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http://www.macnn.com/articles/05/11/30/5g.ipod.review/

5G iPod: quality playback, lacks accessories

updated 06:30 pm EST, Wed November 30, 2005

 

5G iPod review


Jeremy Mahadevan of the The Straits Times has reviewed the . Mahadevan criticizes Apple for removing most of the accessories bundled with the iPod, stating, "contrary to past tradition, Apple has decided to send the iPod the way of its smaller siblings and reduce bundled accessories to the nudest of minimums." The iPod can only be charged via a computer out of the box, "which may be acceptable for some users but still scrapes the bottom of the cost-cutting barrel." When it comes to video playback, Mahadevan was mostly impressed: "thanks to the quality of the screen, videos are remarkably nice to watch." He does, however, point to the fact that "you can’t fast-forward or rewind through a video." He also notes "battery life suffers greatly during video playback, particularly for the 30GB model."


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  1. mikecaputo

    Fresh-Faced Recruit

    Joined: Oct 2001

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    11/30, 06:51pm | report spam | Reply |

    Can't fast forward?

    "He does, however, point to the fact that "you can’t fast-forward or rewind through a video." "

    Maybe he should actually use it -- of COURSE you can fast forward or rewind. Press and hold the left or right buttons, or click the center button and spin the wheel.

    -mike

  1. lazarus001

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    11/30, 07:49pm | report spam | Reply |

    Wow

    It's like so many of these 'reviews', probably would help to actually purchase the item and then maybe use it for a bit.

  1. Rolnif

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    Joined: Apr 2002

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    11/30, 08:13pm | report spam | Reply |

    Re: Can't fast forward?


    Yeah, where do these "journalists" get their info from? Their a$$?

  1. Zaren

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    Joined: Aug 2001

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    11/30, 09:42pm | report spam | Reply |

    Huh?

    The full "can't fast-forward" quote:

    "You can’t fast-forward or rewind through a video (it would require more processing power, which would mean a bulkier, more power-hungry device), but you can use the iPod’s Click Wheel to scroll to any particular point in the video."

    So, apparently it's not rewinding or fast-forwarding if you can't hold down a button and do it automatically (which you can do, btw). Horror of horrors, you actually have to do the winding *manually*! And oddly enough, I just went and tested this on my new 30 gig iPod, and you *can* in fact fast forward / rewind while watching a video, so foo on the "reviewer"! (And mikecaputo, thanks for that spin the wheel to scroll trick. I didn't know that one, and was holding the ff to get through long podcasts that I had to restart.)

    Mind you, this review came from a website in Malaysia, and in the course of this article he points out that they don't have access to the iTunes music store because of Malaysia's "love of the pirate life", so grain of salt and all that.

  1. MaximXygo

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    11/30, 09:43pm | report spam | Reply |

    Yeah, what Mike said.

    Yes, you CAN fastforward and rewind holding the forward and backwards button or center button, and you even get a nice drop shadow behind the position indicator!

  1. garyj

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    Joined: Mar 1999

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    11/30, 09:59pm | report spam | Reply |

    Hmm

    Fast forward/Rewind works the same way as it has since the first iPod. The video features work the same as audio. Apple really did video right. Anyone who has ever owned or even used a iPod before will now how to watch videos on this thing.
    This reviewer obviously never really used the thing.

  1. Roehlstation

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    11/30, 10:26pm | report spam | Reply |

    Wall Adapter

    Yes, there is no wall charger with these iPods, but the Zen Micro doesn't have one either, in fact, many of the rechargable MP3 players do not come with one

  1. vickys_box

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    12/01, 04:31am | report spam | Reply |

    No Wall Adapter

    If you don't have a computer through which to charge your iPod, you're not going to get much music on it either.

  1. dwishbone

    Grizzled Veteran

    Joined: May 2002

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    12/01, 07:05am | report spam | Reply |

    get your facts straight..

    it really amazes me how these people can find and maintain work. i have always wanted to do the kind of thing that these people do for a living. i'd love to just talk out of my arse about the latest tech and get paid for it even if i am too stupid or just plain ignorant to know about the products of which i am speaking. i personally try and stay up on everything and develope informed opinions on products. this guy is as i said, either too stupid or ignorant to the iPod's basic features. the spinwheel jog has been there since the original iPod. of course the video will be handled the same way. it works extremely well in fact and is much faster than a conventional FF or RW. the only thing that could possibly be faster is maybe chapters. honestly, i know about where my favorite parts of movies are and the job method is actually faster for me. this goes out to all you tech writers out there. get your f'n act straight. you are lucky to have your job and as crappy as you most are at it you should be replaced.

  1. scottrussell

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    Joined: Mar 2001

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    12/01, 08:37am | report spam | Reply |

    fast forward? not exactly

    To the author's credit, the 5G iPod's fast-forward feature isn't what people traditionally think of when they hear "fast forward". Most think of watching the video play at 2x or 3x speeds as can be done with Apple's DVD player. In Quicktime, the video speeds up wildly as you move the "scrubber", depending on how fast you move it. If the iPod used either DVD Player's or Quicktime's fast-forward "philosophies", I'd consider it a true fast-forward. But as it is now, you have to guess where to stop on the timeline, watch a few seconds to find out where you are in the video, then try again. Not terrible, but not great either.

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