touch showed about two hours of video, with a half-dead battery (which, of course, no one bothered to drain). I think the player will definitely last more than four hours, if not five. Accordingly, you can watch a couple of decent films on the road.
Frankly, even before receiving the Touch in my hands, I was afraid that the information that appeared on the Internet would be confirmed that the player allegedly “holds the battery very poorly” and the charge is not enough to watch even a full movie. However, these messages came after displays with incorrect black, and we can responsibly say that the Touch’s battery is fine. By the way, I remembered one more nuance: the entire time I was testing the player, it was connected to one or another Wi-Fi network, so its endurance is pretty good.
Video
So we got to the most interesting functions. By and large, video and the Internet are what the player is made for. We will talk about Touch Internet gadgets in the second part of the material, and now - a video. If you have a decent collection of iPod Classic-encoded videos in iTunes, you can almost forget about it. The fact is that at a resolution of 480x320, 320x240 videos look decent, of course, but nothing more. It’s clear that you want to get the most out of a device that costs half a thousand dollars. To do this, you will need the actual rollers and a suitable converter. As one of our forum visitors correctly noted, iTunes actually has a built-in converter for some types of files, which I simply had not noticed before. The fact is that the converter only works with files added to the iTunes video library. And files of two very popular formats, AVI and MPG, are simply not added there. Remember in the Nano review I mentioned the old Videora converter? The company that created it did not abandon the converter, and they already have a decent, and most importantly free, converter for iPod Touch. Using this program, it’s easy to re-encode an existing video into the iPod Touch format or “rip” it from a DVD in a couple of clicks. In any case, preparing one film will take significant time. On my very weak laptop, a film lasting an hour and thirty-five minutes took probably five hours to encode. But on more powerful modern laptops and desktops, this procedure will take much less time. But the end result is a video that is “tailored” for Touch and looks the best on the player screen.
The iPod Touch, which is very nice, has a built-in image scaling system. If the video does not match the display in terms of aspect ratio or other parameters, it can be “stretched” or, conversely, reduced by moving two fingers. Image restructuring occurs instantly, and in general the player’s video subsystem is nimble.
On the Touch display, video looks impressive, especially if the original video was of high quality. The diagonal is enough for comfortable viewing in transport or anywhere, the main thing is that your hands don’t get numb. The player comes with a stand, which is essentially just a piece of transparent plastic. But it’s easy to take it with you on the road, simply by putting it in your briefcase pocket. She easily solves the problem of numb hands.
It’s nice that good resolution does not hide the details of films, little things that are registered on a subconscious level, such as street clocks, license plates, pedestrians in the background. These little things are not indifferent to those who love cinema and have films in their collection that can be watched dozens of times without getting tired. I have such films, and I treat them quite reverently.
To summarize, we can simply say that watching videos and films on the player is really pleasant. I would probably put the Touch in first place in my own rating of flash devices with video support; regular PMRs with a hard drive don’t count. In second place in this case will be its Korean competitor, which is almost inferior in diagonal and resolution, Samsung P2.
In general, the impressions from watching the video are the most positive; Touch in this parameter corresponds to the level of good PMPs, even with a larger diagonal - precisely due to the display resolution. I remembered another characteristic detail: on the Touch you can easily read the credits, which usually appear in small print after the film. On other devices, reading them is much more problematic.
Viewing photographs does not evoke such delight, but in fairness it should receive its share of praise (or blame). There seems to be nothing to criticize the implementation for, it will have to be praised. From model to model, as the display resolution in iPods increases, only the number of thumbnails displayed simultaneously on the display changes. Touch already has 24 of them. Moreover, the number could have been doubled, but they didn’t do this, and that’s good. As a result, the miniatures look neat and accurate; it is easy to see what is shown in the photograph.
Already in the process of viewing photos, you can switch in every possible way: move your fingers across the display or press on-screen buttons. This is pleasant and will definitely bring a lot of fun to your friends and family: everyone will snatch the player from each other and run their fingers until they go crazy on the display, which will have to be wiped. Everything is fine if you don’t show them how photos oriented vertically or horizontally automatically expand to the entire display if you rotate the player one way or another. In this case, the owner of the Touch runs the risk of watching the player mercilessly spin for several minutes (those around him, of course, have no idea that the gyro sensor is triggered by a calm and precise rotation of the body in space).
If the photo is good and colorful, it will look accordingly on the display. Well, if it’s nondescript, then it’s also quite decent, because, read above, the player’s display is quite remarkable.
Apart from purely tactile “things” in the form of pranks with a touch screen and a gyro sensor, the mode does not have any other distinctive features, everything is simple and clear. But showing someone photographs is a pleasure. It is visible to both, the size is decent and the parts do not fall out. Touch, of course, is not meant to be a photographer’s best friend due to its closed nature, but uploading a selection of your favorite photos to it, I think, is one of the top priorities after purchase.
