Apple iPod Nano / 1st Generation

Apple iPod Nano / 1st Generation

The 1st Generation iPod Nano is among the mid-range models in Apple’s iPod line of portable media players. It was first made available in 2005. Like the iPod Shuffle, the 1st Generation iPod Nano uses flash memory but it features a display screen and a click wheel smaller than those found in the iPod Classic.

The 1st Generation iPod Nano measures 1.6 x 3.5 x 0.27 inches and weighs 1.5 ounces. It comes with a Li-ion battery that takes about 3 hours to charge and can last up to 14 hours of music playback and up to 4 hours of slideshows with music.

The gadget features a 1.5-inch 176 x 132-pixel resolution display that supports up to 65,536 colors. It was initially released in two sizes including the 2 gigabyte version and the 4 gigabyte version. Four months after the original release, a 1-gigabyte version was released. All sizes are available in black and white.

Apple approximates that the 4 gigabyte version can store up to 1000 audio files. It supports skip-free playback of a number of audio formats including AAC, protected AAC, MP3, MP3 VBR, Audible (formats 2, 3 and 4), Apple Lossless, WAV, and AIFF.

The 1st Generation iPod Nano is compatible with Mac OS X v10.3.4 or later. It can be also used with Windows 2000 with Service Pack 4 or later, or Windows XP Home or Professional with Service Pack 2 or later.

Apart from these, the device can also be used to sync iPod-viewable photos in JPEG, BMP, GIF, TIFF, PSD (Mac only) and PNG formats.

The 1st Generation iPod Nano’s durability was tested by Ars Technica. After a number of extreme endurance tests, the gadget only stopped playing after a 40-foot fall and landing on concrete

Review Summary

For many, the iPod Nano makes up for some of the shortcomings of the iPod Shuffle. It is thinner and a tad smaller than the Shuffle and is very comfortable to hold in one’s hand. The unit delivers a wealth of sound and the 1.5 inch color LCD screen is bright and exceedingly clear. The black color and rounded design are very stylish. The Menu options allow browsing in a variety of ways, sorting music by artist, album, songs, etc. Album are appears on the 1.5 inch screen right along side of the respective song titles.

Continuing in the Apple tradition but unlike other competing MP3 players, the iPod Nano does not feature an FM tuner, so no listening to and certainly no recording of radio. Another drawback is the lack of user-replaceable batteries. But perhaps the biggest issue is the position of the headphone jack and the dock connector/USB plug on the unit. Those two features are adjacent to one another so you often have to take out the headphones to be able to take out the USB connecting cable. Even more of an issue, you have to remove the headphones to place the Nano into a dock connector, so no listening while charging, and more plugging in and out than one would like.

Another drawback according to reviewers is the price of the Nano compared to other similar units. Other brands offer more than twice the storage capacity for roughly the same price, many with other features as well. However, as with all iPods, this unit has great sound and the earphones come with three pairs of ear cushions. It also is flexibly and can be utilized as a USB hard drive and photo viewer. Just remember that the Nano can not play games or video nor does it have TV-out capacity.