6.8 out of 10

Apple iPod Nano / 2nd Generation

Information found in: from 155 sources in 22 countries.

Best Price: $69

  • User Score (597)
    8.3 8.3 from 597 reviewers
  • Expert Score (33)
    8.5 8.5 from 33 reviewers

Freak Rank

  • Buzz Index: 0/5
  • Activity: 5/5
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Pros & Cons

  • easy to use, great sound, bright screen, good battery life, ease of use
  • small screen, no radio, no fm radio, low battery life, no protective case included

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Apple iPod Nano / 2nd Generation

Apple’s second generation iPod Nano was made available in September 2006. As an update to the popular first generation iPod Nano, this portable media player features some cosmetic changes and a few significant under the hood improvements.

The second generation Nano kept the same form factor and profile as its predecessor. At 3.5 x 1.6 x 0.26 inches, the Nano keeps the familiar first generation’s tall and lean profile but is slightly thinner and more curved around…

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Apple iPod Nano / 2nd Generation

Apple’s second generation iPod Nano was made available in September 2006. As an update to the popular first generation iPod Nano, this portable media player features some cosmetic changes and a few significant under the hood improvements.

The second generation Nano kept the same form factor and profile as its predecessor. At 3.5 x 1.6 x 0.26 inches, the Nano keeps the familiar first generation’s tall and lean profile but is slightly thinner and more curved around the edges. The most significant cosmetic changes are the casing and the new body color options. The second generation Nano sports an anodized aluminum case and is scratch-resistant similar to the popular iPod Mini, the predecessor of the Nano line. And, just like with the defunct Mini, the updated Nanos are also available in a variety of colors: silver, green, pink, blue, black and red.

This iPod Nano shares the same LCD screen specifications as the first generation’s which is a 1.5-inch color screen running at a resolution of 176 x 132 pixels. Improvements to the display come by way of a brighter (about 40% brighter) and more vibrant display. Battery life has also been improved and now lasts an estimated 24 hours of continuous audio playback.

The most significant update is the storage capacity. The second generation bumps up the memory to 2, 4 and 8 gigabytes, double that of the previous Nanos.

The 2 gigabyte model is only available in silver while the bigger capacity Nanos get all the new colors. The 4 gigabyte one is available in blue, silver, green, pink and red while the 8 gigabyte model comes in black and red.

Another under the hood improvement is the added support for audio recording via third-party microphone accessories.

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Manufacturer's Specs

  • Size and Weight
    Height: 3.6 inches (90.7 mm) Width: 1.5 inches (38.7 mm) Depth: 0.24 inch (6.2 mm) Weight: 1.3 ounces (36.8 grams)
  • Display
    2-inch (diagonal) color LCD with LED backlight 320 by 240 pixels at 204 ppi
  • Capacity
    8GB or 16GB flash drive Holds up to 2,000 or 4,000 songs in 128-Kbps AAC format Holds up to 7,000 or 14,000 iPod-viewable photos Holds up to 8 hours or up to 16 hours of video
  • Audio
    Skip-free playback Frequency response: 20Hz to 20,000Hz Audio formats supported: AAC (16 to 320 Kbps), Protected AAC (from iTunes Store), MP3 (16 to 320 Kbps), MP3 VBR, Audible (formats 2, 3, and 4), Apple Lossless, AIFF, and WAV.
  • Video
    H.264 video, up to 1.5 Mbps, 640 by 480 pixels, 30 frames per second, Low-Complexity version of the H.264 Baseline Profile with AAC-LC audio up to 160 Kbps, 48kHz, stereo audio in .m4v, .mp4, and .mov file formats; H.264 video, up to 2.5 Mbps, 640 by 480 pixels, 30 frames per second, Baseline Profile up to Level 3.0 with AAC-LC audio up to 160 Kbps, 48kHz, stereo audio in .m4v, .mp4, and .mov file formats; MPEG-4 video, up to 2.5 Mbps, 640 by 480 pixels, 30 frames per second, Simple Profile with AAC-LC audio up to 160 Kbps, 48kHz, stereo audio in .m4v, .mp4, and .mov file formats
  • Battery
    Built-in rechargeable lithium ion battery Music playback time: Up to 24 hours when fully charged Video playback time: Up to 4 hours when fully charged
  • Input and Output
    Dock connector 3.5-mm stereo headphone jack

Review Summary

The second-generation Apple iPod Nano sports a seamless construction and a scratch-resistant aluminum body in a variety of colors. The unit retains its slender shape yet should be more durable sans the seams. The Apple iPod Nano supports photos, album art and offers strong sound quality. The battery life has been deemed nothing short of amazing, giving a person upwards of 20 hours of usage The iPod Nano features a touch-sensitive Click Wheel control on the front of the unit. The Nano offers 3 Playback …

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The second-generation Apple iPod Nano sports a seamless construction and a scratch-resistant aluminum body in a variety of colors. The unit retains its slender shape yet should be more durable sans the seams. The Apple iPod Nano supports photos, album art and offers strong sound quality. The battery life has been deemed nothing short of amazing, giving a person upwards of 20 hours of usage The iPod Nano features a touch-sensitive Click Wheel control on the front of the unit. The Nano offers 3 Playback Mode buttons including Play/Pause, Previous/Rewind, and Next/Fast-forward. Nano’s buttons can be disabled to prevent accidental bumping and you can to repeat either one song over and over or make a list of songs to repeat over and over, shuffle all songs on the drive, shuffle all songs on a certain playlist, and album shuffles.

