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Don't get me wrong, I think the original iPod and even the iPod Nano are really great devices which, if I could afford, I would buy for myself. However, the addition of video doesn't have the "gee whiz" factor that Apple and the general media seem to think it is.

For a start, viewing video on that tiny little screen is going to be a bit of a pain. I know that although the little LCD TV I bought years ago seemed like a great idea at the time, it turned out to be a bit of a waste of money. It's just plain hard work watching video on a screen measuring any less than 100mm diagonaly.

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The iPod's 2.5 inch (63mm) screen is probably going to be just too small to be enjoyable. Based on my own experiences, much of the detail you normally take for granted when watching video on a larger screen just isn't visible on such a small display.

Watch a movie or TV programme on a decently-sized screen and you can read the subtitles, that plot-crucial hand-written letter and signposts that appear on the screen. Cut the image down to just over 6cm and you've no idea what you're supposed to see. Of course if you're only going to watch music vids then that won't be too much of a problem -- isn't life a little too short for that?

The other problem is that Apple seem not to have actually watched how people use their iPods.

One of the reasons that the iPod has become so ubiquitous is that it's a "background" device. It serves up music or Podcast material that you can assimilate while you're doing other things. Whether you're sitting on the bus, walking in the park, working or just reading a book, your iPod can keep you informed and almost subliminally entertained with audio content.

Video however, is a totally different beast.

Try to watch a music vid or an episode of your favourite TV series while you're walking, jogging, driving, working or even eating and you'll probably come to grief pretty quickly.

Video is a medium that doesn't just sit in the background, it monopolises our two key senses.

Now I'm not saying that the *new* iPod will be a flop -- after all it still has all the cool functionality of the old one with the video capabilities just being a free extra. Folks will still buy them and use them -- but I think that Apple may find it hard to duplicate the success of their iTunes operation when it comes to selling video content online.

If Apple want to score a home-run with the iPod then they should add several much-needed features to it:

• an FM radio tuner and record function
• a VHF/UHF TV tuner and record/TIVO function
• a camera to allow it to act as a compact hard-disk based digital camera and camcorder

As a consumer, I'd be happy to pay an extra $200 for these additional features and exactly why Apple didn't include them remains a mystery to me.

What's your take on the new iPod?

Would you bother upgrading from an existing version just to get the video capabilities?

Would you use any of the functions that I think they should have also included?

And if anyone from Apple is reading this, just email me for my delivery address, I'll be waiting by the mailbox :-)

Go have your say in The Aardvark Forums

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