Dukebox.com - New Apple iPod 30GB, 60GB and 80GB black and white - with Video Playback Description and Review

The iPod video 5th generation have been replaced. The closest product currently available are the even better 6th generation iPod classic.

This is a long commentary, so it may be sometime before we say anything that is actually usefull to you.

Wow! Imagine an MP3 player ... that can play videos too! My God, its like some kind of crazy-future-time! Or, 2001...

"Witness the evolution of the revolution. First it held songs. Then photos. Then podcasts. Now iPod adds video to change the way you experience your music and media."

Let's start with more mockery.

It was way back in 2001 when the first such dukebox (mp3 music and MP4 video) came onto the market. It was the MMJB made by Archos. They beat Apple to the punch with the first hard disk MP3 player and they beat Apple to the punch again with their MultiMedia Jukebox. Archos have also beaten Apple to the punch when it comes to Games being included on the dukebox. Doubtlessly Archos would trade all that for Apple's sales figures.

If you look at the iPod video what you see is what you get: a smaller old-style (in design terms) iPod with some video functions. Have a look at what the Archos models have evolved into over the last 4 years.

People have been predicting this move by Apple for years. It has always been 'about to happen', and now it has those of us who have been watching the game from the start are unimpressed. Technologically at least. That is not where 'The Revolution' truly lies.

This is:

What use is a Jukebox without music? Not much! What use is a video jukebox without videos? Not much.

Content is King, as the saying goes. In the past you have had one of a few choices:

Of those 4 options for getting content the one most people wanted, and most people will want is number 4 as it is the most passive and it requires the least technical skill and the least equipment. We don't mean people only want porn and commercials, we mean that people would rather download perfectly digitized versions of their fav. TV and films that someone else has gone to the trouble of making.

The revolution for the Video iPod is that iTunes will be carrying hit US TV programs - in full; commercial free - immediately after they have aired in America. Now that's proper content! Our hats' are off to Apple for that one. Having said that - any video playing jukebox will play the videos available at iTunes. Actually, that's even better! Hooray for Apple!

DRM have been added to prevent you making copies of these download videos to DVDs etc. though.

Obvious problems

The screen is small. It's not too small to use, it's just small. It is larger than the older model iPods' screens, but it's only 2.5 inches along the hypotenuse. You can get used to it when engrossed in a film, but as with turbine engines and power-output, bigger is definitely better for screens and moving images.

A recent screen upgrade means that its now a lot brighter and sharper, we're glad to report

Video should not be considered the 5th Generation's primary function: music should. That's because it does music well and it does video to an acceptable level. In that regard its the same as most Video Jukeboxes.

Apple have downplayed its video capabilities when its video capabilities are pretty good. Playback is smooth. Images are crisp. The iPod video does not suffer from some of the more obvious problems that some of the earlier video jukeboxes did, like semi-frequent pixilation every now and again.

New standards

Don't be fooled by the small screen though - you can watch your videos on it, but you can also plug the video ipod into other forms of display, such as TVs, Projectors, etc.

Also available are the same brilliant photo options that were such a big hit on the iPod Photo - e.g. you can playback your pictures as a slide show, to music (all from your iPod) over a projector or through a TV. All the other photo features are present too. Cool.

Add to that the ability to download and play GAMES as a standard feature (albeit for Ł4 a game) and that you can listen to your favourite tracks while you play away and you can see that this is a very accomplished media player.

Present and correct are the type of features that have been standards on the iPods for years: calendar functions; address book; etc. Nice.

Get lyrics for the music displayed on your iPod, so you can now correct everyone who sings the wrong words, or just make sure that you're singing the right ones yourself.

Hallelujah

Something that has been sorely missing from ALL iPODS up to now is the ability to search for an artist, track or album. It may sound crazy to anyone who doesn't own an iPod, especially if you have ever owned ANY other MP3 player, but until now iPods could not locate your music for you, you either had to have a good filing system, or get lucky. Incredible. But no more: normality has resumed. Seek and ye shall find. Hallelujah.

New revenue sources

Apple have made this range of iPods more affordable than ever, and a bargain for a video jukebox range - particularly an iPod. But Jobs giveth with the right hand and taketh away with the left: "Accessories" such as a wall charger(!), or cables to connect to a TV are not included and must be purchased separately.

Ditto Games, and music. (You can get some FREE MP3s that are legal that will work on any MP3 player, including the iPods. Go to our free MP3 page for a link).

Of the available video CODECs only the following are permitted on the video iPod: MP4, H264, MOV or M4V. If you have videos in other formats that you want to put onto your dukebox you will need to convert them to one of the above formats first. You cannot convert them using iTunes (version 6 or lower) you have to either buy conversion software, or find some online. Apple's Quick Time video software will do the conversion (not always, it depends on the source file) but only the full price version of QT has the necessary functions.

Design:

As we said this is the standard, old fashioned iPod design, with a few adjustments: the unit is slimmer by 1.5cm approx and the 60GB version of the 5th generation iPod (this one) is lighter than the 20GB of the 4th generation. Where will the madness stop? Possibly when apple make a player so long, skinny and light it caused the unit to snap, or bend.

Battery news

Like the piles and piles of cash the shareholders of Apple have earned over the last 5 years from Apple's iPod sales, the battery life of the iPod has jumped again, surging up 20% to 20 hours (maximum and with a full charge) for the larger capacity 60GB model but still only about 14 hours for the smaller model Video iPod. The bigger iPod has a bigger battery.

That figure does not refer to the amount of time the battery will last during power-hungry video playback (of course), which is just a little over 4 hours.

Conclusions:

This is probably the best value iPod and the most accomplished iPod ever launched. The price is not bad either, but you don't get the cabling or the adapters required for normal use and they cost extra. Still, its a brilliant player and with Sony stealing Apple's mantel as the most evil dukebox manufacturer in late 2005, there is no reason at all why everyone in the world should not buy the iPod Video. It's brilliant, and if its calling to you, just buy one.

Feature Summary

1. 1GB = 1 billion bytes; actual formatted capacity less.
2. Song capacity is based on four minutes per song and 128-Kbps AAC encoding.
3. Photo capacity is based on iPod-viewable photos transferred from iTunes.
4. Video capacity is based on 4 minutes per H.264 750-Kbps video combined with 128-Kbps audio.
5. Up to 20 hours of battery life refers to 60GB model and music playback.