Escape

Posted on 20 Oct 2008 at 12:34

 

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Once you've got your iPod touch, you'll wonder how you ever lived without it. Beware, though: you could love it too much...

I am here to sing joyous praises, of a device so overlooked and under-celebrated that you may not be aware of its genius. It's not new and, for many, it will forever be not-as-good-as-an-iPhone, but hear me out, good reader, and perhaps you, too, will be convinced.

I was lucky enough to be gifted a shiny iPod touch back in April, by far one of the most generous and lovely presents I've ever received. At the time, while I was excited by the big shiny screen and the wireless capabilities and the general cutting-edge-ness of it all, I hadn't the faintest idea just how clever my new MP3 buddy would become over the coming months.

Of course, as a card-carrying Mac aficionado, I've owned iPods before. As a terrified new teacher in South London, I was the sweaty-palmed clutcher of a beautiful 15GB white iPod, two steps on from the click-wheeled first-gen model, but still gigantic in width and weight when compared with today's slimline models. And while you may scoff at the puny capacity, I struggled for years to fill the thing with music; even now, it lies half empty in a drawer, abandoned and accusing with its adorable greyed-out graphics and lovely snowy fascia. Initially, I kept the old iPod in the belief that I would get frustrated with the touch's newfangled controls on my early morning commute and go back to it eventually. Now I keep it in the same way one would keep an elderly pet or a trusty pair of underpants or a love letter from an old flame. It's something I used to love, and as such must be stashed with my socks for the rest of my natural life, only to be unearthed after my death by an enterprising great-grandchild in search of Antiques Roadshow glory.

The long-time MacUser faithful may also remember my foray into iPod nano territory, purchased in conjunction with a pair of exotic Nike+ trainers during my ill-starred attempt at athletic prowess. While I never achieved much more than a shambling, wheezing stumble around the block, I enjoyed the nano far more than I expected to: the slim, lightweight body lent itself more sympathetically to women's impractical pockets, and the jaunty scarlet colour really cheered me up on many a wet station platform. Predictably, the 4GB capacity didn't concern me and my meagre music collection, but I was perturbed at having to choose between my favourite audio books and podcasts, which meant that the nano was relegated to short journeys only.

The touch, then. At first it felt very delicate and I found myself very anxious about how it was faring inside my bag with the twin iPod bullies of keys and purse. ('You pin 'im in place, Pursey, while I Yale his pretty face,' 'Right, boss.') I found it a bit of a pain to alter the volume, something I could do with my other devices by feel alone, without having to unearth the thing and take careful aim at the screen. After the first frustrating commute, I came home and wondered if the touch and I were a suitable technological match. The disappointment! But, of course, a tiny amount of love and the caressing of a gentle learning curve were rewarded by the bountiful array of features available.

The obvious advantages became apparent immediately, when I was able to stream BBC iPlayer episodes during my lunchbreak. That glorious screen was also useful for showing snapshots of my students' artwork and my mother's cat to pretending-to-be-interested colleagues. And the wireless capabilities, which I had earlier considered to be utterly pointless, were a joy in the dead of night, when insomnia struck and I was able to browse celebrity gossip sites under the duvet, without sitting up and disturbing Husband. Next came the applications - oh my! I have a fake fishpond and a tip calculator and a French tutor and it's all just a little too exciting. I have to sit on my hands during meetings in order to avoid pulling out the touch at dull moments and challenging the headmaster to a game of Tap Tap Revenge. It's dangerous, people.