As was the case with the previous generation iPod Touch, the new model is fully capable of running all supported apps in the iOS App Store. While personally the appeal of iOS apps are their integration into a device I already carry, a smartphone, the iPod Touch brings the entire platform to users who don’t want an iPhone or maybe even a smartphone in general. The email, web browsing and iOS experience is identical to what you get on the iPhone.
The iPod Touch does ship with a Music app that behaves just like the iPod app on the iPhone. There’s not much to say here other than it works, although I personally find myself using the Pandora app more than listening to my own library of music. MP3 playback audio quality seemed comparable to the iPhone 4. I ran RMAA to confirm:
| Rightmark Audio Analyzer Comparison | |||||
| iPhone 4 | iPod Touch (2010) | Zune HD | |||
| Frequency Response (from 40Hz to 15kHz) | Excellent | Excellent | Good | ||
| Noise level | Very good | Very good | Very good | ||
| Dynamic range | Very good | Very good | Very good | ||
| THD | Excellent | Excellent | Excellent | ||
| THD + Noise | Good | Good | Average | ||
| IMD + Noise | Excellent | Excellent | Very good | ||
| Stereo crosstalk | Excellent | Excellent | Very good | ||
| IMD at 10kHz | Very good | Excellent | Very good | ||
| General Performance | Very good | Very good | Very good | ||
We haven't seen many results from RMAA on the Zune HD so I thought I'd throw some in here. RMAA shows an advantage over the Zune HD, although in practice you'd be hard pressed to hear a difference.
Frequency Response - iPhone 4
Frequency Response - iPod Touch
Frequency Response - Zune HD
Noise Level - iPhone 4
Noise Level - iPod Touch
Noise Level - Zune HD
Stereo Crosstalk - iPhone 4
Stereo Crosstalk - iPod Touch
Stereo Crosstalk - Zune HD
I believe we've hit a ceiling for PMP audio playback quality. Despite the excellent RMAA results, the iPod Touch is admittedly less of an iPod and more of a general purpose iOS device that happens to play music.
Like the previous generation Touch, the new model lacks a GPS receiver. The device ships with a Maps app but it uses WiFi to figure out your local.
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