iPod

Apple executive e-mail explains new iPod's missing light sensor

For those wondering why Apple did not include an ambient light sensor in its latest iPod Touch, a purported e-mail exchange between a top executive and a customer -- ahem -- shines some light on the subject.

Apple news site iDownloadBlog posts what it says is a back and forth between Apple Marketing Chief Phil Schiller and a customer talking about the lack of a sensor in Apple's recently released fifth-generation iPod model.

According to Schiller's message, which remains unconfirmed, the device is "just too thin" to fit one:

The ambient light sensor does just what … Read more

Friday Poll: Do you still carry a dedicated MP3 player?

With Apple's new round of iPods comes a fresh round of questions about the usefulness of dedicated MP3 players. Smartphones these days can all hold a decent amount of MP3s and we carry them with us wherever we go. Do we need a portable device just for music?

The excitement surrounding new iPods is a fraction of that surrounding new iPhones, but Apple keeps dutifully updating the line with new colors, shapes, and capabilities. There are still plenty of other MP3 players from other brands available, too.

I have an old-generation iPod Touch that sits in an alarm clock … Read more

iPod Touch tough to repair

Apple's latest iPod Touch is pretty tough to repair, iFixit said amid its teardown of the device that also showed some differences from the iPhone 5.

The site gave the fifth-generation iPod a ranking of 3 on a repairability scale of 10, with 10 being the easiest. It noted it's difficult to open the case, but it's not impossible, and the battery is flanked by notches that makes it fairly easy to remove.

However, the volume buttons, microphone, LED flash, and power button are connected with one ribbon cable. To repair one component would require replacing the … Read more

Apple tries to prove it's colorful in new iPod ad

The people at Apple do feel pain.

They might seem confident, arrogant even, on the outside. But inside, they just want to be loved like the rest of us.

So when Nokia suggested last week that Apple users were miserable, depressive colorless souls, you can imagine the tears that flowed in Cupertino.

I can only imagine, therefore, that the new iPod ads that Apple released today -- and currently gracing the Oakland A's latest attempt at redemption -- are an attempt to redress a grievous stylistic slight.

Here are lovely large-screened iPod Touches positively rejoicing in their colorfulness.

They'… Read more

Apple ships mic-less EarPods with new iPod Touch

Whenever Apple brings out a new iPod Touch, the specs never quite measure up to the latest iPhone's, though the Touch is a good deal lighter and thinner. In the case of the new fifth-generation iPod Touch, you get an A5 processor instead of an A6 and the camera isn't as good as the iPhone 5's camera (though it has improved quite a bit).

Alas, iPod Touch buyers should also note that while Apple has included its new EarPods, they're missing a small but important feature: the inline remote with integrated microphone found on the iPhone … Read more

Apple now shipping new iPod Touch

Those of you who ordered Apple's new iPod Touch may soon see one at your doorstep.

Apple seems to have just started shipping the latest iPod Touch to buyers today. A notice received by a Gigaom writer in Pennsylvania cited October 9 as the ship date from China and October 15 as the estimated delivery date.

The new iPod Touch was unveiled last month at Apple's iPhone 5 launch event. But the company never revealed a specific availability date for the Touch as it did for the new iPhone. Apple's online store still lists October as the "available to ship" date. … Read more

A better-sounding $5 alternative to Bluetooth or AirPlay streaming

My preferred and better-sounding alternative to wireless audio streaming is a simple plug-and-play solution: it's a wire. There are no hassles with pairing, synching, dropouts, or glitches, and a skinny wire can get the job done with the best possible fidelity. The wire is also "backwards" compatible with any portable device with a headphone jack, and any iPod speaker, hi-fi system, sound bar, or computer speaker you already own! Sit on your couch with your phone or tablet and play your tunes, with a wire running to the speakers.

Sure, if you never sit in one spot, … Read more

JDS Labs' overachieving headphone amplifiers

John Seaber started JDS Labs in 2007 with the cMoyBB headphone amp, which is based on an open-source design. Seaber revamped the cMoy's power supply and volume control, added a DC power jack, and a special bass boost switch. The tiny amp sold well and got the company off the ground. The cMoyBB is still being made, in an Altoids tin box, and currently sells for $60. Seaber is 26 and has an electrical engineering degree from Missouri S&T University.

The JDS Labs Objective2 (02) sells for $144, and it's equally adept with full-size and in-ear … Read more

Apple's new iPods reportedly in scant supply

Apple's latest iPhone might not be the only device from the company that's difficult to pick up right around its launch.

A new report from Japanese Apple blog Macotakara claims that initial shipments of Apple's new iPods are due in the country next Tuesday, but that there are "considerably few numbers of the initial shipment."

The new iPods, which Apple debuted at the same event as the iPhone 5 in September are scheduled to ship sometime this month, though Apple has not provided specifics. A report from earlier today claimed it could be another two … Read more