Test Driving Nano

A big-hearted gadget freak and blog reader who wishes to be anonymous has gotten an Ipod Nano last Fri. Since he would be busy this week, he suggested that I have the honour to test drive it. I think he has this hope that I would plunk my money to join the bandwagon. But no, I think I'm strong enough to resist that temptation.

But ooooh yes, I have one whole week, with a cool and chic mp3 player. That was enough to get me drooling.


Nano on my palm


My phone and Nano side by side. Looks about the same size, ya?


Not exactly... This is my thick phone. Notice how fat it makes my hand look.


And this is the super slim Nano. Man, if this is not a geekgirl magnet, I dunno what is!

This thing actually fits in my tightest jeans and still not show much of a bulge. I can bring it anywhere!

I am suddenly possessed with the enthusiasm to go for a jog or walk at Klang Hill. I can imagine the slow mo way I'm jogging with sweet sweet music blaring in my ears and people wondering where on earth did I stash the normally bulky mp3 player. Yeah, the things I do for the sake of research.

Guess that would make a good tagline for Nano ~ The key to a healthier lifestyle.

The sound quality is great. It took me a while to get used to the navigation system e.g. controlling the volume, checking out other nifty features like photo viewing, calendar, contacts and even games (I haven't figured out how to play Solitaire on Nano yet!). Uploading songs via iTunes is almost a no-brainer, although it was so seamless that I managed to completely wipe out all of the cool songs that were previously painstakingly copied over by the owner. Oooops...

Also unfortunately, the Nano doesn't play well with my Easy MP3 FM Modulator. The interference was just too horrendous. But I guess it should work better with Belkin Tunecast.

The screen is a wee bit small for viewing photos but should be sufficient to show your friends your latest hunk of the month niece/nephew antics.

I also like the fact that it is sensitive to motion and the backlight lights up whenever I pick it up to see the title of the song that's currently playing.

Nano comes in 2Gb and 4Gb. The unit I'm testing is a 4Gb one (cost is about RM1.2k). And apparently, there is a shortage of both models, and a 4-week waiting list for the 4Gb model. Colorful casings are not available locally as yet. But my friend mentioned that getting a white Nano would bring out the colors of those housing covers better than a black one. So get a white Nano if you are planning to change cases like clothes.

Ok, I'm done with my review. Now to go play with my new toy!