Got my iPod touch - first impressions

As I mentioned a while back I was looking at getting the 16G iPod Touch. I went by the local Apple reseller this Wednesday and they had three in stock (they got their first shipment earlier that day with 10 units). I looked at it for 30 seconds and decided to buy it after having checked the manufacturing week. There were reports about units made in week 36 and 37 had quality problems, both with the screen and a hissing background noise with good quality earphones such as my Shures. This one was a week 38. And now its mine.

So, what do I think after a couple of hours use?

Positives

• The design and build quality is excellent
• The screen is really good
  
• The audio quality is great
• The user experience is the best I've ever had with a device
  

Negatives

• The software is buggy, especially when you use the Safari browser. Playing music and surfing the web simultaneously often ends up with the music stopping. Intermittent browser crashes are common
• Photos are always rescaled to a lower resolution before syncing to the iPod. I haven't found an option to store photos in a higher/native resolution
  
• I have two stuck pixels on my screen (i.e. they are always lit). Not a huge problem since the pixels are so small, but still.
• It probably doesn't work with my current iPod car integration. Not a biggie, since I'll probably be using the old 4th generation iPod for the car (and only for the car).
  

All in all I must say the initial impression is very favourable, the iPod Touch is probably one (if not the) best device I've ever had. Its definately the best iPod I own (I also have a 1st generation 512MB Shuffle, a 2nd generation 4GB Nano, and a 4th generation 40G iPod).

Stay tuned for tips on smart playlists and a couple of good web services for the touch.

Where to keep the nano when running?

After having used an iPod Nano for a couple of weeks I need to find a water proof place to store it when running. Keeping it in the pocket is just not good enough. Jiwok has done some research on possible options. I'm going for the updated Nike+ armband if I can only make sure it is water proof.

HTPC: The non-decision decision

After doing some research on different routes for an entertainment system I ended up feeling most comfortable with an HTPC. It basically boiled down to two options: the Scaleo EVI or an AMD-based system built on discrete components. Both alternatives are about 10kSEK.

What do I get for this money that I don't already have today?

1. Recording of TV programming in SD
   
2. Possibility to view downloaded HD material

I already have a DVD-player. I can already watch DivX material (albeit over sneakernet - burning a CD and walking with it to my DVD-player). An HTPC will not give me HD-DVD or Blu-Ray. There's no terrestrial HD broadcasting where I live (and I will not install a satellite dish). Paying 10kSEK for being able to record TV shows and viewing downloaded HD material is simply too much money.

If TV recording comes to the Apple TV that might be one way to go. A Scaleo EVI with HD-DVD/Blu-Ray for 10kSEK might be another. A silent TViX 4100-SH a third.

None of which alternatives are available today.

So I have decided. To wait.

If I were to go for a solution today it would be the Scaleo EVI with 32-bit Vista, but the risk of not being able to update it to support HD broadcast and HD-DVD/Blu-ray in the future holds me back. And I'm not interesting in spending the time on building a system on my own - even if its put together by a store I will need to spend time on configuration and software installations.

Relieving knee pain after running

I got an iPod Nano with the Nike+ kit a couple of weeks ago and have started running more regularly. I also got a new pair of shoes, and now I'm having some knee pains after running. I'm pretty sure I hit the ground with my heel first, which apparently is not the proper way of running.

My thought on the Nike+ kit? Its brilliant, although not very accurate. It makes running fun and motivates me to get out more. Which is why I bought it in the first place. No support for blog posting outside of the US yet (what's up with that Nike?).

Video solution, part 4 - Home Theater PC

As you might have gleaned from my summary of media players I'm not really happy with the current alternatives available. This leaves me with one option: getting a HTPC. It might sound easy in theory, but can be infinately complicated in practice. I've decided to look at hardware and software simultaneously and look at the alternatives as a complete system. Of course you can install Myth TV on a hardware you originally planned for MCE (if there's Linux support for your HW). The options for me are:

• A Linux system with PVR software
• An OS X system
• A Windows Media Center Edition 2005 (or XP) based system
• A Windows Vista Home Premium system

There are a couple of alternatives for Linux, where MythTV seems to be the best choice. Going this route will probably take some time to set up, but get you a great system once everything is up and running. Other cons include lack of hardware support for newer hardware. I was hoping on using a graphics card that could off-load the processor for HD decoding and I haven't seen any support for those in Linux yet. Also, not all DVB-T tuner cards are fully supported. So, tempting as it may be, I'll move on to the next option:

An OS X system. The Mac Mini is close to a perfect fit for an HTPC but it does not have HDMI out (it does have DVI, and a DVI->HDMI converter so you can get the image to your TV but no sound), its built on the Core Duo (not the Core 2 Duo which is a 64-bit processor as opposed to the 32-bit Core Duo) and also the hardware is overdue for an update. If Apple were to release a new version of the Mac Mini anytime soon with HDMI I'd buy that in an instant. You need a third party solution for DVB-T recording; Elgato seems to have the best solution for this.

Many people swear by Windows Media Center Edition 2005 since they have something up and running that they are pleased with. I'm building a new system and am very reluctant to go with an old operating system. Which leaves me with:

Windows Vista Home Edition. Its certainly not the be-all and end-all for everyone, but this would be my choice if I were to build a system today. It has a built-in Media Center and even if people complain about driver support I'm sure its better than for Linux when going for new hardware. E.g. I'm looking at the Radeon HD 2400 Pro graphics card for off-loading the processor when playing back HD content and there's no support in Linux for that card. (Apparently there's barely support in Windows, but that's another matter.) Choosing Vista also leaves the door open for alternative DVR software such as Mediaportal, DVB Viewer or GB-PVR should I not be happy with the built in Media Center.

Most problems reported with Vista and MCE are related to viewing scrambled channels, and as I mentioned in my first post in this series this is not something I need to do. What remains now is to choose between 64-bit and 32-bit Vista and set up a suitable hardware configuration. But that's for the next post.

Apple products before Ive were bland

What I found interesting in this chart of Apple evolution was that Apple products up until the first iMac actually did not look that special. Nowadays the design of everything (well, mostly everything - the first iPod Shuffle wasn't really all that) out of Cupertino have dazzling looks, but not so in the old days.

I guess its all attributing to the fact that Jonathan Ive is brillant. And of course the fact that someone at Apple (Jobs, anyone?) has allowed him to do his work, even if it might increase the cost of a product slightly.