Sound
iPods have a mixed reputation when it comes to sound quality. Some consider these players to be the standard of portable sound, while others say that their sound is nothing more than mediocre. I think that the sound of the entire iPod line as a whole is quite decent, with a stable leader in quality in the form of the classic iPod, also known as the iPod Classic.
There is no point in describing the sound of the iPod Touch for a long time with colorful epithets; it does not differ in any extraordinary quality or special coloring. If we compare “by ear”, then it is closest to the sound of the iPod Nano. Although, it should be noted that everyone’s ears are different, and everyone perceives sound differently, so you shouldn’t draw parallels between players. In general, the Touch reproduces sound smoothly, without any special bursts or blockages throughout the entire range. This characterizes the audio path of the player on the good side, and also adds to its versatility: you can listen to almost any music on the iPod Touch; it cannot be said that it is better suited for one style or another. Traditionally, the iPod has many equalizer presets; lovers of processed sound are likely to find something to their liking. True, for some reason Touch did not accompany them with a corresponding picture with a spectrum, so you will have to choose only by ear.
General results
| Frequency response unevenness (from 40 Hz to 15 kHz), dB: | +0.09, -0.67 | Fine |
| Noise level, dB (A): | -79.7 | Average |
| Dynamic range, dB (A): | 79.7 | Average |
| Harmonic distortion,%: | 0.0038 | Very good |
| Intermodulation distortion + noise, %: | 0.032 | Fine |
| Interpenetration of channels, dB: | -80.2 | Very good |
| Intermodulation at 10 kHz, %: | 0.033 | Fine |
Frequency response
Noise level
The player's output signal level is average; you shouldn't expect much volume from it. On the other hand, the volume is enough for almost any headphones, unless, of course, they are studio monitors. However, just for fun, I connected the Touch to large Audio-Technica ANH-A500 monitor headphones. The sound in the headphones turned out to be quite loud, but, of course, there was no volume reserve.
In general, the sound of the iPod Touch is quite universal, the same as what a mass player should have. The player could do with being a little louder, but, frankly speaking, this is nitpicking.
Conclusions and impressions
I think it would be fair at the end of the part of the review devoted to the purely “player” functions of the iPod Touch to report on my impressions concerning them specifically. In this area, without exaggeration, the player is almost ideal, if by this we mean the absence of shortcomings. Actually, they have nowhere to come from, since the software solutions have already been thoroughly tested on previous iPods and a branded mobile phone. The display and video subsystem of the player definitely deserve praise: the interface, films and photographs look very good, photographs do not convey even half the impression. Moreover, all the “beauty” works without brakes, the animation of the image is smooth, with a high frame rate. The impressions arising from watching the video are set out in the relevant part of the text, but here we can only repeat ourselves and once again report that watching movies and clips is comfortable. The player is great for watching videos, unlike many other similar devices, which either have a small display, or its resolution, or something else interferes with viewing.
In general, the player is fine with sound and music playback, which is quite expected in light of the company’s accumulated experience in this area.
Perhaps the only disadvantages of Touch include the need to re-encode the video and link to iTunes. However, this program (and the store of the same name) have already received their share of kicks from journalists and users, it’s time to leave them alone. However, the player has one more annoying feature: it cannot be used to transport files; the operating system simply does not see it as a removable storage device. Perhaps this misunderstanding will be corrected in subsequent firmware versions, however, knowing Apple’s love for the secrecy of its products, you should not hope for this.
In any case, the main drawback of the iPod Touch is its price. A beautiful and functional device in itself cannot cost little, so the desire to own this particular player will not be cheap. In America, where Apple feels at ease and has long been wearing the firmly attached leader's jersey, for an 8 and 16 GB iPod Touch they ask for $300 and $400, respectively. I think I won’t be mistaken if I say that in Russia the price will be at least 100 dollars higher, and most likely 150-200, especially at first. On the other hand, the game may be worth the candle; the company has turned out a very interesting product. Still, you can’t look at it as a media player, even if it’s a very sophisticated one, since the iPod Touch is connected to the Network more closely than any other device in the field of personal audio. This is what we will discuss in the second part of the review.
Specifications:
- Capacity: 8/16 GB
- File formats: M4V, MP4, MOV, AAC, MP3, Audible, WAV, AIFF, JPEG, BMP, GIF, TIFF, PSD
- Display: color TFT, 3.5 inches, 320x480 pixels
- Battery: Li-ion, up to 22 hours audio, up to 5 hours video
- Dimensions: 110x61.8x8 mm
- Weight: 120 g