The iPod Nano is still too early of a generation to play video. But the bright LCD screen is an improvement over earlier options. That said, the screen is quite tiny and it is not all that exciting looking at such small photos and though displaying album art is neat, it does take significant storage space away from tune options. Other drawbacks include no built-in FM tuner and no recording capability. For those that style and color are essential you will be disappointed to find that only certain color options available depending on the memory sizes.

Overall, the second-generation Apple iPod Nano is small, stylish, and generally user-friendly. Increasing battery-life almost two fold, doubling the storage of the 1G Nano offered at the same price, and the brighter LCD are all positive steps. On the negatives, it is time for Apple to build in an FM tuner. Most importantly, it is competitively priced, making the unit a great all around player for the budget conscious individual.

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  • Free laser engraving on all new iPod models. - Select the iPod that’s right for you, then personalize it.
  • What’s in the Box - H.264 video, up to 1.5 Mbps, 640 by 480 pixels, 30 frames per secon…

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  1. Apple iPod Nano 16GB

    Reviewer: Digitaltrends
    06 October 2008
    Overall 7
    7.0
     

    Overall, we're pretty satisfied with the new nano, even though it's nowhere near as sexy as the newly revamped . And on a small, dedicated audio player that's focused on slim design and pocketability, we don't feel too slighted that the nano lacks wireless features like the Zune, especially given the excellent integration between the hardware and iTunes software. But despite the inclusion of an accelerometer, we're giving Apple fair warning that the competition is really... Read more

  2. A review of the 4G iPod nano

    Reviewer: Ars Technica
    16 September 2008

    As an Apple-made portable media device, the 4G iPod nano is quite solid—surprisingly so, given the fact that half the world has already moved on to the iPhone and iPod touch. But the new nano gives potential buyers—including many of our own readers and forum posters—a reason to think of ways to work a nano back into their lives. One for the gym? Sure. An iPod exclusively for the car? Go for it. At $150 and $200 for the 8GB and 16GB versions, it's relatively cheap... Read more

  3. Reviewer: LAPTOP Magazine
    01 July 2007
    Overall 9
    9.0
     

    The iPod nano is still the king of ultra-slim MP3 players. Read more

  4. The second-generation Nano delivers top-notch audio, and has a brighter screen than its predecessor.

    Reviewer: PC World
    23 January 2007
    Overall 8
    8.0
    Design 8
    8.0
    Features 7
    7.0
    Performance 9
    9.0
     

    Of course, with the Nano you're locked into using Apple's iTunes software. Though iTunes is well integrated with the iTunes Music Store, this arrangement means you can't use a music subscription service such as Napster or Rhapsody. Nonetheless, if you consider these missing capabilities extras--as Apple apparently does--this fashionable player will deliver plenty to crow about, including great audio quality and a bright, high-resolution screen. Read more

  5. Reviewer: The Gadgeteer
    22 January 2007

    The Apple iPod nano has received an extreme makeover. Not that it really needed one though... The 1st generation iPod nano which was released approximately 1 year before the 2nd gen nano, looked like a baby version of the full sized player. This new version looks more like an anorexic version of the discontinued iPod mini. Are the changes all cosmetic, are are there some other new bits under the hood of this very popular DAP (digital audio player)? Let's take a closer... Read more

  1. decent ipod

    Reviewer: Dgk, Circuit City
    05 October 2008
    Overall 10
    10
    Value for money 10
    10
    Sound quality 10
    10
     

    nice screen good features,love the shake to shuffle Read more

  2. Reviewer: casen55, PC World
    21 April 2008
    Overall 6
    6.0
     

    Replacement gift for my teenage daughter since her other was mistakenly washed in the washing machine by me. She loved the red one she had before and really likes the new turquoise-blue one. She easily loads music from her CDs and PC. She was checking the mail everyday until it finally showed up. Read more

  3. Apple mini iPod excellent

    Reviewer: sarahmom, Ecoustics
    07 April 2008
    Overall 10
    10
    Ease of use 10
    10
     

    My daughter just received this Applie iPod mini Blue Second Gen as a grand prize winner in Head and Shoulders Contest. We were not even sure how to use an iPod so it was a new experience. My 19 year old daughter loves it and is so glad I won it. I gave it to her for her birthday. So we have added a new experience to technology to our household. She loves fact she doesn't have to carry a huge CD player and case around now as she can put them all on the iPod. Read more

  4. Very good

    Reviewer: Agando, Yahoo Shopping
    06 February 2008
    Overall 10
    10
    Value for money 10
    10
    Features 10
    10
    Sound quality 10
    10
     

    very good thing, my first apple i really like it Read more

  5. Great buy for $100!

    Reviewer: Gregory Bardakos, Digitaltrends
    18 January 2008
    Overall 9
    9.0
     

    I am an old nerd. I still do not have a cell phone. I do have a lap top. Let me tell you one thing, do not put your CD's in to your windows media, trust me, you cannot transfer them over to the nano. But if you, for free, down load iTunes to your lap top, then your CD's to iTunes's. Let us just say you can do what you never thought you could do. I am ONE happy camper. Read more

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